Police and the National Guard in Washington D.C. are bracing for violence as pro-Trump and far-right protesters around the U.S. to gather in the nation’s capital to protest President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.
In a series of tweets Monday, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Houston called on Trump to rein in the Proud Boys and other far-right groups that have already sparked two weeks of protest and violent brawls in the city.
“The President of the United States needs to return to Washington D.C. and demand that the Proud Boys and Boogaloo Boys cease the violence they are promoting this week in the nation’s capital, the seat of democracy,” Lee wrote.
The far-right protesters have been gathering in Washington in preparation for a major Trump protest on Wednesday that will coincide with a congressional vote to certify the electoral college count, which some Texas Republicans, including Sen. Ted Cruz, are objecting to.
“This President and only this President has the power to stop this potential unwarranted violence heading towards Washington D.C. on the premise of false allegations of fraud in the 2020 election,” Lee continued.
Police in D.C. have already arrested the leader of Proud Boys, a fascist extremist group that plans to cause violence around the city along with other militia and white nationalist groups.
On Monday, D.C. police arrested the 36-year-old leader of the Proud Boys on charges of destruction of the property, stemming from the December burning of a Black Lives Matter flag from a historically Black church. Police said the Proud Boys leader had high high-capacity firearm magazines at the time of his arrest.
In September, Trump made headlines during his debate with Biden when he refused to condemn white nationalists and racists, and instead told the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by.”
Photo: Andrew Harrer – Pool/Getty Images
Fernando covers Texas politics and government at the Texas Signal. Before joining the Signal, Fernando spent two years at the Houston Chronicle and previously interned at Houston’s NPR station News 88.7. He is a graduate of the University of Houston, Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, and enjoys reading, highlighting things, and arguing on social media. You can follow him on Twitter at @fernramirez93 or email at fernando@texassignalarchive.com
