The US Secret Service is scrambling to increase security ahead of former President Donald Trump’s first campaign rally since the failed assassination attempt on his life last week, sources familiar with the planning told CNN.
The security around Trump’s future rallies and events is being entirely rethought, including where they should be held – whether indoors or in more secure outdoor locations. Outdoor events for Trump like the one in Butler, Pennsylvania, where he was nearly assassinated, will likely be severely limited, sources said, if not entirely done away with.
The ramp up in security reflects several new assessments by law enforcement since Saturday’s shooting, officials familiar with the assessments told CNN, including concern about a possible copycat incident and others who may be inspired to carry out another attack after seeing the previous one narrowly fail.
Multiple people familiar with the planning for this weekend’s rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at an indoor arena said that both Secret Service and local law enforcement have recently increased the number of officers who will work on securing the event.
During a board of commissioners meeting on Thursday, Kent County, Michigan, Undersheriff Bryan Muir said the sheriff’s office was given a “last-minute request” from the Secret Service for 50 to 60 officers from the department to help with security for the rally.
“We assist the Secret Service,” a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office told CNN, adding that the Secret Service was leading all security planning for the rally. “We just provide assistance.”
The security apparatus around Trump has entirely changed in recent days, people familiar with the matter have told CNN, including through local law enforcement.
An example of this increased security occurred late Thursday night and into Friday morning, when a New Jersey law enforcement helicopter circled the Newark airport dozens of times until Trump’s plane arrived and he was secured in his motorcade following his speech at the Republican National Convention.
Security around Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence has also changed in recent days, with new road closures announced by the Palm Beach Police Department on Thursday which will last through the 2024 election.
“Due to enhanced security measures involving Mar a Lago and U.S. Secret Service-protected persons, South Ocean Boulevard will be closed to through traffic,” the department said, adding that the closure around Mar-a-Lago would be “in effect 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, until the November general election at a minimum.”
One source familiar with the security planning said the shooting will prompt numerous exercises between local and federal law enforcement agencies on how to handle large events, exercises that have been reduced since the Covid-19 pandemic. The source said the lack of these exercises have resulted in security gaps, including communication breakdowns between law enforcement partners.
The source added that after-action reports, like those coming from last Saturday’s shooting, immediately change the way security is handled at similar future events, including how exits and entrances are protected, widening the buffer zone, and other public safety measures.
Saturday’s rally in Grand Rapids will be the first official campaign rally with both Trump and Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance.
Asked if Michigan State Police would be involved in security for Saturday’s rally, director of communications Shanon Banner told CNN the department doesn’t discuss security procedures.
“The Secret Service is responsible for the security planning for presidential visits, but we stand ready to assist them with whatever they need,” Banner wrote in an email.
The Secret Service would not comment on security planning for the rally or Trump.