Longfellow Park Obama threat: Is murdered cat a message for the president?

Was the apparently murdered cat meant as a threat? Authorities believe it might've been.

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A burnt, dead cat found in a south Minneapolis park next to a Obama/Biden 2012 lawn sign is being investigated as a possible threat against the president.

Early this morning, the cat was found with a stake through its throat on the southern end of Longfellow Park. On top of the stake was an American flag; next to the stump on which the dead cat sat was the political sign.

According to the Star Tribune, after the murdered cat was discovered by a park employee, a variety of law enforcement agencies -- including the Secret Service, FBI, Homeland Security, and the MPD -- responded. No arrests in connection with the cat slaying and possible presidential threat have yet been made, and no explanatory note was found at the scene.

Today, the president began a three-day bus tour through Iowa. He'll spend some time this afternoon in Boone, Iowa, about 230 miles south of the Twin Cities.

An unnamed federal official told the Strib that threats against presidents are rare in this part of the country. That fact, coupled with Obama's current proximity to Minneapolis, may have influenced authorities to take the incident extra seriously.