Unprecedented security prowls Boston

BOSTON — Police brandished machine guns on downtown streets, jet fighters patrolled overhead and soldiers guarded press offices as Boston yesterday began hosting its first national political convention amid unprecedented security for an American political gathering.

The city that once stood alert with “one if by land and two if by sea” looked ready on both fronts — from uniformed troops swarming outside the Government Center subway station to battle-ready boats cruising the harbor that surrounds much of the convention zone.

Most of the 4,964 delegates and alternates flooding into town for the first sessions today have yet to confront the specter of camouflaged soldiers patrolling elevated train tracks above the newly paved expanse where delegates will be bused.

“For all the things you can see, imagine what you can’t see. Double that, and that’s our capability. … I wouldn’t want to mess with us,” Coast Guard Petty Officer Lisa Hennings told CBS News.

Police officers derided as “overkill” the tight protective net around historic Bullfinch Triangle, but the Secret Service was calling all the shots at the first Democratic National Convention designated a “national security event.”

In an interview with ESPN during a Red Sox-Yankees game last night at Fenway Park, Mr. Kerry was asked about the security in Boston.

“I’m absolutely confident about the level of security. I don’t think we have a thing to worry about,” he said.

Outside the gates of the FleetCenter, officers listened to complaints about a credentials mix-up that kept hundreds of journalists cooling their heels outside for a time.

One officer in civilian clothes supervising searches at “Magnetometer Village” said officers require people entering with opened bottles to sip from them as proof they are not dangerous. A team of U.S. Capitol Police who appeared to be wearing body armor carried automatic weapons outside the pricey Boston Harbor Hotel.

Large trucks and heavy equipment blockaded streets in neighborhoods surrounding the Fleet Center, where Democrats will nominate John Kerry and John Edwards in their bid to remove President Bush from the White House.

Republican delegates meet in New York from Aug. 30 to Sept. 2 under a security blanket that, if anything, promises to be even tighter. New York has 36,500 total police officers, compared with just more than 2,000 in Boston proper.

Since the end of Friday’s rush hour, Beantown crews have been completing the process of shutting down key streets, isolating 18th-century buildings in neighborhoods where families are being asked to cope for a week, and stringing fence lines whose gates are protected by ram-proof barriers.

“These next few hours certainly will be important as different units and agencies are settling into their roles,” Massachusetts State Police Sgt. David Paine said. “But it’s nothing new to these people. They’re ready.”

Not far from Paul Revere’s grave and the Old North Church, technicians were monitoring air quality to guard against chemical, biological or nuclear weapons. Bomb-sniffing dogs were on the job as well.

Emphasis on security appeared to have scared Bostonians away, and the city was quiet for a sunny summer day tailor made for crowds of tourists.

Story Continues →