GOP lawmaker: Obama most threatened president ever

By David Edwards
Monday, November 30th, 2009 -- 9:57 am
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secretservicemotorcade GOP lawmaker: Obama most threatened president everPresident Barack Obama is "probably the most threatened president ever," says the ranking Republican on the House Homeland Security Committee.

Rep. Pete King (R-NY) told NBC's Matt Lauer that he supported the idea that Tareq and Michaele Salahi -- the socialite couple who gate-crashed a White House state dinner last week -- should be prosecuted as a "deterrent" to others who might want to try something similar.

"We can't show this type of weakness to terrorists, or to psychopaths, especially with President Obama, who is probably the most threatened president in our history," King said.

"That's why we have to have a full investigation to find out exactly what the Secret Service is doing to prevent this from ever happening again. First of all, how it happened, why it happened and how it will never happen again. And it put's us on notice. Yes, we do need more protection. We have to have more fall-back. If one Secret Service agent makes a mistake -- you have to assume someone's always going to make a mistake -- there has to be the backup. There has to be layers of defense," said King.

Ronald Kessler, author of In The President's Secret Service, told NBC's Today Show that the Secret Service has a recent history of security lapses.

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"Bush White House aides would pressure [the Secret Service] to let people in at events and sometimes they would put people through magnetometers [metal detectors] but they would turn them off so that even if there was a weapon no alarm would sound," Kessler said. "I know that sounds unbelievable but that's what was going on."

Kessler told CBS last week that the Secret Service has been "cutting corners" since it was moved into the Department of Homeland Security in 2003, and the agency needs a management overhaul.

"The belief [inside the Secret Service] is that it's just a matter of time before there is an assassination," Kessler told Lauer. "The Secret Service has been shockingly derelict in its duty."

This video is from NBC's Today Show, broadcast Nov. 30, 2009.



Download video via RawReplay.com

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Story comments are below...

  • mmeflutterbye
    Secret service lapses in the case of the Obama family are an outrage! The President and his family should be priority #1 for them.
  • jeffersonperrin
    OMG! Did this guy check with Limbaugh...Beck...O'Reilly before making such a truthful observation? What are the minions supposed to think when one of their own points the finger straight at them? Who will be the first Republican, Neo conservative, Independent Religionist to 'clairify' what Pete King really meant to say? I can't wait.
  • Name
    Most threatened president ever. And that's because of your lunatic right-wing GOP base, asshole. So don't sound too concerned or your voters might not come out for you next time.
  • unofficial
    I don't usually agree with Republicans but this time I do!
  • DownriverDem
    Gee, why do you think that is?????
  • Satan
    Democrats and Republicans are merely the different sides of a shit filled coin reported on by propagandists. That's why we're always reading about the presidents safety rather than a single mention of U.S. troops killed in Iraq or Afghanistan last week and we'll never here much of a peep about such things as the 235 Iraqi casualties last week, or the week before, or ever.

    "We can't show this type of weakness to terrorists, or to psychopaths," - So write articles about it nonstop and show them, right? Maybe their should be a public campaign kind of like a tea party but alll about demanding more security for Obama. Fucking retarded.
  • rickpetes
    Is there some law on the books making waht Tareq and Michaele Salahi did illegal? I mean, do we have a federal lwa agsinst party crashing??! If so, when did it pass? I crashed many a party in my younger days and would hate to think I could be facing charges somewhere.
  • larrymo
    King will be lambasted by the GOP Boss during today's radio blast, and will likely immediately back-pedal.

    "I meant Obama was the most CHALLENGED President ever...honest, Rush!"

    I'd like to think that the good Rep has only kind intentions...but this is most likely just another example of the GOP "attack attack attack" methodology. If they can do ANYTHING to muddy the waters, they will.

    They are too dedicated to returning America to where it "used to be".

    You know...at 11:59 on January 20, 2009.
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