5 ☆the Secret Service was born out of a fundamental tension that lies at the heart of American democracy: symbolism versus security
Zero Fail could seem like an exposé, especially since this Washington Post journalist's introduction to the Secret Service was the Hookergate scandal in Cartagena in 2012. But author Leonnig bore a more noble agenda as she set out to document the modern history of the Secret Service, warts and all, after extensive interviews and research of federal documents. Leonnig's purpose was to be a conduit for the former and current agents who believe that the Secret Service is broken and in need of major repair.
Created in 1865 as an enforcement arm of the US Treasury, the Secret Service was tasked with eliminating the counterfeit currency flooding the country in the wake of the Civil War. It wasn't until after the third assassination of a US President (POTUS) - William McKinley - in 1901, that Congress authorized the expansion of the Secret Service's purview to include a bodyguard function. Prior to 1901, the prevailing ideology was that American democracy as embodied in the highest elected official didn't warrant the privileged trappings of its British antecedents. Even though the Secret Service's mission has been broadened with its transfer into the Department of Homeland Security, the Secret Service is most commonly associated with the protection detail surrounding the POTUS. The Service currently employs about 7,000 agents, officers, and other staff and has a budget of approximately $2.2 billion.
The Secret Service methodology is born of blood. You can only protect for what you know. Every time the Service is tested, it gets better. - a former agent on President Obama's protection detail
Focusing on its protection work, Leonnig began her account of the Secret Service's modern history with the great tragedy in 1963 - the first assassination of a POTUS while under the the Service's guard - and concluded with the January 2021 inauguration of the current POTUS. Because of the agents' close proximity to those they're charged to safeguard, their behind-the-scenes perspectives offered fascinating glimpses of watershed events like JFK's death and the terrorist attacks of 9/11. The Presidents have been powerful men, who weren't always fully cooperative with their guards. Several actively evaded their protectors for adulterous assignations or weaponized them for their own political agendas in spite of the official nonpartisan status of all federal government employees.
Zero Fail's narrative conveyed the evolution of this normally tight-lipped organization. As the Service recovered from JFK's killing, it solidified a reputation for being an elite hardworking band of patriots willing to take a bullet to safeguard democracy. Recent events have revealed a much altered entity - one plagued by infighting, indulgence, and obsolescence that has led to high employee turnover and a multi-year ranking as the worst place within the federal government in which to work. Evidence of its deterioration have been exposed in the news from Hookergate, intruders inside the White House, the rapid-fire change in Directors (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directo...), and the June 2020 clearing of peaceful protesters at Lafayette Square. Leonnig revealed that the Trump administration further weakened the Service while benefiting the former's business interests. Some may object to Leonnig's conclusions but comparative statistics were hard to dispute.
I had struggled a bit with composing this review, a typical challenge with histories. Do I mention the poignancy upon hearing the first-hand accounts of JFK's death and his widow's reactions? Or the indignation I felt on behalf of certain officers who didn't fit the fraternity of white males with their insular macho attitudes and who subsequently got sabotaged by their own colleagues? Or much worse, the disgust that certain POTUS flagrantly abused their position and thus the American taxpayers for their own personal gain?
My only criticism, a minor point, with Zero Fail stemmed from my experience with the audiobook. Leonnig narrated the beginning and the end, and her voice lacked the clarity of a professional reader. I much preferred the vocal performance of Maggi-Meg Reed, who thankfully read the majority of this book. Otherwise, Zero Fail was an utterly absorbing book. I give 5 ☆ very infrequently in order to save them for books like this one, and Zero Fail is on track to become one of my top nonfictions of the year. 9780399589010 I’d give this 10 stars if I could. I couldn’t put it town. This is one of the most well-written, fascinating, and thorough political books I’ve read in years. It will leave you absolutely jaw-dropped at how genuinely at-risk the most senior leaders in our government are and have been. The details provided are just mind blowing. 9780399589010 Leonnig gives us a selective history of the Secret Service’s protection of presidents and candidates starting in 1961 with JFK and carrying us through the Trump years. She covers major incidents such as JFK’s assassination, the shootings of Ronald Reagan and George Wallace, 9-11, and fence jumpers who made it to the White House. She discusses the political pressures applied by Nixon to press the Service to dig up dirt on his enemies and Trump who demanded personal loyalty and used the Service as a political tool. The agents had their own biases with the Service controlled by an entrenched white male good old boys’ network that undermined outsiders and kept minorities from positions of power. Infighting and internal politics prevailed including leaking information to discredit competitors and anyone challenging the good old boy culture. Bad boy behavior, excessive drinking and carousing on trips, repeatedly tarnished the Service’s image. Leonnig puts in lots of personal details giving us some unique looks at presidents and first ladies. Written in a journalistic style, it is an engaging depiction of an agency troubled despite the individual dedication of many of its members. My notes follow.
When Kennedy became president, the Service operated on a $5 million annual budget with 300 employees to deal with both counterfeiting and protecting the president. The vast majority worked in field offices. 34 worked in the White House and were assigned to six-man teams to protect the president. They had military or police experience but received no formal training as agents. They learned on the job. The Service had requested more budget and more men, but a Republican Congress repeatedly said no. The head of the Appropriations Committee publicly made fun of a picture of an agent driving a boat with Jackie skiing behind.
JFK put a new level of stress on the Service. He at times slipped away from his detail. He also had constant streams of women brought to his private residence or hotel, anything from starlets to hookers. The Service had no idea who was spending their evenings alone with the president. JFK traveled constantly and the six-man teams soon found themselves stretched very thin covering one trip often with multiple stops while preparing for the next. On Monday the week of the fatal trip JFK had a 28-mile-long motorcade through Tampa in his open top Limo. As usual tens of thousands thronged the route through the city. On Thursday he went to San Antonio then Houston then Dallas, all with motorcades with JFK in his open top car motoring between high rise buildings.
The relentless schedule meant that 34 men could not provide 24/7 security while thoroughly inspecting motorcade routes in advance. And JFK resented their intrusions in his private life and political outreach to the public. He called the agents “the counterfeit ivy leaguers”, referring to the fact that most came from working class backgrounds but were now accompanying him wearing suits. The president’s detail was not a disciplined bunch and some spent the night before the assassination drinking into the late hours. While that may not have contributed to the president’s death, its revelation was a big blackeye for the Service. Leonnig gives a riveting account of the assassination and aftermath as the agents experienced it.
Johnson was another president who had little faith in the Service. With the fallout from the assassination, the Treasury Secretary greatly exceeded Johnson’s budget request for the Service and got it increased to $12.6 million with the addition of over 200 agents and a training center. Also, the Secret Service chief got IBM to begin computerizing the Service’s paper files. In 1968 with the assassination of Robert Kennedy, Johnson immediately authorized the Service to protect well known presidential candidates. Thus George Wallace was given a Service detail that would be with him when he was shot and paralyzed campaigning in the 1972 primary election. Leonnig gives a detailed account of the attacker, Arthur Bremer, and the shooting.
Nixon connived in a multitude of ways to use the Service to his political and financial benefit. Nixon’s first instinct upon Learning about Wallace’s shooting was to pin it on the left to help his reelection. He sent an aide to plant evidence in the shooter’s apartment. He told the FBI to take over the investigation from the Service which led to a spat between the two agencies. This delay allowed the press to get into the apartment and record everything there before the aide got in. But Nixon persisted at every turn to use the Service. Nixon had Treasury Secretary Connelly call Ted Kennedy who was campaigning for McGovern to ask him to accept Secret Service protection. Nixon then told the Service the agent he wanted assigned, one that he felt would dig up dirt on Kennedy and report back. Leonnig itemizes other Nixon dirty tricks and the installation of expensive equipment in his home under the guise of security. But one thing Nixon asked of the Service would do him in, installing a taping system in his office.
In September 1975, there were two attempts on President Ford’s life. In one the Service seized the gun from Lynette Fromme before it went off. In the other, a bullet narrowly missed Ford’s head before Sara Jane Moore was taken down by a bystander. The Carter years went by without major incident. In 1981 Reagan was shot as well as aid Jim Brady, an agent and policeman. Reagan was on a short trip from the White House to give a speech at the Hilton, considered low risk. Still, a detailed plan was drawn up, the hotel inspected by advance men, and a well-trained team accompanied Reagan. As Reagan walked out of the hotel towards his waiting car John Hinckley, the attacker was waiting. When the first shot was fired, the agents immediately went into action, shoving Reagan into his bullet proof car, an agent lying on top of him, another standing in front and one assigned to watch the crowd spotting Hinckley.
The Service had dramatically improved its protection since the JFK assassination. Immediately after Dallas, open top limos were gone and armored ones took their place. Formal training was instituted and became increasingly rigorous after each incident with increasingly protective protocols implemented to keep threats at a distance. After the attempts on Ford’s life, new rules were put in place increasing the distance spectators had to be kept away. After Reagan’s shooting building entrances and exits were covered by using a garage loading dock or setting up a tent. For speeches bulletproof glass became standard and most significantly metal detectors were introduced to screen the audience.
The Clintons presented individual challenges to the agents and vice versa. Bill Clinton, like JFK, always wanted to get out and mingle with people stressing the agents on his detail. Also like JFK he frequently met with women on short “off the record” excursions or in his private office, although not up to JFK’s level. But in the 90s people and particularly the press were not inclined to look the other way as they did in the 60s. The agents, many of whom were married with girlfriends in the various cities they traveled through, did not reveal Clinton’s escapades, but some did reveal other personal details about the Clinton’s relationship such as a spat where Hillary threw a lamp at Bill. Hillary was furious when this became public. She and Bill hadn’t trusted the agents since they had seen the “Reelect Bush” stickers on their car bumpers. In turn the agents found Hillary cold and disdainful, a big change following the motherly Barbara Bush who baked them cookies. In 1997 some retired agents revealed to the press the lurid details of JFk’s womanizing. ABC ran a two-hour TV special on it. This put even more attention on Bill Clinton and now he was having an affair in the White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Again retired agents spilled the beans, this time about Lewinsky’s private visits to Clinton, and current agents were forced to testify in a politically motivated criminal investigation.
9-11 found the agency unprepared. There was no way to defend the White House from air attack and no plan for how or where to secure Bush who was in Florida. The Service now had 4,000 people working for it, but it also had added providing protection for foreign embassies, the VP’s residence and special events. Agents were well trained with well defined protocols for shooting incidents, but had to respond ad hoc on 9-11. VP Cheney was in the White House, but his detail did not have access to the underground bunker designed to protect the president. If the plane that hit the Pentagon had made it to the White House, Cheney likely would have been killed. The Service’s command center was located in the Old Executive Office Building next door to the White House. It could have been taken out if the White House was hit. The command center would be moved, barriers put up around the White House, and more. But an old problem would resurface, bad behavior by the agents. The press uncovered a litany of adulterous sexual liaisons between agents and white house staff as well as embezzlement, theft, barroom brawls and sagging morale. The Service would be put in the new Homeland Security Department.
Obama received up to thirty death threats a day, four times the number prior presidents received. The Service had to take every precaution, and unlike some earlier cavalier presidents, Obama readily agreed. Still two incidents during the Obama years exposed significant vulnerabilities. In November 2011 a deranged man took out his semiautomatic rifle 750 yards away on a public street. He fired eight times at the White House, breaking a window near the president’s living room. Six other bullets hit the Obama residence. The Service said it was just random fire from a gang fight. But police interviewed an eyewitness who saw the man (later captured) shooting and the Service had to change its statement also noting the president wasn’t in town. But Michelle’s mother and daughter were in the residence at the time and Michelle wasn’t happy to hear that security wasn’t so tight when the president wasn’t there. The second incident was a fence climber who ran past the guards, pushed the front door open and ran up to the Obama residence, where luckily an agent was able to tackle him. The Service said he wasn’t armed, but he had a knife with a three-inch blade. In addition to an attempted coverup of lax security and numerous errors in the shooting incident, Leonnig lists nine separate security failures in the fence jumper incident.
The Republicans in Congress had a heyday with these incidents. Another reason Congress was loaded for bear was the Cartagena incident. Obama was attending a regional summit. A large contingent of Service and military personnel got there early as was the norm. But this beach town had a notorious red-light district which led to disputes when some of the johns wouldn’t pay their hookers. The girls notified the police. The police called the American embassy. Soon it was an international headline about the all-night boozing and 22 Service and military guys who took the hookers back to their rooms that night. Obama had to address it at the summit standing next to Columbia’s president. This was followed by another similar incident in Holland.
There were other incidents, many made public by Service employees who were angry about being disciplined or just to eliminate competitors for a promotion. Over the Obama years the Secret Service Director was let go and replaced twice. The last, Julia Pierson, was selected by Obama to be the first female director. She was soon undermined by leaks from her own subordinates. She wasn’t part of the old boy network and her attempts to hold subordinates accountable were deeply resented in a dysfunctional culture. Following more incidents and hearings in 2015 in which Rep. Jason Chaffetz tore into the new director, disgruntled agents dug into the Service’s files on Chaffetz. They found he had been turned down when he applied for a Secret Service job back in 2003. They spread that news casting Chaffetz as leading a vendetta against the Service. The leak soon was on twitter and widely reported.
With Trump’s election worse was to come. He polarized Service employees. Many were openly supportive with MAGA hats on their desks while others couldn’t stand Trump and felt intimidated. The Service also suffered from the enormous financial burden Trump put on it. In February 2017 another fence jumper wandered on White House grounds for seventeen minutes until he was found. Most of the security detection equipment didn’t work. The Service didn’t have money to hire enough agents or fix broken gear. Including Trump’s family 18 people were assigned agents. Trump and his children traveled frequently. Trump required the Service to secure Trump Tower, a 58-story skyscraper, which was very expensive. It cost $64,000 just to test and service the elevators and the Service had to pay for space there as well. Golf cart rentals at Mara Lago cost the Service $35,000 for the first three months of Trump’s presidency. The total cost for a single Trump visit to Mara Lago including Coast Guard and military protection was $3.2 million per visit. Obama cost the government $97 million for travel for the eight years of his presidency. Trump’s travel cost taxpayers $20 million in just the first two months. The Service had other duties besides protecting the president and his family: Counterfeiting and numerous other financial crimes, protecting foreign missions and dignitaries in the U.S., and protecting designated special events. Without a significant increase in funding money for Trump’s and his eighteen-member family’s travel meant money taken from these other responsibilities.
After the latest fence jumper incident, Homeland Security Secretary General John Kelly convinced Trump to hire a general he knew as the new director to straighten up the service. Unable to get funding to improve equipment or hire sufficient staff the general was unable to accomplish anything. Being brought in from the outside he was deeply resented by his subordinates. In April 2019 Trump selected a new director from within the Service and promoted an agent on his detail to a presidential advisor position senior to the director, the sole criteria in both cases being their personal loyalty to him. Trump now had confirmed loyalists controlling the Service. Thus, the Service had no problem clearing out protesters from Lafayette Square in 2020, so Trump could hold out a bible in front of a church for a photo op. The Service remained polarized as some cheered on the January 6 insurrectionists.
9780399589010
Always one to gravitate towards books of a political nature, I have come to enjoy those penned by Carol Leonnig. While I have read some of her collaborative work previously, this was my first foray into her independent writing, which was just as captivating and revealing. Many would think of the Secret Service as the protection detail behind the scenes, saving those of some political ilk from threats and keeping the riffraff away. However, Leonnig explores not only the new ‘poltiical protection’ role of the Secret Service, but also some of the gaffes in which they have been involved, which brought some unwanted attention to the role. Leonnig does a masterful job in her explanations and description analysis of the Secret Service, choosing to educate the reader, rather than use it as a tell-all or smear piece.
The Secret Service are by no means a new arm of the US Government, but their role as political protectors has really come to fruition in the last number of decades. Carol Leonnig explores when the shift took place to move the Secret Service from primarily involved in the realm of the US Treasury to being point people for political figures, especially the President of the United States (POTUS). The significant shift can be traced back to the Kennedy Administration, though this was also the start of the major gaffes in which the Service found itself, namely the Kennedy assassination in 1963.
Leonnig moves through each of the presidents from Kennedy to Trump with some cursory explanation of the evolving role of members of the Service, as well as some detailed discussion of any major assassination attempt made or plot revealed regarding POTUS. Leonnig opens the reader’s eyes to just how busy the Service tends to be, chasing down leads and keeping things straight for all those involved in the preparation of trips, both foreign and domestic. In addition to protection, Leonnig explores some of the ‘secret keeping’ roles that members of the Service had to keep, from Obama’s smoking to Clinton’s nightly rendezvous with a variety of women. While readers may not be shocked to read about this, substantiating media rumours solidifies much of what is known about a number of those holding the highest office in the land.
In the latter portion of the book, Leonnig explores the three most recent Administrations with additional analysis, including some of the more scandalous sides of the Secret Service. Leonnig seeks not to out those who worked on the various details, but to offer some substantial explanation as to just how rampant issues and abuse of power can be, which may not be well known to the reader. Use of taxpayer dollars to drink, cavort, and put the protected at risk because of a lack of acuteness cannot be lost on what comes out in the narrative, though there is a need to understand that these men (and some women) are human and will likely ‘play while the cat is away’. Leonnig offers up some raw and straightforward explanations from what she has been able to garner, putting the Secret Service under the microscope to se how effective they have been and could be into the future.
No shock to the attentive reader, when it comes to Trump, things within the Secret Service took a highly political direction. As Leonnig discusses, Trump uses the Service as a private security force and made sure the taxpayer footed the additional bill. Using blind loyalty to ensure job security, in an organisation that is to be apolitical, Trump soiled things to the point of making another mockery of a core American institution. Leaving bitterness and destruction in his wake, Trump left the Service divided and forced America to clean up the mess, riddled in falsehoods.
I was not looking for a tell-all book or something that would seek to dismantle the structure of the Secret Service. Carol Leonnig did not provide that either. Instead, she left the reader feeling well-informed about what is taking place within the Service and how the machine works, both when well-oiled and as the wheels are falling off. Her frank narrative opens up many questions, but also seeks to educate the reader as to what is going on, which proves highly educational. Seen mostly as being the wallflowers they hope to be, members of the Secret Service have a special role, particularly when protecting POTUS on a day to day basis. However, in being given that responsibility, there is a high standard that must be met, something that Leonnig discusses on a regular basis. Lengthy chapters offer great insight into what has been going on and how things have evolved (and perhaps devolved) since the Kennedy Administration. Leonnig takes the reader on a ride like no other and substantiates much of what she says through interviews and detailed research. As with the other books of hers I have read, I leave this experience with a great deal more knowledge and a thirst to obtain more, as time permits.
Kudos, Madam Leonnig, for shedding some light on this most interesting topic. I look forward to reading more of your work soon.
Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/ 9780399589010 This was an excellent book about the Secret Service from the time of John F Kennedy through Trump. I learned so much from this book, written by a 3-time Pulitzer Prize winning investigative journalist. She wrote about so many detailed incidents regarding danger to the Presidents that she could only have learned from insider knowledge. The book was fascinating and I highly recommend it. 9780399589010
The first definitive account of the rise and fall of the Secret Service, from the Kennedy assassination to the ongoing scandals under Obama and Trump--by Pulitzer Prize winner and #1 New York Times bestselling co-author of A Very Stable Genius
Carol Leonnig has been covering the Secret Service for The Washington Post for most of the last decade, bringing to light the gaffes and scandals that plague the agency today--from a toxic work culture to outdated equipment and training to the deep resentment among the ranks with the agency's leadership. But the Secret Service wasn't always so troubled.
The Secret Service was born in 1865, in the wake of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, but its story begins in earnest in 1963, with the death of John F. Kennedy. Shocked into reform by their failure to protect the president on that fateful day, this once-sleepy agency was rapidly transformed into a proud, elite unit that would finally redeem themselves in 1981 by valiantly thwarting an assassination attempt against Ronald Reagan. But this reputation for courage and efficiency would not last forever. By Barack Obama's presidency, the Secret Service was becoming notorious for break-ins at the White House, an armed gunman firing at the building while agents stood by, a massive prostitution scandal in Cartagena, and many other dangerous lapses.
To expose the these shortcomings, Leonnig interviewed countless current and former agents who risked their careers to speak out about an agency that's broken and in desperate need of a reform. Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service
I read most of this last night and seven other people have holds on it so I'll return it and finish later. What I read made me sick enough. I bought Secret Service dogs and realized there were problems with SS then. (SS Secret Service)
Anyway, the Trump years were very expensive for us taxpayers and the SS was not very efficient. Unmasking during the pandemic was a big set back with many agents ill or on quarantine. Many SS members are Republicans and some are huge Trump supporters. Biden needed his old detail from Obama's admin back. I read an interview with Michelle O where she stated how fearful she was for her family and I now see why. Continued SS protection for the Obamas may not be as thorough as necessary.
9780399589010 I am always intrigued by books that look into Elite Public Sector Jobs that little is known about. I was always under the impression that the Secret Service Agency, in charge of protecting the US President and his/her family was elite and highly professional. This is always supposed to be an apolitical job, you serve to protect the person elected to office. This is a very timely book right now considering the political turmoil going on right now in the US.
Unfortunately, the Secret Service has some serious security problems and has had a culture where nepotism and loyalty to those who got you the job matters, not the competence of the individual being promoted. The agency has evolved over time and the book starts with President Kennedy being Assassinated when the agency was much more professional. It was a very sad day and the agents felt responsible for not saving Kennedy even though it was not possible to do so.
Carol Leonnig does an exceptional job writing and researching this book. I had the book and also the Audio 🎧, which really worked well. Although the Secret Service are supposed to be completely neutral, of course that is not fully possible and many leaned toward being Republican. This is fine of course, the limitation would be that you could not let your personal political beliefs interfere with doing your job properly. It was really interesting to get a glimpse into the life of the officers and how much was involved in protecting a President. Long hours and travel occur and many are dedicated to doing a fine job. Each President from Kennedy on was profiled and I enjoyed learning of the relationship the agents had with each President and their family. There was also inside gossip I had never heard before, such as President Clinton wanting to go to the YMCA to Exercise, when really the Secret Service was not inside the facility because Clinton was actually meeting up with women to have affairs with. The Secret Service most liked George H.W. Bush and Barbara, since they went out of their way to make them feel welcome and would often invite them to be a part of a bar-b-cue they were having. Barbara felt motherly, always looking out for them and sending them home with food since many had not eaten all day. People are people after all, and when you are in close proximity to someone different types of relationships form. Since President Trump had the Secret Service constantly traveling to play golf and also attend to his large family, I assumed most would not like him. Yet, that was not the case, many in the Secret Service were conservative and had similar feeling to the ones Trump espoused, whether decent or not.
The book also profiles terrifying incidents where the President had attempts to kill him happen that were mostly unheard of. The agents said each time an incident occurred it would help them learn something to look out for in the future to prevent an incident from recurring. This was true certainly true for Kennedy and Johnson, but when Nixon was in Office he wanted the Secret Service to cross the line and do active spying on the democrats. Nixon ended up having to resign, but this was a time that also made the Secret Service lose credibility. The agency seemed to bounce back with President Reagan and officers did put themselves in harms way to protect the President. It was not widely known how close Reagan was to being assassinated.
The problem with the Secret Service highlighted the need for change that just wasn’t occurring. There were many embarrassing incidents such as using prostitutes and drinking very heavily the day before a President was arriving in a country. There were also serious problems with security and only luck keep a President or his family from being hurt or killed. This was a Boys Club that needed to change with the times and often more Professionalism was needed. Communication often did not happen. Agents spoke among themselves, but would not share the information with the Secret Service Director. A serious issue is that the way the Secret Service functions is an Agent speaks of his first promotion as being ‘made’, then loyalty to these bosses and teammates was essential. That was how the agency worked, not on good planning or making tough decisions. This often meant very serious breaches such as a man was in Michelle Obama’s room in Disneyland and with Trump in office, a man jumped the fence and was casually walking around the White House Grounds for 15 minutes were not addressed. This system has fostered a bad environment which places those in need of protection in serious danger. The Agency needs Better Leadership, Updated Technology, More Money, and a Clear Role.
Riveting and Informative Book. Definitely Recommend. It was long, but I read it fast and having the Audio got through this book in a day. I enjoyed some aspects and was appalled at others. Overall, though thought the author, a writer for The Washington Post did an Excellent and Fair Job discussing The Secret Service and areas we can not afford to keep continuing as was done before, while honoring the basic job that is difficult and often thankless. 9780399589010 Carol Leonnig writes as only a journalist does… straightforward, pulling no punches, and highly readable. Her descriptions of the Kennedy White House bring new light to the way JFK operated as a man, a politician, and president. Her description of the assassination, as seen through the eyes of the Secret Service agents in the President's detail, is perhaps the most chilling I've read. I was a junior in high school when Kennedy was shot… all these years later Leonnig brought me to tears.
The road to the death of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy is paved by a Congress that treated the service guarding the leader of the free world as an afterthought because of the misapprehension that actually protecting his person might seem like he has a royal guard. The United States of America has a President not a King. It took the assassination of four presidents to start to change that.
Through the eyes of Secret Service agents, we get a glimpse into the personalities of presidents and their families. I was really surprised that Jimmy Carter didn't want those in his protection detail to talk to him unless absolutely necessary. I honestly don't know what to make of that given his swing that hammer, build a house persona we see today. On the other hand, George H. W. Bush, or more specifically Barbara Bush, included the members of his detail in family gatherings making him very popular with those protecting him.
The first half of the book takes you, the reader, through the assassinations of Abraham Lincoln (1865), James A. Garfield (1881), and William McKinley (1901), the founding of the Secret Service (during the Lincoln administration to protect United States currency), the assassination of John F. Kennedy (1963) , 9/11, and the George W. Bush years. Let that sink in. Since 2008 we have had two presidents serve their terms in office, and now have a president in office for only a few months. The Secret Service has existed since 1865 (and has protected presidents since 1901) yet twelve plus years (give or take a campaign season or two) needs the other half of the book. You do the math.
Barack Obama presented the Secret Service with the challenge of protecting the most threatened president in American History. Although many of the service's bad actions were covered in the news, the reality is much worse. Personally, I worried every time President Obama appeared in a large crowd without knowing just how undermanned and underfunded the agency tasked with his safety was.
The transition from Obama to Trump changed the Secret Service into a more political and politically fraught organization. The trend backward was profound.
The second half of the book covers just two presidents and provides a look at a Secret Service both flawed and excellent. It is unfortunate that the flaws surround the most important detail with which it is tasked… protecting the life of the United States President, and by extension, protecting democracy's most public symbol.
ZERO FAIL: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service is a modern history that takes readers through more than 150 years of an agency created but unfunded, and one that is still underfunded today. Like our infrastructure, this organization needs a complete overhaul from policy to hiring to technology. The book ends with January 6, 2021 detailing the part the Secret Service played in the insurrection both as protectors of Vice President Pence and as supporters of Trump's claims of victory. As much as I might hate to say this, it would not surprise me that other critical government agencies are run in a similar fashion.
In her acknowledgements, Carol Leonnig offers praise to agents who work tirelessly, sometimes waiting months for overtime pay. It is important to remember that a book such as this presents the possibilities of reform in a necessary and positive light. There is hope that the Congress will see to funding, that hiring practices will be brought in line with the need for diversity, and that agents will get the time off to which they are entitled and get paid for their exhausting overtime hours.
ZERO FAIL is well worth the time you will invest in reading it. It is a non-fiction page-turner every bit as readable as any thriller on the market today. 9780399589010 This was fine, but I think she laid too much at the Trump Administration’s feet when she spent 17+ hours before getting to Trump explaining what a dumpster fire of an organization the Secret Service was/is. My main take away is that it’s quite miraculous that Obama is alive. 9780399589010 A fabulous insightful book on one of the most famous (or infamous) government bureaucracy in America. The US Secret Service is known world wide as the greatest security force in the world, and yet, this book reveals decades long mismanagement, lack of purpose (yes, really!), and mistrust between the agents on the ground and top brass. From Presidents Lincoln through Biden, the author does fantastic research and reporting of what the agency has gotten right, where they have failed miserably and the problems that still engulf the agency today.
It’s a wide span of American Presidential history, but the author handles it with aplomb bringing the reader along with a concise account of the men and women who daily take the ultimate vow in guarding the life of the leader of the free world. 9780399589010
download Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service
