Four thousand 'armed patriots' plan to surround Congress to stop Trump impeachment, law enforcement reveals at closed-doors briefing

Rep. Conor Lamb revealed Tuesday that law enforcement briefed lawmakers on a 4,000-person group of 'armed patriots' prepared to prevent Democrats from entering the Capitol as they move to impeach Donald Trump

A Democratic representative warned Tuesday that there is an 'ongoing threat' to the Capitol as thousands of 'armed patriots' are ready to descend on Washington D.C. to prevent Democrats from moving forward with impeachment and said they are prepared to use their weapons against members of Congress.

In a closed-door briefing Monday evening, law enforcement informed lawmakers, according to Pennsylvania Representative Conor Lamb, that an 'organized group' of 4,000 people will attempt to prevent Democrats from entering the Capitol.

He said this group of people who consider themselves patriots are following a published 'rules of engagement' on when to shoot and start taking more serious action.

'The threats we are facing are very specific,' Lamb told CNN Tuesday morning. 'I don't want anyone watching at home to think like we're just sort of imagining that things could be bad.'

'They're talking about 4,000 armed patriots to surround the Capitol and prevent any Democrat from going in. And they have published rules of engagement – meaning when you shoot and when you don't,' the Marine veteran and Democratic representative explained.

In another sign that the threats are real and growing, lawmakers were reminded during Monday night's briefing on security threats that bulletproof vests are part of their 'reimbursable expenses.'

President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency in Washington D.C. Monday night as police revealed three plots to attack the Capitol ahead of Joe Biden's inauguration - including the 'largest armed protest in American history.'

It comes as the FBI alerted its staff to possible uprisings at capitals in all 50 states ahead of Inauguration Day on January 20, particularly if Trump is removed from office before Biden enters the White House.

National Guard members have been deployed to Washington D.C. to surround and guard Capitol Hill after a pro-Trump mob stormed the building last Wednesday. Law enforcement feel that was just the tip of the iceberg, and that there is more to come in the next two weeks.

By the end of the week, about 10,000 National Guard troops will be in position in Washington D.C.

Lamb said they were briefed that this group of 'patriots' are following a published 'rules of engagement', including instruction on when to use their weapons and shoot. National Guard members take post outside the Capitol on Tuesday morning

By the end of the week, 10,000 National Guard troops will have been deployed to Washington D.C.

Security fences have been erected all over D.C., including around the Capitol, White House and federal monuments

National Guard and other law enforcement in the city are bracing for more attacks on the nation's capital in the wake of the Capitol breach last Wednesday as Democrats moving forward with impeachment this week

President Donald Trump declared Monday night a state of emergency in Washington D.C. after police revealed three separate plots to attack the Capitol ahead of Joe Biden's inauguration - including the 'largest armed protest in American history'

Trump traveled Tuesday to Texas to visit his the U.S.-Mexico border and celebrate 400 miles of wall completed during his presidency as Democrats plow forward with efforts to remove him from office before his final day on January 20

A National Guard member carries 'emergency ration meals' as members from several states deploy to Washington D.C.

Representative Zoe Lofgren, a 13-term Democrat who was tasked with helping pursue impeachment proceedings in the House the first time around, said security has 'clearly' improved since last week.

While leaving House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office on Tuesday, she told reporters the ongoing threats to Democratic lawmakers are certainly real.

'Well just go look at social media, and you'll see, you know, there's people who are unhinged and into overthrowing the government who are, you know, we saw them last week,' she said of the briefing last night and reports of three separate attacks being planned.

Thousands of protesters breached the Capitol building and spent hours roaming the halls and violating lawmakers' offices and the congressional chambers for around six hours – delaying Congress certifying the election for Joe Biden.

Capitol Police were not able to solely prevent the Capitol breach or fend off the rioters. It took longer than usual to call in National Guard and other law enforcement entities for backup.

'This is an organized group that has a plan,' Lamb said of those who plan to continue the assault on the nation's capital. 'They are committed to doing what they're doing because, I think, in their minds they are patriots.'

'So this is now a contest of wills,' he said. 'You know, we are not negotiating with or reasoning with these people. They have to be prosecuted, they have to be stopped. And unfortunately, this includes the president, which is why he needs to be impeached and removed from office.'

Members of the National Guard, called in from several states like Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey, are standing outside of the Capitol Tuesday as Democrats move forward with articles of impeachment against Trump.

'This is an action purely taken in terms of public safety,' Lamb said as he detailed what law enforcement told members of Congress Monday. 'We are trying to stop the active threat coming from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. He is the person who ties together all of these different hate groups, white supremacy groups, whatever you want to call them.'

Trump's emergency declaration allows the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate with local authorities as Democrats had been furiously demanding.

On Monday night, the new chiefs of Capitol Police told House Democrats they were looking into three separate plans, including one described as 'the largest armed protest ever to take place on American soil.'

But the most concerning is said to involve armed rioters encircling the Capitol and blocking Democrats from entering - killing them if necessary - so that Republicans can take command of government.

Another protest is being planned in honor of Ashli Babbitt, the USAF veteran who was shot at point blank range by a police officer as she tried to clamber into the Speaker's Lobby during the Trump mob's siege.

'It was pretty overwhelming,' one Democrat told Huffington Post of the police briefing.

Meanwhile the FBI's internal memo warned of a group which was calling for the 'storming' of state, local and federal government buildings, as well as court houses if Trump is removed from office.

The bulletin came to light just as Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduced an article of impeachment accusing Trump of incitement to insurrection, five days after the mob of the president's supporters stormed the Capitol, leaving five people dead in a futile bid to overturn the general election.

Cops promise hundreds more MAGA riot arrests in 'unprecedented' manhunt - but only 80 have been caught so far

Fewer than 100 people are believed to have been arrested in connection with Wednesday's MAGA riot and police are now scrambling to catch up with the many who got away thanks to the outnumbered Capitol Police let them all walk free from the scene.

Some 85 people have been arrested and 55 have been charged in total across different jurisdictions but many of the indictments have not been made public. There are ongoing investigations by the Capitol Police, FBI, DC Metropolitan Police and the Department of Justice is assisting them all. The Secretary of the Army also revealed on Sunday that 25 domestic terrorism cases have been opened.

Because of the scale of the operation, hundreds of agents and cops are being deployed to track down the rioters who got away.

It is being described as an 'unprecedented' effort that was hindered from the start because the vast majority of the rioters were able to leave Washington DC last week without being arrested and have now scattered back to their various home states across the country.

On Friday, the Department of Justice released information on 13 of the people they had charged to date.

Since then, some of the more prolific culprits - like QAnon Shaman Jake Angeli, who stormed the Capitol wearing a horned furry hat - and stay-at-home father Adam Johnson, 36, who stole Nancy Pelosi's lectern - have also been taken into custody.

Multiple others have been named as persons of interest but they haven't yet been tracked down, including one man who is reportedly in hiding after being linked to the riots. At least two cops are also under suspicion of having some role in the riots, including an NYPD officer. It's almost an impossibility that the many thousands who stormed the Capitol will all be caught.

Those who have been arrested and charged face will be prosecuted for an array of offences including unlawful entry, firearms possession, assault and making threats.

No one has been charged with murder. Four rioters died in the chaos, as did one cop who collapsed after allegedly being hit over the head with a fire extinguisher. A second cop killed himself days later.

See a list of those who have already been arrested here.

Five people, including one Capitol Police officer and four protesters, died as a result of the chaos. A Capitol Police officer also reportedly killed himself three days after the melee. More than 80 insurgents have already been arrested and at least 25 are facing domestic terrorism charges as the FBI continues searching for others.

DC Acting US Attorney Michael Sherwin said in the Sunday interview with NPR that potentially 'thousands' of people could have information on alleged crimes committed during the Capitol break-in.

'I don't think there's any similar case in DOJ history that compares to that', he said.

Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund and the Sergeants-at-Arms of both the House and Senate, announced their resignations on Thursday, at the request of congressional leaders.

Meanwhile, as Inauguration Day approaches, fears are mounting that the attack may have emboldened extremists to continue their campaign to block Biden's path to the White House, despite the fact that he won the election.

In the days since the Capitol riots, calls for future armed protests have only grown among far-right circles, according to Twitter, which has monitored the chatter on its service.

A former DHS official warned that the Capitol siege could serve as a 'rallying cry' for Trump supporters.

'We could start to see a lot of lives lost because of the moment that occurred on Wednesday, so very, very concerned about the cascading effects,' the official told CNN. 'It's a very concerning moment.'

Jonathan Greenblatt, the head of the Anti-Defamation League, expressed similar concerns, saying that far-right extremists and white supremacists were emboldened by their perceived success last week.

'We fully expect that this violence could actually get worse before it gets better,' Greenblatt said.

A number of extremist groups were spotted among the sea of rioters at the Capitol last week, including the Proud Boys, Oathkeepers, NSC131, New Jersey European Heritage Association, far-right podcaster Nick Fuentes' Groypers, American Nationalist Party and American Guard, according to the Network Contagion Research Institute.

Wednesday's unrest reverberated around the US as smaller protests were staged outside several state capitols. Local officials across the US fear that Inauguration Day could bring further violence to their communities as well.

Washington State Gov Jay Inslee on Friday announced that he was mobilizing up to 750 National Guardsmen to secure the state's capitol in Olympia at the start of the new legislative session on Monday.

'The actions we saw in both Washington, DC, and Olympia earlier this week were completely unacceptable and will not be repeated in our state again,' Inslee, a Democrat, said in a statement, referring to the dozens of people who occupied the state Capitol and breached the grounds of the governor's mansion last Wednesday.

'In light of the most recent insurrection activity, the state cannot tolerate any actions that could result in harm, mayhem or interruption of function of democratic institutions,' he said.

Hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6 in a bid to block the certification of Joe Biden's victory

Members of Congress are seen running for cover as protesters attempted to enter the House Chamber

The protesters used flag poles and other objects to break doors and windows around the Capitol building

Shortly before 2pm, the rioters descended on Capitol Hill while lawmakers were inside certifying the vote. Over the next two hours, the violence escalated. Some broke into politicians' offices, tauntingly sat at their desks and left threatening notes. One of the protesters was shot dead by cops (bottom right)

In New Jersey, state homeland security officials are monitoring plans for protests on January 12 and 20, an official with knowledge of the situation told CNN.

'Some of the online rhetoric has called for protests at all 50 capitals plus DC,' the official said. 'FBI in particular has been continuing to put our threat assessments and we are at the state level as well.'

In New York, which sent about 1,000 members of its National Guard to assist at the US Capitol, state police have also been put on high alert.

'Given recent events in Washington and across the country, the New York State Police has, out of an abundance of caution, taken steps to harden security in and around the State Capitol in Albany,' spokesman Beau Duffy told Law & Order. 'These restrictions are in place until further notice.'

Unrest is also anticipated in Georgia, which was a key target of Trump's campaign to overturn the election results. In a now-infamous call on January 2, Trump pressured Georgia's Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger to 'find' enough votes to erase Biden's victory in the Peach State, but Raffensberger refused.

Members of the Washington National Guard stand near a fence surrounding the state Capitol on Monday

Washington State Gov Jay Inslee on Friday announced that he was mobilizing up to 750 National Guardsmen to secure the state's capitol in Olympia at the start of the new legislative session on Monday

Asked what officials are doing to prepare for protests in the coming days, a spokesperson for the state Department of Public Safety declined to offer details.

'We are aware of potential protests on Jan. 17,' Franka Young, the public affairs program coordinator, wrote in an email to Law & Order. 'However, we do not share our operational plans. We are prepared to respond in the appropriate manner as we have always done in the past. Our primary concern will always be the safety of everyone who works at or visits the Capitol grounds.'

In Michigan, the State Capitol Commission unanimously passed a ban on the open carry of guns in the building on Monday in reaction to the siege in DC last week.

'We continually monitor for security threats and maintain situational awareness of what is happening in Michigan and across the country,' Michigan State Police spokeswoman Shanon Banner said. 'Our security planning is fluid and adjustments are made as needed, from day-to-day.'

Sickening moment maskless 'Karen' COUGHS in the face of grocery store customer, then claims she doesn't have to wear a mask because she 'isn't sick'

A woman was captured on camera following a customer through a supermarket as she coughs on her after claiming she does not need a mask because she is not sick. Video of the incident, which has garnered hundreds of thousands of views on Twitter alone, allegedly took place in a Su per Saver in Lincoln, Nebraska according to Twitter user @davenewworld_2. In it, an unidentified woman was captured dramatically coughing as she smiles saying 'Excuse me! I'm coming through' in the direction of the customer recording her. Scroll down for video An unidentified woman was captured dramatically coughing as she smiles saying 'Excuse me! I'm coming through' in the direction of a woman recording her A woman was captured on camera following a customer as she coughs on her in a supermarket without a mask on claiming she does not need one because she is not sick @chaiteabugz #karen #covid #karens #karensgonewild #karensalert #masks we were just wearing a mask at the store. ¿ o

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