Secret Service

Spiro Agnew Lawyer Says Donald Trump Should Resign, For The Good Of The Nation, As Agnew And Richard Nixon Did

Martin London, the attorney who represented Vice President Spiro Agnew in 1973, when Agnew resigned under fire, has come out and said Donald Trump should resign for the good of the nation.

London also says that things will not get better for Trump, as more revelations come out, and that Trump would be helping his family, and possibly saving them from legal dangers, if he would agree to resign.

As bad as Spiro Agnew and Richard Nixon were, they had the dignity to realize that time was up, and that they should clean the slate by resigning, and therefore, retain some level of dignity.

But Donald Trump is not Spiro Agnew nor Richard Nixon, so the odds of his agreeing to leave the Presidency are not good.

He may have to be pulled kicking and screaming out of the Oval Office by Secret Service agents, a hard to imagine scenario.

But also, the nation could be in danger, and Trump could attempt to declare martial law and suspend the Constitution and Bill of Rights, and one would hope he would be stopped by the Justice Department, the Secret Service, and the military leadership, if such a dastardly deed were attempted.

No Way Should Teachers Be Armed On School Campuses–Totally Insane Proposal Of Donald Trump!

Donald Trump has proved yet again that he is a total moron, with his suggestion that some teachers and coaches and administrators should be armed on school campuses.

I propose we try that with Trump, by taking away his Secret Service, giving him a handgun and put him out in public, and I guarantee he would not last long, particularly with the amount of hate millions of Americans feel about the 45th President.

It is asinine and preposterous to think a person not trained in law enforcement, even if he or she knew how to use a firearm, would have the courage, and mental and emotional stability to actually fire a weapon and kill someone, which when it happens, often destroys that person with guilt, even if he or she is killing a bad person.

Also, if the police arrive and a person has a gun, how are they to know whether such person is a good guy or a bad guy?

And in trying to use a firearm, others, including innocent students, could become victims by accident, increasing the emotional shock on the person using the firearm.

When police come across someone who is a threat with a firearm, they ask for backup forces, as otherwise it is a suicide mission.

Schools are not supposed to be war zones, and even a teacher or administrator could have an emotional breakdown, and suddenly become a threat to students and fellow teachers, although not originally intended.

To think that a firearm protects anyone in any situation, consider those who lock up their weapons away from their children, as otherwise they might gain access and shoot themselves or their friends or family by accident.

But if weapons are locked up, what good is that when one faces an intruder and cannot open the lock and set up the firearm in a short period of time while emotionally distraught over the threat that exists?

Additionally, teachers are meant to teach, and are not paid well enough to take on an extra burden, when tens of thousands are already abandoning the classroom, disgusted at the lack of respect and decent pay, benefits and conditions of work, and often have to spend out of their own salary for school supplies.

Schools need to have more money and support, but in a crisis situation, law enforcement personnel are the only alternative, along with better security measures on the campus itself.

Once again, Donald Trump has no clue, and in reality, little compassion and empathy for anyone, only concerned as always about himself, and no one else!

The Modern Presidency Began Today, September 14, In 1901, With The Coming To Power Of Theodore Roosevelt

As a lifetime student of the American Presidency, September 14, 1901 stands out as the beginning of the modern Presidency.

On that day, 116 years ago, Theodore Roosevelt succeeded from the Vice Presidency, which he had held for about six months, and became the 26th President of the United States, upon the death of President William McKinley from the assassination bullets fired by anarchist Leon Czolgosz eight days earlier, on September 6, in Buffalo, New York.

TR brought a new vision of the Presidency to the White House, an activist, aggressive, broad interpretation of executive powers, and transformed the office for the long term future.

Our youngest President, still 42, TR brought life, excitement, charisma to the Presidency, and made America a respected nation in foreign policy.

He also initiated the idea of Progressive reform, that the national government had a role in moving the nation forward by regulation and legislation, away from the concept of states rights.

There was never a dull moment in TR’s life, either in the Presidency or after, and he became a model for future Presidents of both parties, particularly Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama.

With TR’s accession to the Presidency, the history of the Secret Service protecting the Chief Executive began, and remains a major burden of security to keep the President safe and unharmed.

A reminder that the McKinley Assassination is covered in Chapter 4 of my book, ASSASSINATIONS, THREATS, AND THE AMERICAN PRESIDENCY: FROM ANDREW JACKSON TO BARACK OBAMA (Rowman Littlefield Publishers), now out since March in paperback from the publisher or Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

Also, there is Chapter 5 in the book, which covers the attempted assassination of TR when running as an ex-President on the Progressive (Bull Moose Party) line in 1912, being shot in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on October 14, 1912 by John Flammang Schrank, but surviving his wounds.

Donald Trump Discovers Being President Is Difficult: The Prima Donna Finally Has To Work Hard Like All Of Us!

One Hundred Days of Donald Trump has now been accomplished.

And Donald Trump admits that being President is difficult, more than he thought!

And he admits he misses his past life, and the ability to drive, and to go where he wants when he did not have Secret Service all around him.

He says he is not afraid of work, but that he has to work harder than he had imagined.

Really, Donald Trump? What a prima donna you are, that you are suddenly aware that, finally, you have to work hard like all of us do on a daily basis throughout our work life!

Are you that stupid and clueless to think that the Presidency is an easy job?

I have no chance to be President, but I fully understood from a young age how challenging it was to be President, and really to hold any political office lower than the Presidency.

Your life is no longer private, and you face constant scrutiny and criticism, and have to have a thick skin, which, most certainly, Donald Trump does not have!

It is clear that Donald Trump feels stress all of the time, as dealing with the multitude of domestic and foreign policy issues, and the pressures that are always present, is far different from barking orders behind a big desk, and being able to fire at will. You cannot do that with the news media, Congress, or the Courts, despite the fact that Trump has acted as a bully toward all three constituencies that are constantly on his case!

Being already quite overweight, the third most after William Howard Taft and Grover Cleveland, the likelihood of health issues arising in our oldest President at first term inauguration, is clear, and it may shorten his time in office, as he might decide that after four years of this, if he survives without impeachment or resignation, that he has fulfilled his desire, and might, very well, decide NOT to run for a second term.

And the American people might just decide, based on the fact that Trump’s polls are the lowest of any President since polls were first utilized, to fire him, to retire him, as the damage he has done already in just 100 days, is massive, and will have a long term effect.

Presidential Vacations: Obama $96 Million Over 8 Years, Trump $18 Million Over Two Months, Nine Times As Much, On Way To $1 Billion If Trump Is President For 8 Years!

When Barack Obama was President for eight years, Donald Trump criticized his vacations to Hawaii, and what he called the waste caused taxpayers by any other vacations he took in other locations.

Obama vacations cost $96 million over eight years.

Now in two months, Trump, with five vacations to his Palm Beach estate, has spent $18 million taxpayer dollars, so therefore, he is at a clip that, if continued, will mean that he will have spent nine times as much funding over a potential eight years, god forbid, so nearing $1 BILLION dollars of taxpayer money.

And the fact that his wife and their young son remain in Trump Tower means the Secret Service must protect THREE locations–the White House, NYC, and Palm Beach, Florida.

His trips to Palm Beach and in NYC are causing massive expenses to the local economy, and also incurring massive traffic delays.

Lantana Airport near Palm Beach has been forced to shut down, and is suffering economically when Trump visits.

Palm Beach may be required to tax its citizens further for the security costs of all these Presidential visits.

Additionally, during the two months of the transition until the inauguration, NYC spend $24 million protecting Trump Tower, and now wants the US government or Trump himself to pay up, as it is unfair that local taxpayers must pay the bill.

Trump has no concern at all at the inconveniences and costs caused by him, even though he could easily afford to share the costs out of his own pocket.

And even his adult children, when they are on business for the Trump Organization, have Secret Service details, and one trip by Eric Trump to Uruguay cost an estimated $98,000, paid by American taxpayers.

If this is not abuse, what is?

Trump Security Costs In Trump Tower To Require 100 Secret Service Agents Involved And $1 Million Cost Per Day, Or $1.5 Billion Over Four Years, At Taxpayer Expense!

With Donald Trump’s insistence that he plans to spend a lot of time in Trump Tower in midtown Manhattan over the next four years, rather than being full time at the White House and sometimes at his Palm Beach, Florida estate, the security costs for him, his wife and his son Barron, will be astronomical, with taxpayers footing the bill, and many of the estimated 100 Secret Service agents and support staff staying at Trump hotels, with Trump gaining profit from it all!

This is outrageous, as never has any President not desired to live full time in the White House, since John Adams first inhabited it in the fall of 1800. And the idea that his wife and son will be in Manhattan until at least the end of the school term in June 2017, is another added cost because of their constant presence there.

The cost will be at least $1 million per day, meaning about $1.5 billion over the next four years, and if Trump, when traveling abroad, decides he will only stay at Trump properties in foreign nations, that will increase the cost of his security detail, as it means many of the usual locations for Presidents to stay at overseas will be bypassed. And of course, the support staff costs at these Trump properties will be making money for Trump while he is President.

Anyone who is fair minded would argue this is unacceptable, but when and how will anyone tell the President that what he wants is not acceptable?

This is abuse of power, and it will magnify in so many ways over the next four years, including his present refusal to take himself out of his properties and their management and earnings through a blind trust, as Trump says he sees no issue, and only a Republican Congress could mandate otherwise, and that looks highly unlikely. There is more chance of an asteroid hitting the earth soon than Trump being prevented from doing what he wants.

In a way, he is not the incoming President, but instead an Emperor in his own mind!

Disarray At Trump Tower: So Many Candidates, Some Totally Dangerous Or Ridiculous! And Major Problems For Midtown Manhattan!

There is disarray in Trump Tower in Manhattan, and massive traffic issues below in midtown Manhattan.

Donald Trump seems to want to live in Trump Tower a lot of the time, rather than the White House, which creates major traffic, economic, and security issues.

Fifth Avenue and 56th Street is now barricaded, and traffic will become impossible, and trying to protect the President-Elect is a security nightmare, as it requires tremendous manpower of New York City Police and the Secret Service, and is creating problems for businesses, auto traffic, and pedestrians, which will only get worse.

But also, Trump seems totally disorganized, and rumors are spreading of some candidates for different positions in the government who are totally dangerous or ridiculous!

For Secretary of State, the candidates seem to include former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani; former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton; South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley; and former Massachusetts Governor and 2012 Republican Presidential nominee Mitt Romney. The first two named are dangerous for the State Department, as they have no sense of personal diplomacy, and are both loud mouths, with Bolton being the more scary. Haley adds good looks and a woman to the list, but no real qualifications to be Secretary of State. Mitt Romney is the most credible, but really has no diplomatic experience to speak of. And Haley and Romney were bitter opponents of Trump, and did not endorse him.

Then we have the crazy idea of Sarah Palin being Secretary of Interior or Secretary of Energy!

Already, we have Stephen Bannon as Chief Counselor and Senior Adviser in the White House, despite his racist, nativist, antisemitic, Islamophobic, homophobic, and misogynist behavior and utterances. And we have General Michael Flynn, fired by Barack Obama from the Defense Intelligence Agency leadership in 2014, who has also shown elements of antisemitism, and suggested that Hillary Clinton be jailed, to be National Security Adviser. These two appointments do not require Senate confirmation, but it is clear with the chaos in Trump Tower, that Donald Trump will have problems with confirmation of some of his cabinet and other appointments.

The Growing Threat Of Donald Trump Against The Life Of His Opponent, Hillary Clinton: NOT A Laughing Matter!

Donald Trump has done it again–a threat against the life of his Democratic Presidential opponent, Hillary Clinton.

On August 8, Trump spoke of “Second Amendment” remedies, that those who oppose the limiting of gun rights in any fashion, and see Hillary as a threat to those rights, might have a solution to the threat, implying action against Clinton.

He was roundly condemned for this assertion, and Michael Hayden, the former head of the CIA and NSA, said if anyone outside the hall where the speech was given had said such a thing, he would be in a police wagon being questioned, and facing prosecution.

And Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy, referring to the Newtown Massacre that killed 24 young children and six teachers in December 2012, said Trump was reckless and would have blood on his hands if such an event occurred.

But Trump went ahead and said on September 16 that Clinton should agree to have her Secret Service team lay down their arms and “see what happens”, so he has not learned from the earlier incident.

Trump should be told now that his freedom of speech does NOT include such reckless language that could endanger his opponent, and that if something untoward were to happen, that he could face prosecution for having presented “a clear and present danger”, under Supreme Court case Schenck V US (1919), which limits freedom of speech.

And this is all happening in the month when there were eight incidents involving President and assassination threats, and also the assassination of Huey Long in 1935, all covered in the chapters of my Assassinations book, which will be in paperback by March 2017.

Who Is A Better Role Model And You Would Want In Your Home? Poll Shows Massive Lead For Hillary Clinton Over Donald Trump!

It has often been said that the American people want someone they can admire and look up to in the White House, as a role model. Democrat Hillary Clinton fits that role greatly, and particularly to women, but also as a mother and accomplished woman to men.

Much has been said about the negatives of Hillary Clinton, but most of it is pure sexism and Republican and conservative propaganda against the Clintons.

No one is saying that there are no shortcomings in the Bill Clinton Presidency, but most of the attacks on him were false and proved to be so, other than the sex scandals.

And Hillary held her head high during these crises, and showed dignity and class as a United States Senator and Secretary of State.

There have been rumors, and now a new book coming out from a former Secret Service agent, claiming that Hillary was a “monster” to work for, and that she is not a likeable person.

Well, even if that was true, and this blogger highly doubts it, the really important point is how one conducts himself or herself in public, as we never fully knows the truth about private behavior, and on that basis, Hillary wins easily over Donald Trump, who is the most outrageous person in his public conduct in modern American history!

Public opinion polls show Hillary Clinton among the most admired and popular women in the nation and the world.

Meanwhile, Trump has very low public opinion ratings, and his refusal to be civil and decent in his public behavior undermines him tremendously! One can only imagine the horrors of what Trump is like when he is in private mode!

Trump is a true “monster” who already has disgraced the Presidential campaign in a manner that no one else has ever matched!

So who is a better role model and you would want in your home? Easily Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump!

Bernie Sanders Finally Gains Secret Service Protection: Long Overdue And Essential With Extremist Rhetoric Circulating About Sanders!

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, a democratic Socialist, not Communist in any fashion, is now receiving Secret Service protection, due to his rise in the polls; his basic tie with Hillary Clinton in the Iowa Caucuses; and his large crowds, second only to Donald Trump.

This has been long needed to do, as Sanders has already been labeled a Communist, a Marxist, a believer in social revolution; and is a major critic of Wall Street, who says what he thinks.

Donald Trump and Ted Cruz and others are starting the character assassination and smearing of a good man, who is no threat to America, but only to those who have no problem with the top one percent having total control of the American economy, as the middle class shrinks, and the “American Dream” is lost for future generations.

It is right wing hysteria, mixed in with Christian extremism, and anti Semitism and racism, that threatens Sanders, who would be the first Jewish Presidential nominee. were he to defeat Hillary Clinton for the Democratic Party nomination.

Let us hope that whatever happens to the Sanders candidacy, that Bernie comes out of it hale and hearty, with a continued good public image, whether one supports him or not for the White House!