Andy Manis/AP
The U.S. Secret Service released a map on June 21, 2024, showing the security area for next month’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
CNN
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The U.S. Secret Service on Friday announced security measures for next month’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, including the creation of a perimeter to prevent protesters from gathering in a large park near the convention site.
Pere Marquette Park, a few blocks from the Fiserv Forum where the convention is being held, is now inside a “high-security” area where only credentialed attendees and volunteers are allowed inside and weapons are prohibited, Audrey Gibson Cicchino, the Republican National Committee’s Secret Service coordinator, said at a press conference.
As CNN previously reported, the park had been the subject of security discussions between the Secret Service and the Republican National Committee until last week, and advisers to Donald Trump’s campaign had praised proposals to expand the hard perimeter to include the park.
Nick Desiato, chief of staff for the Milwaukee mayor’s office, said security plans include setting up two stages on either side of a hardened perimeter for protest speeches.
Mike De Sisti/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/USA Today Network
The Republican National Convention will be held at Fiserv Forum (top right), located a few blocks northwest of Pere Marquette Park in Milwaukee on May 14, 2024.
Friday’s announcement came after months of disputes between the Secret Service and Republicans over security measures for the convention, which runs from July 15 to 18. Republicans have accused the Secret Service of ignoring the party’s concerns, while the Secret Service has argued that Republicans are obstructing efforts to secure the convention.
In April, Republican National Committee adviser Todd Stegerda wrote the Secret Service urging it to move protesters farther away from the convention than was then planned. He wrote that the city’s proposal would “pose increased and unacceptable safety risks to attendees” and would place protesters in a block-long park, “resulting in thousands of peaceful attendees and protesters in extremely close proximity and unavoidable proximity at all times.”
The RNC’s letter comes amid the peak of pro-Palestinian rallies at major universities across the U.S. The committee said in its letter that “recent clashes on college campuses” demonstrate that forced approaches can escalate tensions and increase the risk of confrontation and law enforcement involvement.
Asked by CNN about recent comments by Trump ally Steve Bannon calling for “win or die” in this year’s election, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said the comment and “comments made generally” were being reviewed but that no changes had yet been made to security at the convention.
“I don’t believe there has been a significant impact at this point. We’re just proceeding with the plan as designed,” Cheatle said.
CNN’s Alaina Turine and Shania Shelton contributed to this report.
