U.S. Blew $872,000 To Build, Dismantle Useless Fence Around Capitol For Biden’s Pointless State Of The Union

Once a year — every year since 1790 — the president of the United States has delivered a message on the state of the union.

However, the message was sent in writing from 1801 to 1913. Since then, however, the president has almost always traveled to the U.S. Capitol in person to deliver the message.

It’s a pointless — and partisan — exercise. The president takes credit and blames the other party for the troubles. Finally, he gives a list of all the things that he wants to accomplish in the future. Most of these never get accomplished.

Maybe it’s time we go back to a written message. It cost close to a million dollars to build a fence around the Capitol to protect it on Tuesday. That’s not including the salaries of all those involved in law enforcement and security. Since January 6, 2021 when rioters invaded the building, authorities have been scared ever since. So they built the fence.

But the architect of the U.S. Capitol (AOC) — that’s a federal agency responsible for the maintenance, operation, development, and preservation of the complex — said there was really no reason to erect the barrier.

Brett Blanton, the current Capitol architect, told the House Committee on House Administration on Thursday that there were no threats ahead of President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address on Tuesday, but House and Senate officials still opted to erect the fence.

“It’s going to be cheaper to put the fence up and have less people,” He explained to the subcommittee: According The Washington Examiner. Blanton stated that it cost $872,000 for the fence to be put up and taken down. This cost was borne by U.S. Secret Service.

Rep. Laurel Lee (R.FL), asked Blanton why the fence had been erected if there was no threat. “That is correct, and also on January 6 there was no specific threat as well,” He highlighted the fact.

Blanton wasn’t at the Capitol on January 6, telling the committee, “There was no actionable intelligence that there was going to be anything here that was presented to the Capitol Police Board.”

Some lawmakers were furious he wasn’t on site that day.

“I’m outraged that you would be in a comfortable place, sir, while the rest of us were thinking about dying that day and how we were going to come out alive that day,” Blanton was informed by Rep. Norma Torres, D-CA. “Outrageous that you were not here.”

“I find it mind-blowing that the head of the AOC, the leader, knowing what you knew — probably a lot more than we did that day — would not have been in this building ensuring the safety and security not only of the building but of the employees that you lead,” echoed Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-OK).

That statement perked up the ears of Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI), chairman of the committee that oversees the police and architect’s office. He promised to examine the possibility. “actionable intelligence” Before the January 6 riots.

The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Joseph Curl is a 35-year veteran of politics, having served 12 years as White House correspondent in a national newspaper. For four years, he served as the Drudge Report’s morning editor. Send tips [email protected] Follow him on Twitter @josephcurl