Top General: Large Military Presence at Inauguration
Roll Call
More than 10,000 active-duty military and National Guard personnel are expected to help with security or participate in next month’s presidential inauguration, a top military officer said Wednesday morning.
Air Force Gen. Victor Renuart, head of the Defense Department’s Northern Command, which oversees military support for homeland security, told the Defense Writers Group that about 7,500 active-duty military personnel and 4,000 National Guardsmen were due in town for the Jan. 20 inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama.
Renuart said there have been no specific threats to the inauguration, but he called it “prudent” to have military forces available to deter or respond to a potential threat. Officials are anticipating more than 1 million people will descend on the city for the event.
Renuart would not provide a more specific breakdown, but he said some of those troops would be supporting federal law enforcement efforts and others would have a ceremonial role, such as walking in the parade or providing honor cordons. He stressed that the Secret Service has the lead role in providing inaugural security but said the military would be an “active participant.”
For example, the four-star general said the military will provide enhanced air-defense patrols over Washington during the festivities and will have chemical response teams available in the event of a nuclear, biological or chemical attack. He said the military has provided similar support for the national political conventions and Super Bowls.
Additionally, the Metropolitan Police Department is expected to have 8,000 personnel on duty, half of which will come from law enforcement agencies across the country. That’s 1,000 more officers than at President George W. Bush’s inauguration in 2005.
Other federal agencies, including the Secret Service and National Park Service, have yet to say how many personnel they will have on hand. All 1,600 Capitol Police officers also are expected to help out.
Wild Thing’s comment…….
President Bush’s second inauguration. Obama’s numbers seem slightly up – but not by that much. And here I thought he was their Messiah. hahaha
19 January 2005
The second inauguration of George W. Bush will be held Thursday under a massive police/military presence. Some 6,000 police are being deployed, backed by 7,000 troops who will be placed on alert. Sniper teams will be stationed on rooftops. Plainclothes specialists looking for chemical, biological or radiological agents will mingle through the crowd, carrying hand-held detectors. Twenty-two checkpoints will be set up to search spectators and screen them with metal detectors.
My Soldier daughter is going to be one of the active duty there. Not sure what she will be doing yet. Being at Ft Belvoir, she gets to know a lot of the Secret Service (they bring their bomb dogs to the Vet clinic there). And she gets to go to Quantico and sees places you and I can’t. I’m a bit envious. I tried to get her to hook me up so I could go too! lol Didn’t work out, tho…they have rules or something about civilians. sheesh!
Interesting that the PEBHO bots are so paranoid, they enjoy the good press, much unlike 8 years ago when the press was decrying foul, Soreloserman was romping about like an enraged Rhino with the press calling for Bush’s head on a platter. This should be more akin to Woodstock. OOOM!
Glad your daughter gets the honor at Ft. Belvoir Yankeemom, fete not fate. Once I was headed there but my Uncle Sammy decided that I serve elsewhere, where the temperature was a tad bit warmer and not as an Engineer, alas, MOS changes, easy, unless it’s you who wants it, LOL.:) Congratulations!!!
I am not concerned about how many military, Secret Service, or local police are required to protect the illegitimate PEBO. I am concerned who and what is going to protect the country from Barack Hussein Obama.
Yankeemom, wow that is really something. I hope the weather stays ok and no snow that day and not too cold. Not because of the voters being there and the Obama people, but because of the military being there. They are the ones I care about.
Jack, LOL I remember the Soreloserman days. hahaa
Nick and I were in a peaceful parade down main street, with cars, bikers and all of us with Soreloserman signs and the American flag. It was such fun and Nick kept yelling out his window…. FREEDOM. Like Braveheart. giggle. It took 4 days after that for Nick to get his voice back.
Les,……” I am concerned who and what is going to protect the country from Barack Hussein Obama.”………
It is frustrating, we just have to wait and that is so hard. Like Rush said today, Obama will fail for sure and many of his voters will learn to hate him and be very disappointed it has already begun. But he also said what will happen in 2010 and on by the Republcians will decide if we ever take back the Houses and the White House and he said they the Republican leaders better “get some balls”. He is right, we are sunk if they don’t see they are the ones handing the power over to the left.