Armed protesters gathered outside the capitals of several states on Sunday, while all 50 states and Washington, DC, battled for possible violence before the inauguration day – but the events were muted and non-violent.
In Columbus, Ohio, about 50 supporters of President Trump – some with assault rifles and other firearms – escorted a “Liberty or Death” flag to the State House, according to USA Today.
According to the local sales website WBNS, counter-protesters were met, at least one of whom carried a flag of Black Lives Matter.
But no violence or arrests were reported, and most participants left at 2:30 p.m.
About 200 miles away in Lansing, Michigan, a handful of armed protesters marched on various right-wing and anarchist militias outside the State House, according to The Detroit Free Press.
But the event was attended even worse than the demonstration in Ohio, with only about 20 people showing up, the newspaper reported.
By 4pm, there were no reports of violence or arrests – and police guards packed up their riot gear, according to the Free Press.
At the Texas Capitol in Austin, about 100 protesters turn up. One, with an AR-15 rifle, condemned those who stormed the U.S. capital in DC.
‘All we came here today to do was discuss, get together, network and hang out. “It blew up and went completely out of proportion,” said Ben Hawk.
And in the Oregon capital of Salem, a dozen men in black – and some in Hawaiian shirts, the preferred uniform of the far-right ‘boogaloo’ movement, stood outside the State House with long guns, the Oregonian reported.
The FBI last week issued warnings about possible unrest at state capitals following the deadly riot in the US Capitol on January 6.
Several state capitals and DC have called on the National Guard to step up security in the days before – and possibly after – the inauguration of Joe Biden on Wednesday.
In the Beltway alone, about 21,000 National Guard troops are expected to be on hand Wednesday, forcing a massive perimeter around the U.S. Capitol, where Biden is to be sworn in as president – two weeks to the day after Trump supporters invaded in ‘ a deadly attempt. to disrupt the certification of the Congress of Biden’s victory.
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