From
Politico:
Fears of chaos inside the Republican National Convention have subsided as Donald Trump has tightened his grip on the party’s presidential nomination. But outside the arena, a mishmash of planned demonstrations and marches is raising safety concerns about what happens when protesters, police and convention participants converge on the streets of Cleveland.
“I am sure it’s going to inflame beyond anything I’ve seen,” said Kendal Unruh, a Colorado delegate who’s attended seven national GOP conventions.
Trump’s candidacy has proven to provoke passions and even violent confrontations — sparked by both supporters and critics alike — at his campaign rallies around the country. Violent clashes between Trump protesters and police in New Mexico this week reignited concerns about the ability of law enforcement and Secret Service to tamp down on sharper confrontations at the convention, a magnet for protesters even in a typical election year.
“I would feel much more secure if they would allow me to carry my pistol into the convention,” said Dale Jackson, a delegate from Georgia (who said he always feels safer when he’s able to bring a gun), adding that he’s not worried about safety inside the Secret Service security bubble but on the outskirts where protests will be amassing.
So far, more than half a dozen protests and marches — including one anti-Trump rally whose organizers are predicting 10,000 participants on the day Trump is expected to formally claim the nomination — are seeking permits to parade through Cleveland during the convention. The planners of those events insist they’re taking precautions to encourage nonviolence, but some fear that the strong feelings Trump engenders among supporters and detractors alike will create a combustible atmosphere. In a filing with the city, one pro-Trump march organizer noted that his group is planning to contract with “a private security company and off-duty police officers to escort and assist us” in daily marches in support of the mogul.
(remainder snipped)
I have little question that the convention will be safe (since Trump has effectively won the nomination, dangerous efforts by his supporters like Roger Stone and Gary Forbes to threaten delegates and their family members will not likely be a player).
But Politico, in true Politco fashion, distort the actual situation to align with their editorial line. Rather than "will the convention be safe?" they should be asking "will leftists carry out their threats?"
Honestly, reporting like this actually pushes me in the direction of supporting Trump. (No, I don't plan to do so) Not that I like Trump's positions on anything, but I'll be durned if I will let the media and communist Bernie supporters determine who the GOP is going to nominate.
But the elephant in the room is this: not whether the RNC is going to be safe but will the Bernie supporters allow the DNC to be safe this summer?
