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Originally posted by Beestie
Originally posted by richlevy So you are saying that richlevy is incorrect - that Kerry is just as afraid to confront his critics as richlevy suggests Bush is. Just wondering.
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I was actually commenting more on what the Secret Service does for various office holders.
But you raise a good question. I have the impression that Bush avoids protestors much more than Kerry does, but I may be completely wrong. The Secret Service doesn't typically talk about how it does security, so there isn't much information out there about whether the "free speech zones" are by order of the President or by order of the Secret Service. The president's personality certainly plays into the level of security provided to them. Clinton loved contact with the public, so he was always trying to break down those security barriers, much to the chagrin of the agents protecting him. Bush seems to hate public contact, and I think the Secret Service is all to willing to completely isolate him from the public. It makes their job easier.
I think the president has to actively tell the Secret Service to back off, and Bush doesn't do that at all. He hides behind them.
With the Kerry incident, I imagine (and am totally guessing because I haven't read anything about this incident) that the Secret Service went into a spot that already had people in there. Cordoned off the area, so nobody could leave or enter, and then Kerry showed up. The Vietnam vet was probably already there when they arrived.