Bush's Brownshirts in the Secret Service

Remember when Bill Clinton first took office, and stories were leaked to the press about alleged knockdown-dragout fights between Bill 'n' Hill -- and there was much suspicion that Secret Service agents loyal to George Bush 41 were the leakers? Well, Atrios notes that John Kerry, should he by some miracle get his act together and run something approximating a credible campaign to get elected, may encounter a similarly hostile Secret Service.



Dana Milbank has a disturbing article in WaPo today which indicates that the Secret Service under George W. Bush is no longer just charged with protecting the President from physical harm, but also with shielding him from anyone who disagrees with him:

Officially, the Secret Service does not concern itself with unarmed, peaceful demonstrators who pose no danger to the commander in chief. But that policy was inoperative here Thursday when seven AIDS activists who heckled President Bush during a campaign appearance were shoved and pulled from the room -- some by their hair, one by her bra straps -- and then arrested for disorderly conduct and detained for an hour.



After Bush campaign bouncers handled the evictions, Secret Service agents, accompanied by Bush's personal aide, supervised the arrests and detention of the activists and blocked the news media from access to the hecklers.



The Bush campaign has made unprecedented efforts to control access to its events. Sometimes, people are required to sign oaths of support before attending events with Bush or Vice President Cheney. At times, buses of demonstrators are diverted by police to idle in parking lots while supporters are waved in. And the Secret Service has played an unusual role; one agent cooperated with a plan by the Bush campaign last month to prevent former senator Max Cleland (Ga.), a Kerry ally, from handing a letter to the agent outside Bush's Texas ranch.

(via Atrios)