The Latest: Official says 'optics' delayed Capitol response

  • Army Maj. Gen. William Walker, Commanding General of the District of Columbia National Guard speaks during a Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and Senate Committee on Rules and Administration joint hearing Wednesday, March 3, 2021, examining the January 6, attack on the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (Greg Nash/Pool via AP)
  • In this Feb. 2, 2021 file photo, acting U.S. Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman pays respects to U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick in the Capitol Rotunda in Washington. (Erin Schaff/The New York Times via AP, Pool)
  • FILE - In this Jan. 6, 2021 file photo insurrectionists loyal to President Donald Trump riot outside the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)
  • FILE - In this Jan. 6, 2021, file photo rioters try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington. Congress is set to hear from former security officials about what went wrong at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)
  • FILE—In this image taken from Capitol building security camera footage and released in a criminal complaint by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Derek Jancart, circled in red by the source, joins other rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. Jancart, of Ohio, was arrested Tuesday, Feb. 23, and accused of entering the U.S. Capitol after family members and a former coworker identified him in footage captured during the deadly insurrection, according to U.S. District Court documents. At least 10 Ohioans have been charged in connection with the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S Capitol after being identified through social media and surveillance footage to the FBI. The group includes people linked to the Oath Keepers militia group who have been indicted on charges that they planned and coordinated with one another in the attack. (U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia via AP, File)
  • FILE - In this Feb. 18, 2021, file photo the U.S. Capitol is seen behind the razor fence around the U.S. Capitol. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
  • FILE - In this Jan. 6, 2021, file photo, smoke fills the walkway outside the Senate Chamber as rioters are confronted by U.S. Capitol Police officers inside the Capitol in Washington. At least 10 Ohioans have been charged in connection with the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S Capitol after being identified through social media and surveillance footage to the FBI. The group includes people linked to the Oath Keepers militia group who have been indicted on charges that they planned and coordinated with one another in the attack. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
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Capitol Breach

Army Maj. Gen. William Walker, Commanding General of the District of Columbia National Guard speaks during a Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and Senate Committee on Rules and Administration joint hearing Wednesday, March 3, 2021, examining the January 6, attack on the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (Greg Nash/Pool via AP)
·2 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on congressional testimony about the Capitol insurrection (all times local):

11:35 a.m.

The head of the National Guard for Washington, D.C., says Pentagon concerns about “optics” delayed the sending of troops to protect the Capitol during the Jan. 6 attack.

Maj. Gen. William Walker also noted under Senate questioning Wednesday there were no such concerns expressed when the D.C. National Guard was called out in response to the civil justice demonstrations in the spring and summer of 2020.

Walker testified there was an “unusual” Pentagon memo on Jan. 5 that required him to seek advance authorization from the secretary of the Army and the secretary of defense for specific measures during the gathering of thousands of Trump supporters seeking to force Congress to overturn the November presidential election.

The memo required Walker to seek personal authorization from the secretary of defense for equipment including weapons and body armor. Walker says the secretary of the Army separately authorized the use of protective equipment for the troops.

Walker says D.C. officials pleaded with the Army officials to quickly send the National Guard to help police guard the Capitol. But Walker says senior Army leaders opposed sending uniformed troops to the Capitol. He says, “The Army senior leaders did not think that it looked good."

___

HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT NATIONAL SECURITY OFFICIALS' TESTIMONY ON THE CAPITOL INSURRECTION:

National security officials testify in the second Senate hearing about what went wrong on the day of the Capitol insurrection, facing questions about missed intelligence and botched efforts to quickly gather National Guard troops.

___

HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON:

11 a.m.

The acting chief of the U.S. Capitol Police says there has been a more than 93% increase in the number of threats received by members of Congress in the first two months of this year compared with the same period last year.

Acting Chief Yogananda Pittman testified Wednesday before a House subcommittee. Pittman says there has also been more than a 118% increase in total threats from 2017 to 2020. Pittman says the majority of the suspects behind those threats lived outside Washington, D.C.

Pittman’s testimony comes nearly two months after thousands of pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol as Congress was voting to certify Joe Biden’s presidential win. Five people, including a Capitol Police officer, died as a result of the violence.

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