Dec. 11 (UPI) — U.S. Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger testified before the Senate Rules and Administration Committee on Wednesday about the need for more officers as the number of threats against members of Congress escalates.
“Things have changed here on the campus,” Manger said, as he called his department “woefully understaffed.”
Manger, who took over the police department at the U.S. Capitol after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack, testified that there have been more than 700 threats against lawmakers during the last month alone.
On Tuesday, police investigated a bomb threat at the Georgia home of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
On Wednesday, Capitol Police arrested an individual who “physically accosted” Rep. Nancy Mace, according to the congresswoman who said she suffered minor injuries.
And last week, Capitol Police arrested 15 protesters staging a sit-in inside a Cannon House Office Building bathroom.
“Just in the last month, we’ve had over 50 members of Congress swatted, so we’ve got to look at what we can do to enhance people’s security not only when they’re here on campus but when they’re off-campus and in their home districts,” Manger told the panel.
A swatting attack is when a perpetrator calls police and lies about a threat at a lawmaker or target’s home, forcing police to respond.
“We provide the protection at the level it needs to be,” Manger said. “But you do that through officers working double shifts and average … 50 hours of overtime every pay period.”
Manger argued that the 250 Dignitary Protection or DPD agents at the U.S. Capitol should be doubled to at least 500. Manger said his agents are constantly being moved around to cover every issue that comes up.
“We’re yanking somebody off another detail to stand up a detail to help someone for a temporary threat situation,” Manger testified Wednesday, as he called to double the number of Threat Agents from 20 to 40 to keep up.
“And not only can we provide protection for the leadership 24/7, but when we have people that have threats against them that require us to stand up temporary details, we can do that,” Manger said. “Because right now, when we do it, we’re robbing Peter to pay Paul.”
Manger asked lawmakers to raise USCP’s spending levels in order to hold 12 recruiting classes of 25 officers for the next several years.
He also asked the committee to raise the mandatory retirement age for USCP from 60 to 65.
“I have several officers that I’ve spoken with just in the last month who are hitting 60 years old, and they said, ‘Chief, I don’t want to go,'” Manger testified.
“And you look at them, and they look like they’re 35 and they certainly can still do the job, physically, mentally, and they’re some of the best cops you’d ever want to work with,” he added. “But I have no ability to hold on to them.”
