(Bloomberg) — The Pentagon is making as many as 700 National Guard troops available to Washington law enforcement to keep traffic flowing if a threatened protest convoy of trucks clogs the already congested Beltway in coming days.
Social media users opposed to vaccine mandates have posted frequently about the so-called People’s Convoy, inspired by recent protests in Canada. But there is no official organization sponsoring it, and the viability of an 11 day cross-country convoy is unclear and proposals for it have varied. The most prevalent suggests it would arrive near the nation’s capital March 5.
A website touting the event says it will not enter the District of Columbia proper. Rather, the final leg convoy will end on the Beltway in an effort to stop commerce in and out of Washington.
Guard members won’t be armed or authorized to make arrests, Defense Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. The assistance was requested by U.S. Capitol Police, which is preparing for any disruption when Congress returns next week and President Joe Biden delivers his State of the Union address on March 1.
Through a multi-pronged Internet and social media presence — ranging from mainstream platforms like Facebook and Instagram to right-leaning sites like Gab and Gettr — organizers have released convoy routes, a trucker registration center and links for email updates. A live-stream of the convoy will be available online.
Regional social media groups from the Southeast, Midwest and Northeast have established their own Facebook pages to coordinate. On many of those pages the encrypted messaging app Telegram is set as a backup in case the convoy’s main Facebook page, currently with 154,000 members, is removed by the platform.
The group has raised more than $464,000 in donations and is accepting cryptocurrency to pay for fuel and other costs for truckers, according to the website.
In Canada, the government invoked emergency powers last week to end protests by truckers who blocked much of downtown Ottawa around the parliament for weeks, with blockades also spreading to a number of border crossings.
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