Congress in lockdown: Will we just ‘get used to it?’


The following is an excerpt from my latest article in The Hill.

When I first came to Washington in 1995 as a CBS News correspondent, the U.S. Capitol building was truly “The People’s House.” Anybody could walk in and browse around, walk the historic marble floors, look at the historic statues. No metal detectors. No police or security guards removing perfume from your purse in case it’s a plot to build an explosive device from liquid.
The same sort of access was available to the public and press at most federal buildings at the time.

Even the White House, more secure than the other buildings back then, was less like a command bunker. Anybody could drive right along the public street adjacent to the back of the White House and take a look. 
Of course everything, understandably, changed with the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Most any building occupied by the federal government became a fortress. Concrete barriers were erected all over the city to make it harder for a car bomber to drive into a building. Police are routinely stationed on streets, at places they were rarely seen before. Metal detectors, police and security guards, sweeps with mirrors under your car as you enter a parking garage, all became the norm. 

A complete web of rules and restrictions was adopted, dictating who could enter what building and when. It involved various combinations of: Call ahead. Get a clearance. Submit your Social Security number. Show your driver’s license. Have an escort.

And that street by the White House was closed to ordinary vehicle traffic. It’s been treated to an expanding array of fencing, guard shacks and Secret Service presence.

Shortly after 9/11, many of us wondered if the changes to our nation’s capital would be permanent — and hoped it would not have to be. Since then, security measures have expanded further. And with each new restriction, there’s opportunity for abuse. Federal officials sometimes use supposed security concerns as an excuse to control access and information; the public becomes further distanced from the elected and hired officials who are supposed to work for them.

Years ago, when I was breaking news about the Obama administration’s “Fast and Furious” scandal, it was nearly impossible for me to get access to then-Attorney General Eric Holder to ask any questions. One day, the Department of Justice (DOJ) hastily announced a briefing about Fast and Furious to be held at its offices. CBS sent me out the door to attend. 

As I rushed out the door, Holder’s right-hand press aide, Tracy Schmaler, called to tell me I would not be admitted. Only the friendly beat reporters regularly assigned to DOJ would be allowed in through security.  (Continued…)

Read the full article by clicking the link below:

https://thehill.com/opinion/national-security/541720-congress-in-lockdown-will-we-just-get-used-to-it

A scene on Capitol Hill this week
Another Capitol Hill scene this week
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6 thoughts on “Congress in lockdown: Will we just ‘get used to it?’”

  1. “friendly beat reporters who can only throw softball questions” Journalists need not apply.
    Following that rationale, Trump may not have had any reporters if he had followed the same rule.

  2. Folks forget or are unaware that the Obama Administration was very restrictive where it came to press coverage, so your experience was no surprise. The increased security measures around the Capital are the price we all have to pay because of the trump rioters on January 6! However, your down playing the webs reports of another attempt on March 4 at the Capital to install Trump was wrong of you. What you got right is that at each confrontation and perceived threats on the web we all lose more freedom. Those in power and our “servants” if you will, will grab more power on the guise of national security at our expense.

  3. The fences, road blocks, razor wire, perpetual military presence, closed inauguration, virtual press conferences, and Zoom calls all send the message that the American people have no seat at the political table.

    1. Lee,

      -wonder what the late Ted Bundy would say about all of it,
      as his own insight, to explain his drive to kill women, is related
      to ubiquitous PORN. Congress is suffering the bad effects of
      the Shadow Elites’ love of CONTROL—through pornography
      (( my note to a physician about Porn and Bundy )) :

      ========
      ========

      Doctor _____ ,

      His childhood traumas aside, TED BUNDY had self-analyzed!
      —and reported that his deadly sexual habit was groomed into
      existence by pornography (( S & M pornography )).

      Media and psychologists and sociologists had responded by
      coming to the defense of the pornography/pornographers !

      After his initial comment and response, nothing more was said
      of it.

      Porn destroys civilized society.

      Always mention Bundy’s analysis.

      -Rick

      Re Ramsey case, members of the parents’ coven had
      come into the house that morning to wipe down the
      house—to scrub the evidence; and keep in mind, their
      first daughter had claimed sexual abuse by the father,
      then she was killed in a traffic accident (( study satanic
      ritual abuse and find traffic accidents as a routine way
      of keeping abuse secret )).

      ==========
      ==========

  4. I believe that the militarized “Perimeter” will remain in place until statehood for Washington, D.C., is approved. Then the Perimeter will surround, and isolate, the new so-called “neutral” national Capitol zone — there is a method to Pelosi’s madness…

  5. Sharyl and Full Measure Team,

    Sharyl, you like polling—to get at popular
    trends.

    Many conservatives function as “Controlled
    Resistance,” which may explain, partly, why
    Lindell’s election discoveries get half-hearted
    reporting by Rightists—and why Hannity and
    Beck, for examples, refuse to ask how Pelosi’s
    investigation is proceeding of that January
    5th “unauthorized” tour of the halls in the
    Capitol bldg.

    Curiouser and Curiouser !

    I’ve raised that concern to all major talk
    shows, including Fox. Crickets !

    -wonder what polling would show :

    Do you think January 5th tour ought to
    be investigated—to check faces in that
    tour ?

    -Rick

    P.S.

    BTW, re Fox—what happened to the four
    part expose’ it had produced—after 9/11,
    about those “art” students shadowing the
    terrorists ?

    .

    Sharyl and Full Measure Team,

    Sharyl, you like polling—to get at popular
    trends.

    Many conservatives function as “Controlled
    Resistance,” which may explain, partly, why
    Lindell’s election discoveries get half-hearted
    reporting by Rightists—and why Hannity and
    Beck, for examples, refuse to ask how Pelosi’s
    investigation is proceeding of that January
    5th “unauthorized” tour, of the halls in the
    Capitol bldg.

    Curiouser and Curiouser !

    I’ve raised that concern to all major talk
    shows, including Fox. Crickets !

    -wonder what polling would show :

    Do you think January 5th tour ought to
    be investigated—to check faces in that
    tour ?

    -Rick

    P.S.

    BTW, re Fox—what happened to the four
    part expose’ it had produced—after 9/11,
    about those “art” students shadowing the
    terrorists ?

    .

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