Officials on Sunday called for a balance between security measures and the need to keep the U.S. Capitol accessible to the public, after another attack targeted it this week.
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A Capitol Police officer was killed and another injured on Friday, when a man rushed his car at them before crashing into a security fence. The driver then exited the vehicle with a knife in his hand, before being shot.
The attack came three months after the deadly assault on Congress headquarters in Washington, carried out on Jan.6 by pro-Trump protesters, which included far-right activists.
The debate around the protection of the site was thus relaunched, in particular concerning the barrier which had been erected after the assault of January 6 all around the buildings forming this complex. Part had just been removed recently, and the security perimeter had been tightened around the main building and its famous dome.
Republican Senator from Missouri Roy Blunt warned against the idea of barricading the premises.
“I think it would be a mistake if the barriers were put up permanently around the Capitol,” he told ABC, noting that they were “right there when the assailant’s car” attacked them. police officers Friday.
Retired Lieutenant-General Russel Honore, who conducted an audit of the security system after the assault on January 6, said elected officials on both sides had mentioned security as a priority – while wishing the building to be “100% Accessible.
“This is something put forward by all the members of Congress we spoke to during the six weeks we were there: they want public access,” he said on ABC.
It would be possible to achieve such a balance with more “resources for the Capitol police, improvements to cameras and sensors, and barriers,” he said. He also suggested that 200 National Guard soldiers be permanently deployed to the scene, for a period of two years, as had been the case after 9/11.
Recommendations have been given, he added. “We provided them with a plan. We worked on it a lot. Now it’s up to Congress to work on it. ”