Opinion
By Steve Nicklas, 07-22-24
When Paul Ryan came to Fernandina Beach for a campaign rally in 2012, he attracted a small, enthusiastic crowd at Main Beach. He also brought decorated people with him – from the Secret Service.
As a Republican candidate for vice president, Ryan qualified for Secret Service protection. Ryan was running with Mitt Romney against the incumbent Barack Obama/Joe Biden regime.
Joe Gerrity was Fernandina Beach city manager. He vividly remembers the rehearsed, painstaking preparations of the Secret Service agents. They coordinated peripheral support with city police and county deputies, for traffic and crowd control.
“The Secret Service just took over, and they were in charge,” Gerrity recalls. “These guys knew what they were doing. The plan was flawless.”
In stark contrast, the Secret Service gameplan to protect Donald Trump at his rally in Butler, Pa. on July 13 was flawed. As flawed as a knock-off Rolex watch from a sleezy street vendor. As flawed as the Romney/Ryan campaign pledge to reform Social Security and Medicare.
In rather rapid response, the U.S. House will hold intense hearings this week over the Secret Service lapses. The department’s director, Kimberly Cheatle, has been subpoenaed to testify before angry lawmakers.
Cheatle needs to be replaced, says U.S. Congressman Aaron Bean. And the Secret Service department must be forthcoming with details about the security breach. Conspiracy theories flourish in darkness, Bean says. And light must be shined on the suspicious chain of events.
Ironically, Bean spoke during Ryan’s rally. Bean was a Florida state representative at the time, running for state senator. Other state dignitaries also spoke, including Ander Crenshaw, Adam Putnam and John Thrasher.
Ryan’s stop here was easy. Fernandina Beach, as well as the rest of Nassau County, is fertile grounds for Republicans. It is like red meat to a carnivore. “I was sort of surprised that he came,” Gerrity said about the unprecedented visit. “But it was a nice gesture and somewhat of an honor.”
Trump has been taking a different tact. He has been delivering his upbeat “Make America Great Again” message in blue states and cities, like in the Bronx or at the Jersey Shore. Trump was wooing 25,000 Pennsylvania-area voters when he dodged the assassination at a fairground.
Trump is the Republican nominee for president, but he also held the top role. However, he reportedly receives limited Secret Service protection – at Biden’s discretion. Meanwhile, the political tone in our country is the most divisive in many years.
Now, hardly to the nation’s assurances, the Homeland Security director has named a panel to review the Secret Service shortcomings. If anyone in the Biden administration is incompetent – there is significant competition – it is Alejandro Mayorkas.
Mayorkas is a punchline over his mishandling of the southern border. So it is understandable that the current Secret Service is inferior, positioned within his department. The only department with less credibility is the FBI – which is leading the unfolding investigation.
“We can’t trust the FBI and the Secret Service to do an honest and open and transparent investigation,” cautioned U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, who is doing his own investigating. “That’s just a very sad fact.”
The Secret Service mistakes surrounding Trump’s shooting are vast enough to overload Wikipedia. In recent revelations, Secret Service agents did not participate in a standard 9 a.m. security meeting the morning of the rally, according to the exemplary Johnson. In addition, Secret Service agents did not have direct communications with other law enforcement personnel, including snipers, swat teams, and local patrol officers.
“So they had to relay things,” Johnson said.
Johnson has more concerns and questions than the national debt has numbers. He told Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures” that an unidentified official instructed local responders to text pictures of the dead shooter to an Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms phone number.
As part of his inquiry, Johnson called the phone number himself, and it was answered. “He said he was with the ATF,” Johnson said about the man answering the phone. “And now he’s gone dark.”
To which the inquisitive Bartiromo responded, “Is it odd to you that the locals were being told to send the pictures to Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms? What does ATF got to do with it?” The investigation is unfolding like a Tom Clancy novel, as the FBI’s contention of a single shooter is being contradicted by legitimate videos posted online from the rally, according to Johnson.
Local law enforcement officials in Pennsylvania are complying with Johnson’s investigation. However, “All we’re getting is a runaround” from a secretive Secret Service, he said. “Everything you would assume about the Secret Service protection of a former president is not true. It didn’t happen, which is just baffling to me.”
(Steve Nicklas is the managing partner of Nicklas Wealth Management in Fernandina Beach. He is also an award-winning columnist. His columns appear in weekly newspapers in Northeast Florida and in Southeast Georgia, and on his website at www.SteveNicklasMarketplace.com.
He has published a book, “All About Money,” of his favorite columns from the past 20 years. The book is available on Amazon. He has also done financial reports for area radio stations and for National Public Radio in Jacksonville. He can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at 904-753-0236.)
The views expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Citizens Journal Florida
