The September 18 right-wing rally in Washington, DC, has brought a new wave of concern about more potential violence on Capitol Hill as law enforcement prepares for a variety of scenarios.
But it remains unclear how many protesters plan to attend. And the rally is taking place on a Saturday, when both chambers of Congress will be on recess, meaning far fewer lawmakers or staff will be in the area.
The rally is being planned by “Look Ahead America,” a nonprofit led by former Trump campaign staffer Matt Braynard. The group is “dedicated to standing up for patriotic Americans who have been forgotten by our government,” according to their website.
Baynard said in a recent interview with CNN, “This is a completely peaceful protest,” and that “we have told people that when they come, we don’t want to see any messaging about the election, we don’t want to see any messaging on T-shirts and flags or signs about candidates or anything like that.”
Around 500 people have indicated they plan to attend, though [a police] memo notes that past recent events organized by this same group, Look Ahead America, had significantly lower attendance than expected and were peaceful. The rally is also taking place on a Saturday while the US House of Representatives is on recess, and there have been no noticeable increases in hotel reservations for that weekend, according to the memo
Source: CNN and Back up Information: CNN