In the wake of an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump during his rally in Pennsylvania, security measures for the upcoming Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee remain unchanged. The U.S. Secret Service has stated that they are prepared, with an extensive plan already in place for the event which begins today. "We are fully prepared and have a comprehensive security plan in place, and we’re ready to go," said Audrey Gibson-Cicchino, the Secret Service Coordinator for the RNC, as reported by azfamily.com. The RNC has been designated as a national special security event, a status that ensures the highest level of security support from the government.
This assurance comes amidst concerns highlighted by the recent incident with Trump. However, President Joe Biden has also taken action, ordering a review of RNC security procedures. "I've directed the head of the Secret Service to review all security measures, all security measures, for the Republican National Convention, which is scheduled to start tomorrow," President Biden stated earlier in the day as wdbj7.com covered. The Secret Service, however, has indicated that the planning and implementation of security for this event has been an 18-month endeavor.
Former FBI Supervisor Special Agent Lance Leising highlighted the event's complexities, which involves coordination between local, state, and federal agencies. "That is a major endeavor. That is a year and a half of worth of work. That’s multiple advance teams going out for the past year and a half meeting with supporting law enforcement agencies and other intel agencies...," Leising explained in an interview shared by azfamily.com.
Despite Wisconsin's open-carry law, guns will continue to be restricted from the convention's interior but allowed outside of the security perimeter. Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman noted the ordinance law, stating, “We have to respect the Second Amendment right to carry a firearm, especially in regards to open carry or carry concealed if you’re licenses,” as per a statement to azfamily.com. The coordinated law enforcement teams emphasize the need to remain vigilant about firearms in the area.
Leising also mentioned that there will be a thorough review of the assassination attempt to understand what weaknesses were exploited and how to prevent similar incidents. According to him, the review process will include congressional inquiries offering "a very public, a very open analysis of the gaps and the error." Meanwhile, an FBI official has stated that there are "no known articulated threats against the RNC or anyone visiting the RNC." according to both azfamily.com and wdbj7.com.
