10/11/2024 – World – Trump asks for military protection for campaign finale

Former President Donald Trump’s campaign has asked the White House and the Secret Service for a series of additional security measures, including military resources, because of repeated threats against the Republican nominee, according to people interviewed by The New York Times.

The demands come amid talk by some Trump aides that they are less able to run the campaign the way they want because of security threats, including restrictions on Trump’s travel to destinations and appearances at outdoor rallies.

Over the past two weeks, White House Chief of Staff Jeff Giants and Acting Secret Service Director Ronald L. In conversations with Rove Jr., Susie Wiles, a top Trump aide, said the former president was forced to relocate, reschedule or cancel major events. According to people interviewed, there are limitations in the Secret Service’s available resources.

The campaign’s demands for greater security included sophisticated and classified military resources that are reserved for presidents: the early installation of bulletproof glass in key states where he often campaigns and the expansion of temporary restrictions on air travel over Trump’s residences and campaign areas. sites.

Trump’s team is trying to protect him, in effect, on the same level as President Joe Biden. Trump’s team has been told that he receives the highest level of security available to a sitting president, even when no candidate or former president is at their disposal.

Trump has been the target of two assassination attempts in the past four months, in addition to an alleged contract assassination plot involving a man with ties to Iran, and the campaign has been told by U.S. intelligence that Tehran is interested in targeting Trump.

Wiles cited several episodes in which his team’s ability to run the campaign suffered, a person familiar with the matter said.

For example, the campaign faced a shortage of Secret Service agents because they were busy dealing with an event in Wisconsin at the UN General Assembly in New York.

Or another event in Wisconsin that couldn’t be held at the original location because it was too heavy to fit safely inside the bulletproof glass structure now used to protect Trump, forcing the former president to downsize your event. venue and make it a press conference instead of a public rally.

Another person briefed on the schedule said later that week that other Secret Service guards also had to curtail their events, adding that the order was not specific to Trump and that it was not unusual for events to be rescheduled at this stage of the race. Election.

In conversations and messages with White House officials, Wiles indicated that additional security resources will be needed if the former president wants to finish the campaign season the way he wants.

Rove told the campaign he was considering its requests, said a Secret Service official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. The agency is working with the White House and the Defense Department to reevaluate the requests, the official added.

Asked about the calls to the White House, executive communications director Ben LaBolt said: “President Biden directed the Secret Service to provide the highest level of security for former President Trump.”

Secret Service resource constraints have been a growing problem in recent years as the agency deals with the exodus of agents. Agents are exhausted due to heavy workloads and unexpected overtime, which sometimes goes unpaid. The agency has also come under fire for its failures in the July shooting of Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Given the lack of trained agents, experts and other equipment, it’s not uncommon for candidates to be told no during busy periods like the final stages of a presidential campaign.

In a statement to the New York Times, “Since the July 13 assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, the U.S. Secret Service has made extensive improvements in our communications skills, capabilities and security measures. Today, the former president enjoys the highest level of security.”