Yesterday, police charged two white supremacists with plotting to assassinate Barack Obama while wearing white tuxedos and top hats.

Yesterday, police charged two white supremacists with plotting to assassinate Barack Obama while wearing white tuxedos and top hats.

The two men, Daniel Cowart, 20, and Paul Schlesselman, 18, were planning to kill Obama as part of a "killing spree" targeting African Americans.

The men were arrested after authorities uncovered details of their plot, which included plans to shoot 88 African Americans and decapitate 14 black children at a state high school.

The case surfaces after the arrest of three white supremacists in late August near the Democratic National Convention in Denver where a high powered sniper rifle was found to kill Obama during his football stadium acceptance speech.

Jim Cavanaugh, a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says: "They said that would be their last, final act -- that they would attempt to kill Senator Obama. They didn't believe they would be able to do it, but that they would get killed trying."

• Court documents show the two men met one month ago on the Internet and shared a blog in their "white power" and "skinhead" philosophies.

• Cowart and Schlesselman also bought nylon rope and ski masks to use in a robbery or home invasion to take money to finance their spree, during which they allegedly planned to go from state to state and kill people.

• Cowart and Schlesselman "planned to drive their vehicle as fast as they could toward Obama shooting at him from the windows" while wearing white tuxedos and top hats.

Police fear that other groups may be plotting similar crimes, although they also say the two men lacked the sophistication to carry out the attack.

Security has always been an issue with Obama, who has had Secret Service protection for more than a year -- much longer than other candidates.

The arrests come in the last stretches of the election campaign yesterday. Obama presented his "closing argument" by emphasizing the similarities between President Bush and John McCain.