Nassau County Issues Security Update Ahead of Trump’s Long Island Rally

Nassau County officials issued a security update ahead of Donald Trump’s rally there, just a few days after he was the target of a second assassination attempt.
The former president is set to hold a rally at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, on Wednesday night, in one of his first events since a gunman was seen pointing a rifle through the perimeter fence of Trump’s International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, where he was golfing on Sunday.
While the U.S. Secret Service is running the rally, Nassau County officials and state police are coordinating with the federal agency to secure the outside of the venue.
“This will be the safest place in the country on Wednesday,” Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said at a press conference on Monday. “Nobody will be in the Coliseum. We do a complete sweep that night.”
“We do a complete sweep again in the morning,” he added.
The Coliseum’s parking lot will be swept on Tuesday night, before it opens at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, Ryder said.
The tight security comes after it was revealed that the International Golf Club did not undergo an intense sweep before Trump got there, as the outing had not been officially scheduled, acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe Jr. said at a news conference on Monday.
Rowe Jr. emphasized, however, that the Secret Service takes a “layered approach” to securing the former president, including agents “sweeping” the area ahead of Trump as he was playing golf.
Folks in Nassau County have been warned to expect heavy traffic from around 3 p.m. on Wednesday, with drivers told to avoid several streets, CBS News New York reported.
The event has led to some changes at nearby universities and high schools. Classes at Kellenberg High School and the Latin School will be taught remotely all day – likewise with classes at Hofstra University after 1 p.m. Meanwhile, Nassau Community College has canceled classes after 2 p.m.
Multiple items are prohibited at the rally, including firearms, alcohol, backpacks, balloons, banners, signs, selfie sticks and tripods.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said: “We regularly have international figures that come to Nassau County. This is nothing new. Our police department and all of our other agencies are prepared, and we’re ready.”
The county hosted the 2016 debate between Trump and Hillary Clinton at Hofstra University and the Cricket World Cup in Eisenhower Park earlier this summer.
Blakeman added: “We feel very confident that we will have the assets necessary to make sure that this is safe for everyone. We have the resources. This isn’t our first rodeo. We feel very confident.
“This is something we would provide as a service to anybody, whether it be a Republican, a Democrat or an independent candidate. We provide the same level of security and support and safety for everybody.”
In a recent Fox News phone interview, Trump praised Secret Service agents who thwarted the latest attempt on Sunday. Pushed by host Sean Hannity about his concerns, the Republican presidential nominee said: “We have long requested more people—more men and women—but more people.”
Highlighting the size of his campaign rally crowds, he said: “There’s never been anything like it, and we have long requested more people. That’s true. That’s the weakness. If there’s a weakness, I really think that’s the weakness.”