Secret Service bodyguards for ex-presidents--was Reagen guarded?

[Diceman]

@Sam Stone

For one thing, it could affect the person’s behaviour in office. Presidents can make a lot of enemies. If the man knows he’s not going to be protected for the rest of his life, will he refuse to take controversial steps that will earn him enemies? George W. Bush is going to be looking over his shoulder for terrorist nutbars for the rest of his life.

It sure as hell hasn’t stopped Dubya from making enemies so far.

[hajario]

@stockton

There’s a very funny (in MY humble opinion, the critics hated it) movie about this very subject. ‘Guarding Tess’ (1994) features Shirley McLaine in the Nancy Reagan role and Nick Cage as the unwilling Secret Service agent.

McLaine was supposed to be Bess Truman, not Nancy.

Haj

[Walloon]

@Sam Stone

I think limiting the protection of an ex-President for ten years is an extraordinarily bad idea. From the date of the law, I’m guessing it was part of the Republican ‘get back at Clinton’ program.

No. The law provided that the incumbent (i.e., Clinton) was grandfathered into lifetime Secret Service protection:

Under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury, the United States Secret Service is authorized to protect the following persons: . . . Former Presidents and their spouses for their lifetimes, except that protection of a spouse shall terminate in the event of remarriage unless the former President did not serve as President prior to January 1, 1997, in which case, former Presidents and their spouses for a period of not more than ten years from the date a former President leaves office . . .

[Sam_Stone]

Hey, how about that. I go after the Republicans for a change, and the buggers are innocent.

But not smart. It still doesn’t sound like a good idea to me.

[Otto]

Sam, next time you say something bad about Mr Clinton I’m going to dig up this thread to remind you that you think he’s a national treasure.

In looking at the various links they seem to be part of the Treasury Department’s website. Am I misrememberng that the Secret Service was put under the auspices of the Dept of Homeland Security?

[LuckySevens]

i’ve always wondered why they were called the secret service…
They have no reason to be secret, they aren’t secret, everyone knows what they are doing, and they’ve even been made fun of by hollywood on numerous occasions.
waits for his witty comment to be shut down by some smart ass straight dopers facts :rolleyes:

[chappachula]

@LuckySevens

i’ve always wondered why they were called the secret service

Well, suppose you’ve trained for years at judo, karate, etc.You’re an expert shot with a concealed weapon. You’ve been subjected to a very,very rigorous background check, and you’ve finally made it–you are accepted as one of the elite, the proud, the truly dedicated few who are trusted and qualified to protect the leader of the greatest nation on earth…
.You proudly put on your dark sunglasses, attach the secret microphone, load your gun, …and then report for duty — watching a senile old ex-president wearing diapers and drooling.

Wouldnt you want to keep it a secret?

And on a serious note–that 10 year limit seems like a really bad idea. Saddam had a lot of buddies who will still be looking for revenge, 15 or 20 years after Bush is out of office.

[Sam_Stone]

Sam, next time you say something bad about Mr Clinton I’m going to dig up this thread to remind you that you think he’s a national treasure.

Are you under the impression that I say bad things about him? I suggest you go back and check the archives. I thought Clinton was an OK president, and I thought the Republican attacks against him were over the top and crossed the line into actually damaging national security. But that’s a Great Debate.

[stockton]

@hajario

McLaine was supposed to be Bess Truman, not Nancy.

Haj

Sorry to resurrect this old thread to clear my name, but Netflix sez we’re both right:

“Shirley MacLaine is Tess Carlisle, a widowed first lady (half Nancy Reagan, half Bess Truman) living quietly in Ohio. Nicolas Cage is Doug Chesnic, the Secret Service agent assigned to protect her. He longs for action but feels like a heavily armed butler. He wants out, but Tess won’t let him go. MacLaine and Cage clash to comic perfection.”

http://www.netflix.com/MovieDisplay?movieid=563830&mqso=60178549

[Julius_Henry]

@LuckySevens

i’ve always wondered why they were called the secret service…

IIRC, the Secret Service was created by Abraham Lincoln to try to stem the counterfeiting of US currency, which is why it’s a branch of the Treasury Department. The Secret Service did not get pressed into the Presidential protection business until after the assassination of McKinley.

Okay, so this doesn’t really answer the question of their name, but how often do I get to use this factoid?

[Otto]

@Julius Henry

IIRC, the Secret Service was created by Abraham Lincoln to try to stem the counterfeiting of US currency, which is why it’s a branch of the Treasury Department.

Used to be, I thought. Isn’t the Secret Service one of the departments that got rolled into Homeland Security?

[Walloon]

@Otto

Isn’t the Secret Service one of the departments that got rolled into Homeland Security?

No.

[Walloon]

My head said “yes,” for some reason my fingers typed no.