‘We have to make sure that we are assessing the risk for both of those,’ director Kim Cheatle says.
The director of the U.S. Secret Service said that there is nothing credible to suggest there is a direct threat against either the Republican or Democratic national conventions in the coming weeks.
Secret Service Director Kim Cheatle told ABC News on Sunday that “there’s nothing specific and nothing credible out there right now” as her agency prepares to protect both conventions. The Republican National Convention (RNC) will be held starting July 15 in Milwaukee, and the Democratic National Convention (DNC) will take place in Chicago starting Aug. 19.
The Secret Service, Ms. Cheatle added, is monitoring any possible threats from domestic or foreign terrorism ahead of the twin events.
“I think we have to make sure that we are assessing the risk for both of those, as well as any other type of threat that may come at us, whether it’s a lone gunman, an organized attack, or an organized group,” Ms. Cheatle said.
Responding to the prospect of protests, Ms. Cheatle said her agency and police departments will “respect the right for everybody to be able to express their First Amendment rights,” adding they welcome people to come out and express those rights.
“Where we have concerns is if those potential demonstrations turned violent, and then appropriate action would be taken,” she said.
Several pro-Palestinian organizations are planning to protest at the Democratic convention, with some saying that they will demonstrate in Chicago, whether they can get a city-issued permit or not.
A coalition of groups said it will “be bringing the demands of the people within sight and sound of the Democratic National Convention in August” and that it will “be mobilizing thousands of people from across the country to demand an end to U.S. funding” for Israel during the monthslong conflict between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group.
“We will go and we will protest without a permit because this is our enshrined right under the constitution,” Tarek Khalil, of American Muslims for Palestine, told a local ABC affiliate station in Chicago in May. “We have every right to do so.”
The coalition in April sent a letter to Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to allow protesters to be “within sight and sound of the United Center,” coming after they were denied a permit to be near the area by the Chicago Department of Transportation. The city had denied their request over safety and traffic concerns.
The Chicago Department of Transportation proposed an alternative protest route more than three miles away.
Protests at the 1968 Democratic National Convention, also held in Chicago, devolved into riots over U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. At least one person died and hundreds of people were injured in seven days of protests and demonstrations.
In Milwaukee, a coalition of protest groups sued the city who said their rights were violated by a Milwaukee special event ordinance that creates a special security zone around the Republican National Convention. That includes having protest groups apply for a special permit to march or demonstrate.
Officials said in June that people will be allowed to carry guns within blocks of the Republican convention.
No weapons of any kind will be allowed within the inner perimeter, but people will be able to carry guns openly or concealed elsewhere as allowed under state law. Wisconsin statutes outlaw only machine guns, short-barreled shotguns, and silencers, also known as suppressors.