Armed protesters gathered outside the capitals of several states on Sunday, as all 50 states and Washington DC braced for possible violence ahead of the inauguration day – but the events were muted and without violence.
In Columbus, Ohio, about 50 supporters of President Trump – some with assault rifles and other firearms – escorted a “Freedom or Death” flag to the state house at around 11 a.m., according to USA Today.
The group was met by counter-protesters, at least one of whom carried a Black Lives Matter flag, according to local outlet WBNS.
But no violence or arrests were reported, and most of those in attendance had left by 2:30 PM
About 200 miles away in Lansing, Michigan, a handful of armed protesters associated with various right-wing and anarchist militias gathered outside the state house, according to The Detroit Free Press.
But that event was even more sparsely attended than the Ohio demonstration, with only about 20 people showing up, the paper reported.
At 4 p.m., there were no reports of violence or arrests – and guards were packing up their riot gear, according to the Free Press.
About 100 protesters showed up at the Texas Capitol in Austin. One of them, carrying an AR-15 rifle, convicted those who stormed the DC Capitol.
“All we came here to do was discuss, gather, network and hang out. And it was blown up and twisted completely out of proportion, ”said Ben Hawk.
And in the Oregon capital of Salem, about a dozen men in black – and some in Hawaiian shirts, the favorite attire of the far-right “boogaloo” movement – stood with long guns in front of the state house, the Oregonian reported.
The FBI had issued warnings last week of possible unrest in state capitals in the wake of the deadly uprising at the Capitol on Jan. 6.
Several capitals and DC have called on the National Guard to increase security in the days leading up to – and possibly beyond – Joe Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday.
In the Beltway alone, about 21,000 National Guard troops are expected to be in attendance on Wednesday, enforcing a massive perimeter around the U.S. Capitol where Biden will be sworn in as president – two weeks to the day after Trump supporters invaded a deadly attempt to disrupt Congressional certification of Biden’s victory.
With pole wires