Saturday, March 11, 2017

Security Incompetence

Just over two years ago, someone jumped the White House fence and got into the building.  Last night, someone tried to repeat that.  Where the last fellow had a knife, this one had a backpack that, happily enough, did not contain a bomb (only mace, a laptop, a book by Trump, and a letter for President Trump).  If there is any place in government that one would expect to be secure, the White House is high on the list.  If this 'troubled' fellow could get so close to the White House, imagine what would happen if a professional tried it.  After the 2014 incident, one expected a shakeup with the Secret Service.  Apparently, that didn't happen.

The Secret Service has seen a lot of scandals in recent years and is in desperate need of reform.  Until a few years ago, I had a great deal of respect for the Secret Service.  Indeed, it is hard not to admire men and women who volunteer to take a bullet for those they protect.  I don't know if the agency is actually in decline or a long pattern of bad behavior has finally leaked out.  Perhaps when the Department of Homeland Security is disbanded (wishful thinking, I know), the Secret Service can return to the Treasury Department.

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