A protester raises her hand identifying herself to Donald Trump as his head of security moves to remove her during a campaign event at Radford University in Radford, Virginia, on February 29, 2016. (Damon Winter/The New York Times)
When the head of a local gun group tried to present Donald Trump with a lifetime membership card at a campaign event on Sunday in Cincinnati, Trump asked the man to toss it to him over a phalanx of guards, not wanting an unfamiliar member of the crowd to get too close.
Earlier in the day, at a rally in Illinois, Trump hoped to invite a Hispanic supporter from the audience to join him on stage and say a few words. But first he asked his security personnel if they would allow it.
"He knows if he makes a move he's going to get clobbered by these guys," Trump said, offering something of a warning to anyone who would do him harm.
As Trump's campaign events have grown more vitriolic, the security presence surrounding him has been increasingly on edge. The shift has come months after people around Trump, particularly his children, urged him to tighten his protection out of concern that he would be attacked.
The concern was amplified at an event in Dayton, Ohio, on Saturday, when a man hurdled a security barrier and tried to charge the stage before being tackled. Secret Service agents, who were assigned to him last fall, rushed to form a protective circle around Trump.
The Trump campaign would not comment on security specifics, but local police officers, the Secret Service and his own private detail are present at rallies. This security apparatus has gained attention, particularly after this weekend, for both its role in protecting the candidate and in ejecting protesters from his events.
The phrase "Get 'em out" has replaced "You're fired" in Trump's vernacular, offering him an air of iron-fisted authority to buttress the image of toughness he projects.
But the handling of protesters at Trump's events has raised questions about the methods and makeup of his security apparatus and the rights of peaceful critics to speak without being silenced.
Despite accusations of suppression by some protesters, legal experts say that campaigns have the discretion to remove people from private events as they see fit, as long as they are not doing so based on race.
Trump's in-house security is led by Keith Schiller, a retired detective from the New York Police Department, who is omnipresent by his boss' side. Schiller, who in September punched a Latino protester in the face outside Trump Tower in New York City, is fiercely devoted to Trump, and was the first person to leap onto the dais in Dayton when the activist came running. Trump employs several other security guards, some of whom, in recent weeks, have been seen moving in plain clothes into crowds to try to end disruptions.
While their boss' language tends to be caustic, the security guards have seemed to try diffusing tense situations instead of inflaming them. According to campaign finance filings, Trump has spent about $170,000 on "security services" throughout his campaign.
While Trump's contractors handle some scuffles, in recent incidents in places like Fayetteville, North Carolina, it was local law enforcement that appeared to be involved in removing protesters.
Mickey Nelson, a retired assistant director of protective operations with the Secret Service, said agents coordinate with the police and would be involved with removing someone only as a last resort.
"Secret Service only gets involved if an individual poses a security threat or interferes with law enforcement activity," Nelson said.
Seemingly frustrated with the frequent interruptions at his events, Trump has threatened legal action against protesters, or "disrupters" as he has called them. On Saturday evening in Kansas City, Missouri, Trump repeatedly said he would start filing charges against protesters in the future to teach them a lesson. As the night wore on, and disruptions became more frequent, Trump looked down at a woman protesting and called to law enforcement, "Arrest her. Arrest her."
While Trump complains that protesters are violating his First Amendment rights, many of his critics wonder about their own ability to speak out. At a Trump campaign event held at Valdosta State University in Georgia last month, several black students complained to the police that they did not understand why they were kicked out.
Lee Rowland, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, said that because campaign events are considered "political theater," candidates who rent event spaces have the right to disinvite anyone they choose. Those who resist could be charged with trespassing.
"The reason the ejection of protesters sits so ill with people is because protesters are being ejected from rallies where the individual holding the rallies is seeking the highest office in the land," Rowland said. "The first act of that office is swearing an oath to the Constitution, including the First Amendment."
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Earlier in the day, at a rally in Illinois, Trump hoped to invite a Hispanic supporter from the audience to join him on stage and say a few words. But first he asked his security personnel if they would allow it.
"He knows if he makes a move he's going to get clobbered by these guys," Trump said, offering something of a warning to anyone who would do him harm.
As Trump's campaign events have grown more vitriolic, the security presence surrounding him has been increasingly on edge. The shift has come months after people around Trump, particularly his children, urged him to tighten his protection out of concern that he would be attacked.
The concern was amplified at an event in Dayton, Ohio, on Saturday, when a man hurdled a security barrier and tried to charge the stage before being tackled. Secret Service agents, who were assigned to him last fall, rushed to form a protective circle around Trump.
The Trump campaign would not comment on security specifics, but local police officers, the Secret Service and his own private detail are present at rallies. This security apparatus has gained attention, particularly after this weekend, for both its role in protecting the candidate and in ejecting protesters from his events.
The phrase "Get 'em out" has replaced "You're fired" in Trump's vernacular, offering him an air of iron-fisted authority to buttress the image of toughness he projects.
But the handling of protesters at Trump's events has raised questions about the methods and makeup of his security apparatus and the rights of peaceful critics to speak without being silenced.
Despite accusations of suppression by some protesters, legal experts say that campaigns have the discretion to remove people from private events as they see fit, as long as they are not doing so based on race.
Trump's in-house security is led by Keith Schiller, a retired detective from the New York Police Department, who is omnipresent by his boss' side. Schiller, who in September punched a Latino protester in the face outside Trump Tower in New York City, is fiercely devoted to Trump, and was the first person to leap onto the dais in Dayton when the activist came running. Trump employs several other security guards, some of whom, in recent weeks, have been seen moving in plain clothes into crowds to try to end disruptions.
While their boss' language tends to be caustic, the security guards have seemed to try diffusing tense situations instead of inflaming them. According to campaign finance filings, Trump has spent about $170,000 on "security services" throughout his campaign.
While Trump's contractors handle some scuffles, in recent incidents in places like Fayetteville, North Carolina, it was local law enforcement that appeared to be involved in removing protesters.
Mickey Nelson, a retired assistant director of protective operations with the Secret Service, said agents coordinate with the police and would be involved with removing someone only as a last resort.
"Secret Service only gets involved if an individual poses a security threat or interferes with law enforcement activity," Nelson said.
Seemingly frustrated with the frequent interruptions at his events, Trump has threatened legal action against protesters, or "disrupters" as he has called them. On Saturday evening in Kansas City, Missouri, Trump repeatedly said he would start filing charges against protesters in the future to teach them a lesson. As the night wore on, and disruptions became more frequent, Trump looked down at a woman protesting and called to law enforcement, "Arrest her. Arrest her."
While Trump complains that protesters are violating his First Amendment rights, many of his critics wonder about their own ability to speak out. At a Trump campaign event held at Valdosta State University in Georgia last month, several black students complained to the police that they did not understand why they were kicked out.
Lee Rowland, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, said that because campaign events are considered "political theater," candidates who rent event spaces have the right to disinvite anyone they choose. Those who resist could be charged with trespassing.
"The reason the ejection of protesters sits so ill with people is because protesters are being ejected from rallies where the individual holding the rallies is seeking the highest office in the land," Rowland said. "The first act of that office is swearing an oath to the Constitution, including the First Amendment."
© 2016, The New York Times News Service
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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