Capitol Police retires Friday, after rebuilding dept. in wake of Capitol riot

U.S. Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger, who took complaint of the section successful the hard months aft the U.S. Capitol siege, is retiring from his presumption Friday. After the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, helium helped rebuild the department's shrunken staff, beefed up recruitment efforts and bolstered the agency's quality operations and communications to hole weaknesses revealed by the breach of the Capitol.

Manger told CBS News helium faced stiff challenges erstwhile helium arrived connected the occupation successful 2021.

File: U.S. Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger is seen anterior to testifying earlier a Senate sheet connected fund estimates for fiscal twelvemonth 2026.  Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

"The section arsenic a full had mislaid assurance successful the (prior) enactment arsenic a effect of what happened," helium said. "And determination were large things that were identified arsenic things that needed to beryllium fixed arsenic rapidly arsenic we could hole them: Things similar the quality failures, the connection failures, the instrumentality failures, the grooming failures, the enactment failures — each of those things needed to beryllium addressed immediately."

Manger, a erstwhile section constabulary main successful Fairfax County, Virginia, and Montgomery County, Maryland, successfully advocated for increases successful backing to amended hiring, instrumentality and operations.

The section was blasted by critics for quality failures that contributed to the usurpation of the analyzable connected Jan. 6, 2021.   

"We present person a satellite people quality operation. We are important players successful the quality assemblage successful the Washington, D.C., portion and, frankly, each implicit the country," Manger said. "Whereas before, we were fundamentally conscionable —... we were consumers of information. The FBI would springiness america intelligence, different agencies would springiness america intelligence. Now we are gathering our own."

The U.S. Capitol Police Board volition prime a caller constabulary chief, which Manger predicts volition hap soon.  

Manger has requested astir $1 cardinal successful backing for 2026, which would correspond the latest successful a bid of caller fund boosts for the department. In grounds earlier a legislature committee connected justifying his fund request, Manger cited an elevated fig of investigations into threats against members of Congress.   

"The existent clime of threats has reached alarming levels," helium told the committee successful April. Capitol Police records amusement the fig of threats launched against legislature members successful 2024 exceeded 9,400.

He added, "Social media and the net supply a breeding crushed for threats that — careless of their quality — the section indispensable investigate."   

Manger and the Capitol Police person besides bolstered the department's operations extracurricular of Washington, responding to imaginable threats successful the hometowns of lawmakers.

The section has a unsocial ngo among constabulary agencies, protecting elected leaders and securing the U.S. Capitol campus, which hosts implicit 3 cardinal visitors each year. The Capitol is unfastened to the public, and lawmakers are accessible to citizens. 

Manger has been captious of the pardons issued by President Trump to escaped Capitol rioters who beat, clubbed and gassed Capitol Police and different officers during the onslaught connected the Capitol. He told CBS News that erstwhile Mr. Trump issued 1,500 pardons to the suspected and convicted rioters erstwhile helium took office, it "was astir apt 1 of my worst days successful this job."  

He besides blasted conspiracy theories astir Jan. 6 that proceed to circulate connected societal media.

"My folks were present connected Jan. 6. They were portion of what went on. They were assaulted," Manger said. "They were successful fights. Many of them were injured. They cognize precisely what happened connected Jan. 6. For idiosyncratic to marque up immoderate communicative that, 'Oh, it wasn't that bad,' — it is conscionable not true."

"What a chilling connection to instrumentality enforcement, due to the fact that we've got a occupation to do, and we don't attraction what the contented is," Manger continued. "We don't attraction what broadside of the coin you're connected on immoderate peculiar contented due to the fact that we person a occupation to do, to support nationalist bid and to support the peace."

Rep. Joe Morelle, a New York Democrat who is the ranking subordinate of the Committee connected House Administration, said of Manger, "Since taking implicit astatine the department's hr of top need, helium professionalized a unit successful request of dependable leadership."  

A national typical for Capitol Police officers told CBS News, "Manpower is inactive an issue, arsenic good arsenic balancing enactment and household beingness for the fertile and record officers, which continues to plague morale wrong the agency."  

As helium prepares to permission the department, Manger was lauded by 1 of the erstwhile Capitol Police officers who responded to the Jan. 6 riot. Former serviceman Harry Dunn told CBS News, "He showed his emotion for country, his emotion for instrumentality enforcement and his continued dedication to nationalist service."