The Presidential Bubble Posted on November 23, 2011 When President Obama goes on a fund-raising trip to Los Angeles,

traffic grinds to a halt (even by LA standards) as roads are closed. Airspace is restricted. Local law enforcement begins preparations days ahead. Most elements of the presidents schedule are closelyheld secrets until the last minute. These preparations are for visits to private homes and closed gatherings. If public events are scheduled, the preparations are even more extreme. Modern protection requirements mean American presidents are more distant from the American public than British royalty, adding to the feeling of an Imperial Presidency. While a distant King George III helped encourage the American Revolution, the eventual successor to his throne announced the itinerary for his honeymoon in advance and interacted with Angelinos in a way not available to the president. How did we get to the point where the American President is in many ways a Secret Service hostage, while Prince William is free to mingle with the American public? More importantly, does it affect how our presidents govern and what attracts us to new candidates? The first known presidential assassination attempt was on Andrew Jackson in 1835. True to form, Jackson beat his assailant with a cane until he was subdued. In those days, presidents had no formal protection, walking or driving horses through the muddy streets of Washington D.C. with few thoughts of danger. Despite the close call, customs remained the same, with the first real instance of caution occurring in 1861, as Presidentelect Lincoln relied on Allen Pinkerton to protect him during the journey from Springfield, IL to the capital, altering his train route to avoid potential danger in Baltimore. The Civil War was enough to get a guard force for the president, as Lincoln had coverage during his term. However, this was not the type of Secret Service protection we think of today, rather he had a few guards in close proximity. This was not enough to avoid being shot at in 1864, an event covered up at the time. It also wasnt enough reason to post a guard at the door to his box at Fords Theater, where he was assassinated on April 14, 1865. Ironically, earlier in the day he signed the Secret Service into existence. Though best known for protecting presidents, the Secret Service did not pick up that assignment until after the McKinley assassination in 1901. In the meantime, President Garfield was shot at close range in a train station in 1881, while preparing to travel unprotected to visit his family at the shore. Amazingly, by todays standards, Garfield had no security and often walked around the capital on his own without any bodyguard. Late 19th century presidents moved about like normal citizens, no guards, no motorcades (and not just because cars didnt exist yet). The Garfield assassination was seen as a

fluke, the work of a deranged gunman, rather than the beginning of a trend. In those days, presidential travel was the exception. Teddy Roosevelt was the first president to leave the country while in office, inspecting the Panama Canal construction in 1906. The idea of a large advance team to travel ahead was unfathomable. In October of 1944, FDR spent an entire day motorcading through New York City, covering 51 miles in an open car. During a World War, Roosevelt was almost completely unprotected. Over a million New Yorkers were able to see him up close. The open motorcade concept ended with the JFK assassination. No longer would the public line streets to get a close look at their president. In the aftermath, the Secret Service took a close look at their procedures and future presidents would have less exposure. The bubble was beginning to form. The next decade saw the assassination of presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, and the shooting of presidential candidate George Wallace. In 1975, President Ford faced two potential assassins in the same month, the second incident being a fairly close call. Surprisingly, these developments did not lead to major changes. However, when John Hinckley shot President Reagan in 1981, the bubble sealed. Hinckley was able to get into close range without being searched, hovering behind a rope line with network cameras. Though Reagan survived, made a full recovery and served out two full terms, this assassination attempt was the most influential. In order to offer a president the best possible protection, the cooperation of the president and his political team is necessary. Especially when nearing re-election (as JFK was in November 1963), it is natural for a president to want to make contact with the citizenry. The closer you get, the more hands you shake, the more risk. In the pre-9/11 era, mobile metal detectors were a relative rarity. The type used at airports didnt even exist until 1972 and were not used by the Secret Service until after the Reagan shooting. After her husbands close call, Nancy Reagan just said no to situations that would put the president at extra risk. The part everyone paid attention to was the use of astrologer Joan Quigley to help figure out which dates and times were more auspicious and safe. Overlooked was her influence in getting the president, along with his staff to cooperate with the Secret Service in diminishing potential dangers. From that point forward, protection methods have continued to advance, Secret Service budgets have grown, and, knock-on-wood, over thirty years have passed since a bullet got anywhere near a sitting president. With the dramatic increase in presidential travel, this is an amazing record. It comes at a cost, beyond the Secret Service budget (a relatively miniscule part of total spending). The original concept of a citizen president, a man from the people who walks freely among the people is gone, a casualty of a few deranged gunmen and the greater

importance of the presidency itself. When President Jackson rapped his assailant over the head, he led a country of approximately 15 million people, one not particularly significant in the world just yet. The legislature was the most powerful branch of government, and even at that Congress only met a few months out of the year. By the time President Reagan was protectively thrown into his armor-plated limousine with bullet-proof glass, he led a country of 225 million, and a nearby military aide carried the nuclear football, enabling the president to give orders to launch a massive nuclear strike. The presidency is now considered the most meaningful and powerful part of the federal government. The cost of losing a president is much greater. However, we still have the idea that our elected leader should be accessible to the public, as un-removed as possible. This leads to staged events, where a president will spend a few minutes in a diner, eating a sandwich with the locals. The TV images are great, but the amount of staging that goes into the photo/video op is staggering. This means even when it looks like a president is having a normal interaction, he has still passed through a cordon of security and is very much inside the bubble, having brought a few invited guests with him. Every campaign season, presidential candidates take advantage of this concept of a citizen president to reach out to voters in a way an incumbent president cannot. Back when presidents moved freely, they didnt travel much, and it was considered unseemly to actually campaign for the presidency. Now, incumbents are behind a constant wall of security, but it is normal for candidates to spend well over a year seeking the presidency, giving them plenty of contact. When you see a candidate shaking hands at the Iowa State Fair, in a coffee shop in New Hampshire, and compare that to President Obama landing in Marine One on the White House lawn, the full transformation is visible. Our presidents run for office as citizens, before becoming trapped in the bubble. If you dont like the concept of elected royalty, just blame the assassins.