The Kennedy Detail

So the other day I was cleaning out under my side of the bed and, lo and behold, there was an unread copy of The Kennedy Detail. I can't even remember buying it, so who knows how long it sat there, but it's got the $4.99 sticker on it that identifies it as being from the bargain bin at Barnes and Noble or Borders. So, to recap...book I don't remember buying off of a bargain rack which has lived unread under the bed for who knows how long. Yep, only place to go is up.

Turned out to be an entertaining read for me. How much do you know about the Secret Service? I knew nothing other than Clint Eastwood's experience from that one movie. You know, the one where he growls to a would-be assassin the immortal line: "you've got a rendezvous with my ass."

But I digress...here were a couple of things that stood out to me about the Secret Service agents who worked on the Kennedy team:

1. They worked in a constant tension between politics and protection. What's the safest way for the president to get to the lunch meeting? How about a motorcade on an unannounced route?!? No chance. No, it had to be in an open-top limo on a pre-announced route. Or, tragically, it was JFK himself who voted down the notion of agents riding on the read bumper of the limo, because it wouldn't look right. Who knows, having Clint Hill on the bumper instead of on the follow car might have saved the president's life.

2. Those guys were way overworked. And the department was underfunded. Imagine being one of these guys. You haven't seen your kids in weeks because the president has been traveling. You just switched from days to nights. And you're sitting at your post, at night, hungry, trying to guard the president's mansion on next to no sleep. Some adjectives to describe these guys? Strong. Determined. Committed. Devoted.

3. Oswald's bullet didn't just kill the president. Or Jackie. Or the Kennedys. Or the nation as a whole. That bullet decimated his protectors. I mean, there was nothing they could really do to stop the assassination. The shooter had all of the advantages that day. And yet these guys have lived the rest of their lives with guilt and shame. What a thankless job, right?  You do your job with consistent excellence for years, day in and day out, and then one unstoppable action and you get reamed in the press. That's a rough go. 

Anyhow, put me down for 7 books down here at the end of January. Gotta figure out what's next!