Attorney General Barr ordered park protesters cleared before Trump’s visit to St. John’s church – USA TODAY

Law enforcement personnel dressed in riot gear used tear gas to disperse protesters near the White House as a curfew neared in the nation's capital. (June 1) AP Domestic

Attorney General William Barr ordered protesters to be cleared from a park near the White House, setting the stage for authoritiesto break up a peaceful demonstration ahead of President Trump's surprise visit to a nearby church, a senior Justice Department official said Tuesday.

The official, who is not authorized to comment publicly, said the decision to expand the security perimeter around Lafayette Square was made Monday morning, after previous protests scorched the area andbefore it was known that Trump would walk to historic St. John's ChurchMonday evening.

The official said Barr was "surprised" that the security perimeter had not been expanded when he visited the area just before Trump's scheduled speech at the White House. It was then, the source said, that Barr was informed of Trump's planto visit the church, prompting the attorney general toorder federal authorities to clear the area ofprotesters.

Historic church: St. John's Church has intersected with Donald Trump at key moments of his presidency

President Donald Trump walks past police in Lafayette Park after he visited St. John's Church across from the White House on June 1. Part of the church was set on fire during protests the night before.(Photo: Patrick Semansky, AP)

Barr was not involved in planning the staged photothat enraged church officials and was condemned by some lawmakers, the official said.

Earlier Tuesday, Barr vowed that Monday's show of force involving more than a dozen law-enforcement agencies was only a warm-up for what is to come.

After offering thanks Tuesday to a legion of military and law enforcement officials, including Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley, for their efforts Monday, Barr warned that "even greater law enforcement resources" would be deployed to keep the peace in D.C.

"The most basic function of government is to provide security for people to live their lives and exercise their rights, and we will meet that responsibility here in the nations capital," Barr said in a statement.

In addition to military units, the attorney general referred to a long list of forces that would probably make a return appearance Tuesday night. At least a dozen agencies in all have been thrust into the mix, with more to come.

Among them: the FBI; the Secret Service; the U.S. Park Police; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the U.S. Marshals Service; the U.S. Capitol Police; at least two Department of Homeland Security agencies; the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department and "others."

'Domination': Trump calls for officials to 'dominate the streets' in response to protests

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The government's aggressive enforcement action Monday prompted criticism from D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser,and religious leaders assailed President Donald Trump for clearing the streets so he could be photographed in front ofSt. John's Church, ahistoric worship center on the edge of Lafayette Square, just north of the White House.

D.C., like dozens of other cities, has been the scene of violent protests after the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in the custody of Minneapolis police. An officer who pinned Floyd's neck to the ground with his knee was charged with murder and manslaughter.

A protester treats a friend injured by a police projectile in Washington, D.C. on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Hannah Gaber, USA TODAY)

Critics hammered Trump for using police, armed with flash grenades and shields, to clear protesters from the Lafayette Square area to provide him cover for Monday night's brief event outside the church, where the president posed with a Bible.

"Tear-gassing peaceful protesters without provocation just so that the president could pose for photos outside a church dishonors everyvalue that faith teaches us," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a joint statement.

The U.S. Park Police has disputed that tear gas was used on the crowd.

Yet the attorney general appeared more than satisfied with the outcome.

Last night was a more peaceful night in the District of Columbia," Barr said. "Working together, federal and local law enforcement made significant progress in restoring order to the nations capital."

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Attorney General Barr ordered park protesters cleared before Trump's visit to St. John's church - USA TODAY