The 2024 presidential election is in full swing, and so are the threats facing the candidates, the conventions, and the nation.
Former President Donald Trump, who was convicted in May of 34 counts of falsifying business records and faces three additional lawsuits for allegedly handling classified documents and meddling in the election, has been the target of protests and threats over the years, including an evacuation order at the Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington, D.C., after a vial of blood bearing Trump's name was delivered there.
The convention begins in a little over a week in Milwaukee.
Large protests are also expected in Chicago at the Democratic National Convention in August, given recent events surrounding the Israel-Hamas war, abortion rights and other hot-button issues, as well as repeated calls from some observers for President Joe Biden to resign.
The tournament comes amid a dramatic increase in threats against U.S. civil servants, according to the Department of Homeland Security. A report from West Point noted that “substantial evidence indicates a growing prevalence of threats against civil servants that is placing pressure on civil servants and the system of governance.”
The West Point report cited a 2023 Voting Rights Institute report that said harassment and intimidation have led to significant numbers of election officials resigning from their jobs, particularly in several battleground states across the country.
The Secret Service has previously said that past presidents receive about six to eight threats per day, all of which they have had to mitigate, and that the number of threats could certainly rise with the heightened threat dynamic and with a president who many are calling for to drop out of the race and a former president with felony convictions running again.
The House Appropriations Committee in March passed a bill to increase federal security funding for the cities of Chicago and Milwaukee to $75 million from $50 million, which had been in place since 2004. Much of this money will go toward the physical security measures that visitors see, such as steel barricades.
Of course, protests and personal threats are a different matter, but this convention and election season is unique.
According to a Department of Homeland Security bulletin titled “Threats to National Political Party Conventions,” this year has seen an increase in “nation and non-state actors who may view these events as an opportunity to influence or disrupt the U.S. political process using hostile or violent disruptive tactics in a national media arena.” The Director of National Intelligence also reported that multiple international crises, including in Ukraine, the Gaza Strip, and Iran, have led multiple nation-state actors to attempt to disrupt the 2024 elections.
The DNI also said Russia, China and Iran were all seeking to influence the 2024 election through “malign influence operations” and to manipulate it to achieve their own objectives.
Once the tournament is announced, it will initiate a security planning process that will result in it being designated a National Special Security Event (NSSE) by the Department of Homeland Security.
The NSSE designation has several implications: it assigns the U.S. Secret Service the role of federal security coordinator for the event, mandates certain federal agencies, such as the FBI, to assist with the NSSE, and mandates coordination of all parties involved in the NSSE under the direction of the Secret Service.
The planning process must consider and plan for all aspects of the NSSE and mitigate potential threats, if any, including physical, environmental, terrorist, and cyber threats, as well as logistical issues such as parking, access control, bus transportation, food service, and visitor management.
This will effectively create a security bubble or security zone that will start at the tournament site and extend beyond both cities.
Mitigation strategies, both visible and invisible, are always part of the planning process.
In 2004, the Republican National Convention was held at Madison Square Garden (MSG) in New York City, just three years after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The fear of terrorists using airplanes as weapons of mass destruction was still a real threat, especially considering that Ground Zero was located just a few miles to the south. MSG is a unique building in New York City and is easily identifiable from the air.
When then-President George W. Bush was in the building, there was a very real fear that planes might attack the building, so both visible and invisible protocols were put in place to not only protect the airspace above, but also to ensure that then-President Bush could be removed from the stage and out of the building in the event of a terrorist attack.
In 2024, the very real threat of domestic or international extremists or groups infiltrating or causing unrest at either or both events is a major concern.
The NSSE Intelligence Committee brings together the best of national security agencies (CIA, NSA) and law enforcement (USSS, FBI, local police) to work together to identify and mitigate potential threats in each tournament location. This work begins almost from the time the tournament is announced and involves the assessment of local, national, and international intelligence to inform NSSE intelligence and security activities.
As with the 2004 Republican National Convention, the information from this Threat Intelligence Committee will drive much of the security planning resources. Countering these threats will require a coordinated effort from the nation's law enforcement and national security agencies.
Two weeks ago, the Secret Service released security plans for both conventions, which have actually been in the works for over two years, to ensure that both conventions are resourced and prepared.
“At this time, security plans for the 2024 Republican National Convention, including the security perimeter, are still being developed,” Secret Service spokeswoman Alexandria Worley told CNN.
