Key Capitol Security Officials to be Grilled about What Went Wrong on Jan. 6

Senate presses key officers for answers concerning the Capitol attack on January 6th.

What We Know:

• Key Capitol security officers faced the Senate Rules Committee and the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Tuesday. The four individuals, three of whom resigned following the insurrection, turned their eyes to the intelligence community as those to blame for the attack on the Capitol. The men also saw their failures in protecting the Capitol during Tuesday’s hearing.
• The individuals who testified included former Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Michael Stenger, former House Sergeant-at-Arms Paul Irving, former U.S. Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund, and Robert Contee, chief of the Metropolitan Police Department. Contee made the following statement to the committee, “I was surprised at the reluctance to immediately send in the National Guard to the Capitol riots.” He testified on Tuesday that the Capitol Police requested back-up immediately.
• A key portion of the trial came from the FBI offices in Norfolk, VA. Officials stated that there were tips prior to the attack. Sund testified that he had only learned of this tip days before Tuesday’s hearing. He also testified that he made an effort to ask for the National Guard’s help during the riot on Capitol Hill but was given it too late.
• The committee chose to look at the flaws which riddle the defense of the Capitol. In particular, Democratic senators sought to give more control to local authorities when calling the National Guard. The lack of urgency in deploying troops to the Capitol led lawmakers to grill the four men.
• Contee pointed out the deliberate use of bear spray, hand signals, and planning that went into the siege. All four men agreed that the attack was not a spur-of-the-moment action but rather a well-thought-out plan. Nonetheless, the committee recognized that the actions of Jan 6th left individuals dead on both sides of the attack.

The attempt to overturn the election by force failed miserably, but there is much to analyze. January 6th calls into question not only the safety of our nation’s Capitol but also makes clear how fragile and divided our home is.