THE MEN AND WOMEN STANDING TALL IN THE LINE OF FIRE
The men and women standing tall in the line of fire
Jerome Reilly
RONALD REAGAN was merely a presidential hopeful when he first came under the protection of the US secret service.
Reagan, no mean shot himself, was target shooting at his Californian ranch as his detail of agents baked in the hot sun, scanning the big country for potential assassins.
The conversation turned to shooting techniques and Reagan postulated that secret service agents were taught to shoot from the hip in a low crouch - cowboy style. Curious, the then governor of California asked for a demonstration.
The secret service man looked at the array of tin cans lined up on the paddock fence, swiftly pulled his gun from a shoulder holster, stood ramrod straight and fired a volley of shots, sending the cans spinning away into the mesquite.
"Heh, why didn't you crouch?" asked Reagan.
"If we crouch we lose our rating in the service," replied the agent.
The truth suddenly dawned on Reagan. The reason why the agent stood up big and straight was because his duty was to stand in front of the intended target - to take the bullets destined for the political figure he was sworn to protect.
Later, when he was elected President, Reagan narrowly escaped assassination because a secret service agent dived on top of him, just in time to evade all but one of the bullets fired by crazed Yale drop-out
John Hinkley III. The agent quite literally had put himself Clint Eastwood-style "in the line of fire".
Reagan, then 70, was hit by a flattened dime-sized slug which ricocheted off the bullet-proof presidential limo and lodged in his left lung. Three others were injured including a secret service agent, Reagan press secretary Jim Brady and a Washington policeman.
The secret service agents who will form an uncompromising human shield for Bill and Hillary Clinton during their second visit to Ireland have already completed the vital groundwork designed to protect 'Eagle' for the duration of his visit.
The advance team has surveyed each site where Mr and Mrs Clinton are due to visit: West Belfast, the heart of Gerry Adams' constituency; the Waterfront Hall in downtown Belfast; the city of Armagh, where he is due to meet church leaders, and Omagh, as the town attempts to get back to normality after the bloody bombing which claimed 28 lives.
In the south, the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin city centre, the headquarters of Gateway in Clonshaugh, Co Dublin, Limerick, Adare and Ballybunion have been meticulously evaluated.
From these surveys the secret service determines the manpower required, equipment, hospitals and evacuation routes in the event of an attack on 'Eagle'. They have also been in constant contact with the gardai and finalised plans with the Assistant Garda Commissioner Pat O'Toole.
More than 2,500 gardai will be involved with the highly-trained Emergency Response Unit (ERU), providing protection at the inner perimeter. Several hundred troops including the army's special service Ranger Wing will remain on standby as will fire, rescue and other public service personnel. A command post with Full worldwide communications facilities has already been established at an unknown location, but probably at the US embassy in Ballsbridge. Long before Air Force - One touches down, personnel have been told where they will be posted and alerted to specific problems associated with the Irish visit. Intelligence information has been assessed, identification specified and emergency options planned.
ACCESS
Before the arrival of Mr Clinton and the First Lady, checkpoints will be established and access to the, secured area limited.
This "sanitisation" process has been extremely rigorous this time out at every Irish venue.
Following the launch of Operation Infinite Reach - when the President ordered the attack using 80 Tomahawk HI missiles against facilities said to be under the control of Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan and Sudan, the terrorist threat against America's First Citizen has never been greater.
But it is the men and women (Mrs Clinton is known to favour some female secret service agents in her detail) making up the presidential guard who will be the public face of the US Secret Service.
ESCORT
The "close personal escort" will number at least six agents - most will be taller than the President, who is more than six feet tall. The idea is that the taller men will help shield Mr. Clinton from sniper's bullets.
Key secret service agents have been granted permission to carry weapons in Ireland and the arsenal of weaponry will be impressive.
Unique among the US security services, the Secret Service still use the Israeli-manufactured Uzi deemed by many to be old fashioned compared with the next generation of automatic assault weapons like the Heckler and Koch favoured by the gardai.
Elsewhere in the Presidential convoy which could number as many as 14 vehicles will be a V-12 powered black "Scooby-doo" wagon with blacked out windows stuffed to the gills with extra secret service agents known as the CAT (Counter Action Team). In the event of an attack they will be able to utilise Remington 870 pump action shotguns and M-4 carbines - an updated version of the M-16 - complete with electronic "red dot" sighting as seen in all the best techno-thrillers.
The presidential limousine is an armour-plated Lincoln Town Car with bulletproof glass and run-flat tyres. It includes gun ports from which secret service agents can return fire, high-tech air filtration systems to protect against chemical or gas attack, and bags of blood - typed to match the President and Mrs Clinton.
Elsewhere in the convoy will be a doctor/surgeon and nurse. They always travel with the President, as does the military man who carries the briefcase and the codes to launch US nuclear weapons.
Jerome Reilly
RONALD REAGAN was merely a presidential hopeful when he first came under the protection of the US secret service.
Reagan, no mean shot himself, was target shooting at his Californian ranch as his detail of agents baked in the hot sun, scanning the big country for potential assassins.
The conversation turned to shooting techniques and Reagan postulated that secret service agents were taught to shoot from the hip in a low crouch - cowboy style. Curious, the then governor of California asked for a demonstration.
The secret service man looked at the array of tin cans lined up on the paddock fence, swiftly pulled his gun from a shoulder holster, stood ramrod straight and fired a volley of shots, sending the cans spinning away into the mesquite.
"Heh, why didn't you crouch?" asked Reagan.
"If we crouch we lose our rating in the service," replied the agent.
The truth suddenly dawned on Reagan. The reason why the agent stood up big and straight was because his duty was to stand in front of the intended target - to take the bullets destined for the political figure he was sworn to protect.
Later, when he was elected President, Reagan narrowly escaped assassination because a secret service agent dived on top of him, just in time to evade all but one of the bullets fired by crazed Yale drop-out
John Hinkley III. The agent quite literally had put himself Clint Eastwood-style "in the line of fire".
Reagan, then 70, was hit by a flattened dime-sized slug which ricocheted off the bullet-proof presidential limo and lodged in his left lung. Three others were injured including a secret service agent, Reagan press secretary Jim Brady and a Washington policeman.
The secret service agents who will form an uncompromising human shield for Bill and Hillary Clinton during their second visit to Ireland have already completed the vital groundwork designed to protect 'Eagle' for the duration of his visit.
The advance team has surveyed each site where Mr and Mrs Clinton are due to visit: West Belfast, the heart of Gerry Adams' constituency; the Waterfront Hall in downtown Belfast; the city of Armagh, where he is due to meet church leaders, and Omagh, as the town attempts to get back to normality after the bloody bombing which claimed 28 lives.
In the south, the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin city centre, the headquarters of Gateway in Clonshaugh, Co Dublin, Limerick, Adare and Ballybunion have been meticulously evaluated.
From these surveys the secret service determines the manpower required, equipment, hospitals and evacuation routes in the event of an attack on 'Eagle'. They have also been in constant contact with the gardai and finalised plans with the Assistant Garda Commissioner Pat O'Toole.
More than 2,500 gardai will be involved with the highly-trained Emergency Response Unit (ERU), providing protection at the inner perimeter. Several hundred troops including the army's special service Ranger Wing will remain on standby as will fire, rescue and other public service personnel. A command post with Full worldwide communications facilities has already been established at an unknown location, but probably at the US embassy in Ballsbridge. Long before Air Force - One touches down, personnel have been told where they will be posted and alerted to specific problems associated with the Irish visit. Intelligence information has been assessed, identification specified and emergency options planned.
ACCESS
Before the arrival of Mr Clinton and the First Lady, checkpoints will be established and access to the, secured area limited.
This "sanitisation" process has been extremely rigorous this time out at every Irish venue.
Following the launch of Operation Infinite Reach - when the President ordered the attack using 80 Tomahawk HI missiles against facilities said to be under the control of Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan and Sudan, the terrorist threat against America's First Citizen has never been greater.
But it is the men and women (Mrs Clinton is known to favour some female secret service agents in her detail) making up the presidential guard who will be the public face of the US Secret Service.
ESCORT
The "close personal escort" will number at least six agents - most will be taller than the President, who is more than six feet tall. The idea is that the taller men will help shield Mr. Clinton from sniper's bullets.
Key secret service agents have been granted permission to carry weapons in Ireland and the arsenal of weaponry will be impressive.
Unique among the US security services, the Secret Service still use the Israeli-manufactured Uzi deemed by many to be old fashioned compared with the next generation of automatic assault weapons like the Heckler and Koch favoured by the gardai.
Elsewhere in the Presidential convoy which could number as many as 14 vehicles will be a V-12 powered black "Scooby-doo" wagon with blacked out windows stuffed to the gills with extra secret service agents known as the CAT (Counter Action Team). In the event of an attack they will be able to utilise Remington 870 pump action shotguns and M-4 carbines - an updated version of the M-16 - complete with electronic "red dot" sighting as seen in all the best techno-thrillers.
The presidential limousine is an armour-plated Lincoln Town Car with bulletproof glass and run-flat tyres. It includes gun ports from which secret service agents can return fire, high-tech air filtration systems to protect against chemical or gas attack, and bags of blood - typed to match the President and Mrs Clinton.
Elsewhere in the convoy will be a doctor/surgeon and nurse. They always travel with the President, as does the military man who carries the briefcase and the codes to launch US nuclear weapons.
Further Information
Publisher: IRISH INDEPENDENT
Ref: II/213
Published Date: 03-Sep-98
Related Images
There have been no images archived for this article.