• Several individuals and groups have made threats against the life of Barack Obama, the first African-American president who was inaugurated on January 20, 2009.

  During Obama's April 2009 visit to Turkey, a man was arrested and confessed to his plan to stab President Obama. The Syrian man reportedly had an Al-Jazeera TV identification card, which would have allowed him entry to the Alliance of Civilizations summit, which Obama was attending.CBS News: Saudis Report Plot To Assassinate Obama

• 1. February 10, 2008: 64-year old Alfred Brock arrested at the Capitol Complex
  2. August 25, 2008: Tharin Gartrell arrested for plotting assassination of Obama
  3. August 2008: Also arrested: Nathan Johnson and Shawn Adolf
  4. October 22, 2008: Paul Schlesselman and Daniel Cowart arrested in skinhead Obama assassination plotKAIT: ATF Arrests Arkansas, Tennessee Men in Plot to Kill Obama (October 27, 2008)
  5. Both October and August 2008 investigations included the ATF
  6. 4 Presidents have been assassinated: Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley, John F. Kennedy
  7. Attempts have been made on the lives of 11 more
  8. After Obama secured the presidential nomination, "assassinate Obama" became a popular search term onlineSeattlePI.com: An ugly, popular search term grows... (January 8, 2008)
  9. Author Doris Lessing has predicted that Obama would be assassinated if electedHuffington Post: Nobel Winner: Obama Will Be Assasinated if he Wins (February 10, 2008)
  10. 4,000 DC policy officers and 4,000 other officers from other agencies were on patrol during the Obama inaugurationReuters: Security for Obama's Inauguration (January 20, 2009)
  11. Obama's Presidential Limo can withstand armor-piercing bullets and explosive attacksFox News: Obama Chic: Potent New Presidential Limousine Spotted (November 14, 2008)

• Alfred Brock

  On February 10, 2009, police reported that a Louisiana man named Alfred Brock drove up to the Capitol Complex and told guards he had a delivery for President Obama. Police questioned him and he admitted to having a rifle in his truck. The man was arrested without incident, and charged with possession of an unregistered .22 caliber rifle.Reuters: Man held at U.S. Capitol, had rifle in truck: police (February 10, 2009) Politico.com: Man with delivery for Obama in custody (February 10, 2009) CNN: Man arrested with rifle said he had delivery for Obama (February 10, 2009)

• Steven Joseph Christopher

  42-year-old Steven Joseph Christopher was arrested on January 16, 2009, for allegedly threatening Obama's life on the Alien-Earth message board. Posts credited to Christopher claimed that he intended to sacrifice Obama's life as a message to "Jewish parasites," and claimed that the assassination would be for "the country's own good."CBS News: Man Accused Of Threatening To Kill Obama (January 16, 2009)

• August 2008 Assassination Threat

  On August 25, 2008, Tharin Gartrell was arrested on methamphetamine and firearms violations during a routine traffic stop in Denver, Colorado just prior to the start of the 2008 Democratic Convention. The arrests of Nathan Johnson and Shawn Adolf followed, and the three are under investigation regarding a possible plot to assassinate Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.KNX(Denver): Possible Plot to Kill Obama (August 25, 2008)

• Neo-Nazi Skinheads Arrested

  In October 2008, it was reported that the ATF uncovered a plot by neo-Nazi skinheads to assassinate Obama. The two men arrested, Paul Schlesselman and Daniel Cowart, planned on going on a "killing spree" at an African American high school and then assassinating Obama.KAIT: ATF Arrests Arkansas, Tennessee Men in Plot to Kill Obama (October 27, 2008)

• Concerns about White Supremacists

  FBI and law enforcement officials had also closely monitored white supremest groups as the Barack Obama's inauguration approached. It was reported that the National of Knights of the Ku Klux Klan called on members to wear black armbands and fly the U.S. flag upside down on Inauguration Day.CNN: White supremacists watched in lead up to Obama administration (January 16, 2009)

• Concerns about al-Shabaab

  Authorities had warned that militants from al-Shabaab, a terrorist group based in Somalia, might have tried to travel to the United States to disrupt the Inaugural celebrations. The credibility of the information were uncertain. Intelligence officials have previously raised concern about a cell of Somali sympathizers in the United States who reportedly traveled to Somalia to "fight alongside Islamic insurgent".http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/01/20/homeland-security-officials-report-possible-terror-threat-inauguration-ceremony/ Homeland Security Officials Report Possible Terror Threat on Inauguration Ceremony] (January 20, 2009)

• Inaugural Day Concerns

  Security was tight throughout Washington on Inauguration Day. The event had higher security measures than any previous inauguration and thousands of law enforcement officers from 58 federal, state and local agencies.Fox News: Obama Inauguration Attractive Target For Terrorist Attacks (January 7, 2009) http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/01/20/homeland-security-officials-report-possible-terror-threat-inauguration-ceremony/ Homeland Security Officials Report Possible Terror Threat on Inauguration Ceremony] (January 20, 2009) The event went forward without incident. A driver was stopped and arrested on the New Jersey Turnpike after his mother reported he had a bomb in his car, but the threat was not considered credible and he was released without charges.Daily Record: N.J. Turnpike traffic tied up for hours by bomb scare (January 21, 2009) CNN: Security tight, movement slow on Inauguration Day (January 20, 2009)

• Concerns Not New

  Concerns over a possible assassination attempt have been increasing since Obama won the Iowa caucus in January 2008. Obama, his wife Michelle and their children have been under Secret Service protection since that time. 2008 is also the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, when he was a presidential candidate. In May 2008, Senator Hillary Clinton mentioned the Robert F. Kennedy assassination when defending her decision to stay in the primary race. The assassination of Robert F. Kennedy was the reason that Secret Service rules were modified so that presidential candidates and their families are now afforded protection.

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