(The Hill) – The Secret Service has approved a plan to use bulletproof glass to protect former President Trump at outdoor rallies, a senior agency official confirmed to The Hill.

The plan, first reported by ABC News, represents a departure from the level of protection normally afforded to presidential candidates. Protective glass is typically used for presidents and vice presidents only when deemed necessary.

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But the agency is working to strengthen Trump’s protections following his assassination attempt at a July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, including considering how to offer him more protections that are normally only available to sitting officials.

The gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, pierced Trump’s ear, injured two others and killed a rally attendee.

Bulletproof glass panels would be installed to shield Trump on stage.

The former president likes to hold large outdoor rallies, but after the shooting, the campaign team suspended those events.

“They would have preferred us to be in an arena. I don’t know why. But we’re not going to give up the outdoor rallies. You know, all the people we had to turn away today, we can have at an outdoor rally,” Trump said at an event last month.

The Secret Service declined to comment on the plans, and the Trump team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

For security reasons, the Secret Service prefers indoor locations where the agency has more control over the environment.

But Ronald Rowe, deputy director of the Secret Service, said earlier this month that work would be done to accommodate outdoor sites.

“It’s campaign season, right? The candidates want to be out there. … Whether it’s an indoor or outdoor setting, it’s the Secret Service’s job to make sure we create a safe environment,” Rowe told reporters during a news conference.

“And listen, we identify challenges, we identify concerns and then it’s up to us to figure out what we need to do to mitigate those. So if there are going to be campaign events outside of these sites in the future, it’s up to us to make sure that we allocate all the means and resources to make sure that these sites are actually safe.”

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