N.Y. police official: Don't let terrorists win
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New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly
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NEW YORK (CNN) -- With tightened security across the nation for New Year's Eve celebrations, officials in New York are urging people to go out and party despite a heightened terror alert.
CNN's Soledad O'Brien discussed security with New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly as preparations got under way Wednesday for one of the best-known New Year's events, the gathering at Times Square.
O'BRIEN: Do you think things are more risky this year, the risk being of a terrorist attack, than in previous years?
KELLY: Well, the country has gone to an orange alert level, so obviously we have to respond, as well. There's a lot of chatter out there, as we've heard, that's increased in volume. I think we're doing everything we can to make tonight's event a happy and a safe one.
O'BRIEN: I remember when we sat down and talked at the millennium celebrations and we went through a list of security measures. And I want to kind of read the list, because it seems like the same list this year as well -- manhole covers are sealed shut; mailboxes and trash cans and newspaper boxes all taken out of there; plainclothes police officers; counter-snipers to watch over the rooftops; metal detectors on the street corners. Then chemical, biological and radiological contamination detection equipment. Are you more concerned this year about that final thing on the list?
KELLY: I think we've refined our processes on examination of information. There's chatter out there about biological, chemical, radiological events possibly happening. So it's something that we're concerned about.
Are we more concerned about it than we were in the past?
I can't say we're more concerned about it because we've been concerned about it certainly since September 11.
O'BRIEN: But there's no specific chatter about that on this day?
KELLY: There's no specific chatter, but there is chatter about that, and there has been all along, just as there's chatter about New York, you know, all along. So we're doing, as I say, everything I think we reasonably can do.
O'BRIEN: The governor of New Jersey, James McGreevey, said that authorities are now concerned about emergency vehicles maybe used as part of an attack.
Do you think that's a valid concern? And is there information about that? Or is this sort of, "OK, that makes good sense, that would be a clever thing for an attacker to do, so let's think about thwarting it?"
KELLY: There's some information about that, but there's been information about that for a while. We've seen events like that using ambulances or using emergency vehicles in other parts of the world. So, yes, there is some discussion about that, and we think it's prudent to watch those vehicles more closely now.
O'BRIEN: Just a moment ago, we heard from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and he was saying, you know, enjoy your festivities. Keep an eye open, be smart, but do what you're going to do. And Congressman Christopher Shays, who's on the [U.S. House] Select Committee for Homeland Security, said yesterday that he disagrees with that.
And here's exactly what he said: "[Homeland Security] Secretary [Tom] Ridge says just do what you would normally do. I would say, 'What do you normally do?' If you normally go to Times Square, I would not do what you normally do."
And, in fact, he went on to say he thought it was irresponsible that officials are not saying you've [got] to take precautions, you should avoid packed crowds -- things like that.
Do you disagree with his point?
KELLY: Yes, I think it's a classic case of letting the terrorists win. All of this information lacks specificity. You can't run your life like that. This information is always out there, these threats. I don't know what information he has. It's certainly not more than we have. So, you know, I think it's irresponsible for him to say that at this moment in time.
If you have specific information about a specific event, obviously you have to rethink what you're going to do. We don't have that. We're taking all necessary precautions.
O'BRIEN: Are you going to be in Times Square tonight?
KELLY: Absolutely.
