Maryland governor said he was repeatedly denied authorization to send National Guard to D.C.


Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) said Thursday that after receiving a request for help from the District of Columbia on Wednesday, he immediately mobilized the state police and National Guard, but was repeatedly denied authorization to deploy.
Hogan explained that while on a video conference call with Japan's ambassador, his chief of staff interrupted to tell him "the U.S. Capitol was under attack." He organized an emergency meeting to mobilize the police and Maryland National Guard, he said, and during the meeting, Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), the No. 2 House Democrat, called from "an undisclosed bunker" to tell Hogan that Capitol Police were "overwhelmed" by the pro-Trump mob storming the Capitol.
Hoyer was "pleading with us" to send the National Guard, Hogan said, and he had to tell him authorization had not yet come through. About 90 minutes later, Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy called Hogan to ask, "Can you come as soon as possible?" The governor responded, "Yeah, we've been waiting. We're ready."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

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.
"I can't tell you what was going on on the other end, on the decision-making process," Hogan said. "There's been lots of speculation in the media about that, but I'm not privy to what was going on inside the White House or inside the Pentagon." There are 500 Maryland National Guard members on standby outside of D.C., Hogan said, and he wants to "assure all Americans that the state of Maryland will do anything and everything we possibly can to continue to secure the core of our nation's capital and to ensure the peaceful transition of power."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Judge orders US to recall deported migrant
Speed Read The Trump administration has been ordered to retrieve one of the migrants it sent to a prison in El Salvador due to an 'administrative error'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump calls tariffs 'medicine' as stocks plunge
Speed Read 'Sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something,' the president said of his imposed 10% tariffs on imported goods
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump axes NSA head, NSC staff after Loomer advice
Speed Read On the recommendation of Laura Loomer, Trump fired the head of the National Security Agency and several National Security Council officials
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump says tariffs 'going very well' as markets fall
speed read US financial markets had their biggest one-day drop since the advent of Covid-19
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump rolls out tariffs on virtually all imports
Speed Read On "Liberation Day," Trump announced a 10% baseline tariff on all imports to America and higher reciprocal tariffs for some 60 other countries
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sen. Booker's 25-hour speech beats Thurmond
Speed Read He spoke for the longest time in recorded Senate history, protesting the Trump administration's policies
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Bondi seeks death penalty for Luigi Mangione
Speed Read Mangione was charged with fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last year
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Democrats win costly Wisconsin court seat
Speed Read Democrats prevailed in an election for the Wisconsin Supreme Court despite Elon Musk's robust financial support of the Republican candidate
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published