Last thing I’d like to say regarding the disparity in the Secret Service’s protection of former presidents etc.
This apparently is a flexible situation, as outgoing presidents often change the rules.
Nixon is the only one who declined protection.
Typically the children of a former President are only protected until they are 16, but Obama made some changes to that, and Trump made changes, as well. He insisted that his adult children be protected for six months AFTER he was out of office and that was done. Barron was 14 so he was still protected at the time.
IMO though it has to end sometime. John Tyler was President twenty years BEFORE Lincoln and he still has an actual GRANDSON who is now 95. (They all lived long lives and had children when they were elderly). Until recently Tyler actually had TWO elderly grandsons.
In its way it would’ve been great had JFK Jr., for example, still had SS protection and then he wouldn’t have died in his plane wreck. As it is I recall many citizens who were upset that so many resources were deployed to find him, but Clinton said that he’s a former president’s son and deserved to be found.
If we insist that every one attached to a president deserves endless protection, we will wind up IMO with inferior agents as there is so much training involved and there would be an endless amount of protectees.
Yes, of course this was a near tragedy for Trump and certainly a tragedy for Corey and his family.
Yet this protection expanding exponentially is really not sustainable. There is only one President at a time. He and his wife deserve protection.
So does Trump. In hindsight he either didn’t receive the correct amount, or someone dropped an exceedingly important ball.
JMO
ETA: a clipping from Wikipedia if anyone is interested in how Tyler still has a grandson 234 years after his own birth. I don’t want to go off-topic but making my point about the families of presidents and how long protection should last.
