Gov. Evers sends troops to support inauguration security in D.C.

By Patrick Lynn

Gov. Tony Evers announced this week he’s sending 500 National Guard troops to Washington, D.C.

The mobilization will support civil authorities in the nation’s capital in advance of the presidential inauguration next week.

Soldiers from various Wisconsin Army National Guard units, as well as Airmen from Wisconsin Air National Guard units, will serve alongside thousands of other National Guard troops from other states to “maintain peace and security,” Evers said in a news release.

The troops will arrive in Washington, D.C. over the next several days.

“When our state or nation calls, the Citizen-Soldiers and Airmen of the Wisconsin National Guard are always ready,” said Maj. Gen. Paul Knapp, Wisconsin’s adjutant general. “Whether we’re serving overseas in a combat zone, responding to the pandemic, assisting at the polls, preserving public safety in our own communities, or helping secure our nation’s capital, our state and nation can count on our Soldiers and Airmen to be there during times of need.”

Additional Guard troops were mobilized earlier this week to support safety and security efforts at the state capitol building in Madison. The Wisconsin National Guard is simultaneously playing a major role in the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic with more than 600 troops on duty to run COVID-19 testing sites across Wisconsin and assist with vaccine inventory management.

“We are once again thankful to the Wisconsin National Guard for always stepping up, not only for their friends and neighbors here in Wisconsin, but wherever they are needed,” Evers said in the release. “I’m confident these members of the Guard will assist in any way they can to help maintain peace and security in our nation’s capital in the days ahead.”