Secret Service responds to claim college Republicans blocked from seeing Obama

Secret Service responds to claim college Republicans blocked from seeing Obama



The Secret Service pushed back Friday on complaints from a group of college Republicans who questioned why they were barred from a President Obama event earlier this week.

According to a report on Campus Reform, the Missouri College Republicans said an officer told them they could not get in to see Obama's speech on Wednesday at their school for "security reasons."

"I hate to make allegations but it was just very suspicious that we were not allowed in," one of them was quoted as saying.

But the Secret Service put out a brief statement later Friday saying the event had reached capacity -- and that's why they were apparently blocked.

"The event at University of Central Missouri was closed to any additional general public due to the event site reaching maximum capacity," Secret Service spokesman Brian Leary said.

Missouri College Republicans State Treasurer Courtney Scott, though, told Campus Reform that each of the students had a ticket and arrived early.

"We followed all the rules," she said.