Cryptome.org has obtained a federal threat assessment for inauguration week in Washington, D.C., a document that is marked unclassified and meant for area law enforcement officials. Much of the news is good. As of January 7, when the document was released, there were “no credible reports indicating a threat to the inauguration from international terrorists,” or domestic terrorists.
The biggest concerns, according to the document, are “lone offenders,” a term defined as “individuals who are unaffiliated with a group, but act in furtherance of an ideology or group members who act on their own without direction from their group.” But even within this category, the document notes that “nothing indicates” these threats have progressed past rhetoric to operational planning. The document lists three “scenarios of concern”: an Improvised Explosive Device, an Armed Assault and Hostage Taking, and a Suicide Bomber.
The document, which was created by a joint agency effort that included the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security, also confirms what many already assumed: “The President-elect has been the focus of voluminous threat-related reporting since announcing his candidacy, and the number of threat reports has increased since his election.”
UPDATE: Politico’s Mike Allen reports that the out-of-town cabinet member for the inauguration will be Defense Secretary Robert Gates. That means that if catastrophe strikes, Gates will be able to take over as president.