Blunt says it would be ‘mistake’ to keep Capitol fencing up

Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) suggested on Sunday that the fencing around the Capitol should still be removed in the wake of an attack on the premise on Friday in which a suspect rammed his car into a barricade. 

“I think it would be a mistake for fencing to be a permanent part of the Capitol,” Blunt told “This Week” host George Stephanopoulos. “Fencing can create a false sense of security on a daily basis.”

Sen. Roy Blunt tells @GStephanopoulos the Capitol should be secure, but at the same time, “as free as we can possibly make it.”

“It’s an important element of who we are, it’s an important symbol of who we are,” he says. https://t.co/CUnm2Taxvk pic.twitter.com/3y2tHAApBi

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) April 4, 2021

Blunt said that while having fencing up for certain occasions, such as inaugurations, could serve as an “important element” it was unnecessary as a permanent structure. 

“The message we send is the wrong message,” Blunt said. “Frankly, we’re probably preparing for the wrong thing. The idea that what happens next at Capitol will be what happened last is almost certain not to be the case.”

Fencing went up around the complex following the Jan. 6 riot in which supporters of former President Trump stormed the Capitol in protest to Congress certifying the Electoral College votes that affirmed President Biden as the winner of the 2020 presidential election.

Blunt said it was not unusual for the Capitol to be a target.

Sen. Roy Blunt says he thinks the permanent fencing around the Capitol should “come down,” adding, “I don’t think it does the job.” https://t.co/CUnm2Taxvk pic.twitter.com/cfNFWT6eMV

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) April 4, 2021