A Few Not So Random Thoughts On Trump's Secret Service Detail--
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A Few Not So Random Thoughts On Trump's Secret Service Detail--
July 20, 2022
On the subject of the Secret Service's January 6th related conduct in wiping their text records, I think it is reasonable to assume that several of those in Trump's protection detail were highly vetted for their personal loyalty by Trump. And it is important to remember that issues involving Trump's USSS detail arising today do not occur in a vacuum, there is a history here.
If folks go back to news reports in 2020, remember, there was a kind of mini-revolt by many agents who were infuriated at having been put in jeopardy by Trump's irresponsible personal behavior throughout the pandemic, during which he prohibited masking as something which fed the "Democratic covid hoax" narrative, and showed signs of weakness and disloyalty. There were White House events in which people were tested at the door, sent home if positive, let in if negative, but no masking allowed, this despite the often unreliable testing results. This included the famous spreader party for Amy Coney-Barrett in the Rose Garden after her confirmation. It also involved Trump's insane campaign policy of going out among crowds maskless and mingling with supporters, (remember the Tulsa "super-spreader" event) exposing those around him, even to the point of leaving the hospital during his covid treatment and riding in his Limo with the windows shut, thereby exposing the unfortunate driver. Whichever agents were not on board with that policy would have been rotated out. Those remaining were not only loyal to the point of willingness to "take a bullet" for Trump, but to "take a ventilator" as well.
So it's not going too far out on a limb to at least hypothesize some plausible factors in this business.
1) Several of Trump's agents were not just there to do their jobs, but were acolytes who were "with the program," meaning on board with the coup. To think otherwise is naive at best. Trump would not allow his and his family's safety to be in the hands of anyone not personally loyal to him. (See the case of former USSS head Ornato, who resigned to join Trump's WH staff, link below-- lfr)
2) A part of that loyalty must have included their stated belief that their boss was robbed of his re-election, and their pledge to fight for his keeping power to the bitter end. Anyone close to him failing that litmus test would have been bounced.
3) That those agents likely walked a fine line between doing their job, fabricating about, and covering up for the violation of USSS policies and procedures throughout their presence on his protection detail, due to his generally irrational, impulsive and reckless behaviors. And that this practice became habituated over time.
4) That Trump, being fully aware of the illegality of his actions throughout the days leading up to, including, and immediately after January 6th, including a suspected plot to abduct and detain Mike Pence to prevent him from certifying Biden's electors, personally ordered through subordinates (likely Meadows) the deletion of these cell phone text records.
5) We know that the illegal destruction and theft of NARA records (National Archive and Records Administration) was not only carried out by Trump personally, but that it was the predominant culture of Trump's White House, going back to his efforts in 2019 to bury the Trump/Zelenskyy conversations on the super-secret classified server. This is the same WH which had its staff using burner phones, ignored protocols for recording WH visitors, and had burn bags and toilets going 24/7 during the time period from the election until the present day, as evidenced by Trump's theft of a large tranche of boxed classified documents kept at Mar-A-Lago.
6) That Trump throughout his Presidency, but moreso after the election, abused his presidential pardon power in every way as a form of bribery, inducement and blackmail to encourage or compel allies and subordinates to break the law and to secure their loyalty. His promises of pardons when he succeeded in his coup or got re-elected, were from the beginning, "pre-emptive witness tampering," in the tradition of the mob bosses he had previously worked with and emulated in business. It is not a huge leap to conclude that orders handed down to agents or others to delete texts were accompanied by similar promises of a pardon to those involved.
7) That it is only since Liz Cheney's formal notification of potential witness tampering by Trump a week ago that the DOJ appears to have added personnel and office space to begin a serious investigation of Trump himself, according to multiple reports from verified sources close to the situation. (for which I'll add links in the comments). Cheney is one of those people who are seriously going for Trump's jugular and not simply using the hearings to leverage the 2022 and 2024 elections. Trump's recent stunt at witness tampering might have finally been Merrick Garland's "red line."
8) Finally, Trump himself spilled the beans on what he would do four years ago when he expressed his admiration for Richard Nixon in a Fox interview, adding the unintentional caveat that Nixon's only mistake was to not destroy the White House tapes.
I'll add that It is always a mistake to believe that a pathological liar lies about everything, especially when they are narcissists and they openly brag about how they can manipulate and deceive others. Choosing to believe they are only bragging, using hyperbole or sarcasm and then brushing it off as such, is the same extreme form of self-delusion which allowed Adolf Hitler to seize and keep power, as very few took seriously the statements of intent made in his book, his trial, or his speeches.
Professor Heather Cox Richardson in this morning's letter said that "nobody with any brains messes with NARA." And she is correct. Trump is an idiot, but because he is a feral and skilled idiot, he has successfully done nothing but "mess with NARA" from his first day in the White House. The question of whether or not he gets away with it is unfortunately not in our hands. It is in the hands of our Attorney General Merrick Garland and President Biden. Up until now, neither appears on track toward overturning DOJ precedent and going after Trump. But, as we all know, appearances can be deceiving.
["the president did repeatedly seek to remove Secret Service staff he deemed to be overweight or too short for the job.
“I want these fat guys off my detail,” Trump is reported to have said, possibly confusing office-based personnel with active agents. “How are they going to protect me and my family if they can’t run down the street?” ]
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/may/11/trump-family-members-secret-service
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-homeland-secretservice-idUSKCN1RK22K
