CNN
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The Secret Service and Chicago Police Department have stepped up preparations for the Democratic National Convention in August, with officers undergoing extensive training on everything from First Amendment rights to dealing with violent protests and mass arrests.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle visited Chicago this week, touring the United Center, where prime-time televised convention speeches will be broadcast, and McCormick Place, the convention center where the party conducts its daytime operations.
The event, which runs from August 19-22, is expected to attract 50,000 visitors, including delegates, media and vendors, and is sure to spark large-scale protests.
Democrats are poised to nominate President Joe Biden for reelection at their Chicago convention, but recent nationwide protests against Biden’s support for Israel’s war on Gaza have raised fears of a repeat of the 1968 Democratic convention, which saw violent clashes between Chicago police and anti-Vietnam War protesters.
On Monday, Cheatle met privately with about 100 agents from the Secret Service’s Chicago field office, which also covers Milwaukee, where the Republican Party will hold its convention in July, so the team has been planning for both rallies.
Cheatle said in an interview that law enforcement officials are preparing for a wide range of scenarios.
“This is a lone actor,” Cheatle said. “There are some radicalised individuals and there could be protests. Of course we hope they remain here peacefully, but there could be violence.”
Official security details for this summer’s convention have yet to be revealed, while the city of Chicago is negotiating protest routes with groups that filed a federal lawsuit after the city denied them permits to protest.
The Chicago Police Department’s Crime Prevention and Information Center will serve as a command center to monitor all convention-related events in the city, including protests, and will also include representatives from the Secret Service, Illinois State Police, FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Federal and local authorities are closely monitoring the flow of threats from domestic and international extremist groups. A recent joint intelligence bulletin from the National Counterterrorism Center, the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI warned that groups such as al Qaeda and ISIS continue to produce propaganda encouraging followers to carry out “lone wolf” attacks on U.S. soil using rudimentary tactics such as gunfire in crowded places and vehicle ramming attacks. Citing al Qaeda’s online propaganda articles, the bulletin highlighted “widening divisions between the American public, between right and left, Republicans and their supporters, and Democrats and their supporters” that could increase the impact of attacks.
“I think everyone senses the threat is real. This is not an academic exercise. We’re planning for what could happen in the real world,” said Jeff Burnside, the Secret Service coordinator for the Democratic convention.
Meanwhile, Chicago Police are training for a variety of possible scenarios, including violent protests, rescuing people from hostile crowds and medical emergencies, with bike teams ready to move quickly through the city to form barricades if needed.
Officers also receive constitutional and legal training on First Amendment protest rights and procedures in the event mass arrests become necessary.
But Chicago police leaders say they hope hundreds of hours of training, including de-escalation tactics, will help them avoid clashes with protesters.
“We don’t want to get into conflict with people if we don’t have to. We don’t want to get into conflict with people if we don’t have to,” said Chicago Police Chief Larry Snelling. “If people are out here to express themselves, then of course they can, but please do so peacefully, according to the law. That’s it. Once you start breaking the law, we’ve got to bring back the peace.”
