The FBI has warned of armed protests and attempts to seize state capitols across the country in a new bulletin, ABC reports.
The communique — compiling intelligence gathered by federal law enforcement — warns of armed protests “at all 50 state capitols from 16 January through at least 20 January, and at the US Capitol from 17 January through 20 January.”
The bulletin also suggests that at least one group is calling for a repeat of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. That unidentified organization is planning on storming government offices in every state on Jan. 20, the day of Biden’s inauguration, according to ABC.
The same group, which the bulletin reportedly does not name, is demanding that courthouses and administrative buildings at all levels of government be stormed should President Trump be removed from office before the Jan. 20 inauguration of Joe Biden.
The warnings come as violence around President Trump’s attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election is expected to continue, following the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
On Monday, the National Park Service banned tours of the Washington Monument, citing “credible threats.” The ban will extend until at least Jan. 24, the agency said, as part of a response to groups that are threatening “to disrupt the 59th presidential inauguration.”
And the bulletin itself is a stark reminder of the fact that a bulletin of the same kind — a standard in how federal agencies plan for responding to large, potentially violent events — was not issued in advance of Jan. 6, signaling a severe lack of planning that has left former Homeland Security officials stupefied.
The National Guard has reportedly been authorized to provide up to 15,000 members for securing Biden’s inauguration.
