Members of the National Guard have been vetted before Wednesday's inauguration ceremonies, but four-star Gen. Daniel Hokanson, the chief of the National Guard Bureau, says he is "not concerned" about the potential of extremists being in the ranks for the 25,000 men and women who have been deployed to Washington, D.C.
"It's not a threat for me," Hokanson said on NBC's "Today." "We don't allow extremism of any type in our organization. When we look at this as a national special security event, the inauguration, this type of vetting is standard. With all of these events, based on the size, it's gotten a lot of attention lately."
While officials say there has been no official threat of insider violence, a U.S. Army Reservist with alleged white supremacist beliefs was one of the suspects who has been charged in the Jan. 6 attack at the U.S. Capitol, reports CBS News.
The reservist, Timothy Louis Hale-Cusanelli of Colts Neck, New Jersey, was charged on Sunday with counts including violent entry and disorderly conduct and obstructing a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder.
Meanwhile, Hokanson said that members of the Guard will be armed during the inauguration, but Hokanson said that "first and foremost" they are trained in de-escalation techniques and want to de-escalate any situation they are in.
"When it comes to arming, that decision is made by the lead law enforcement agency," he said. "We're in very close coordination with them, to make sure that whatever we ask our soldiers and airmen to do, they're trained and ready for that, so those decisions are based on that."
The Guard will be primarily providing security on Wednesday, along with "logistics, communication, and a lot of coordination with all the other federal agencies involved with the inauguration," according to the general.
The length of the deployment will be "conditions-based," depending on how events go once the inauguration is over, said Hokanson.
"We'll see how the week goes, and then we'll be in close coordination with the lead federal agency," he said. "Based on any enduring requirements, we'll be sure we're here to meet those."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.