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Subj:.....Secret
Service Code Names (S617)
From: CKButch4Femme on 11/5/2008
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Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content
......../article/2007/06/16/AR2007061601079.html?hpid=topnews
'Renegade'
Joins Race For White House
Obama Is Given
Code Name by Secret Service
By Anne E. Kornblut
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, June 17, 2007; Page A05
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Sen.
Barack Obama has a new tag: "Renegade." That's what Secret Service
agents are calling the Illinois Democrat, in the time-honored tradition
of giving "secret" code names to presidential candidates and other protected
dignitaries. As is custom, the Obama moniker reflects something of
the man himself (though he might prefer "progressive" or "independent").
The "code" names are
no longer kept secret. |
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......Photo from
ScienceDebate2008.com |
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From AgainstHillary.com |
Is
the same true for a woman?
Sen. Hillary Rodham
Clinton (D-N.Y.) may hope so. Her
code name is "Evergreen,"
given to her when her husband (former president Bill Clinton, a.k.a. "Eagle")
first
became a protectee. |
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Other candidates
have not been as lucky. Sen. John F. Kerry (Mass.) was
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"Minuteman" after winning the Democratic nomination -- and, indeed, lasted
not much longer than the name suggested. Former vice president Al Gore,
sometimes derided as wooden, started out as "Sawhorse" but eventually became
"Sundance" -- although the reason for the change is unclear. |
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President Bush, a
protectee dating back to the days when his father was
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president
(and with a reputation for rowdiness before he became a teetotaler) is
"Tumbler." Former president Jimmy Carter, who taught Sunday school, is
"Deacon." George H.W.Bush is "Timberwolf," and Ronald Reagan was "Rawhide."
Photo from VisitingDC.com |
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Still, according
to a Secret Service spokesman, all code names are chosen by military officials,
suggesting that they should not be examined too closely for deeper meaning.
The Obama and Clinton campaigns declined to comment on the security procedure
(they are the only two candidates so far to receive official protection,
and Clinton's is a result of her status as a former first lady).
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These days, though,
the code names have little to do with actual safety; instead they play
a more ceremonial and logistical role, letting agents bark easily understood
directions into their sleeves as
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is moving from location to location. "There's really no secrecy to it,"
said security expert William H. Pickle, who was the special agent in charge
of Gore's detail. According to Pickle, the names were useful when
radio and phone communications were unsecured and |
Photo from Blogs.bet.com
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easily picked up by outsiders;
now the military and Secret Service can communicate over highly secured
lines, making a code name irrelevant. Still, habit lives on.
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"It started out years
ago as a security function, and it had a real security aspect. Communications
were limited, and it caused enough confusion to allow you to have a movement
without people under- standing," Pickle said. "Anymore, though?
It's really just for convenience -- and tradition." |
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