# How loyal is the U.S. Secret Service to Trump? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 30, 2020, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824 "2020-06-30T18:03:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2020, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/22 "2020-07-01T15:16:34Z")
More to the point in the OP question - I don’t believe the Protective Detail people have within their jurisdiction handling “the President going rogue” in the political sense, as opposed to in the sense of if he tries to walk out the front door naked or is chasing the First Lady with a baseball bat. They are empowered to tackle him and stuff him in the car head first in order to get him out of imminent harm, but not in order to stop him calling for patriot militias to rise and take over. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2020, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/23 "2020-07-01T15:22:20Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > There is every reason for SS agents to, well, switch to supporting Biden as they have for every presidential transition. So Trump really is a nazi. 🤤 👌 🏛 ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2020, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/24 "2020-07-01T18:50:00Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Not a single poster has given a convincing reason why the Secret Service would have personal loyalty to Trump once he’s left office. Why would they? Not only has the guy had a jerk reputation for decades, but he, as ex-president, would have absolutely zero power, no more than you or I as private citizens. What’s in it for them? Bribery money out of Trump’s remaining personal wealth? > > There is every reason for SS agents to, well, switch to supporting Biden as they have for every presidential transition. Its not like the agents will flip on a switch. secret service agents who directly protect the president are held to a high standard of professionalism. The fear is Trump will appoint cronies to run the organization, who will then select agents who are dittoheads who are more loyal to white nationalism and the republican party than to the US. Law enforcement has an issue with white nationalists infiltrating it, and has for centuries. Hopefully the professional standards of the SS will protect them from that, but maybe president Tom Cotton will change that. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2020, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/25 "2020-07-02T04:27:09Z")
Every president appoints his own Secretary of Homeland Security, and nearly every president appoints a Secret Service head sooner or later. Absent some evidence, complaining that “under Trump, the system is working the same way it always has,” isn’t saying anything more than, “I don’t like Trump.” ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2020, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/26 "2020-07-02T04:58:14Z")
You might have had a point,except you left out a few little details. Trump went through four different Homeland Security Directors until he found one subservient enough to suit him(and I wouldn’t lay down any money on him lasting the term), and he is on his third Secret Service Director to date. He wants _total_ loyalty-not to the Office of the Presidency, but to him personally, and especially from those closest to him…like the agents assigned to him. He is NOT like those that preceded him. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2020, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/27 "2020-07-02T05:19:43Z")
A point being missed here: Who does the Secret Service believe is the president? If Biden wins in a landslide, there’s no question, no matter what Trump may blather. But what if it’s close enough that Trump can contest the election (or at least make a recognizable pretense)? What happens if both Biden and Trump claim to be president? Then the Secret Service (and the military, and everyone else for that matter) have to decide who they believe (or who they pretend to believe). That’s the dangerous case. We saw this in 1991 in the aftermath of the Kremlin coup that took down Gorbachev. Individual platoons (of the army or whoever) took sides, either firing on the Russian White House or on the protesters, or on each other. If there is a dispute over who is actually, in fact, president, and if further there is a dispute over who gets to decide, there will be chaos. ---
**Author:** ![Wrenching\_Spanners](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecb155/32.png) [@Wrenching\_Spanners](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wrenching_Spanners)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2020, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/28 "2020-07-02T12:42:33Z")
I think people have instinctual support and innate respect for people they mentally or socially resemble. The converse of that statement is that people instinctively dislike people who are antagonistic towards those they resemble. For the Secret Service agents, that instinctual support and innate respect is going to be felt towards other federal agents and towards the military. Trump at times has severely disrespected the FBI and military generals in his administration. I think that when it comes to personal loyalty, that disrespect expressed by Trump had severely diminished the personal loyalty of the Secret Service agents around him. They’ll be professionally loyal to him in his position as president. But as far as supporting him beyond what professional duties require, I think it’s unlikely. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2020, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/29 "2020-07-02T12:49:22Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > A point being missed here: Who does the Secret Service believe is the president? If Biden wins in a landslide, there’s no question, no matter what Trump may blather. > > But what if it’s close enough that Trump can contest the election (or at least make a recognizable pretense)? What happens if both Biden and Trump claim to be president? Then the Secret Service (and the military, and everyone else for that matter) have to decide who they believe (or who they pretend to believe). That’s the dangerous case. > > We saw this in 1991 in the aftermath of the Kremlin coup that took down Gorbachev. Individual platoons (of the army or whoever) took sides, either firing on the Russian White House or on the protesters, or on each other. If there is a dispute over who is actually, in fact, president, and if further there is a dispute over who gets to decide, there will be chaos. Then the same thing would happen that happened with Bush and Gore. It would go to the legal system to figure out who is the President. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2020, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/30 "2020-07-02T13:21:10Z")
Even though he wasn’t the first choice for many Democrats, Biden is the perfect man to have in place if there is a transition crisis. He is a known quantity to the Secret Service, FBI, military, etc who have spent twice as much time under his (and Obama’s) leadership than they have under Trump’s. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/31 "2020-08-11T16:07:35Z")
Secret Service agents, like all Federal employees, swear an oath to the Constitution and not to any particular individual. I’m confident of their sense of honor and professionalism. Joe Biden is almost certainly already under USSS protection; if there’s any doubt as to who is lawfully the President at noon on Jan. 20, it won’t be the USSS’s call, and both men will remain guarded. If it’s clear that Biden has been elected and Trump still refuses to leave - highly unlikely, but hell, so much has been unlikely these past three-some years - than I’m sure Trump’s agents could and would, upon being ordered to do so by the new President, gently but firmly remove him from the White House. Even after he leaves office, of course, he’s entitled to USSS protection by law. This Staff Report might also be of interest: [Is the Secret Service responsible for keeping the president from getting drunk? - The Straight Dope](https://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2910/is-the-secret-service-responsible-for-keeping-the-president-from-getting-drunk/) ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/32 "2020-08-11T17:10:15Z")
> [@Triogenes](#): > > The people that surround Trump… and pull his strings… are very loyal to their country…which isn’t the United States by the way. Huh??? ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/33 "2020-08-11T17:36:04Z")
When the election is over and the electors cast their ballots and the Senate counts the ballots and certifies Biden the winner, then nobody but nobody is going to show any loyalty to Putin’s Bitch. GOP lawmakers will desert him and the Secret Service will act like the consummate professionals that they are. If the crybaby thinks he can pout his way into a second term, he’ll be in for a rude awakening when he is physically escorted off the premises on Jan 20. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/34 "2020-08-11T17:50:00Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > . . . and the electors cast their ballots and the Senate counts the ballots and certifies Biden the winner . . . Assuming this election cycle actually gets that far. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/35 "2020-08-11T17:59:31Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > then nobody but nobody is going to show any loyalty to Putin’s Bitch. Except the poor guy that draws the short straw and has to join the retired president’s security detail. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/36 "2020-08-11T17:59:40Z")
If it doesn’t, then it’s time to tear everything down and start over. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/37 "2020-08-11T18:02:20Z")
I believe (and hope) that the Secret Service agents are consummate professionals, loyal to the country and bound by duty to the job. Given that, I’d suspect the risk is the opposite. I would not be surprised if many of trump’s personal detail are not willing to take a bullet for him. They’re too professional to say anythihng, but do you actually believe trump treats them any better than any other servant he’s had all his life? They’re just “the help”. He probably can’t even remember their names, or remember to not talk badly about them in front of them ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/38 "2020-08-11T18:04:01Z")
I’ve always thought they’d act like the Wicked Witch of the West’s guards once he melts away. They probably hate his guts. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824/39 "2020-08-11T18:58:13Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Huh??? 🤣 🤣 Right? Craziness to insinuate Trump is loyal to anything but the good ole US of A and that there’s any reason to insinuate he might be compromised and beholden to foreign powers. Just unthinkable, isn’t it? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-loyal-is-the-u-s-secret-service-to-trump/913824.md?page=1)