Matt (00:00):
… must work and train frequently and communicate daily to execute high-level security. This shared experience is our foundation, and it is our strength.
(00:10)
Looking to the upcoming festival and parade, we're preparing for an enormous turnout. Hundreds of thousands of attendees. It is our duty to ensure the safety and security of every participant. We are deploying thousands of agents, officers, and specialists from across the country, backed by the robust network of federal, state, and local partners. Our mission is not just to secure an event but to ensure public confidence and safety. The Secret Service and our partners want every attendee to be confident in their security and feel safe. That is why we are leaving no stone unturned.
(00:45)
Everyone entering the event will go through screening at clearly designated checkpoints. These checkpoints and the entire security perimeter will be mapped out and available at www.nsse.dc.gov, along with important updates on road closures, parking restrictions, prohibited items, and other logistical changes.
(01:06)
The Army 250th Birthday Parade and Festival are in close proximity, but are two separate events. If you are planning to attend the festival prior to the parade, please note you need to proceed through the magnetometers located on the east side of the National Mall grounds on 7th Street. The screening checkpoint for Army 250th Birthday Festival will open at 8:00 AM at the following location, 7th Street NW between Madison Avenue NW and Jefferson Drive SW. This will be the only entrance checkpoint into the festival.
(01:40)
The screening checkpoint for the Army 250th Birthday Parade will open to the public at 2:00 PM. at the following locations, 14th Street between Constitution and Independence Avenue and C Street NW between 18th and 19th Street.
(01:56)
Please refer to the prohibited items list on the NSSC website to see which items will not be allowed through the checkpoints. Remember, everyone attending the parade will be screened. I want to stress that if you exit the parade viewing area and choose to return, you'll be re-screened again before entering.
(02:14)
Aviation and maritime security are also top priorities. The Federal Aviation Administration will issue temporary flight restrictions, and the US coast Guard will release any maritime advisories. All of this information will be easily accessible through the NSSC website.
(02:29)
On the ground, we're taking proactive steps to reinforce the area. You will see 18 and a half miles of anti-scale fencing, 17 miles of bike rack concrete barriers, 175 magnetometers and officers from federal, state, and local agencies standing post.
(02:46)
You may also notice multiple drones operating in the area. These are great tools for law enforcement situational awareness, and part of our layered security strategy. Rest assured all drones will be owned and operated by the Secret Service or our partners, so please do not be alarmed.
(03:02)
As the public, you play an important role in ensuring the security of the event by reporting any suspicious activity to the nearest law enforcement official. Remember, if you see something, please say something. We've established a dedicated phone line for residents and businesses in the area who may have questions or issues. In partnership with the DC Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency, we'll be sharing that number through community groups. We will be active on the day of the parade.
(03:28)
One additional note, we'd ask the public, due to the large crowds, noise and the weather forecast that for their safety, you leave your pets and emotional support animals at home. As always, service animals are welcome.
(03:40)
Chief Smith will speak shortly about what all this means for residents, workers and visitors in the district. NPD has been and continues to be one of our most critical allies, not only during NSSEs but in the daily work of keeping our capital secure.
(03:53)
Another key partner during this event, and every day, is the United States Park Police Chief Jessica Taylor and her team have been working with us side by side throughout the planning process, and they are instrumental in ensuring this event is safe and enjoyable for all attendees.
(04:07)
Let me close by thanking the men and women of the Secret Services Washington Field Office and the Dignitary Protective Division who have been working around the clock to create an excellent security plan. And thank you to all the partners here today. Your dedication, your patience, and your professionalism make this effort possible. I cannot thank you enough for your partnership. And now it's my honor to introduce Chief Jessica Taylor of the United States Park Police.
Chief Jessica Taylor (04:34):
Thank you. Good afternoon. My name is Jessica Taylor, and I'm the chief of the United States Park Police. The Park Police has significant experience with large scale special events, especially in and around the National Mall and on National Park Service lands. We're of course working under the NSSE umbrella with our partners at the Secret Service and have members on all of the subcommittees. Ensuring a safe event and keeping the public safe is our number one priority. We'll be on full activation. All of my officers are working on Saturday and leading up to Saturday with road closures and site security. We are particularly grateful for the support of multiple local, state, and federal partners who are sending in their officers and their agents to help us with manpower on Saturday.
(05:21)
That being said, plan ahead before you come to the event. We're expecting families. We're expecting some children. Parents, take a picture of your children that morning so we know what they look like. In the event you get separated, you can easily show the officer the picture. We'll have family reunification tents, and we'll have officers everywhere you look on hand to assist.
(05:45)
I'm extremely confident in the security site program we've put together for this event, and we're looking forward to a safe and enjoyable event on Saturday. Thank you. I'm sorry. Now I'd like to introduce FBI Special Agent Bates.
Special Agent Phillip Bates (06:02):
Thank you, Chief Taylor. Good afternoon. I'm Philip Bates, special agent in charge of the Washington Field Office of the FBI. I appreciate the opportunity to be here today to discuss the FBI's partnership with federal and local agencies to prepare for the Army 250th Birthday Celebration. As was noted, this is our fifth NSSE of the year, and each one brings different challenges that we must address. But the partnerships remain the same, and our understanding of each agency's unique capabilities and strengths makes us a strong team.
(06:37)
For this event, the FBI has lead federal law enforcement responsibility for crisis management, counter-terrorism and intelligence analysis. The FBI will activate a command post at our Washington Field Office. The command post serves as a central hub for employees to gather intelligence, assess potential threats, coordinate investigations and surge resources as needed. We're not currently aware of any credible threats to the Army 250th birthday celebration. However, we continue to work closely with our partners and share information to identify and disrupt any threats that may emerge.
(07:20)
As always, we remind the public to remain vigilant and to report any suspicious activity to law enforcement immediately. We look forward to working with our partners to ensure that the event is held safely and securely. I'll now turn the podium over to Chief Smith from MPA.
Chief Pamela Smith (07:40):
Thank you Special Agent Bates, and good afternoon everyone. I'm Chief Pamela Smith, Chief of Police of the Washington Metropolitan Police Department. At Metropolitan Police Department, we've been working very closely with our local, state and federal partners in preparation for the 250th Army Birthday Parade. I want to reiterate, Special Agent Bates, and with regards to what he said, that we have been constantly working together to monitor intelligence, and there are at this time no known credible threats to this event. That being said, we always remain vigilant and ready, and as always, we continuously evaluate intelligence and adjust our posture as needed to safeguard the city.
(08:20)
As you've heard, this is a significant event with a large footprint, and we want to make sure everyone, residents, visitors, and participants can enjoy this event safely. We expect major impacts to traffic, especially around the National Hall, West Potomac Park, and the Ellipse on Saturday. There will be numerous road closures and parking restrictions in place, and we strongly encourage the public to plan ahead, allow extra travel time and consider using Metro Transit or other public transportation options. Maps, closure lists and other important information are available at nsse.dc.gov, and we'll continue to push updates through MPD's social media channels.
(09:05)
MPD is no stranger to large events like this one. We'll be enhancing our posture across the city. MPD will be in full activation beginning Saturday morning. This ensures that we have the staffing and resources available to support this event while still answering calls for service and maintaining coverage across all seven of our police districts here in DC.
(09:28)
I cannot emphasize enough, your safety remains our number one priority. We are deploying specialized teams to support our federal partners in staying ready to respond whenever needed. As always, we also rely on the public to be the extra set of eyes and ears. If you see something suspicious, please say something. Call 911 in an emergency or reach out to our tip line at 202-727-9099 or text 50411. We thank everyone in advance for your patience and cooperation, and we look forward to a safe and successful event. Thank you, and I'll now turn it over to Maurice McKinney, Deputy Chief of Metro Transit Police Department.
Deputy Chief Maurice McKinney (10:14):
Good afternoon everyone. Maurice McKinney, Deputy Chief Metro Transit Police, Special Operations Bureau. Metro will support the Army 250 by operational support that we will increase staffing at all of the stations surrounding the parade and festival routes. Metro Transit Police will increase officer presence in and around all of the stations to include Smithsonian, Archives, Federal Triangle. As it relates to rail operations, Metro will operate on a normal service. There will be, my apologies, metro will operate on normal service, and I believe… Those heading to the National Mall for this Festival are advised to use other stations to include Federal Triangle, Federal Center, L'Enfant Plaza.
(11:12)
Due to the security perimeter at the National Mall, the Smithsonian Station on the Jefferson side will be closed, and customers can access the Smithsonian Metro Station through the Independence Avenue side. Those viewing the parade can access the station through Farragut West, Farragut North, Federal Triangle and Archives Metro Station.
(11:39)
The following Metro bus routes will have detours or delays, the 7A, the 10A, the 16A, the 16C, the 16E, the 22A, the 32, the 36, the 70, the 79, and the P6. Customers are encouraged to download the MetroPulse app for real-time bus and rail operations. Thank you.
Matt (12:11):
And with that, we'll take your questions.
Jackie (NewsNation) (12:13):
Will there be any changes to protocol made ramping up with additional secure, oh, thank you very much. Okay. I'm Jackie with NewsNation. Will there be any additional protocols, ramping up of security, anything in response to what is currently taking place in LA regarding ICE raids and protests there?
Matt (12:33):
So given that this is an NSSE, we plan for those things ahead of time. So since April 22nd, we've been planning for this, which is shorter than normal, but we are paying attention obviously to what is happening there, and we'll be ready for that if it were to occur here for the Army 250. Next.
John Connor (Politico) (12:59):
Hi, it's John Connor with Politico. Just to kind of follow up on that, what have you guys been expecting or discussing in terms of whether we see a similar deployment of federal troops, maybe perhaps the DC National Guard as we've seen in California in response to protests?
Matt (13:11):
Obviously, we're not expecting it. We have no intelligence of that happening here, but if it does, we have the resources to handle it. Right here in front. Okay.
Nicole Sganga (CBS News) (13:30):
Hi there. Thank you so much for doing this. Nicole Sganga with CBS News. Two questions. One, can you speak a little bit about First Amendment activity and plans for protesters?
Matt (13:39):
Sure.
Nicole Sganga (CBS News) (13:39):
And then just as a second question, curious, you mentioned the 18.5 miles of fencing. We've seen much of that go around the White House this morning. Do you anticipate that fencing will stay much beyond the event, or at what point should we see that coming down?
Matt (13:54):
We're planning on everything to be cleaned up by the 19th. And then as far as the First Amendment activity, from a Secret Service perspective, it's simply people using their First Amendment right to protest. We're not going to do anything with that. But if that turns violent, or if any laws are broken, that's when MPD, Park Police, Secret Service will get involved and that will be handled swiftly.
Nicole Sganga (CBS News) (14:25):
Is there a designated area for that?
Chief Jessica Taylor (14:25):
So the National Park Service handles the permitting process, so we have several permits currently pending. From what we've reviewed thus far in our communications list, we don't have any significant concerns. We don't have a designated area. According to the permit, they'll request where they want to be, and the National Park Service will make a decision based on the NSSE and the security perimeter. But first activity, significant experience with all the events in the Mall, so certainly the Park Police and MPD is well prepared.
Holmes (CNN) (14:57):
Hey Matt, it's Holmes [inaudible 00:14:59] from CNN. I'm curious, what is the number that you're really expecting right now for counter protesters? I know you mentioned in terms of attendees, we're talking hundreds of thousands. Are we seeing anywhere near that number for counter protesters?
Matt (15:13):
No, not even close. We're tracking about nine person of activity demonstrations, but nowhere… I'm not going to get into the exact number, but it's not that high.
Holmes (CNN) (15:23):
And then is there a plan in place to call the National Guard if needed?
Matt (15:27):
We actually have National Guard.
Holmes (CNN) (15:29):
You already have it?
Matt (15:30):
Yeah, they're working the event, so they will be here, but we also have a robust plan for civil disturbance.
Holmes (CNN) (15:36):
What's the number of the National Guard here?
Matt (15:38):
Again, I'm not going to talk about numbers just for security reasons, but between CDU units that we have from multiple agencies and the National Guard, I'm very confident in the plan we have.
Holmes (CNN) (15:48):
Okay.
Matt (15:49):
Yep.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (15:49):
Mark Segraves, Channel 4, a quick follow up on the National Guard, is that DC National Guard that has been deployed and will they be, whichever National Guard it is, will they be armed?
Matt (16:05):
They will not be armed. And I believe it's not just DC National Guard, but DC National Guard is involved.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:11):
And then can I ask about the logistics of spectators who want to get in? So there's a festival area, and then there's the viewing area. Can you go from the festival area to the parade viewing area without going out and in through new security? And you want to answer that?
Matt (16:25):
Sure, you have to go through security for both, so-
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:28):
But once I'm in the festival area, I could just go-
Matt (16:30):
No, you'll go out, and you'll go through.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:32):
Okay.
Matt (16:33):
And we have a ton of magnetometers, so I don't, depends on if people show up. If a million people show up, there's going to be a line.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:38):
And then how many people are you prepared that can actually sit on those, is it like three or four blocks where there's actually bleachers for the parade route?
Matt (16:45):
There will be no bleachers.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:46):
So it is just standing along Constitution Avenue?
Matt (16:49):
Correct.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:49):
And so how many people do you think you can accommodate there?
Matt (16:52):
Hundreds of thousands.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:53):
You can?
Matt (16:53):
Yeah.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:54):
Okay. And none of that is ticketed. It's open to-
Matt (16:57):
Not ticketed. Opened. Yep.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (16:58):
And then can I ask a House-speaking question for press, or do you want to have somebody hang back and answer those after?
Matt (17:04):
We'll do that after.
Mark Segraves (Channel 4) (17:05):
Okay, thanks.
Speaker (17:06):
Last two, Tom and Ashley.
(17:14)
Tom and Ashley.
Tom (17:16):
Wanted to ask, first off, related to what you were just talking about, will there be people on both sides of the Constitution to watch it or just the north side?
Matt (17:25):
The majority of people will be on the south side of Constitution, and there will be some available area on the north side.
Tom (17:33):
And this may be more for the MPD Chief here, Smith, but we unfortunately had the double stabbing and the shooting this weekend while World Pride was going on, not right where the parade was. What do you do to prevent something from happening, not necessarily right at the parade, but in the area not too far from it like that this weekend?
Matt (17:58):
You want to answer?
Chief Pamela Smith (18:01):
Well, we're prepared. I think as law enforcement personnel, we've already gone through the executive steering committee with regards to the resources that we'll have allocated to the 250th. And that's the same thing we would do in any other specialty event that we have across the city, making sure our resources are available, if something happens, being able to redeploy those resources to those areas.
Tom (18:21):
I'd like just to follow up real quick, how much are you helping Park Police? Is this an all hands on deck day for you as well?
Chief Pamela Smith (18:29):
I stated in my remarks that this is full activation.
Tom (18:32):
Okay, and that means that's throughout the city though, right? Not just here, or is-
Chief Pamela Smith (18:36):
Throughout the city. Of course, I still have to maintain the rest of the seven districts across the city.
Tom (18:39):
Okay, and are you confident you have enough to do all of that?
Chief Pamela Smith (18:43):
I'm confident.
Ashley Parker (The Atlantic) (18:46):
Ashley Parker from The Atlantic. This might be more for someone from the mayor's office, but the White House had said that they were working with the mayor and her team to make sure there were precautions in place so that, for instance, the streets would not be damaged from the tanks. They mentioned potentially putting down steel plating, but they weren't sure that that had been confirmed. Can someone talk about what steps the city is taking, again, to help protect the streets from the wear and tear of the tanks and other equipment?
Colonel Jesse Curry (19:19):
Yes. Thank you for the question. I'm Colonel Jesse Curry, an engineer on the Army staff, as well as part of the US Army Corps of Engineers. So if you go out to the parade route, even today you can see some of that work being put in place. And what that is is it started weeks ago with assessments working with National Park Service, Federal Highway Administration and really bringing to bear the engineers from the US Army Corps of Engineers, our expert engineers that around the world assess the impacts of type of these types of vehicles on all types of pavement. So they've done that assessment.
(19:52)
Based on that, we put together the plan that you'll see being put at key locations around the route. Primarily, it is metal plating that's being put down to address those areas where it tanks have to steer sharply. And we get some of the grinding reaction from between those tracks. Throughout the straightaways, we really have very little or low concerns that there'll be any other damage. The plates and where we're putting them is designed to minimize or eliminate all possible damage. So that's ongoing now, will be in place before the parade begins and will come up immediately after.
Ashley Parker (The Atlantic) (20:30):
Is there anything beyond the plates, or is that kind of the bulk of it?
John Connor (Politico) (20:34):
Well, thanks for asking because there is. That is certainly the most visible thing that everyone's going to be able to see out along the parade route. But in addition to that, we're putting out a lot of batting in the staging areas, things, again, to just mitigate any potential. We're using an abundance of caution. We want to protect these streets. This is our capital city as well. So we're committed to ensuring that we minimize any possible damage.
(20:58)
But in addition to the protective measures being put on the road, what you can also see during the parade is the tanks all have brand new rubber track pads placed on them, which increase the padding they have underneath each track to minimize that potential damage. And it's a parade, so they're going to be moving slowly, they're going to be very careful. The operators that are coming with the units to this parade, they're very, very well-trained at what they do and give us complete confidence that we're going to be able to execute this parade with little to no damage to the DC streets.
Speaker (21:31):
Thank you everyone.
Sharon Kershbaum (21:35):
Hey, good afternoon. Sharon Kershbaum from the District Department of Transportation. So while the parade route itself is on National Park Service roads, for the vehicles to get to the parade route, they will be riding on district government DC land and roads. And one of the other things that we do, as we would for all oversized and overweight vehicles, we require that they receive a permit. And when they apply for the permit, we take a look at the weight, and then we work together on the route to make sure that if they're covering any bridges or any other vulnerable roadways that they can withstand the weight. And then we give recommendations in terms of the spacing and in terms of the speed to make sure that there's no other damage done.
Speaker (22:17):
Thank you.
