Guardsmen help local police maintain Capitol Hill security

National Guard, Dec 2001 by Haskell, Bob

House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-Mo., and several other prominent lawmakers were among the first to welcome District of Columbia National Guardsmen to the Capitol Hill security force Nov. 16.

The citizen-soldiers are helping support a U.S. Capitol Police force that has been working 12-hour shifts since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. They are stationed at 10 locations around Capitol Hill, says Lt. Col. Phyllis Phipps-Barnes, a D.C. National Guard spokesman.

"Congressman Gephardt is extremely pleased that the National Guard is helping the Capitol Police at a time when they've been working overtime to provide heightened security at the Capitol complex," said a spokesman for the House Democratic leader.

It is the first time since the 1968 riots in Washington, D.C., that armed military troops have been assigned to security duty at the Capitol complex, officials said.

"Our nickname is the Capitol Guardians," says Lt. Col. Arthur Hinaman, commander of the National Guard task force. "It's our job, and we're honored to be selected to serve. This is history in the making."

National Guard troops have previously guarded the Capitol building during World War II, the 1932 riots by World War I veterans, the Civil War and the War of 1812, said Lt. Dan Nichols, a Capitol Police spokesman.

The Guardsmen were sworn in on the morning of Nov. 16 before taking up their posts. They will help direct traffic and inspect trucks for up to 90 days, Nichols says.

DC Guard officials explained that they work closely with federal and municipal police and frequently support security in the nation's capital for events such as presidential inaugurations.

-By Master Sgt. Bob Haskell