Security heightened with President's attendance at National Championship game

ATLANTA — President Donald Trump will be attending the College Football Playoff National Championship game on Monday. His presence means even more heightened security at the game.

While some football fans are welcoming him, others think his attendance will become a big distraction.

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Atlanta police acknowledged to Channel 2's Richard Elliot that they know there will be protesters outside Mercedes Benz Stadium, not because of the game, but because of the president.

Not long after Channel 2 Action News confirmed that the president would attend the game, Twitter lit up with posts both for and against the idea.

A Trump supporter tweeted, “I hope he’ll be pulling for my dawgs.” An opponent tweeted, "Why is he going to ruin the spirit at the College Football Championship Game?”

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“Protests are being planned, even as we speak,” former state Sen. Vincent Fort told Elliot on Thursday.

Fort said he knows of organizations planning to protest the president’s visit. He thinks that the visit will detract from an event that’s supposed to be all about college football.

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“That’s what he does. He distracts from things that are really important,” Fort said.

Channel 2 Action News reported on protests outside Trump's campaign event at the Fox Theater in 2016.

Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields said her officers will be prepared for protesters at the game.

“What we do is we set up various staging areas so, ideally, they can have their chance to protest, to be in proximity to where the president will drive so he can or cannot choose to see him,” Shields said.

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One of Georgia’s top Republicans, House Speaker David Ralston, declined to comment directly on the president’s visit to the big game, except to say he expects Trump will see a good one.

“He’s going to see one heck of a football game, I’ll tell you that. And I hope he’s going to be as happy to see Georgia win as I’m going to be," Ralston said.

Shields said she’s not sure yet where police will set up the protest zones.

Federal officials said they, along with security partners, have been training for the past year or so for an event such as the game, which will bring 100,000 fans to downtown Atlanta.

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"To date, we've seen no credible threats, but we are constantly monitoring and assessing intelligence as it comes in," Special Agent in Charge David LeValley told Channel 2 investigative reporter Nicole Carr in an one-on-one interview.

LeValley said the FBI is working in conjunction with Atlanta police and other local and state agencies to secure the game.

LeValley told Carr that recent events have played into their safety plan.

“Certainly, Vegas was a unique event, but we also had the terrorist attacks in New York City with that rental truck. We had the improvised explosive device on the subway,” LeValley said. “We take lessons learned from that, and look at our own security plans and adjust them accordingly."

Shields is asking fans to stay alert as they head to the game and not to hesitate about reporting something that might seem a little off.

"Don't worry about it being trivial or 'Well, I don't want to bother the 911 system.' Call 911 and let us check it out," Shields said. “I'm just asking, imploring, that people use common sense when they come to this event.”

Cox Media Group