Virginia National Guard soldiers stand guard in Washington, D.C., Jan. 11, 2021. National Guard soldiers and airmen from several states have traveled to Washington to provide support leading up to Inauguration Day. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Bryan Myhr)
Instead of holding thousands of members of America's National Guard in high esteem, and treating them that way, for guarding the nation's Capitol two weeks after a riot there, the Washington establishment ordered the soldiers to spend their off time in a parking garage.
They were moved quickly back out after the actions became public, but the anger surged as governors from several states immediately ordered their troops back home and one commentator even pointed out to the Biden administration such actions likely were banned by the Geneva Convention.
There now remain arguments over who is responsible for the major policy mistake.
CNN reported members of the Guard were allowed back into the Capitol Complex after the outrage of their orders to a parking garage erupted.
Guard members previously had been allowed to use several designated areas in the complex, that that permission abruptly was removed.
"We honestly just feel betrayed," one guardsman said when the orders hit. "We were deemed useless and banished to a corner of a parking garage."
The outrage was bipartisan, with Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee announcing an investigation into the situation and Illinois Democrat Sen. Tammy Duckworth promising she would follow up to make certain the Guard was allowed back in.
Images showed Guard members lying down on the concrete parking lot floor, with some resting against concrete pillars. One report said there was one electrical outlet and two restrooms for 5,000 personnel.
A report at Breitbart pointedly explained to Washington's managers, "The Geneva Conventions expressly forbid forcing prisoners of war from sleeping on concrete, or in parking garages. In other words, His Fraudulency Joe Biden, America’s feeble commander-in-chief, has already treated his own troops in a way that violates the Geneva Conventions. Technically, it’s not a violation because the Geneva Conventions directly relate to prisoners of war."
The report continued, "And here is the relevant portion of the Geneva Conventions Act of 1964: The premises shall be fully protected from dampness, adequately heated and lighted, in particular between dusk and lights out. The sleeping quarters shall be sufficiently spacious and well ventilated, and the internees shall have suitable bedding and sufficient blankets, account being taken of the climate, and the age, sex, and state of health of the internees. … Let’s count the violations shall we? Not adequately heated, Not well ventilated (exhaust fumes), No suitable bedding, No sufficient blankets."
One report revealed President Donald Trump had sent a message that the troops would be welcome in his hotel in Washington, and talk radio host Rush Limbaugh cited a military source who commented: "This is how Joe Biden's America treats solders (sic)."
MILITARY SOURCE IN DC:
“For the last week my battalion has been sleeping on the floor in the Senate cafeteria. Today the Senate kicked us out & moved us to a cold parking garage.
5000 soldiers.
1 power outlet.
One bathroom.
This is how Joe Biden’s America treats solders.”PHOTOS pic.twitter.com/622sQmciq4
— Benny (@bennyjohnson) January 22, 2021
"The Democrats, when they no longer needed the National Guard, sent them to a parking garage. There were no beds. There was just a parking garage. There were oil slicks in there under the places where people would park their cars. That’s where they were sent, after they had done their duty of being the photo op. Yeah, we need the Guard here because you never know what kind of plans the Trump people might have!" he said.
"We need the Guard here to protect the government, to protect the Capitol, to protect the immaculation of Biden," he said.
Limbaugh said he believed the presence of the military in Washington was "to send a message. That the nation’s capital is still unstable, that the nation’s capital may not be held totally by friendly forces, that there is a slight possibility that domestic terrorists are planning yet another operation to take back control of the government from Joe Biden," he said.
Fox reported troops already were being ordered to return to their states by Govs. Ron DeSantis, Chris Sununu and Greg Abbott.
Fox reported it apparently was U.S. Capitol Police who ordered the Guard members to move.
But Acting USCP Chief Yogananda Pittman made a different claim, stating, "I want to assure everyone that, with the exception of specific times on Inauguration Day itself while the swearing-in ceremonies were underway, the United States Capitol police did not instruct the National Guard to vacate the Capitol Building facilities. And on Inauguration Day, the Guard was notified and encouraged to reoccupy the spaces in the Capitol and CVC at 2 p.m."
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., tried to explain: "There was one uniformed police officer who issued an order without authority or without going through the chain of command and I'm glad the Capitol Police and the Guard are talking and trying to figure this out. We are going to be able to identify who that person was."
DeSantis wasn't waiting, telling social media, "Last night, I ordered our Adjutant General to bring Florida National Guard soldiers home from the National Capital Region."
In the Washington Examiner was a report that DeSantis explained the military members are 'soldiers" and "not Nancy Pelosi’s servants."
It was not the first scandal that Washington officials have created regarding the use of the National Guard. Earlier, officials insisted on investigating the political backgrounds of Guard members before allowing them to serve in Washington, a move that was canceled by several of the governors who allowed their troops to be summoned to Washington.
"This is the most offensive thing I've ever heard," Abbott tweeted. "No one should ever question the loyalty or professionalism of the Texas National Guard. I authorized more than 1,000 to go to DC. I'll never do it again if they are disrespected like this."
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