Capitol Police chief: Law enforcement has been working 'around the clock' to ensure safe Sept. 18 rally

U.S. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger has cautioned that law enforcement will not tolerate violence or "criminal behavior of any kind" during Saturday's "Justice for J6" rally, a planned protest in support of Jan. 6 defendants.

"The American public and the members of Congress have an expectation that we protect the Capitol," said Manger during a press conference on Friday. "And I'm confident with the plan we have in place that we're gonna be able to meet that expectation." The police have been working "around the clock" over the last several weeks to prepare for the Sept. 18 demonstration, and "ensure we don't have a repeat of Jan. 6," he explained.

"Our mission tomorrow ... is to protect everyone's rights to free speech and to allow them to lawfully demonstrate," Manger said, "but there have been some threats of violence."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
See more

Manger said it would be "foolish" to disregard the intelligence police have gathered, thus clarifying the reason for safety precautions — not only because of the chatter police have heard, but because now is as good a time as any to practice and improve their safety response model. "We're not taking any chances," said Manger, per Roll Call's Chris Marquette.

See more

The police chief also mentioned that three groups might counterprotest on Saturday, two of which "haven't had much of a history of violence," but one who "has had some clashes before." He did not name the groups outright.

See more

Manger has not heard of any elected officials who plan to attend.

To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Brigid Kennedy

Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.