At least one group of truckers called the People’s Convoy, which left California more than a week ago, made it to the East Coast and is stationed in Hagerstown, Maryland, about 70 miles northwest of the capital. Reports surfaced on Saturday that at least a thousand trucks, recreational vehicles and cars had gathered there, raising the possibility that the trucks and their supporters could move to Washington to protest pandemic restrictions in the next few days.
It was not clear what the exact plans for the movement of the convoy were. A post on his Facebook page on Saturday afternoon noted that there would be a rally on Saturday night at Hagerstown Speedway, where trucks were congested, and several people noted that the group would travel on Sunday to the Capital Beltway, a highway that surrounds Washington.
One man, who identified himself as the group’s lead trucker, told those who made it to the hippodrome on Friday night that he would drive his truck into the heart of the capital.
“DC, government, anyone can claim that all this opposition is waiting for us in DC,” the man said, according to Reuters. “But this flag on the back of my truck will come down on Constitution Avenue between the White House and the Washington Monument.”
Christopher Rodriguez, director of the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency, said the convoy made it clear it plans to stay out of the city. But if protesters enter Washington, Mr. Rodriguez said law enforcement is ready to deal with them.
“We’ve been planning this for over a month now,” Mr. Rodriguez said.
The People’s Convoy was one of several groups inspired by Canadian protests against pandemic measures that disrupted Ottawa’s capital for three weeks. American groups have said they too will travel to Washington to lead a non-partisan grassroots protest against the government’s Covid policy, but many states have already begun lifting restrictions in the United States as virus cases and deaths decline. And in late February, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidance that says 70 percent of Americans can stop wearing masks.
With the January 6, 2021 violence still fresh in the minds of many, officials have stepped up security around the Capitol in recent days ahead of President Biden’s State of the Union address Tuesday, putting up a fence around the Capitol, sending in National Guard troops and deploying military cars and police cars at strategic points on the streets near the Congress.
Another group called the Freedom Convoy stopped its trip to Washington last week after only five trucks remained, saying they had permission to demonstrate at the Washington Monument Tuesday afternoon. City officials said only a few protesters showed up.
This week, a National Guard spokesman confirmed that about 700 D.C., New Jersey, Vermont, and West Virginia National Guard soldiers were in the city and that their mission was scheduled to end at midnight on March 7th.