President Donald Trump
The United States Secret Service is an agency that is headquartered in the US capital state of Washington, DC. The agency is dedicated to federal law enforcement, and it has a large operation that spans over 150 offices located both in the USA and in other countries. The Secret Services falls under the Department of Homeland Security’s umbrella, and it is responsible for the protection of the American people. Its most notable and recognizable role, however, is that of protection of the US president.
A Secret Service Agent Cautions The President
No matter what context it may be, the Secret Service always stands ready to neutralize any immediate threats to the president. One of the requirements of the job is that the members of the service always be ready to retaliate to any such suspected danger. They appear to many as simple bodyguards, as they dress well and tend to appear unarmed. However, the men who serve as part of the president’s security detail are well trained and can respond efficiently to any imminent danger.
Secret Service Agents Flank Mr. And Mrs. Trump
The Secret Service transports the president in a vehicle known as “The Beast.” It is also called other names such as “First Car,” “Cadillac One,” and “Stagecoach.” There have been numerous vehicles to hold this prestigious role, but the current one is a Cadillac that has served the president since September 2018. The car is built for its protective role as boasts armor that is a mix of ceramic, steel, and aluminum. It is built to withstand the force of explosions and weighs around 20,000 pounds.
The Beast
Obviously, the president’s limousine is no normal vehicle. Its modifications are a true marvel, and they just go to show the extent to which an important public figure such as the president needs to be protected at all costs. Apart from the eight-inch thick armor, the vehicle is well prepared for many situations. Not only does it have specialized glass and tires, but it also has a series of medical supplies just in case the president ever sustains an injury that requires immediate first aid.
Anatomy Of The Beast
The Secret Service must constantly be ready for anything, which includes potential injury to the president. The first aid equipment that is transported in the beast has a unique item that you may not find in traditional first aid kits. There is a personal blood bank present that has plasma that matches the president’s plasma. This allows for quick first aid if transportation to the hospital is not possible or feasible. The agents that travel with the president all have the requisite first aid training.
The Beast In The Presidential Motorcade
The first aid training that the Secret Service agents receive is very specific, as there are only certain types of situations that would require their expertise. The training allows them with the skills necessary to provide emergency medical attention as needed. In fact, the focus is centered around 10-minute medical aid. This is the time needed to get the president to a proper medical facility. One is usually nearby as the routes taken are planned that way. This tactic once saved President Reagan.
Trump And The Secret Service
The president’s limousine is usually seen traveling as part of a caravan of several vehicles. One of those behind the president is a black van that transports the Counter Assault Team (CAT). The CAT is trained to respond to direct assaults on the caravan. Should such an attack occur, the Secret Service agents who are with the president are tasked with getting him to safety. The counter-sniper team then scans for danger while the CAT responds directly to the source of the assault.
Presidential Caravan
The CAT has the responsibility of launching a counterattack against those who dare to strike against the presidential caravan. One former CAT agent describes the level of suppression fire the team has at its disposal as unbelievable. All CAT agents are physical specimens who possess incredible precision shooting prowess, as well as immense speed and strength. This makes sense when you consider the fact that becoming a member requires an inhuman preparation process. Only 10% of those who go through the said process become a part of the team.
The CAT
The detection of threats to the US president is not a job that only includes being observant when he is making public appearances. In fact, much of the job has nothing to do with looking out for immediate attacks at all. All threats are cause for concern, and this includes potential threats. Messages, tweets, and banter are all fair game, as the right of free speech is afforded to all. This means that the Secret Service encounters numerous false positives.
Twitter Logo
After pawing through all the data that could be potential threats to the president, the Secret Service must determine possible red flags and respond accordingly. Some describe this as a transition into full “police mode.” This entire process is called protective intelligence. Not only is it an observatory process, but it is also a very intrusive process if the agents believe that there is cause for concern. They may check browsing history, involvement with suspicious organizations, or they may even interview those closest to you.
Interrogative Interview
Much of protective intelligence deals with speculation. It takes professional training to determine what is a real cause for concern. When that determination is made, however, the agents can take one of three predetermined courses of action. The first and mildest of these is to simply issue a warning to the offender, which should curb or stop the dangerous behavior. The second is to commit the offender to a psychological evaluation. Finally, the agents may elect to lay a charge against the offender, which can carry a prison sentence of up to three years.
Prison Cells
The president has no shortage of enemies, and theirs is no telling how one may try to cause him harm. One of the possibilities that has been identified is food. It isn’t improbable to imagine that someone may want to poison his food. While the president doesn’t have an “official food taster” as many people believe, there is a system in place for the screening of his meals. Nothing is exempt from the process, as even the simplest snacks must be evaluated by the few agents that have clearance to be near his food.
Pretzels
Stewardship of the president’s food is a very important consideration. It is simple to exercise control over this at the white house. However, even when he is away, there must be consideration given to this task. Whenever the president is going on a long trip, he is accompanied by a personal chef from the US Navy. When he is on Air Force One, however, the responsibility is passed on to an air force chef to preserve the integrity of meals.
Chef Andre Rush And President Obama
As far as food is concerned, things get a little trick when he goes on overseas visits. For many reasons, it is a bit impractical for a personal chef to both travel with the president, and to have access to everything that is necessary for meal preparation. For these reasons, the president’s traditional food screening process is slightly modified. Chances are that the president may consume some local delights. Therefore, this is the one context in which food tasting may have to be done by the Secret Service.
President Obama At Vietnam Restaurant
Even with the advent of computers, many people who have ill-will towards the president opt for writing a traditional letter with pen and paper. In any other context, it may be impossible to ascertain who wrote a given letter. This is even more so if the writer’s handwriting has no distinctive indicators. Writing a letter to the president, however, is a different case entirely as the Secret Service has a reliable method for tracing handwritten content just in case it needs to be done.
A Handwritten Letter
Person’s who write anonymous letters to the president achieve less confidentiality than they believe. This is because of a joint operation by the FBI and the Secret Service. The two organizations have teamed up to create an ink library to which there is no equal. By using this, the organizations gain insight into a host of information surrounding suspicious documentation. This allows agents to thoroughly process handwritten documentation to gain the information they need to take requisite steps to protect the president.
Secret Service Ink Samples
The ink library compiled by the Secret Service and the FBI is nothing short of incredible, which is why it has no equal. There have been numerous different inks that have been produced by many different entities over the years. The library has just about every sample that has ever existed since the 1920s. To prevent obsolesce, the library is constantly refined and improved in both contents and techniques. If this were not done, the ink library might lose its effectiveness over time.
Secret Service Ink Testing
The ink library is not a tool used to scrutinize anonymous letters deemed as potential threats to the president. There have been both severe and minor situations in which the counterfeit truth was revealed using the library. There are instances where falsified accounting documents were identified. Even a fake baseball signature can be and was captured in the past. This is achieved using a three-stage identification process that can identify just about any ink on any document that could ever be produced.
Ink Sample Authentication
One of the reasons that the ink library is so effective is the fact that many letters are still written by hand today. However, the world is quickly moving into an all-digital future, and the library needs to adapt as best as possible to remain a feasible tool. To this end, there are plans to make the library a digital tool as well to preserve its relevance and effectiveness. There is no concrete data on how the Secret Service and FBI plan to achieve this feat.
Inside The Ink Library
The Beast is a highly modified vehicle, but it isn’t the only one in the president’s motorcade. It only makes sense that the other vehicles are also modified to ensure that the Secret Service agents have every advantage possible in their travels with the president. Unfortunately, the vehicles do breakdown at times, and this used to be even worse prior to the era of President Bush. This is because the increased weight, as well as other factors, put a strain on the vehicles.
The Presidential Motorcade
The way how acquiring presidential vehicles used to work was the reason for the frequent breakdowns. Simply put, the vehicles that were being used were not suited to the type of modifications and travel required of them. Initially, the vehicles used to be acquired in a regular, road-worthy state. Using aftermarket parts, they were then modified as desired to different degrees to suit the needs of the president, as well as the other members of the motorcade. This is where the incompatibility came in.
US Presidential Caravan In The UK
Starting with George Bush’s presidency, vehicles were no longer acquired in a standard form then modified. Instead, they were built from the ground up to increase the suitability factor for the job at hand. This means that the various systems required, such as armor, fire suppression, and encrypted satellite phones, were all built into the vehicles at design time. This is the way it is done today, which is the reason that the cars now work more consistently than they used to.
US Presidential Motorcade On A Highway
Most times, the presidential motorcade cruises at a moderate speed for safety reasons. It also isn’t farfetched to imagine that vehicles that are so heavy have a much easier time going at lower speeds. However, the training that Presidential motorcade drivers receive is not the same as that which the public gets from a driving school. There is a specific course of study for these agents that includes special defensive driving and high-speed precision driving components to prepare them for anything.
Secret Service Driver
The preparation methods for all who are a part of the Secret Service today are unbelievable. Whether cook, mechanic, or driver, chances are agents are armed, dangerous, and ready to respond to any situation. Unfortunately, much of the training requirements and the refinements to the program are the result of a painful lesson. The assassination of JFK was a tragic incident, but it exposed numerous gaps in the Secret Service’s operation that have been patched since, which is why it is so effective today.
Secret Service Agents And President Obama
It isn’t hard to see why someone may think that some presidential outings are impromptu. It isn’t uncommon for the president to show up at a “random” location for something as simple as a photo op. However, none of these outings are. This is because the Secret Service must always be aware of any potential danger before the president enters a location. Therefore, the agents scout out any location the president visits before it is cleared as safe for him to enter.
President Donald Trump And The Secret Service
When scouting out a location for the president’s safety, there are some general things that the secret service looks for before giving the “all clear” signal. The main idea is to get an idea of the lay of the land. This involves knowing what buildings and rooms are present, as well as any entrances, exits, and areas of concern. While this duty is trivialized when the venue is a building, a more comprehensive process is used when the setting is an outdoor one.
Secret Service Agents Keeping Watch
Learning the lay of the land and determining points of interest may seem like common sense matters in the preservation of the president’s safety. While they are not always simple tasks, they are simpler than those assigned to the advanced team. This team is responsible for the more specific tasks, such as checking mental institutions for information on recently released patients. This step was added after the failed assassination attempt on President Regan, which could have been prevented if it was a prior part of the process.
The Secret Service In The George Bush Era
Systema, which translates to “the system,” is a Russian martial discipline that is used in training entities such as the military and the Secret Service. It has a hybrid focus as opposed to the more centric approach of other common martial art styles such as Karate. The idea is to train the body to adequately manipulate the six body levers. Additionally, there is a focus on defense in highly dangerous situations, such as fighting a battle against numerous armed attackers.
Systema Training
While there is a general discipline of self-defense associated with Systema, there are certain aspects that the Secret Service training regimen is more focused on based on the duty that the agents are required to undertake. The “anything goes” combat art is useful to train agents to take on opponents with firearms. The idea is to neutralize the attacker, while directing the line of fire in the desired direction, which is useful for preventing situations, such as the shooting of the president.
Systema Class
Systema doesn’t seem to have the level of structure as other martial arts such as Taekwondo. However, this belief is misguided, as it is one of the most effective martial arts ever to exist. Like other combat arts, Systema does train the mind and body to respond effectively to threats. However, its effectiveness comes from the fact that it doesn’t feel foreign. Most of the techniques rely on natural basic body movements. It is this authentic movement that makes it so adaptable.
Systema Club
The scanning of large crowds is another task for which the Secret Service is very well trained. If you were to see the agents doing this, you might think that they were just looking around to see if they can identify any suspicious persons. However, what they do is not that simple. Serious threats to the president usually involve firearms. Therefore, the Secret Service is well trained to spot the signs that someone is carrying one. Once a firearm is detected, the agents can respond accordingly.
A Large Crowd
The abilities that Secret Service agents possess because of their immense training can only sometimes be described as insane. When agents determine that someone is carrying a gun, the next step is to determine the dominant arm. This is done almost immediately by observing jewelry and various actions. Shooters also have a subconscious behavior that goes a long way in helping agents identify them. This check characteristic unconsciously occurs and is simply the potential shooter’s way of ensuring that the weapon is still present.
A Concealed Weapon
Determining that a member of a large crowd is a threat is just half the battle for the Secret Service. The next step is responding to said threat. The priority of the agents is the protection of the president. Before engaging the potential shooter, the president must be directed to a safe place with the help of the Secret Service. As the agents normally have the lay of the land and communicate with each other, they can approach and neutralize the threat from an unexpected direction without putting the public in danger.
Secret Service Operation
It is natural that most threats to a US president are likely to occur while he is in service to the country. While this is true, this doesn’t mean that upon a term’s end, a former president is no longer in danger. In fact, if someone wanted to assassinate a president, the person may think just to wait until he no longer has the Secret Service’s protection. However, this could never work as the job of the US president guarantees protection from the Secret Service for a lifetime.
Secret Service Agents Protecting President Trump
Retirement is one of the most fun parts of life, and this is no different for former presidents. The job a president is one of the hardest in the world. Being able to unwind and have some fun when it’s over is always welcome. Fun is an individual concept, however, and some former presidents like to enjoy themselves at exotic locations. The Secret Service cannot be deterred from doing its job; however, so they accompany the former presidents anywhere and provide the protection needed.
Secret Service And Former President George W. Bush
The Water Rescue arm of the Secret Service is cited by many to be the most demanding of them all. The purpose of this unit is to ensure that no harm befalls any president that is enjoying aquatic activities. While they are present for all presidents, they are usually seen with former presidents such as Barrack Obama and George W. Bush during recreational activities. It is said that of the 3200 agents who are currently a part of the secret service, only 75 could qualify for the Water Rescue arm.
Former President Barrack Obama On The Beach
One of the reasons that the number of agents on the Water Rescue detail is so low is the rigorous training process that is required. This does make sense when you consider that the singular purpose of the unit is to be able to pull anyone from any aquatic danger before any harm occurs. The training process is a brutal one that takes place in the rough waves of Kitty Hawk Beach in North Carolina. The trainees are even required to swim with a rip current.
Kitty Hawk
The sky is a pretty big place to monitor, but when the president needs to travel by air, the Secret Service must do the best possible job. For anyone else, the trip may seem as simple as a pickup and drop-off. For the US president, however, all possible anomalies must be considered and prepared for. This is the reason that the Secret Service has a communication link with Air Traffic Control. By doing this, the agents maintain eyes in the sky to always know what is happening along routes the president needs to travel.
Air Force One
There is no situation in which harm can be allowed to befall the president. Therefore, the Secret Service does a level of planning that is unheard of. Most times, a schedule is constructed at a high level. In other words, there’s a brief outline of activities. In the US president’s case, the Secret Service takes these plans and breaks them down into fine-grain components. This means that they plan down to the second, to ensure that they are always there when needed.
Secret Service Assisting President Trump
