Did You Happen To Notice Tuesday Night...

Did any of you happen to notice the bulletproof glass that was installed on the stage for President-Elect Barack Obama? I did, but I wasn't sure. Like, I noticed it, but I thought it was just on the corners of the stage, but apparently not.

He has already been the target of two assassination plots and hundreds of threats from white supremacists. So it was no surprise that Barack Obama's victory speech was delivered from behind two-inch thick bullet proof glass. Although he will not move into the White House until January security has already been stepped up around the President-elect. The clear protective screens he was sandwiched between at Grant Park in Chicago were the fist visible sign of the fears he will be the target of an assassination attempt.

The bulletproof glass was not visible to the millions of people worldwide watching his speech on TV. Also unseen were the dozens of Secret Service agents who had taken up position in the crowd and the high rise buildings overlooking the park. Hours before Obama stepped on stage Secret Service agents had posed as the Democratic presidential candidate to 'test' his exposure to an assassin's bullet. A red laser dot was 'fired' on to the chest of the agents from others posing as sniper's in the skyscrapers overlooking the park. After the test was carried out it was decided to install the 10 feet high and 15 feet long screens. A marquee housing the TV cameras meant he was not at risk from the front of the park. A no-fly zone was also imposed over the area, with only police helicopters allowed in the air.

The elaborate security measures, as well as the suffocating presence of dozens of agents, is something Obama, his wife and two young children will now have to learn to live with. Fears that he will be targeted by white supremacists has led to his Secret Service detail to double in size overnight. From 12 agents - the number usually assigned to a vice president - he will have a full complement of 30 agents to provide round the clock protection.

While race hate groups are thought to pose the most risk there are a number of organisations and individuals who pose a threat from within the US. He will also face threats from Al Qaeda and other Islamic extremists who hate America. British Nobel prize winner Doris Lessing provoked outrage earlier this year when she predicted Obama would be assassinated if he were elected president.

In January the term 'Obama assassination' appeared on the top 100 Google search terms. The Secret Service have looked into at least 500 assassination threats against Obama. While the majority were dismissed at least a dozen have been investigated.

The most recent was two weeks ago when two skinheads with links to a neo-Nazi group were arrested in Tennessee. Daniel Cowart and Paul Schlesselman have been charged with making threats against a presidential candidate. The pair allegedly planned to rob a gun store and then carry out a killing spree at an unnamed predominantly African-American high school before killing Obama. Court documents showed that the plot did not appear to be very advanced or sophisticated. But it highlighted the threat facing Obama and his family.

Not only will the Illinois senator, wife Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha receive round-the-clock protection but his closest relatives will also be affected. Family outings will be cut out and his daughters will receive protection on their way to and from school.