DC Mayor claims she didn’t seek reinforcements for Jan 6 protests because she ‘didn’t think that these white nationalists would overthrow the Capitol building’

In a Jan. 12, 2022 interview with the panel investigating the events that played out during the Jan. 6, 2021 protests at the US Capitol building, Bowser said "People thought they were friendly to law enforcement and that they loved their country."

"People didn't think that these white nationalists would overthrow the Capitol building," she added.

However, she seemed to contradict herself later in the interview when she acknowledged that she knew of previous instances where right-wing protestors were "aggressive with police," referring to the Dec. 12 "Million MAGA March" that saw 33 arrests, according to WUSA9.

"I think our experience with them in December showed us that they were antagonistic to law enforcement," the mayor said to the Jan. 6 investigative panel.

Following the breach by protestors on the nation's capitol building, Bowser faced backlash for not doing enough to secure the city despite knowing about the imminent protests.

"To be clear, the District of Columbia is not requesting other federal law enforcement personnel and discourages any additional deployment without immediate notification to, and consultation with, MPD if such plans are underway," she wrote in a statement the day prior to the riots.

"Well then, maybe it wasn't far-right extremists who organized and led the Capitol assault?" wrote Steve Baker, constitutionalist blogger, on Twitter.

In July, former advisor to ex-President Donald Trump, Kash Patel, claimed that the acting commander-in-chief authorized up to 10,000-20,000 National Guard troops in anticipation of the protests, but both Bowser and local law enforcement officials declined the help.

The Jan. 6 Committee on Thursday withdrew their subpeona for former President Trump as their investigation wraps up, reported CBS News.