National Guard troops being screened ahead of inauguration

WASHINGTON • US law enforcement agencies are screening National Guard members to make sure they do not pose a security risk during President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration tomorrow.

Following the Jan 6 riots at the Capitol building in support of outgoing President Donald Trump, it emerged that some of those involved had current or former ties to the military.

General Daniel Hokanson, who heads the National Guard Bureau, was asked by CBS News on Sunday if troops were being checked as they arrived in Washington.

"In coordination with the Secret Service and the FBI, they're screening all the personnel that are coming in," Gen Hokanson said.

Much of Washington resembles a fortified compound in a war zone, with most of the downtown area blocked off, security fences topped by razor wire and about 25,000 National Guard troops deployed to the capital.

US Capitol Police said a woman was arrested on Saturday after she drove up to an inauguration checkpoint and falsely claimed she was a police officer and a member of the President's Cabinet.

The woman who the police identified as Linda MaGovern, 63, of Connecticut, pulled up to a checkpoint 500m from the Capitol and showed officers a "military police challenge coin", an unofficial keepsake widely distributed in military and police communities, according to a police report.

When asked for her driver's licence, she began to drive away.

The police were able to stop her about 100m away, and she was accused of three crimes: Impersonating a police officer, failing to obey a police officer and trying to flee a police officer.

The report said she was taken to hospital for psychiatric evaluation.

The arrest is the latest to raise alarm as the city braces itself for protests ahead of the inauguration.

On Sunday, law enforcement officers far outnumbered protesters at state capitol grounds, as few Trump supporters who believe the President's false claim that he won the 2020 election turned out for what the authorities feared could be violent demonstrations.

More than a dozen states activated National Guard troops to help secure their capitol buildings following an FBI warning of armed demonstrations, with right-wing extremists emboldened by the deadly Capitol attack on Jan 6.

Security officials had eyed Sunday as the first major flashpoint, as the anti-government "boogaloo" movement made plans weeks ago to hold rallies in all 50 states.

But by evening, only small gatherings of demonstrators had taken to the streets alongside much larger crowds of law enforcement officers and media personnel.

"It was a non-event and we are glad it was," said Mr Troy Thompson, spokesman for the Department of General Services, the agency that protects the Pennsylvania Capitol in Harrisburg.

It was unclear how much the FBI warning and robust security presence led protesters to cancel plans.

Some militias and extremist groups told followers to stay home, citing the increased security or the risk that the planned events were law enforcement traps.

A small group of about a dozen protesters, a few armed with rifles, stood outside Michigan's capitol.

"I am not here to be violent and I hope no one shows up to be violent," said one man in front of the capitol building, wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat and waving a "Don't tread on me" flag.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, NYTIMES, REUTERS