WASHINGTON ā The Latest on President Donald Trump's impeachment and the fallout from the Jan. 6 attack of the Capitol by pro-Trump loyalists (all times local):
9:50 p.m.
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Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar is condemning the assault on the U.S. Capitol in his formal letter of resignation.
Azar says he will resign at noon on Jan. 20, when President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in.
Azar wrote in his letter to President Donald Trump, dated Jan. 12: āThe attacks on the Capitol were an assault on our democracy and on the tradition of peaceful transitions of power that the United States of America first brought to the world.ā
He added: āI implore you to continue to condemn unequivocally any form of violence, to demand that no one attempt to disrupt the inaugural activities in Washington or elsewhere, and to continue to support unreservedly the peaceful and orderly transition of power on January 20.ā
The two-page letter recited administration accomplishments that Azar said āthe actions and rhetoric following the election ... threaten to tarnish.ā
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HEREāS WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT IMPEACHMENT AND THE FALLOUT FROM THE JAN. 6 RIOTING AT THE CAPITOL:
Federal prosecutors who initially said there was āstrong evidenceā the pro-Trump mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol last week aimed to ācapture and assassinate elected officialsā backed away from the allegation after the head of the investigation cautioned Friday that the probe is still in its early stages and there was no ādirect evidenceā of such intentions.
Read more:
ā Feds back away from claim of assassination plot at Capitol
ā Federal watchdogs open probe of response to Capitol riot
ā Capitol rioters included highly trained ex-military and cops
ā Trump trial pending, McConnell calls it āvote of conscienceā
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HEREāS WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON:
8:15 p.m.
The Transportation Security Administration says some people could face more thorough security checks or be barred from boarding a plane as part of additional security around President-elect Joe Bidenās inauguration next week.
The TSA said in a statement Friday that itās working with law enforcement agencies to conduct a risk assessment of āhundredsā of people. It did not say what criteria is being used to determine who has been selected.
It comes more than a week after a violent mob of supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol in a bid to stop Congress from confirming Bidenās Electoral College victory. Five people died, including a Capitol Police officer.
Trump had falsely said for weeks that the election was stolen from him. He was impeached earlier this week on a charge of incitement of an insurrection.
TSA is also providing officers to help the Secret Service screen people along the parade route and attending Bidenās inauguration Wednesday.
The agency, which includes air marshals, also plans to boost security at airports around the country.
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5:50 p.m.
President-elect Joe Biden says even a scaled-down inauguration with thousands of troops and law enforcement authorities will give the world āa clear sign that America is coming back.ā
Biden said Friday at a virtual reception for inauguration donors that he has ācomplete confidenceā in law enforcementās ability to ensure ādignity, peace and security for this event.ā
He says his own team is working closely with law enforcement.
Alluding to President Donald Trumpās rhetoric inciting the insurrection at the Capitol last week, Biden said, āWhat this president has done is sort of a stain on America.ā
Biden will be sworn in at noon Wednesday, two weeks after a mob of pro-Trump supporters stormed the Capitol to try to stop Congress from affirming Bidenās election victory. Five people died, and Trump was impeached again.
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3:30 p.m.
An Ohio man who posted videos from the U.S. Capitol riots has been arrested on federal charges of making interstate threats and threatening a witness.
In one video, 40-year-old Justin Stoll, of Wilmington, declared: āD.C.ās a war zone!...You aināt got enough cops, baby! We are at war at the Capitolā¦. We have taken the Capitol. This is our country.ā
The federal complaint said that when one YouTube viewer said he or she had saved his video, Stoll warned that if the viewer took action to āever jeopardize me, from being with my family,ā then the person would meet his or her maker, and that he would be the one to āarrange the meeting.ā
Stoll appeared before a U.S. magistrate in Cincinnati, who released him under restrictions including that he remain in southern Ohio with electronic monitoring, stay off social media, stay away from firearms, obtain mental counseling and not contact potential witnesses or victims.
No other details, including his attorneyās name, were available immediately. There was no answer Friday at a phone number listed to his name.
The U.S. attorneyās office says interstate communication of a threat can carry a penalty of up to five years in prison, while tampering with a witness through intimidation carries a potential 20-year maximum sentence.
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3:10 p.m.
The U.S. attorneyās office says an anti-Trump Florida man has been charged with trying to organize an armed response to pro-Trump protesters expected at the state Capitol on Sunday.
An affidavit from an FBI agent says Daniel Baker, of Tallahassee, was using social media to recruit people in a plot to encircle protesters and trap them in the Capitol.
The court document describes threats of violence and a prediction of civil war. Baker is described as anti-Trump, anti-government, anti-white supremacist and anti-police.
He is charged with transmission in interstate commerce of a communication containing a threat to kidnap or to injure. He was in custody Friday, and it wasnāt immediately clear if he has an attorney.
U.S. Attorney Lawrence Keefe said: āExtremists intent on violence from either end of the political and social spectrums must be stopped, and they will be stopped.ā
Baker was kicked out of the Army in 2007 after going AWOL before being deployed to Iraq. The affidavit said Baker was then homeless and largely unemployed for the following nine years.
āREMEMBER THAT THE COPS WONT PROTECT US BECAUSE THE COPS AND KLAN GO HAND IN HAND!ā Baker wrote on a Facebook event page he created, according to the affidavit. āIf you are afraid to die fighting the enemy, then stay in bed and live. Call all of your friends and Rise Up!ā
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1:35 p.m.
Vice President Mike Pence has called Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to offer his congratulations and assistance with her transition into office.
Thatās according to two people who werenāt authorized to publicly discuss the private conversation and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Penceās call comes less than a week before President-elect Joe Biden and Harris are set to take office. Inauguration Day is this coming Wednesday.
The call is the first contact between elected officials from the outgoing and incoming administrations. President Donald Trump hasnāt reached out to Biden and has repeatedly questioned the legitimacy of Bidenās win.
Trump wonāt attend the inauguration. Pence will be there.
ā By AP writers Jill Colvin and Alexandra Jaffe
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12:25 p.m.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says there may be a need to prosecute members of Congress if any are found to have assisted the pro-Trump rioters in last weekās attack on the Capitol.
The California Democrat says that assault highlighted the need for the U.S. to beware of domestic threats. She says, āWeāve really lost our innocence in this.ā Pelosi tells reporters that members of Congress need to be able to trust each other.
Her words underscore some Democratsā suggestions that some GOP lawmakers helped feed President Donald Trumpās supportersā belief in Trumpās false charges that his presidential election loss was due to vote fraud.
They also highlight the extraordinary distrust and anger thatās grown in Congress since the attack, which led to this weekās House impeachment of Trump.
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12:10 p.m.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says retired Lt. Gen. Russel HonorĆ© is being tapped to lead a security review of the U.S. Capitol in the wake of last weekās deadly insurrection.
Pelosi said during a news conference Friday that the whole Capitol complex must be subjected āto scrutiny in light of what happenedā and the fact that President-elect Joe Bidenās inauguration will be held there next week.
HonorƩ is perhaps best known for overseeing humanitarian aid efforts in Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina.
Pelosi says HonorĆ© will conduct an immediate review of security and inter-agency interaction and Capitol ācommand and control.ā
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11:55 a.m.
The National Park Service has closed Washingtonās National Mall to the general public as part of greatly intensified security ahead of Joe Bidenās presidential inauguration.
The closure started Friday morning. It will remain in force at least through Thursday, the day after Bidenās inauguration, the National Park Service said in a statement.
The Secret Service asked for the closing. Thousands of National Guard troops are deployed in the nationās capital as part of extraordinary security, after supporters of President Donald Trump overran the Capitol building Jan. 6 as lawmakers were certifying results in Bidenās election victory over Trump.
The park service will still allow inauguration activities and permitted free-speech events on the National Mall despite the closure, it said.
The park service said it would allow only small demonstrations for permit holders and would escort any protesters and hold them in designated areas, along with other safety measures.
National Park Service and Interior Department spokespeople did not immediately respond when asked if any protest permits had been granted or applied for.
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10:25 a.m.
Defense Department officials are scrambling to call governors and asking whether they have any more National Guard troops they can send to Washington to help protect the Capitol and the city.
A defense official familiar with the discussions says law enforcement leaders and other authorities have now determined that theyāll need about 25,000 National Guard troops. And they say that number could still grow.
As of Friday morning, officials had commitments from states for close to 22,000 members of the Guard. Thatās according to the official, who wasnāt authorized to publicly discuss internal deliberations and spoke on condition of anonymity.
In recent days, defense and military leaders have said they understand that states are also facing their own looming protests and the first priority of the governors is to protect their own capitals.
The number of Guard officials are seeking to help protect the District of Columbia in the run-up to Wednesdayās inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden has increased almost daily.
Defense and law enforcement authorities have been revising the numbers as they go through rehearsals and other drills to determine how many and where they need the Guard reinforcements to help lock down Washington.
ā AP writer Lolita C. Baldor
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10 a.m.
The Justice Departmentās internal watchdog says it will investigate how the department and its agencies prepared for and responded to last weekās riots at the U.S. Capitol.
The investigation by the inspector generalās office will examine whether information was appropriately shared by the Justice Department to other law enforcement agencies about the potential for violence.
The inspector general said it āalso will assess whether there are any weaknesses in DOJ protocols, policies, or proceduresā that hampered preparation and response to the events.
The review is one of multiple ones launched by inspectors general, including at the departments of Homeland Security and Defense and at the Interior Department, which oversees the Park Police.
The initiation of the review signals concern among the watchdogs that the preparations for, and response to, the breach of the Capitol by loyalists of President Donald Trump was lacking.