WASHINGTON -- Despite ample warnings about pro-Trump demonstrations in Washington, U.S. Capitol Police did not bolster staffing on Wednesday and made no preparations for the possibility that the planned protests could escalate into massive violent riots, according to several people briefed on law enforcement’s response.
The revelations shed new light on why Capitol police were so quickly overrun by rioters.
The department had the same number of officers in place as on a routine day.
While some of those officers were outfitted with equipment for a protest, they were not staffed or equipped for a riot.
Records show fervent Trump fans fueled US Capitol takeover
The violent mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol last week was overwhelmingly made up of longtime Trump supporters.
The Associated Press reviewed social media posts, voter registrations, court files and other public records for more than 120 people connected to the rioting.
They include Republican Party officials, GOP political donors, far-right militants, white supremacists and adherents of the QAnon conspiracy theory.
The evidence gives lie to claims that the violence at the Capitol was perpetrated by left-wing antifa thugs rather than supporters of the president.
An FBI official says investigators have seen “no indication” antifa activists were disguised as Trump supporters in the Capitol riot.
