Fencing installed around the U.S. Capitol for months after the January 2021 insurrection will be put back up before President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address on Tuesday as concern grows about potential demonstrations or truck convoys snarling traffic in the nation’s capital.
Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said in a statement Sunday that the fence will be erected around the Capitol building for the speech and is being put up “out of an abundance of caution,” in consultation with the Secret Service.
The move comes as officials in Washington prepare for trucker convoys that are planning protests against pandemic restrictions beginning this week. The Pentagon has already approved the deployment of 700 unarmed National Guard troops to be used to assist with traffic control during potential demonstrations.