A retired FBI agent addressed concerns about rising political threats at a historic Republican club in New York City. The event focused on personal security amid perceptions of increasing urban dangers. Attendees shared stories of vigilantism and sought advice on navigating crowded streets and mass transit.
On a recent freezing night, the Metropolitan Republican Club in Manhattan's Upper East Side hosted Rob Chadwick, a retired FBI agent, for a seminar on personal security. The gathering, advertised as addressing 'the spread of ANTIFA-style political violence from Portland to NYC' and an 'escalating wave of targeted political intimidation and terror,' drew an audience worried about threats to conservatives and law enforcement.
Chadwick, who previously served in various FBI roles including SWAT training and now advises the US Concealed Carry Association, emphasized mindset and a 'bias for action.' He critiqued New York's strict gun laws and the 'defund-the-police movement,' claiming it devastated security despite rising police budgets in major cities. Drawing from his experience investigating the 2017 Charleston church mass shooting, he urged civilians to prepare for active threats, noting that 'nobody in that room moved' during the attack. 'It will happen to you,' he warned. 'You must stop outsourcing your personal security.'
Practical tips included sitting near restaurant kitchens facing doors, trusting intuition on subways—such as switching cars if passengers seem suspicious—and establishing 'rally points' for escapes from crowds or protests. Chadwick highlighted slower 911 response times, playing a recording of a dispatcher denying aid to a woman threatened by her ex. He stressed compliance in law enforcement encounters: 'Everyone we've seen killed on camera over the last couple weeks would be alive if they'd just complied.'
Audience members voiced fears, with one decrying the 'torture' of Daniel Penny, the subway vigilante acquitted in Jordan Neely's death. Another recounted killing an assailant 23 years prior and worried about lawsuits. A question about ICE's shooting of Alex Pretti drew murmurs of dissent, but Chadwick deferred to investigations under the 1989 Graham v. Connor ruling. The club's president rallied the crowd: 'We'll make it through this. We'll make it through Mamdani.' Despite these concerns, New York remains one of the safest big U.S. cities, with violent crime declining and national murder rates at historic lows.
