Capitol Hill: Checkpoints and Road Closures

Heavy Restrictions in Place

In response to a terror alert for financial institutions in Washington, New York City and Newark, federal and local departments and agencies in the nation's capital have enforced and increased closures, installed barricades and instituted checkpoints and restrictions around the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, the main Federal Reserve building, on Constitution Avenue, near the Treasury Department, the White House and Capitol Hill.

Officials are struggling to coordinate security.

Read the stories:Security Checks Ordered Near Federal Reserve (Post, Aug. 5)

Michael Lauer, assistant public information officer for the Capitol Police, was online Friday, Aug. 6., at 11 a.m. ET to discuss traffic problems caused by checkpoints and street closures on Capitol Hill due to the heightened security alert.

A transcript follows.

Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.

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washingtonpost.com: The Capitol Police have set up more than a dozen checkpoints in order to make it more difficult for potential bombers to get near congressional buildings, including the Capitol. There has been much criticism over this from the general public and from some officials. How do you address this criticism?

Michael Lauer: We knew going into it that implementing these security measures would cause some minor problems with traffic. But when we weighed the consequences of a possible suicide bomber implementing an attack against the Capitol complex we felt that saving lives is the top priority at this time.

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Washington, DC: It's easy for police departments to discount the impact of traffic restrictions and the resentments they engender, since police personnel themselves do not have to obey those traffic laws. Did your organization solicit any input from the local communities affected by your road closures, or do you have any plans to do so in the future?

Michael Lauer: The Capitol Police, although we did implement the procedures rather hastily, the concerns of the citizens of Capitol Hill as well as other law enforcement agencies were immediately taken into consideration and addressed for how they would possibly be affected and we are continually monitoring the situation to see if we can make adjustments to help solve any major problems that may arise such as heavy traffic congestion.

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Bethesda, Md.: Do you have enough officers to continue to police Capitol Hill? How much is it costing? How long will it last?

Michael Lauer: How long will it last? No one knows exactly how long this will last. It's costing roughly $1.5 million per pay period which is bi-weekly. Yes, we have enough officers. They're working 12-hour shifts, six days a week. We're continually monitoring the entire situation including the concerns of our officers.

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Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.: Dear Michael: Thank you for taking the time to respond to these questions. I live and work on Capitol Hill and have been doing my part to reduce congestion by biking to and from my job and to run errands. However, I think these new measures are creating serious safety hazards for bikers and pedestrians who live here. Do the Capitol Police ever consider the safety of those who live here before implementing such disruptive measures, or does that come second or third to protecting the Senate and House office buildings?

Michael Lauer: I appreciate the question. Capitol Police considers the safety of everyone. We consider the safety of everyone equally including the residents as well as tourists, congressional members and staff. The primary focus of these security measures is to prevent major casualties or loss of life anywhere on Capitol Hill and it's not just for the protection of the office buildings. We do appreciate citizens assisting us by biking or walking and taking whatever measures they feel helps to speed the process along.

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Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.: When are you going to reopen the West Terrace of the Capitol? The closure of this space, and the grand view of the Mall, is truly one of the worst things that has happened since Sept. 11.

Michael Lauer: That's something that we would absolutely love to do. If we can make 100 percent sure that we can eliminate any possible threats from people causing harm to people or the buildings, then that's something that we would absolutely love to do.

Right now, you can access the lower portion of the West Terrace but to fully open it back up we would have to have some security measures in place in order to safeguard the Capitol from any other threats from unknown people to freely access the West Front.

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Washington, D.C.: Mayor Williams has been critical of the extra security around the Capitol and in other places in the city. What is your response to him saying we're creating a "fortress?"

Michael Lauer: It's not a fortress by any means. The streets are still open to everyone who would like to visit Capitol Hill. All Capitol Police have done is implement security measures in which to be able to screen vehicles prior to them being able to traverse the Hill. The Hill complex is certainly open and is in no way shut down in a fortress-like environment.

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Washington, D.C.: It's been reported that the National Capital Planning Commission has developed a plan to coordinate long-term planning between agencies regarding security in the city. Will this help or make things more difficult?

Michael Lauer: Certainly other solutions to this problem that address the long-term effects of security for D.C. is something we would look at and take under consideration.

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Washington, D.C.: I was travelling East in Independence Ave near the Capitol last Thursday morning (July 29) and Capitol police were pulling cars over to be inspected. I asked the officer if I could get through to Pennsylvania Ave. to get to Prince Georges and I was waved through. However the car behind me was pulled over and inspected.I asked the officer what was going on and he said it was just a random check. This was before Sunday's announcement of new threats. I have 2 questions 1. Was this prompted by the threats that were not announced until Sunday? and 2. Is it legal to randomly stop and search cars without probable cause? thanks

Michael Lauer: Homeland Security announced the heightened alert for specific areas on Sunday and our officers have been trained to look at certain aspects of both vehicles and the drivers that seem suspicious in conjunction with the terror alert. While the screening procedures that are currently being conducted are a cursory check of the vehicle, if our officers notice something unusual or suspicious, they will further inspect the vehicle.

Based on the suspicion, the officers are visually inspecting the interior of the car -- not randomly taking someone aside and asking that person to open their trunk.

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Alexandria, Va.: Fortunately I do not drive to work and, therefore, do not feel what others who drive feel. But, I took the Metro and the terror alert of last weekend makes me scared thinking that what happened in Spain may also happens here also. Is my fear justified? What other alternative do I have beside driving and taking the train to work? Both of these methods now are in danger, maybe I should go homeless and feel like living in the stone age again.

Any suggestions?

Michael Lauer: As far as driving on Capitol Hill, nothing is different than it has been previously before the alert. Our security checkpoints are in place to visually inspect vehicles that could potentially contain large amounts of explosives. Drivers that encounter these checkpoints should not feel worried when they go through them based on what we're looking for. There's not reason to be scared based on the type of vehicles we're looking for.

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Washington, D.C.: Today's Washington Times reports that emergency vehicles like D.C. ambulances and fire engines are being delayed by the security checks. Why is the U.S. Capitol Police doing this?

Michael Lauer: To our knowledge no emergency vehicles have been stopped while responding to a call since the checkpoints have been in place. Communications between each department allows us to know in advance who will be responding through our checkpoints and they will not be stopped at all.

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Free range tour buses: I understand that tourism is a major boon to the District, however, what I fear most is not a car bomb but a tour bus bomb. Tour buses have free range in the District, including areas around major political targets. Instead of closures, and checkpoints, I would expand the No-truck policy to include Tour Buses, light duty trucks and vans.

I would also mandate by law that no tour bus have tinted windows, or at least, minimal tint so one could easily see inside.

Thoughts?

Michael Lauer: The way our security is set up now tour buses can still access the same streets that they always could. To push the boundaries further out for tour buses and not allow them to access streets around federal buildings would significantly impact their services more than our security measures now. They may be slowed down going through the checkpoints but they're still welcome to come visit Capitol Hill.

Regarding the tinted windows, the advice we give is for passenger vehicles to roll down your windows to make it easier and faster for our officers to visually inspect your vehicle.

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Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.: Not so much a question, but rather a comment. I must echo Chief Ramsey's comment on WTOP the other day...."some people just have to gripe"! Heaven forbid protecting the seat of the U.S. should interfere with someone's precious commute or a concrete barrier interfere with a tourist's picture! Oh the horror!

Don't listen to the professional gripers and complainers! Keep doing your job protecting the United States Capitol!

Thank you for all you do.

Michael Lauer: I appreciate your understanding during this sensitive time and Capitol Police is doing everything to balance the needs of protecting Congress as we've been sworn to do while cooperating with the needs of all who may be affected.

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Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.: I can't believe you said "make 100 percent sure that we can eliminate any possible threats" Surely you know this is never possible. I am horrified by what the Capitol Police are doing now and have been doing since September 11. It's almost like they consider all of this a status symbol. And when they do this kind of thing it makes others want the same kind of protection for their buildings. I'm a government worker too, shouldn't my building be protected this way too?

And most shocking of all is the consideration of having all visitors to the grounds produce IDs.

I believe all of this is a serious loss of our freedom and it makes me so sad.

Michael Lauer: As far as providing IDs, that's something that was never in place and currently isn't in place. Let me explain. Showing Congressional identification is required to access certain portions of the Hill such as parking and certain entrances to buildings.

We may never be 100 percent safe but Capitol Police is doing everything that we feel is necessary to protect the congressional community. We know from the past that the U.S. Capitol has been a target of terrorists and that they certainly would like to cause harm or damage here on the Hill and that's the reality we face every day.

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Washington, D.C.: Why are roads being closed in Capitol Hill when the U.S. Capitol was not even mentioned in the intelligence that led to the recent "Orange" alert and associated security upgrades around financial institutions in N.Y., N.J., and D.C?

Michael Lauer: Let me reemphasize that with the exception of First St., NE, all streets on Capitol Hill remain open. We felt it was necessary to increase our security since we are a critical part of the District of Columbia and we take any threat against D.C. as a possible threat to us.

We don't react to our heightened security solely on the raising of the alert by the Dept. of Homeland Security. Capitol Police receives intelligence from numerous sources including our own intelligence operation.

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Michael Lauer: Thank you for your input on this issue. The Capitol Police are working in conjunction with numerous agencies to closely monitor the situation and see if there may possibly be better solutions in the long-term.

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