DC Unrest Megathread

[Blair]

This must be absolutely terrifying for those in the buildings; including the staff who are just doing their job.

How on earth is the security so weak that they're able to not only breach the building but get into the actual chamber?

[Blair]

that twitter warning is something else.

[Blair]

It seems baffling that a Government with a whole host of alphabet soup related security departments couldn't secure the U.S capitol.

I'm not at all an expert of these things but if I had to guess it appears that that there is a rather weird security set up; the D.C police are in charge of the area surronding the capitol, the capitol police are in charge of the estate & the Sergeant at Arms is in charge of the chamber.

In this case it appears that the Secret Service did their job & the House leadership were protected... the Secret Service are suppose to be very much on the ball with these things after their failures in the past.

[Blair]

It seems baffling that a Government with a whole host of alphabet soup related security departments couldn't secure the U.S capitol.

I'm not at all an expert of these things but if I had to guess it appears that that there is a rather weird security set up; the D.C police are in charge of the area surronding the capitol, the capitol police are in charge of the estate & the Sergeant at Arms is in charge of the chamber.

In this case it appears that the Secret Service did their job & the House leadership were protected... the Secret Service are suppose to be very much on the ball with these things after their failures in the past.

It's very different but back in 2017 there was a major attack on the UK Parliament where someone drove through an un-armed gate and stabbed an unarmed police officer; they were luckily shot by a ministerial bodyguard who happened to be nearby through pure luck but if it had been done on a bigger scale we could have seen a mass killing as MPs were voting at that time. In that case they had to physically lock the doors of the commons.

But this is on a completely different scale

[Blair]

In this case it appears that the Secret Service did their job & the House leadership were protected... the Secret Service are suppose to be very much on the ball with these things after their failures in the past.

Security details for the Speaker and other Congressional leaders are provided by the Capitol Police.  Backbench members of the House and Senate don't receive any special protective detail. 

Ah I thought Pelosi got Secret Service protection because she was in the line of succession (I thought I saw Grassley get ushered out)

But yeah I assumed House & Senators didn't; it appears that they pretty much gave up on protecting the entire estate & focused on trying to protect the members- which is a decision you shouldn't have to be making.

[Blair]

I guess the fundamental question is what would have happened if this had been the white house?

[Blair]

The interesting point I've not seen raised & would be interesting to see an experts take on this but I wonder to what extend de-radicalisation training/safeguarding will play a role in this in the future around the far right.

[Blair]

If we see more than 10 republican house members come out in favour I'd finally expect we'd see a senate convinction supported by more than the usual gang of republicans (Romney, Sasse, Collins etc)