Sources informed AWN that the US Secret Service is rushing to beef up security for former President Trump’s first campaign event following the botched assassination attempt last week.
There has been a complete rethinking of the security measures around Trump’s upcoming rallies and events, including the question of whether they should take place indoors or in safer outdoor venues. According to reports, outdoor rallies for Trump, such as the one in Butler, Pennsylvania, when he was almost killed, will be drastically reduced, if not eliminated, altogether.
Law enforcement has conducted new assessments since Saturday’s shooting, according to officials who spoke with AWN. These assessments include worries about a copycat incident and the possibility that individuals may be motivated to carry out another attack after witnessing the previous one’s narrow escape. As a result, security has been stepped up.
The Secret Service and local law enforcement have reportedly upped the number of officers assigned to secure this weekend’s rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at an indoor arena. This information comes from multiple sources familiar with the event’s planning.
Undersheriff Bryan Muir announced Thursday during a meeting of the Kent County, Michigan board of commissioners that the Secret Service had made a “last-minute request” for fifty to sixty policemen from the department to assist with rally security.
A spokeswoman for the sheriff’s office said AWN, “We assist the Secret Service,” and went on to say that the Secret Service was in charge of all rally security. “We merely offer our assistance.”
According to AWN’s sources, including those in the know at the local level, Trump’s security structure has undergone a complete overhaul in the past few days.
One instance of this heightened security was seen in the late hours of Thursday night and early hours of Friday morning, when a police helicopter from New Jersey circled the Newark airport multiple times until the arrival of Trump’s plane and the security of his motorcade after his speech at the Republican National Convention were arranged.
New road restrictions announced by the Palm Beach Police Department on Thursday will endure through the 2024 election, adding to the changes in security around Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.
South Ocean Boulevard will be closed to through traffic due to enhanced security measures involving Mar a Lago and U.S. Secret Service-protected persons, according to the department. The closure around Mar-a-Lago will be in effect all day, every day, until the November general election, at the very least.
After a decline in drills following the COVID-19 outbreak, a source acquainted with security preparations has stated that the shooting will inspire a flurry of new drills involving federal and state law enforcement agencies to prepare for and execute massive events. According to the source, security issues, such as a lack of communication between law enforcement partners, have arisen due to the absence of these drills.
According to the source, public safety measures such as the protection of exits and entrances, the expansion of the buffer zone, and other similar procedures are promptly revised in response to after-action reports such as the one from last Saturday’s shooting.
Trump and Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance will be making their official campaign rally debut at Saturday’s event in Grand Rapids.
When asked about the involvement of the Michigan State Police in the rally’s security on Saturday, AWN was informed by Shanon Banner, the department’s director of communications, that the department does not disclose security protocols.
The Secret Service is in charge of security for presidential visits, but we are prepared to help them with everything they require, Banner stated in an email.
Neither Trump nor the security arrangements for the gathering were addressed by the Secret Service.