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Donald Trump held a mass meeting indoors on Wednesday, then in Charlotte, North Carolina.
1 / 3Photo: Alex Brandon/AP/TT
The search for giant indoor arenas is in full swing. After the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, the presidential candidate is asked not to hold any large campaign meetings under the open sky.
The Republican’s mass meetings often take place in airports, amusement parks, football stadiums or other large outdoor arenas, which places high demands on security.
But now that may be over.
After the assassination attempt on Donald Trump on July 13 in Pennsylvania, the federal police agency Secret Service – which is responsible for bodyguard protection – advises Trump to instead find places indoors so that they can better ensure security, The Washington Post reports.
Cancelled
At the large outdoor meeting in Butler, Pennsylvania, shots were fired from a nearby roof outside the meeting area. One audience member was killed, two were injured, and Trump was hit in the ear and suffered minor injuries.
Criticism of the Secret Service has been extensive since then, and this week the head of the Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle, resigned. She admitted that the organization’s inability to fend off the threat against Trump was the agency’s biggest failure in decades.
All outdoor activities at the subsequent Republican convention were canceled and other mass meetings were held indoors.
– Do I feel safe? Yes, I need to feel safe. Otherwise, I can’t do this, Trump said in an interview with the right-wing site Newsmax this week.
In the interview, he also accused incumbent President Joe Biden’s administration of not doing enough to protect him.
Earlier this year, Donald Trump’s campaign organization requested reinforcements of various kinds, and several of them were reportedly turned down by the Secret Service, sources told The Washington Post.
Harry’s protection is also strengthened
His campaign is reportedly heeding the Secret Service’s call and looking for alternative indoor venues, such as basketball arenas, that can accommodate large audiences.
Two sources with close knowledge of the Republican’s campaign plans confirm that Trump will hold his campaign meetings indoors “for the foreseeable future”, reports the NBC television channel.
Measures to strengthen the protection around Vice President Kamala Harris, who is soon expected to be named the Democratic presidential candidate, are said to have also been taken. When President Joe Biden announced that he would not run for re-election, the Secret Service redistributed some resources to her, writes Politico.
However, Harris has so far received no call to campaign indoors.
FACTSSecret service mission
The Secret Service is a federal agency whose task, among other things, is to protect the President of the United States.
The organization has about 3,600 employees who guard the White House, the Treasury Department and foreign missions in Washington. The number of employees has been cut in recent years, while threats and the number of protected objects have increased.
In addition to protecting the current president, the Secret service is also tasked with protecting the vice president, the president-elect, the vice president-elect, and presidential candidates, to name a few examples.
After the assassination attempt on Donald Trump on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania, the agency endured strong criticism. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned after admitting that their failure to avert the threat against Trump was the worst failure in decades.
Sources: CNN, NBC News and more.
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