Lawmakers confident on Invesco safety

DENVER — Lawmakers close to Barack Obama remain confident in his security after federal authorities said there is no credible threat to assassinate him.

Officials with both the Democratic convention and the Obama campaign say they have no plans to make any changes to Obama’s planned speech at an open-air football field to accept the presidential nomination on Thursday.

{mosads}“We are moving full speed ahead with a great event at Invesco Field on Thursday night,” said Damon Jones, a spokesman for the Democratic convention. He declined to comment on specific security measures that were being taken for the speech.

Invesco Field, home to the Denver Broncos, seats 75,000 and lies along an interstate highway, which will be closed for the four hours of Obama’s acceptance.

“The speech will continue as scheduled and we are not commenting on security,” said Nick Shapiro, a spokesman for the Obama campaign, in an e-mail.

Convention delegates were stunned Monday night to hear reports about the arrests of several people in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate Obama. An investigation into the arrests is continuing, but authorities emphasized Tuesday there was no threat to Obama or the people of Colorado.

“We’re absolutely confident there is no credible threat to the candidate, the Democratic National Convention, or the people of Colorado,” said Troy A. Eid, U.S. attorney for Colorado, in a statement.

The Associated Press reported that three men arrested face only gun charges, and that the three men and a woman arrested are not expected to be charged with any national security-related crimes.

A spokesman for the Secret Service expressed confidence in the security for the address.

“We had already put together a very comprehensive, measured and layered security plan for Invesco Field,” said spokesman Malcom Wiley. “So the things that were alleged to have happened in the last couple of days wouldn’t alter our plans.”

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said members of his panel received a top-secret briefing from Secret Service officials before the August recess on their preparations concerning security for the presidential candidates.

{mospagebreak}“I am comfortable with the security. [Obama] has attained the highest level possible,” said Thompson.

Because Obama is poised to become the first African-American presidential nominee of a major party, lawmakers including Thompson have been particularly concerned for his safety. Obama himself requested Secret Service protection in May 2007, the earliest any presidential candidate has received the protection.

Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) said she discussed Obama’s safety with Michelle Obama in January 2007.

{mosads}“I talked to Michelle about this very early on,” said Schakowsky. “They made a decision, that with all the terrible ‘What ifs,’ what about all the positive ‘What ifs’? What if Barack Obama became president?

“Presidential candidates and presidents are always targets, but it is even more so with Barack Obama, being the first African-American candidate,” Schakowky said.

Other lawmakers praised the Secret Service and local police and said Obama should continue with the speech as planned.

“You can’t allow fear and the terrorists to dictate what we do, because we will never make any progress. That’s not Barack Obama,” said Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.).

“It’s a great venue. Barack Obama is a candidate who wants to reach out to as many people as possible. This will allow 50,000 more people to see his speech,” said Gutierrez.

Extra security measures have been used for past events with presidents.

For example, soon after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, President Bush wore a bulletproof vest when he threw out the first pitch for a World Series baseball game at Yankee Stadium. It is unclear if Obama will take that precaution.

Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) said he has always been concerned about Obama’s security, even though Secret Service has done “a phenomenal job.”

He said the reported threats are a reminder of the need to take precautions.

“If you need a wake-up call, it is much better to get it now before something terrible happens,” the Maryland Democrat said.

Jordy Yager contributed to this article.