D.C. prepares for Sunday showdown between white supremacists and counterprotesters

District leaders are preparing for what could be a contentious and trying day Sunday when the organizer of last year’s deadly white-supremacist rally in Charlottesville holds an anniversary gathering with up to 400 supporters in Lafayette Square across from the White House.

As many as 1,500 counterprotesters are expected at Lafayette Square and more at two nearby parks, setting up a possible volatile showdown that District and federal law enforcement officials say they are prepared to confront.

Unlike in Charlottesville, where police allowed the opposing factions to clash in what turned into a bloody melee, D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said Thursday that the goal “will be to keep the two groups separate. . . . When they are in the same area at the same time, it leads to violent confrontations. Our goal is to prevent that from happening.”

Good lord, please let this end well.

#politics