A newspaper story out of Dallas, Texas, caught my eye today. (Click to enlarge.)
It reminded me of the differing levels of security here for the visits of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Granted, much of the security is beneath the surface -- unseen by the casual attendee at these rallies, and that's how it should be. Still, the discrepancy was startling to me. And from the story above, from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, I can see that I'm not alone.
At the Obama rally in Racine, security was tight. Everyone in Memorial Hall was told to leave at 2 p.m. Reporters and photographers had to leave all equipment -- cameras, laptops, what-have-you; we were told nothing else could be brought in. The Secret Service wanted to have the hall to themselves from 2 p.m. to 2:45 for a security sweep, including bomb-sniffer dogs. As we were leaving, I counted about 20 uniformed police, TSA and Secret Service agents. There probably were more. As it turned out, press was kept out until shortly after 4 p.m... and when we were permitted to return, each of us was wanded and expertly patted down.
The public had to go through metal detectors -- which malfunctioned at first and kept the crowd waiting outside in the cold for more than an hour until they were fully functional again. (And let's be clear here: it was colder in Racine than in Dallas).
Furthermore, the area where Obama spoke was roped off, and those attending the rally were tightly controlled. Individual photographers who wanted to get close while he was speaking were escorted individually into the central area. Obama was 10-20 ft. from the closest spectator. And at the end, when he "pressed the flesh," he had agents closely by his side, and again the crowd was carefully controlled and kept back. Obama dealt strictly with a rope line, walking down it but never surrounded by civilians. He did not stop to sign autographs.
At the Hillary Clinton rally in Kenosha ... well, forget all that, except for a few visible (and invisible) Secret Service agents near her, and however many local police and Sheriff's Deputies on the perimeter. There was no empty-building sweep, no checkpoint at all for press -- neither wanding, nor pat-down nor equipment inspection -- and no metal detectors for the audience to go through. While she spoke, she stood within five feet of spectators on three sides.
It was most startling as the rally concluded. Hillary was surrounded by fans on all sides, as the crowd strained to reach her for autographs, and she attempted to satisfy that desire. She signed posters, books, shirts -- whatever was handed to her. Yes, there were a couple of Secret Service agents at her side, but the crowd really surrounded her; I have one series of pictures of a man who put his arm around Mrs. Clinton's shoulder, as he posed her for a picture with him.
To someone who's lived through JFK's and Robert Kennedy's assassination, the shootings of George Wallace and Ronald Reagan, and two attempts on Gerald Ford, I was neither surprised nor offended by all the security around Obama. But I was shocked by the lack of (apparent) security around Hillary. (And, yes, I am aware that only RFK's shooting took place in what could and should have been a secured location.)
Furthermore, those were simpler times. The papers weren't full of mass murders every other week, at colleges, workplaces, schools, malls. The times definitely have changed, and not for the better. I hope we haven't forgotten history.
Feb 21, 2008
Are we getting sloppy with candidate security?
Feb 4, 2008
Becker, Mason holding Obama party on Super Tuesday
State Rep. Cory Mason and Racine Mayor Gary Becker are holding a Barack Obama watching party Tuesday as results come in from primary elections across the country.
The two local leaders will be watching the results at Buckets Pub, 2301 Lathrop Ave., from 7 p.m. into the night.
"State Representative Cory Mason and Mayor Gary Becker invite you to watch as the returns come in and Barack Obama makes history on Super Tuesday," read the announcement sent out Monday.
Sen. Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton are expected to split the 24 states up for election on Tuesday. Obama has been surging in recent days, and he's expected to do well. But Clinton remains the front-runner in a number of states, it's likely the Democrats' primary won't be decided for a couple of weeks.
That's at least interesting news for Wisconsin voters, who will head to the polls on Feb. 19 to vote in the presidential primary and local elections.
RacinePost poll
If you haven't seen the poll results in the upper right corner, Obama was the runaway winner among our readers for president. He nabbed twice as many votes as Hillary in our highly scientific and researched poll. On the Republican side, it's Romney over McCain by 3.
Oct 29, 2007
The best candidates (our) money can buy?
The Real Debate Wisconsin blog pointed out this weekend that Republican presidential candidates raised $95,000 more from the Badger State than Democratic presidential candidates.
But what about here in Racine? When we vote with our wallets, what's the outcome?
So far in 2007, there's no contest. Checking the Federal Election Commission donation reports reveals two frontrunners, one in each party.
Among Democratic presidential hopefuls, Barack Obama received $7,500, with $3,800 coming from Jeff and Lisa Neubauer. Neubauer, former state party chairman, organized fund-raisers for Obama in the spring that netted $250,000. Far behind: Hillary Clinton and John Edwards each received $1,000. Everybody else on that crowded debate stage got zip.
Among Republicans, put your hands together for Mitt Romney, who received $6,100. Two-thirds of that came from Helen Johnson Leipold and her husband Craig (spending his Predators' windfall early?) Romney's closest competitor in the county is -- drumroll, please! -- a tie: Ron Paul received $4,600 from Sandra and Fred Young Jr. and Tommy Thompson got the same from Loraine and Charles Vignieri. Sam Brownback got $2,300 and John McCain $1,700. Alan Keyes (!) received $201.
Putting all that fund-raising to shame, however, was the S. C. Johnson & Son Inc. Political Action Committee, which received $43,275 in donations. There were six $5,000 checks from family and board members, and the rest from board, directors and employees in amounts ranging from $2,000 to $250.
And where is the SCJ PAC spending its money? So far this year, it has made 13 donations of $1,000 or $2,000 to House and Senate candidates around the U.S., in an eclectic variety of states like California, New Hampshire, Texas, Virginia, Arizona, Arkansas, Iowa and Maryland. The money was split equally between the two parties, although seven Republicans received donations vs. six Democrats. Only one Wisconsin pol has benefitted: U.S. Rep. Tom Petri, R-6th District (Oshkosh and Sheboygan), received $1,000.
Want to do your own search, find out who your neighbors are supporting? Start HERE and HERE.
