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Authorities Are Preparing For Even More Far-Right Violence

Authorities in Washington, D.C., and state capitals around the nation are battening down the hatches in anticipation of President Donald Trump’s departure from ― and President-elect Joe Biden’s arrival to ― the White House next week.

In a public briefing on Thursday, FBI Director Christopher Wray said his agency had reason to worry about other potentially violent attacks or demonstrations that could turn ugly over the next several days.

“We are seeing an extensive amount of concerning online chatter about a number of events,” Wray told Vice President Mike Pence, who had a close call with an angry mob calling for his death by hanging during last week’s pro-Trump insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

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Following the Capitol siege, the Secret Service’s detailed plan to secure the D.C. area has come under greater scrutiny, particularly after prosecutors confirmed what many observers suspected: At least some of the furious Trump supporters who forcibly entered the building may have intended to “capture and assassinate” politicians inside.

The FBI warned this week that plans for armed protests have been detected in all 50 states, and many governors and local leaders are already setting up barriers and delaying legislative activity as a precaution.

“The far-right movement is emboldened, broadly speaking, and very dangerous,” Michael E. Hayden, an investigator with the Southern Poverty Law Center, told reporters Friday.

Posts on social media have promoted events such as a “Million Militia March” on Inauguration Day along with various armed events on Jan. 17, the last weekend day of the Trump presidency. Extremists have also been attempting to organize and share tactics in more secretive forums, such as via the messaging app Telegram, NBC News reported.

State capitals may be particularly vulnerable to extremist violence this week.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) has already called on the National Guard to help protect the Capitol in...

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