Extremists are calling on Trump supporters to “storm” the U.S. Capitol again and stage “armed protests” at state government buildings across the country – including in New York – in the lead-up to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, according to the FBI.
An internal FBI bulletin obtained by ABC News warns that the armed actions are being planned “at all 50 state capitols” between Jan. 16 and Jan. 20.
The U.S. Capitol, which has been under tight security since Wednesday’s deadly pro-Trump attack, faces threats of more armed protests starting Jan. 17 through Inauguration Day, according to the bulletin.
A far-right group that was not identified by name in the bulletin has reportedly called for a particularly violent “storming” of federal and state government buildings in the event that President Donald Trump is removed from office before Biden’s inauguration, amid growing momentum on Capitol Hill for impeachment or an invocation of the 25th Amendment.
“They have warned that if Congress attempts to remove POTUS via the 25th Amendment, a huge uprising will occur,” the bulletin reportedly states.
The FBI did not return a request for comment on Monday.
It is not clear from the bulletin how large the suspected actions will be.
A poster circulating on Parler, a social media platform used by the far-right, called on followers to stage an “armed march on Capitol Hill & all state capitols” on Jan. 17.
“Refuse to be silenced,” blared the poster, a screen-grab of which was obtained by the Daily News before Parler was shut down Sunday by its web host.
A Parler user who shared the poster captioned it with a hashtag saying “boogaloo,” a call to arms used by a white supremacist group that advocates a second civil war to overthrow the U.S. government.
At least 10,000 National Guard troops will be in Washington by this Saturday to help with security at the U.S. Capitol through Biden’s Jan. 20 inauguration.
The rumblings of more far-right violence come as House Democrats are pushing full steam ahead to impeach Trump for inciting last Wednesday’s assault on the Capitol, which left a police officer and at least four other people dead.
The pro-Trump rioters invaded the Capitol after the president told them at a massive rally outside the White House to “fight like hell” to stop the congressional certification of Biden’s election.
Trump has not apologised for stoking the insurrection, though he admitted for the first time in the wake of the attack that he lost the Nov. 3 election and that Biden would be inaugurated as the next president.
tca/dpa
