Obama Gets Protected

Although Sen. Barack Obama has been drawing enormous crowds and intense attention during his presidential campaign, friends say he has resisted the idea of a U.S. Secret Service detail for fear it would limit what has been a great part of his appeal, namely his ability to make a close connection with voters.

But those reservations gave way to security concerns Thursday when the Secret Service assigned a team to the Illinois Democrat — the earliest point in a campaign cycle at which the agency has taken responsibility for a candidate not already under its protection as an officeholder.

The State Of . . . Obama’s run. Apparently there are threats on Obama’s life featured on website that have been viewed by the powers that be. I (rich) guess they pose a significant enough risk to call the Secret Service. This is the earliest any candidate has been given secret service protection.