Steven Sund told a U.S. House panel that his pleas for help on Jan. 3 were refused by the House and Senate sergeants at arms.
Three days before Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving rejected Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund’s request for National Guard help because Mr. Irving said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) would “never go for it,” Mr. Sund testified before a House subcommittee on Sept. 19.
Mr. Sund’s revelation came during a 90-minute hearing before the Committee on House Administration’s Subcommittee on Oversight.
In his first testimony before a House committee since he was forced to resign on Jan. 8, 2021, Mr. Sund detailed his deep frustration at not getting the National Guard help that would have been a “game changer” on Jan. 6.
Mr. Sund said in meetings with Mr. Irving and Senate Sergeant at Arms Michael Stenger on Jan. 3, he had asked them to approve his request for National Guard soldiers to help secure the Capitol on Jan. 6. Mr. Irving and Mr. Stenger made up two-thirds of the Capitol Police Board, which oversees U.S. Capitol Police and had to approve any such requests.
He met first with Mr. Irving.
“I went into his office, again 9:24 in the morning … and immediately went up and said, ‘Hey, I’d like to bring in the National Guard to support me on, to assist me on the perimeter because when we have a joint session of Congress, it takes a lot of our personnel inside,’” Mr. Sund testified.
“But immediately, as soon as I asked him, his first response was: ‘I don’t know. I don’t like the optics of that,’” Mr. Sund testified. “And his second response was, ‘Besides, the intelligence doesn’t support it.’”
He said Mr. Irving told him to speak to Mr. Stenger about the idea, which he did in a meeting more than two hours later.
“‘You know, let’s come up with another idea,’” he quoted Mr. Stenger as saying in reaction.
Mr. Stenger suggested that Mr. Sund reach out to the Pentagon to find out how quickly the Guard could react if needed in an emergency.
“So I called [Army Gen.] William Walker, 6:14 p.m. that night,” Mr. Sund said. “He told me they have 125 people assisting with COVID response. He could reallocate those fairly quickly once he got secretary of defense approval and send them over.”
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