COLCHESTER, Vt. (AP) — More than 100 Vermont National Guard soldiers who helped boost security for President Joe Biden’s inauguration following the insurrection at the Capitol have been asked to stay in Washington into February, a Guard spokesperson said.
About 30 of them returned to Vermont Sunday night and the same number will leave for Washington on Tuesday to replace them, Capt. Mikel Arcovitch wrote in an email Sunday night.
Gov. Phil Scott approved an extension of the Guard’s assignment, mychamplainvalley.com reported. Most of the more than 100 Vermont Guard members will stay in Washington until late February, Arcovitch said.
A U.S. official told The Associated Press that federal law enforcement officials are examining a number of threats aimed at members of Congress as the second trial of former President Donald Trump nears.
The threats, and concerns that armed protesters could return to the Capitol have prompted the U.S. Capitol Police and other federal law enforcement to insist thousands of National Guard troops remain in Washington as the Senate moves forward with plans for Trump’s trial, the official said.
As of Sunday there were fewer than 20,000 Guard members in Washington and all but 7,000 would be returning home in the coming days, the National Guard Bureau said.
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