Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said he expects to see law enforcement take a zero-tolerance approach in response to any violent behavior during a right-wing rally slated for Washington, D.C., this weekend.
The rally, in support of rioters arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, is scheduled for Saturday afternoon and is expected to draw hundreds of people to the nation's capital.
“They need to take a firm line, buddy,” Graham told The New York Times of the local police presence at the event. “If anybody gets out of line, they need to whack 'em.”
The Department of Homeland Security reportedly expects about 700 people to attend the weekend rally, and crews began constructing security fencing and barriers around the Capitol complex in anticipation of the large crowd's arrival.
Local police departments and federal officials say they remain on high alert ahead of the event, dubbed "Justice for J6," which some Republican lawmakers have either not acknowledged or downplayed.
“I don’t expect a lot of people there,” Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) told the Times. “I haven’t heard anything about it. I will not be there.”
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