MELROSE, MASS. (WHDH) - Thousands of National Guard troops are deploying to the nation’s capital to ensure a peaceful transfer of power for President-Elect Joe Biden on Wednesday.
More than 20,000 troops from across the country are being deployed ahead of Biden’s inauguration, including members of the Rhode Island and Massachusetts National Guard.
The extraordinary security effort follows violent riots at the US Capitol last week led by pro-Trump protesters.
Lt. Colonel Michael Manning of the Rhode Island National Guard said troops will be providing support to local law enforcement in DC.
“It’s not just those providing crowd control but it’s also communication support, medical evacuation support, etc. So there’s a wide variety of different ways our people will be deployed,” Manning said.
Gov. Charlie Baker decided to activate 1,000 National Guard troops this week. 500 will be deployed to DC ahead of Inauguration Day.
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