Vince Palamara

President Kennedy: the bubble top and all security issues dissected 1961-1963

click on images to enlarge

First things first: it is important to remember that President Kennedy did not have hundreds of motorcades during his 1000 or so days in offer- it was a finite number (from the JFK Library):

When the President visited military bases or traveled in motorcades in Washington, D.C., there was hardly any overt protection noticeable, such as motorcycles flanking the car, agents on or near the rear of the limousine, or a full bubbletop, unless during certain weather conditions, with a few notable exceptions when a display of force was demonstrated. This was because the Secret Service and the President were on very friendly, well-traveled grounds. On military bases, our troops, in conjunction with the Secret Service, provide the best-case scenario for protection. In the Capital, the Secret Service checks all the buildings along the route, and armed guards are posted along the path the President’s car will take. In addition, manholes are checked and sealed. For example, during JFK’s Inaugural Parade held on 1/20/61, “A complete survey of all buildings, water mains, sewers and underground conduits and other facilities along the parade route [was] made prior to the departure of the President from the White House to the Capitol.”

It should also be noted that when JFK was a candidate for the Presidency in 1960 the Secret Service did not protect candidates. Sadly, this did not become policy until immediately after the murder of his brother Robert. For his part, V.P. Nixon already had Secret Service protection on the campaign trail in 1960. That said, Senator Kennedy’s motorcades were often surrounded by many motorcycles:

JFK & LBJ together in Dallas (on Main Street) 9/11/60! The next time they would ride together in a motorcade: 11/22/63, Dallas!

Sunday 30th June, 1963. Forest Row, East Sussex. Visiting Harold Macmillan

Ireland, June 1963-Agent Bert De Freese on rear of limo; partial bubbletop; good motorcycle formation; press photographers flatbed truck in front of limo:

From my third book The Not-So-Secret Service: Death threats preceded JFK’s 1963 Ireland visit: “Police, newspaper received warnings months before president’s killing. “The documents indicated that 6,404 police officers were on duty throughout Ireland the night Kennedy arrived, of whom 2,690 lined the U.S. president’s route from Dublin airport to the Phoenix Park mansion of Irish President Eamon de Valera. “Costigan wrote that, although the death threats were considered likely to be hoaxes, his officers would use binoculars to monitor rooftops along the route of the presidential motorcade. He said some police would carry firearms, an exceptional measure in a country with a largely unarmed police force, to engage any would-be sniper. “A rifle as well as Thompson guns and revolvers were carried for use against a possible sniper,” Costigan wrote in a post-Kennedy visit memorandum released Friday

Milwaukee, WI May 12 1962:

9/27/62 West Virginia:

Battery Park, NY 5/23/63:

6/5/62 Washington, D.C.:

Bogota, Columbia 12/17/61:

Caracas, Venezuela 12/16/61:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUUcK6G7U_w

San Juan, Puerto Rico 12/15/61:

Washington, D.C. 3/20/62:

Washington, D.C. 9/19/61:

New York, NY 11/8/63:

Washington, D.C. 7/11/61:

Washington, D.C. 2/20/63:

Washington, D.C. 4/11/62 (JFK and Jackie in different bubbletop vehicles):

11/22/63 at Parkland- too late:

1961:

North Carolina, 10/12/61:

Washington, D.C. 6/15/61-debut:

Arlington, VA 6/12/62 (this one doesn’t “count”- drizzle):

JFK using the Ike bubbletop at the very start 1/20/61:

California, 3/23/62:

New York, 5/19/62:

Germany, 6/26/63- Many flanking motorcycles in a wedge formation; SAIC Behn on trip; military aide in front seat; agents in good number near limo; bubbletop at times; military lining street; live television feed; PHOTOGRAPHERS IN FRONT OF LIMO; buildings guarded:

Duluth, MN 9/25/63 (this one doesn’t “count” because it was raining at night):

HOWEVER- regarding the same Duluth, MN trip: Researcher Chad Carlson wrote to me regarding this very same trip: “I am friends with a man here who was in charge of JFK’s trip to Duluth, MN here in September of 1963. I ask him a lot about JFK. He got to talk oneon-one with the President for 30 minutes before he made his rounds and speeches. His name is Larry Yetka, former Minnesota Supreme Court justice. Larry said that he wondered what [Mafia boss] Sam Giancana of Chicago was up to on 11-22-63. I told him that I had been watching the motorcade in Dallas on 11-22-63 and told him it looked very “lax.” He said, “Yes it was.” So I asked him how was security in Duluth in Sept.1963? He said, “Tight as hell-men were on the rooftops even.”

Billings, MT September 1963:

Building rooftops were guarded—This was confirmed by researcher Deb Galentine’s assistant police chief father who worked on the security for this trip, as conveyed to the author on 2/17/14. Deb further wrote: “Weeks before JFK’s arrival, my father, who would be in charge of the local police protection, met with Billings’ leaders and some of President Kennedy’s advance people. JFK’s planners wanted the fastest, safest routes possible. They desired routes with no tall buildings and hoped to avoid Billings’ Rimrocks as well. The Rimrocks, a natural sandstone formation riddled with caves, paths, and ledges and dotted with pine trees and shrubs, unevenly jut about 500 feet above the city of Billings. Avoiding them would be impossible since Billings’ airport lies perched atop them. Three separate routes were available from the airport to the President’s venue, and the planners decided to use the one that provided the safest and fastest passage away from the Rimrocks.”

New Mexico, 12/7/62:

Washington, D.C. 1961:

UNKNOWN (shown on DVD JFK: The Final Hours):

See also:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-zjy_F1zHk

New York 9/20/63:

Unknown:

Boston, MA 4/20/63:

Washington, D.C. 3/8/61:

New York 5/30/61:

New York 1/19/62:

New York 5/29/62:

Mexico 6/29/62-7/1/62- Many flanking motorcycles in a wedge formation; SAIC Behn on trip; military aide in front seat; agents in good number near limo; bubbletop at times; military lining street; live television feed; PHOTOGRAPHERS IN FRONT OF LIMO; buildings guarded:

Florida 1962:

South Dakota, 8/17/62:

Washington, D.C. 10/10/62:

Washington, D.C. 12/11/62:

Washington, D.C. 9/8/63 (doesn’t count-raining):

Look at THIS amazing photo! SAIC Gerald Behn and fellow agent Sam Kinney placing the bubble top ON the car while President Kennedy and guest are sitting inside! Secret Service agent Stu Stout watches:

Charleston, West Virginia, 6/20/63 (doesn’t count-raining):

See also:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KRXGHJwp2I

---

Buildings WERE regularly guarded during the FDR, Truman, Ike and (yes) the JFK era before the assassination but NOT in Dallas:

 

1957-era security for President Eisenhower and Queen Elizabeth…if only JFK and Jackie would have received this kind of protection 6 years later:

San Diego, CA 6/6/63-countless Marines lined on each side of the street 5-6 feet apart FACING THE CROWD, SAIC Behn on the trip (riding in the front seat) and TWO FLATBED TRUCKS TAKING STILL PHOTOS, MOTION PICTURES, AND A LIVE TELEVISION FEED! Building rooftops were also guarded:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2xDQ0IZOOM

Philadelphia, PA 10/62-arrows point our 4 cyclists on each wheel PLUS row of motorcycles near follow-up car, police lining street and facing crowd:

Seattle 11/16/61—buildings were guarded; police mingled within crowds; military lined street; press photographers close by; agents by limo; SAIC Gerald Behn in front passenger seat:

Buffalo, NY 10/14/62:

Indianapolis, IN 10/13/62-Secret Service agents, Dick Johnsen, Ron Pontius, Bob Lilley, and Frank Yeager, surround car:

Springfield, IL 10/19/62:

Chicago, IL 3/23/63—Col. George J. McNally, White House Signal Corps and former Secret Service agent, wrote in his book: “But during the Chicago visit [3/23/63], the motorcade was slowed to the pace of a mounted Black Horse Troop, and the police got a warning of Puerto Rican snipers. Helicopters searched the roofs along the way, and no incidents occurred.” [A Million Miles of Presidents, p. 204] Agent Don Lawton rode on the rear of the limousine and six motorcycles bracketed the vehicle:

Nashville, TN 5/18/63—SAIC of the Nashville office (and former JFK WHD agent) Paul Doster told the Nashville Banner on 5/18/63 that “a complete check of the entire motorcade route” was done for JFK’s trip to Nashville. In addition, Doster stated, “Other [police] officers were assigned atop the municipal terminal and other buildings along the route. These men took their posts at 8 a.m. and remained at their rooftop stations until the president and his party passed.” A helicopter was used on the route, as well:

[note: this is the later edition of the newspaper quoted above]

Canada 1961:

New Orleans 1962:

Cleveland, OH 10/19/62:

Pittsburgh, PA 10/13/62:

Washington, D.C. April 1961-Police on the roof of building overlooking a JFK motorcade, while both police and military lined the streets, common security measures used before Dallas, yet only a small number of police lined the streets in Dallas, did not face the crowd, with no military lining the streets and no men guarding rooftops:

10/1/63— THE VIEW FROM THE PRESS PHOTOGRAPHERS FLATBED TRUCK IN FRONT; 2 follow-up cars; military and police line street; SAIC Behn and military aide:

Hawaii 6/9/63–press photographers in front of limo, as usual, and press bus not far behind; agents surround limousine:

Florida trip 11/16-11/18/63 (Palm Beach, Cape Canaveral, Miami, Tampa):

11/18/63–PRS AGENT GLEN BENNETT ON FLORIDA AND TEXAS TRIPS; DENIED BEING ON FLORIDA TRIP TO HSCA:

From my third book The Not-So-Secret Service: Bob Hoelscher worked for the Miami-Dade Police Department for 50 years and was a counter-sniper and observer on the terrace deck of the airport hotel on November 18, 1963, the day Kennedy arrived in Miami. He guarded almost every VIP that came through Dade County from Kennedy to Clinton and started the tactical special weapons team, later known as SWAT, in 1970. Documents reveal a bomb threat against JFK in Miami just days before his death. Hoelscher told CBSMiami.com that he knew of potential threats to the president ahead of his November visit. “I was told that information had been developed that the Cubans might start a protest at an unknown location and they might make an attempt on the life of the President if there was sufficient distraction,” Hoelscher said. “I was told to keep this information to myself, watch the periphery and look for anything unusual.” While Hoelscher and some others in the police department knew, it was strictly on a “need to know” basis. “The information about the death threat was not shared with the rank and file out of fear that the media would find out,” Hoelscher said

VARIOUS Washington, D.C. motorcades + Chicago, IL 1961-1962—press/ photographers in front of and close by JFK’s limo:

Rome, 7/2/63—close press/photographers (including live tv), SAIC Behn, agents on limo, massive motorcycles, etc.:

Amherst, MA 10/26/63-military aide in pilot car AND JFK’s limo, Dr Burkley close by, wire service/ press/ photographers close by:

Pueblo, CO 8/17/62:

Paris, France April 1961:

Costa Rica, March 1963:

North Dakota 9/25/63:

Agents Blaine, Giannoules, Hill, Landis and Pontius surround JFK and Jackie in the limo, Orange Bowl, FL December 1962:

The SECRET SERVICE was boss of the President and his security, NOT the other way around!

So much for the president’s “order” that never happened: Clint Hill on the rear of the limo on Main Street. He did not ride on the rear of the car from the latter portion of Main Street onward:

As Hill himself even admitted:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xs7yNVI9sOM

See also:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgVYcyixXgA

11/22/63:

DALLAS TIMES HERALD 11/22/63 BEFORE the assassination happened

11/21/63: more motorcycles were to have been beside JFK’s limo in Dallas:

11/21/63, Houston, TX- THE DAY BEFORE—phenomenal motorcycle formation, good speed of car, press/ photographers/ Cecil Stoughton near JFK.:

11/21/63-THE DAY BEFORE—11/21/63, San Antonio, TX: view from motion picture taken from police helicopter! Other photo- PRS Agent Glen Bennett [see chapter 2 of my first book] is riding in the front passenger seat of the follow-up car, the spot traditionally reserved for the Shift Leader! I knew he rode the follow-up car in NY, FL and TX and this was mostly hushed up afterwards (and, with regard to Dallas, the INTENTIONS behind his placement there), but this is a new one on me. Other arrows- police lining street, good motorcycle formation, agent Don Lawton looks upward to scan buildings, Shift Leader Roberts BETWEEN Bennett and the driver, Kinney. Roofs of multi-story buildings guarded, helicopter used along route, FORTY (40) members of military intelligence unit guarded route

Fort Worth, TX 11/22/63 (BEFORE the assassination):

–text: FORT WORTH PRESS 11/22/63 morning edition: Fort Worth advance agent Bill Duncan…but look at the headline below: “16 GOOFS ARE CHECKED OUT BY SECRET SERVICE GUARDING JFK” (image via Ebay- it’s already gone, so luckily I saved it)

“A Secret Service man said today 16 persons were “checked out” here last night by agents guarding President Kennedy’s life.

“The public doesn’t know it,” the agent said, “but we checked out 16 goofs.” The agent described them as “goofs.” “But if they could have gotten close enough they could have harmed the President.”

The agent, who asked not to be quoted by name, declined to elaborate. He would not say whether any of the persons investigated were carrying arms.

Police officers said they know a no persons arrested and jailed last night by SS men.

THE SECRET Service men protected President Kennedy and his wife and Vice President Lyndon Johnson during their reception at Carswell Air Force Base and during their overnight stay at Hotel Texas.

Police officers, sheriff’s deputies and federal men roped off Eighth St outside Hotel Texas as the President arrived.

“Everything went smoothly,” Police St. S. B. Pruitt, one of dozens of city officers who spent the night at the hotel, said. “We didn’t have any trouble at all.”

REPORTERS were not allowed in the corridor of the eighth floor where the President and Mrs. Kennedy slept.

SS men and police kept the halls cleared of everybody except those wearing “special badges.”

Policemen were stationed on the seventh and ninth floor stairs to keep anybody from going to the floor with the President.

One SS man was stationed outside Vice President and Mrs. Johnson’s 13th floor suite.

City firemen stood in the halls on the seventh, eighth and ninth floors and in the hotel kitchens. It was the first time that many of the firemen could remember that such a precaution had been made to protect visiting dignitaries.

“But we don’t have the President visit us very often,” one fireman said.”

Philadelphia, PA trip 10/30/63

Washington, D.C. 9/6/63—MILITARY AIDE, ASAIC BORING, military lining street:

Washington, D.C. 3/27/63–MILITARY AIDE, SAIC BEHN, military lining street, essentially THREE follow-up cars:

Philadelphia, PA trip 10/30/63

President Kennedy: the bubble top and all security issues dissected 1961-1963

click on images to enlarge

First things first: it is important to remember that President Kennedy did not have hundreds of motorcades during his 1000 or so days in offer- it was a finite number (from the JFK Library):

When the President visited military bases or traveled in motorcades in Washington, D.C., there was hardly any overt protection noticeable, such as motorcycles flanking the car, agents on or near the rear of the limousine, or a full bubbletop, unless during certain weather conditions, with a few notable exceptions when a display of force was demonstrated. This was because the Secret Service and the President were on very friendly, well-traveled grounds. On military bases, our troops, in conjunction with the Secret Service, provide the best-case scenario for protection. In the Capital, the Secret Service checks all the buildings along the route, and armed guards are posted along the path the President’s car will take. In addition, manholes are checked and sealed. For example, during JFK’s Inaugural Parade held on 1/20/61, “A complete survey of all buildings, water mains, sewers and underground conduits and other facilities along the parade route [was] made prior to the departure of the President from the White House to the Capitol.”

It should also be noted that when JFK was a candidate for the Presidency in 1960 the Secret Service did not protect candidates. Sadly, this did not become policy until immediately after the murder of his brother Robert. For his part, V.P. Nixon already had Secret Service protection on the campaign trail in 1960. That said, Senator Kennedy’s motorcades were often surrounded by many motorcycles:

JFK & LBJ together in Dallas (on Main Street) 9/11/60! The next time they would ride together in a motorcade: 11/22/63, Dallas!

Sunday 30th June, 1963. Forest Row, East Sussex. Visiting Harold Macmillan

Ireland, June 1963-Agent Bert De Freese on rear of limo; partial bubbletop; good motorcycle formation; press photographers flatbed truck in front of limo:

From my third book The Not-So-Secret Service: Death threats preceded JFK’s 1963 Ireland visit: “Police, newspaper received warnings months before president’s killing. “The documents indicated that 6,404 police officers were on duty throughout Ireland the night Kennedy arrived, of whom 2,690 lined the U.S. president’s route from Dublin airport to the Phoenix Park mansion of Irish President Eamon de Valera. “Costigan wrote that, although the death threats were considered likely to be hoaxes, his officers would use binoculars to monitor rooftops along the route of the presidential motorcade. He said some police would carry firearms, an exceptional measure in a country with a largely unarmed police force, to engage any would-be sniper. “A rifle as well as Thompson guns and revolvers were carried for use against a possible sniper,” Costigan wrote in a post-Kennedy visit memorandum released Friday

Milwaukee, WI May 12 1962:

9/27/62 West Virginia:

Battery Park, NY 5/23/63:

6/5/62 Washington, D.C.:

Bogota, Columbia 12/17/61:

Caracas, Venezuela 12/16/61:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUUcK6G7U_w

San Juan, Puerto Rico 12/15/61:

Washington, D.C. 3/20/62:

Washington, D.C. 9/19/61:

New York, NY 11/8/63:

Washington, D.C. 7/11/61:

Washington, D.C. 2/20/63:

Washington, D.C. 4/11/62 (JFK and Jackie in different bubbletop vehicles):

11/22/63 at Parkland- too late:

1961:

North Carolina, 10/12/61:

Washington, D.C. 6/15/61-debut:

Arlington, VA 6/12/62 (this one doesn’t “count”- drizzle):

JFK using the Ike bubbletop at the very start 1/20/61:

California, 3/23/62:

New York, 5/19/62:

Germany, 6/26/63- Many flanking motorcycles in a wedge formation; SAIC Behn on trip; military aide in front seat; agents in good number near limo; bubbletop at times; military lining street; live television feed; PHOTOGRAPHERS IN FRONT OF LIMO; buildings guarded:

Duluth, MN 9/25/63 (this one doesn’t “count” because it was raining at night):

HOWEVER- regarding the same Duluth, MN trip: Researcher Chad Carlson wrote to me regarding this very same trip: “I am friends with a man here who was in charge of JFK’s trip to Duluth, MN here in September of 1963. I ask him a lot about JFK. He got to talk oneon-one with the President for 30 minutes before he made his rounds and speeches. His name is Larry Yetka, former Minnesota Supreme Court justice. Larry said that he wondered what [Mafia boss] Sam Giancana of Chicago was up to on 11-22-63. I told him that I had been watching the motorcade in Dallas on 11-22-63 and told him it looked very “lax.” He said, “Yes it was.” So I asked him how was security in Duluth in Sept.1963? He said, “Tight as hell-men were on the rooftops even.”

Billings, MT September 1963:

Building rooftops were guarded—This was confirmed by researcher Deb Galentine’s assistant police chief father who worked on the security for this trip, as conveyed to the author on 2/17/14. Deb further wrote: “Weeks before JFK’s arrival, my father, who would be in charge of the local police protection, met with Billings’ leaders and some of President Kennedy’s advance people. JFK’s planners wanted the fastest, safest routes possible. They desired routes with no tall buildings and hoped to avoid Billings’ Rimrocks as well. The Rimrocks, a natural sandstone formation riddled with caves, paths, and ledges and dotted with pine trees and shrubs, unevenly jut about 500 feet above the city of Billings. Avoiding them would be impossible since Billings’ airport lies perched atop them. Three separate routes were available from the airport to the President’s venue, and the planners decided to use the one that provided the safest and fastest passage away from the Rimrocks.”

New Mexico, 12/7/62:

Washington, D.C. 1961:

UNKNOWN (shown on DVD JFK: The Final Hours):

See also:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-zjy_F1zHk

New York 9/20/63:

Unknown:

Boston, MA 4/20/63:

Washington, D.C. 3/8/61:

New York 5/30/61:

New York 1/19/62:

New York 5/29/62:

Mexico 6/29/62-7/1/62- Many flanking motorcycles in a wedge formation; SAIC Behn on trip; military aide in front seat; agents in good number near limo; bubbletop at times; military lining street; live television feed; PHOTOGRAPHERS IN FRONT OF LIMO; buildings guarded:

Florida 1962:

South Dakota, 8/17/62:

Washington, D.C. 10/10/62:

Washington, D.C. 12/11/62:

Washington, D.C. 9/8/63 (doesn’t count-raining):

Look at THIS amazing photo! SAIC Gerald Behn and fellow agent Sam Kinney placing the bubble top ON the car while President Kennedy and guest are sitting inside! Secret Service agent Stu Stout watches:

Charleston, West Virginia, 6/20/63 (doesn’t count-raining):

See also:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KRXGHJwp2I

---

Buildings WERE regularly guarded during the FDR, Truman, Ike and (yes) the JFK era before the assassination but NOT in Dallas:

 

1957-era security for President Eisenhower and Queen Elizabeth…if only JFK and Jackie would have received this kind of protection 6 years later:

San Diego, CA 6/6/63-countless Marines lined on each side of the street 5-6 feet apart FACING THE CROWD, SAIC Behn on the trip (riding in the front seat) and TWO FLATBED TRUCKS TAKING STILL PHOTOS, MOTION PICTURES, AND A LIVE TELEVISION FEED! Building rooftops were also guarded:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2xDQ0IZOOM

Philadelphia, PA 10/62-arrows point our 4 cyclists on each wheel PLUS row of motorcycles near follow-up car, police lining street and facing crowd:

Seattle 11/16/61—buildings were guarded; police mingled within crowds; military lined street; press photographers close by; agents by limo; SAIC Gerald Behn in front passenger seat:

Buffalo, NY 10/14/62:

Indianapolis, IN 10/13/62-Secret Service agents, Dick Johnsen, Ron Pontius, Bob Lilley, and Frank Yeager, surround car:

Springfield, IL 10/19/62:

Chicago, IL 3/23/63—Col. George J. McNally, White House Signal Corps and former Secret Service agent, wrote in his book: “But during the Chicago visit [3/23/63], the motorcade was slowed to the pace of a mounted Black Horse Troop, and the police got a warning of Puerto Rican snipers. Helicopters searched the roofs along the way, and no incidents occurred.” [A Million Miles of Presidents, p. 204] Agent Don Lawton rode on the rear of the limousine and six motorcycles bracketed the vehicle:

Nashville, TN 5/18/63—SAIC of the Nashville office (and former JFK WHD agent) Paul Doster told the Nashville Banner on 5/18/63 that “a complete check of the entire motorcade route” was done for JFK’s trip to Nashville. In addition, Doster stated, “Other [police] officers were assigned atop the municipal terminal and other buildings along the route. These men took their posts at 8 a.m. and remained at their rooftop stations until the president and his party passed.” A helicopter was used on the route, as well:

[note: this is the later edition of the newspaper quoted above]

Canada 1961:

New Orleans 1962:

Cleveland, OH 10/19/62:

Pittsburgh, PA 10/13/62:

Washington, D.C. April 1961-Police on the roof of building overlooking a JFK motorcade, while both police and military lined the streets, common security measures used before Dallas, yet only a small number of police lined the streets in Dallas, did not face the crowd, with no military lining the streets and no men guarding rooftops:

10/1/63— THE VIEW FROM THE PRESS PHOTOGRAPHERS FLATBED TRUCK IN FRONT; 2 follow-up cars; military and police line street; SAIC Behn and military aide:

Hawaii 6/9/63–press photographers in front of limo, as usual, and press bus not far behind; agents surround limousine:

Florida trip 11/16-11/18/63 (Palm Beach, Cape Canaveral, Miami, Tampa):

11/18/63–PRS AGENT GLEN BENNETT ON FLORIDA AND TEXAS TRIPS; DENIED BEING ON FLORIDA TRIP TO HSCA:

From my third book The Not-So-Secret Service: Bob Hoelscher worked for the Miami-Dade Police Department for 50 years and was a counter-sniper and observer on the terrace deck of the airport hotel on November 18, 1963, the day Kennedy arrived in Miami. He guarded almost every VIP that came through Dade County from Kennedy to Clinton and started the tactical special weapons team, later known as SWAT, in 1970. Documents reveal a bomb threat against JFK in Miami just days before his death. Hoelscher told CBSMiami.com that he knew of potential threats to the president ahead of his November visit. “I was told that information had been developed that the Cubans might start a protest at an unknown location and they might make an attempt on the life of the President if there was sufficient distraction,” Hoelscher said. “I was told to keep this information to myself, watch the periphery and look for anything unusual.” While Hoelscher and some others in the police department knew, it was strictly on a “need to know” basis. “The information about the death threat was not shared with the rank and file out of fear that the media would find out,” Hoelscher said

VARIOUS Washington, D.C. motorcades + Chicago, IL 1961-1962—press/ photographers in front of and close by JFK’s limo:

Rome, 7/2/63—close press/photographers (including live tv), SAIC Behn, agents on limo, massive motorcycles, etc.:

Amherst, MA 10/26/63-military aide in pilot car AND JFK’s limo, Dr Burkley close by, wire service/ press/ photographers close by:

Pueblo, CO 8/17/62:

Paris, France April 1961:

Costa Rica, March 1963:

North Dakota 9/25/63:

Agents Blaine, Giannoules, Hill, Landis and Pontius surround JFK and Jackie in the limo, Orange Bowl, FL December 1962:

The SECRET SERVICE was boss of the President and his security, NOT the other way around!

So much for the president’s “order” that never happened: Clint Hill on the rear of the limo on Main Street. He did not ride on the rear of the car from the latter portion of Main Street onward:

As Hill himself even admitted:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xs7yNVI9sOM

See also:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgVYcyixXgA

11/22/63:

DALLAS TIMES HERALD 11/22/63 BEFORE the assassination happened

11/21/63: more motorcycles were to have been beside JFK’s limo in Dallas:

11/21/63, Houston, TX- THE DAY BEFORE—phenomenal motorcycle formation, good speed of car, press/ photographers/ Cecil Stoughton near JFK.:

11/21/63-THE DAY BEFORE—11/21/63, San Antonio, TX: view from motion picture taken from police helicopter! Other photo- PRS Agent Glen Bennett [see chapter 2 of my first book] is riding in the front passenger seat of the follow-up car, the spot traditionally reserved for the Shift Leader! I knew he rode the follow-up car in NY, FL and TX and this was mostly hushed up afterwards (and, with regard to Dallas, the INTENTIONS behind his placement there), but this is a new one on me. Other arrows- police lining street, good motorcycle formation, agent Don Lawton looks upward to scan buildings, Shift Leader Roberts BETWEEN Bennett and the driver, Kinney. Roofs of multi-story buildings guarded, helicopter used along route, FORTY (40) members of military intelligence unit guarded route

Fort Worth, TX 11/22/63 (BEFORE the assassination):

–text: FORT WORTH PRESS 11/22/63 morning edition: Fort Worth advance agent Bill Duncan…but look at the headline below: “16 GOOFS ARE CHECKED OUT BY SECRET SERVICE GUARDING JFK” (image via Ebay- it’s already gone, so luckily I saved it)

“A Secret Service man said today 16 persons were “checked out” here last night by agents guarding President Kennedy’s life.

“The public doesn’t know it,” the agent said, “but we checked out 16 goofs.” The agent described them as “goofs.” “But if they could have gotten close enough they could have harmed the President.”

The agent, who asked not to be quoted by name, declined to elaborate. He would not say whether any of the persons investigated were carrying arms.

Police officers said they know a no persons arrested and jailed last night by SS men.

THE SECRET Service men protected President Kennedy and his wife and Vice President Lyndon Johnson during their reception at Carswell Air Force Base and during their overnight stay at Hotel Texas.

Police officers, sheriff’s deputies and federal men roped off Eighth St outside Hotel Texas as the President arrived.

“Everything went smoothly,” Police St. S. B. Pruitt, one of dozens of city officers who spent the night at the hotel, said. “We didn’t have any trouble at all.”

REPORTERS were not allowed in the corridor of the eighth floor where the President and Mrs. Kennedy slept.

SS men and police kept the halls cleared of everybody except those wearing “special badges.”

Policemen were stationed on the seventh and ninth floor stairs to keep anybody from going to the floor with the President.

One SS man was stationed outside Vice President and Mrs. Johnson’s 13th floor suite.

City firemen stood in the halls on the seventh, eighth and ninth floors and in the hotel kitchens. It was the first time that many of the firemen could remember that such a precaution had been made to protect visiting dignitaries.

“But we don’t have the President visit us very often,” one fireman said.”

FORT WORTH PRESS 11/22/63 morning edition: Fort Worth advance agent Bill Duncan…but look at the headline below: “16 GOOFS HERE ARE CHECKED OUT BY SECRET SERVICE GUARDING JFK”—full text below

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE

“..if they could have gotten close enough, they could have harmed the president”

“A Secret Service man said today 16 persons were “checked out” here last night by agents guarding President Kennedy’s life.

“The public doesn’t know it,” the agent said, “but we checked out 16 goofs.” The agent described them as “goofs.” “But if they could have gotten close enough they could have harmed the President.”

The agent, who asked not to be quoted by name, declined to elaborate. He would not say whether any of the persons investigated were carrying arms.

Police officers said they know a no persons arrested and jailed last night by SS men.

THE SECRET Service men protected President Kennedy and his wife and Vice President Lyndon Johnson during their reception at Carswell Air Force Base and during their overnight stay at Hotel Texas.

Police officers, sheriff’s deputies and federal men roped off Eighth St outside Hotel Texas as the President arrived.

“Everything went smoothly,” Police St. S. B. Pruitt, one of dozens of city officers who spent the night at the hotel, said. “We didn’t have any trouble at all.”

REPORTERS were not allowed in the corridor of the eighth floor where the President and Mrs. Kennedy slept.

SS men and police kept the halls cleared of everybody except those wearing “special badges.”

Policemen were stationed on the seventh and ninth floor stairs to keep anybody from going to the floor with the President.

One SS man was stationed outside Vice President and Mrs. Johnson’s 13th floor suite.

City firemen stood in the halls on the seventh, eighth and ninth floors and in the hotel kitchens. It was the first time that many of the firemen could remember that such a precaution had been made to protect visiting dignitaries.

“But we don’t have the President visit us very often,” one fireman said.”

Secret Service Agent Floyd Boring…is very interesting, indeed. 

(click on images to enlarge)

The Secret Service agent I am most suspicious of is Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAIC) of the White House Detail Floyd M. Boring, the #2 man on the detail, behind SAIC Gerald Behn and ahead of #3 man Roy Kellerman.

Boring joined the Secret Service during the FDR era (right after Joe Kennedy Sr. was let go as Ambassador to the UK) and famously protected President Harry Truman from an assassination attempt on another November day 13 years before Dallas (11/1/50). Interestingly, Boring also guarded a young Congressman Kennedy in 1952 when President Truman was riding with JFK in the back seat of his limo! There were only about 200 agents in the Secret Service then and only about three dozen of them were White House Detail (and Boring was famous from all the press and honors he received for thwarting the assassination CONSPIRACY by two gunmen), while JFK was already famous: they knew about each other already for sure:

Boring (falsely) adamantly denied that JFK was a womanizer in his JFK Library oral history (a pattern of lies and strange statements that is common to the man):

(From the 1976 JFK Library Oral History interview only released in 1999 thanks to my efforts in conjunction with Bill Adams)

Yet, Boring knew; he had to have known. In fact, here he is IN FRONT OF Marilyn Monroe the night she sang “Happy Birthday” to the President! (the large photo shows the president’s brothers-in-law, Stephen Smith and Peter Lawford, along with aides Larry O’Brien and Ken O’Donnell. The agent on the staircase is Bob Lilley)

Ole LBJ knew who Boring was, but we are (perhaps?) getting ahead of ourselves a little (this photo hung in Boring’s home office):

I popularized/discovered the fact that, unbeknownst to many, Floyd Boring just happened to be IN CHARGE OF PLANNING THE TEXAS TRIP!

Before you can catch your breath on that one, I also popularized/discovered the fact that, again unbeknownst to many, Floyd Boring also just happened to be IN CHARGE OF ALL THE ADVANCE WORK, ADMINISTRATION, AND PLANNING OF PRESIDENT KENNEDY’S TRIPS!

(From the 1976 JFK Library Oral History interview only released in 1999 thanks to my efforts in conjunction with Bill Adams)

(From Boring’s 1988 Truman Library Oral History that I received via snail mail in 1998 (unknown to millions beforehand) and now available online since around 2008)

Lead advance agent Winston Lawson admitted having many conversations with Boring (and Kellerman) during his HSCA interview that was only released in the late 1990’s:

An overlooked comment made by Winston Lawson during his Warren Commission testimony- he didn’t know if he actually gave his recommendations about the speech site selection in Dallas (crucial to the eventual route chosen and security) to SAIC Behn (who adamantly opposed the Trade Mart): he gave the information to his office- one of the two assistants, Boring and Kellerman (both unnamed here):

Boring gave Lawson the Dallas assignment on 11/4/63:

For his part Boring was on the 3/23/63 Chicago trip (were threats were found for JFK), the cancelled Chicago trip (cancelled due to threats), AND the 11/18/63 Florida trip (also rife with threats):

As posted elsewhere, the 11/18/63 Florida trip was also the one where both agents Tim McIntyre and Glen Bennett denied being a part of, despite the photo, film and written record (although much of it was not known or released until many years later):

In fact, Boring was a veteran of many of JFK’s trips in person, as well (such as when he rode on the follow-up car in Berlin in June 1963 and saw the agents on the rear of the limo, proper motorcycle formations, press photographers riding in a flatbed truck in front, SAC Behn in the limo with the military aide, police and military lining the street, and building rooftops guarded):

Yet, strangely, when I suggested that the ARRB get in touch with Boring, the former agent, who first told me “I didn’t have any involvement in that [the Texas trip] at all”, started the interview with Doug Horne off on a similar strange note, sounding almost like a guilty suspect! He also flat out lies and says that he escorted LBJ on his helicopter back to the White House, but this was RUFUS YOUNGBLOOD, the unofficial new SAIC of Johnson’s detail, NOT Boring! He then adds/ admits that he gave Lawson the Dallas assignment:

Boring was at Andrews Air Force Base when the casket allegedly containing JFK’s body was placed into the grey Navy Ambulance and, by his own admission, he-along with former OSS man Paul Paterni, Deputy Chief- went to the White House garage to inspect the bloody presidential limousine (Paterni worked with Ray Rocca, later CIA liaison to the Warren Commission):

The JFK Library (and, more than likely, Clint Hill himself) came to Boring’s “rescue” by recently (2016) posting two photos of LBJ’s arrival and claiming that Boring is in the two photos. However, the gentleman they have coming off the helicopter is definitely NOT Boring (the same man appears in the second photo) and the gentleman with his back to the camera who is NOT in the first photo-presumably the other candidate for Boring- is definitely NOT Boring, either: the hair on the back of the man’s head (conveniently hidden face) and the color of his suit do not match (the real Boring, from the above AAFB photo, is inset for comparison):

Incredibly, as I posted a few years back, this is not the first time the JFK Library (and Clint Hill) mistakenly identified Boring…the other time was at LOVE FIELD, yet the agent was actually—get this—DON LAWTON, the agent infamously recalled at Love Field by Emory Roberts!! Please see:

https://vincepalamara.com/2014/12/05/houston-well-dallas-we-have-a-major-problem-floyd-boring-in-texas-on-112263/

https://vincepalamara.com/2014/12/06/part-two-of-the-floyd-boring-clint-hill-conundrum-the-plot-thickens/

To my knowledge, after years of accessing the JFK Library’s thousands of pages, no other agent was wrongly identified (and, trust me, I checked and rechecked)…only Mr. Boring: twice!

One can sometimes not realize the ramifications of something written years ago and literally under their own nose until the right context comes about. Well, the context came last night in the form of a very predictable one-star review from former Secret Service agent (and dear Gerald Blaine friend and colleague) Chuck Zboril. I harken back to a famous line (one of many) in the Oliver Stone movie “JFK”, wherein Kevin Costner , after making a vital point buried in the 26 volumes of the Warren Commission, says (paraphrased) “but the idea gets shuffled around and the point gets lost.”

TURN TO PAGE 121 OF MY OWN BOOK “SURVIVOR’S GUILT”:

“Blaine even erroneously thought [SAIC Gerald] Behn was on the Florida trip, a testament to the frequency of his [Behn’s] trips with the president.” [author’s interview with Blaine 2/7/04]

TURN TO PAGE 294 OF MY OWN BOOK “SURVIVOR’S GUILT”:

“Zboril was sure that Kellerman, who wasn’t even on the Florida trip, was present in Tampa: “I thought it was Roy Kellerman, not Boring, in the car on the Tampa trip…that’s my recollection.” [author’s interview with Chuck Zboril 11/15/95]

Beyond just the general credibility gap issues, by this specific “recollection” of a supervisory agent OTHER THAN FLOYD M. BORING having been on the Florida trip and having rode in the presidential limousine, these two fine gentlemen have, independent of one another, totally impeached ole Blaine’s book “The Kennedy Detail” even further: how can Blaine write so authoritatively that he heard BORING over the radio relaying JFK’s alleged instruction to remove Zboril and Lawton from the rear of the limousine WHEN HE CAN’T EVEN GET THE NAME OF THE ACTUAL AGENT IN CHARGE OF THE TRIP AND RIDING IN THE PRESIDENTIAL LIMOUSINE CORRECT?

Likewise, how in the world can Zboril vouch for Blaine and his book when he, perhaps in an even worse case of “faulty memory”, ALSO CANNOT GET THE NAME OF THE ACTUAL AGENT IN CHARGE OF THE TRIP AND RIDING IN THE PRESIDENTIAL LIMOUSINE CORRECT…AND BORING WAS THE AGENT WHO ALLEGEDLY RELAYED THIS ORDER/ KIND ANECDOTE/ PRESIDENTIAL WISH (TAKE YOUR PICK) *TO* ZBORIL!

As an important aside (if it even is, considering all the above):

CHUCK ZBORIL AND THE WARREN REPORT:

Chuck Zboril recently stated on Amazon.Com that Agent David Grant was NOT an advance agent on JFK’s trip to Florida. THE WARREN REPORT even states that Agent David Grant was indeed an advance man on JFK’s trip to Tampa (WR page 445). Zboril thought ASAIC Kellerman, not ASAIC Boring, was on the Florida trip (Palamara, page 294) . Gerald Blaine thought SAIC Gerald Behn, not ASAIC Floyd Boring, was on the Florida trip (Palamara, page 121)….it was ASAIC Floyd Boring alone.

But back to the limousine inspection Boring and Paterni chose to do: Kellerman told the HSCA the following (again, in an interview not released until years later)

Boring told the ARRB about the inspection:

“Skull bone in the rear of the follow-up car”? Yes—and Boring is corroborated on this matter by JFK White House Physician Dr. James Young, who even reached to former Warren Commission member Gerald Ford about this!

Miami SAIC (and former White House Detail agent) John Marshall was a very interesting character, indeed. He had worked with Boring before their Secret Service days when the two of them were Pennsylvania State Troopers, worked with Floyd on many occasions while in the Service, took the time to call out Boring in the first place-more than once- in his interview, noted a stick of dynamite found on JFK’s motorcade route to the Orange Bowl in December 1962 the day before he was to attend (and that Ken O’Donnell knew about it, yet the motorcade and event still went on-calling Joseph McBride!), and stated, stunningly, that the Secret Service might have been involved in the assassination! Also included is Boring’s reaction to this when confronted by the ARRB.

Boring was also stunned (perhaps even more) by these statements from Inspector Thomas Kelley:

---

Along with Boring being in charge of planning the Texas trip (and all prior trips, in general), he is also infamous (as I popularized) for conveying the false notion that JFK ordered the agents off the limo in Tampa…therefore, they shouldn’t ride there in Texas, we are to assume, as there is nothing from the record that ever alleges that he said anything during the Texas trip 11/21-11/22/63. As there is 0.0 evidence that this occurred on any other trip or was documented in any written or audio/visual record, we are supposed to believe these April 1964 reports when the dead president could no longer defend himself (and many other agents and aides weren’t contacted about this):

As I wrote in tremendous detail in chapter one of my first book (and expanded even further in my third book), of the five Secret Service reports, four have as their primary source for JFK’s alleged request agent Boring, including one by Boring himself, while the remaining report, written by Mr. Behn, mentions the same 11/18/63 trip with Mr. Boring as the others do. Boring’s report was the first one written, then came one each from Roberts, Ready, Behn, and Hill, respectively (Hill, Ready and Behn weren’t even on the Tampa trip, while Roberts merely conveys the fact that Boring was his source). Both Behn and Boring totally contradicted the contents of their reports at different times, independent of each other, to the author. In addition, agents did ride on the rear of the limousine on 7/2/63 and 11/18/63 anyway, despite these alleged Presidential requests, as the film and photo record proves. Both the Secret Service Final Survey Report for the 11/18/63 Tampa trip, written by Gerald Blaine and dated 12/4/63, after the fact, as well as the corresponding Secret Service shift reports, make no mention of any presidential orders to have the agents stay off the limousine: “no unusual incidents occurred”, wrote Blaine. With Boring joining Behn in refuting the substance of their reports, the official Secret Service ‘explanation’ falls like a house of cards. Behn’s, Boring’s, and Hill’s reports are not even on any Secret Service or Treasury Dept. stationery, just blank sheets of paper. In fact, as noted above, Hill’s report is undated, a bizarre error to make in an official government report written by request of the head of the Secret Service. All are supposedly evidence of JFK expressing his desire to keep Secret Service agents off the limousine, particularly in Tampa, Florida on 11/18/63. Importantly, no mention is made of any alleged orders via President Kennedy’s staff, or of JFK requesting anything on the critical day, November 22. What’s more, Secret Service agents and/or police officers always guarded the rooftops of buildings during motorcades before the assassination (not just as a result of the tragedy), effectively augmenting or, in the absence of agents by the limousine itself, replacing them, depending on manpower issues and so forth. Chief Inspector Michael Torina, whom the author contacted, wrote the Secret Service manual and confirmed this security procedure as a fact.

Speaking of Hill…

Clint Hill’s strangely undated report (on a blank sheet of paper instead of Treasury stationary, to boot) TWICE states that he did not know who from the office of the White House Detail conveyed this “order” [note: report slightly cut off in original]:

As I noted in my first book, what makes this doubly strange is the fact that his (obviously pre-rehearsed) Warren Commission testimony with Arlen Specter was done the previous MONTH when this report, undated or not, was submitted…and he reveals the name here: FLOYD BORING-

In a possible one-two punch, acclaimed author William Manchester coveys as much in his massive best-seller The Death of a President:

However, Floyd Boring, on two occasions, adamantly denied that he ever spoke to Manchester (which is backed up by his name NOT being mentioned in the interview section of the book) AND, shockingly, that JFK did not order the agents off his limo! He was forceful in conveying to me that President Kennedy was a very nice man and never interfered with their actions at all:

[Boring can be heard right after Kinney’s denials and right before SAIC Behn’s denials, among several others:]

Uh oh—guess who Manchester DID speak to? GERALD BLAINE, the obscure author of THE KENNEDY DETAIL (well, he was very obscure until this totally unknown agent scored a Simon & Schuster book deal which became a best-seller, along with an Emmy-nominated documentary of the same name and a since-scrapped movie deal):

Blaine is credited here, yet his name does not appear in the actual text anywhere; very strange, indeed. Blaine confirmed to me in 2005 that he did indeed speak to Manchester and, furthermore, out of the many agents Manchester spoke to (not as many as I, but still pretty good), Blaine is singled out AGAIN as one of the FEW agents thanked in Manchester’s OTHER JFK book!

So, what’s the problem (other than–ahem–Blaine appearing to be THE SOURCE FOR THE PHONY “JFK-ORDERED-US-OFF-THE-LIMO” crap)? Well, Blaine is now DENYING that he spoke to Manchester. While he confirms that Boring was not interviewed by Manchester (thanks, Jerry), his denial of being interviewed is a lie and he knows it…and I know it, too. For what it’s worth, I contacted Wesleyan University, which houses the William Manchester collection (I spoke to Manchester in 1993 and he told me that all his records are sealed and won’t be released in my lifetime. He has since passed away and quite a few, but not all, of his records are now available). The Blaine transcript is MISSING and they confirmed that there is NO TRANSCRIPT OF A FLOYD BORING INTERVIEW! Furthermore, some other agent and White House aide interview transcripts AND JACKIE KENNEDY’S won’t be released until—get this—2067!

The man sitting next to Blaine in the above interview is, of course, Clint Hill. 2010 was a banner year for these men in more ways than one: Hill came clean and basically admitted that JFK didn’t order them off the limo! During Clint Hill’s 11/19/10 Sixth Floor Museum oral history, the former agent revealed the full, unvarnished truth about JFK: he did not order the agents to do anything; they did what they wished to do, security-wise: “He can tell you what he wants done and he can tell you certain things but that doesn’t mean you have to do it. What we used to do was always agree with the President and then we’d do what we felt was best anyway. Here is the video:

If that weren’t enough, on 9/18/96, by request of the author, the ARRB’s Doug Horne interviewed Mr. Boring regarding this matter. Horne wrote:

The author finds this admission startling, especially because the one agent who decided to ride on the rear of the limousine in Dallas anyway, on at least 4 different occasions, was none other than Clint Hill himself. This also does not address what the agents were to do when the crowds were heavier, or even what constituted a “crowd,” as agents did ride on the rear steps of the limousine in Tampa on November 18, 1963 (agents Donald J. Lawton, Glen A. Bennett & Charles T. Zboril, to be exact!) Furthermore, as noted above, both Clint Hill’s written report and his testimony surely convey a more strict approach than one stemming from an alleged kind anecdote. In fact, as mentioned above, Hill twice stated in his report that he did not recall who the agent was who told him, and the other agents, not to ride on the rear of the limousine, yet named him under oath to Counsel Specter: Floyd Boring.

The deathblow to the Tampa tale

The author wrote to former Florida Congressman Samuel Melville Gibbons1 on 1/7/04 and asked him if he had heard President Kennedy order the agents off the rear of the limousine. Gibbons rode in the rear seat with JFK and Senator George Smathers on the Tampa trip of 11/18/63.117 Here is Gibbons’ response in full, dated 1/15/04: “I rode with Kennedy every time he rode. I heard no such order. As I remember it the agents rode on the rear bumper all the way. Kennedy was very happy during his visit to Tampa: Sam Gibbons.”

An amazing document was released in the 1990’s concerning, among many other related topics, the issue of the agents’ presence (or lack thereof) on the limousine. This is a 28-page “Sensitive” memorandum from Belford Lawson, the attorney in charge of the Secret Service area for the HSCA, addressed to Gary Cornwell & Ken Klein dated 5/31/77 and revised 8/15/77. Apparently, Attorney Lawson was suspicious of Mr. Boring, for he wrote on the final page of this lengthy memorandum, “Subject: Florida Motorcades in November 1963 … Was Floyd Boring, the Senior SS Agent on the White House detail, lying to SS Agent Hill when he told Hill that JFK had said in Tampa … that he wanted no agents riding upright on the rear bumper step of the JFK limousine? Did JFK actually say this? Did Boring know when he told this to Hill that Hill would be riding outboard on the JFK follow-up car in Dallas on November 22, 1963? Did Boring say this to Ready or Roberts?” On page 27 of the same memo, Belford Lawson wrote, “Why did only one Agent, Hill, run forward to the JFK limousine?” [note: document slightly cut off in original]

From the 1976 JFK Library Oral History interview only released in 1999 thanks to my efforts in conjunction with Bill Adams:

Boring, who makes no mention of any alleged desires by President Kennedy to restrict security during his two presidential library oral histories, told the JFK Library on 2/25/76: “ … of all the administrations I worked with [FDR-LBJ], the president and the people surrounding the president were very gracious and were very cooperative. As a matter of fact, you can’t do this type of security work without cooperation of the people surrounding the president.”  In addition, included are Chief Rowley and SAIC Gerald Behn’s comments to the JFK Library also debunking the “staff” notion of interfering with the agency [the Behn oral history has been available for years, while Chief Rowley’s only became available around 2005!]:

In addition to what Boring conveyed above to both myself and the JFK Library, he also wrote me a letter and stated that President Kennedy was “very cooperative with the Secret Service”:

Yet, before we can catch our collective breath on all of this, Boring may have been influenced by Blaine and company late in life (he passed away in early 2008)- he told author Dan Robertson the following in 2006:

“He [JFK] was responsible for his own death.”–?!

For what it’s worth, he did end his ARRB interview with the following predictable tidbit:

So, how DID ole Secret Service headquarters think about President Kennedy behind closed doors, so to speak? Part of the answer may lie in an obscure, out-of-print book from 1962 by Wayne Hyde (with, ironically, Boring on the cover) titled What Does A Secret Service Agent Do?

On page 14, Secret Service headquarters is depicted with a photo of President Eisenhower, not the then-current office holder, JFK, on the wall. An older photo, perhaps? No: for there is a disturbing sticker at the bottom left corner!

“I Miss Ike”, huh? Imagine if today’s Secret Service Headquarters had an “I Miss Obama” sticker: heads would roll…but, alas, no one on Earth noticed this but I, decades later.

Whether one believes Seymour Hersh or not (or the allegations in his book), one thing is certain: four Secret Service agents sat down for ABC Television cameras from the book and expressed their anger and disgust over President Kennedy’s private life, including follow-up car agent Tim McIntyre:

Here he is again SPEAKING FOR EMORY ROBERTS (who passed away in 1973; Roberts is actually NAMED in Hersh’s book in this anecdote McIntyre reveals here):

These agents–and many more—told me that President Kennedy did not order the agents off the limo, nor did he interfere with their actions at all (yes, that IS Gerald Blaine—he said this to me back in 2004-2005, several years before his book came out saying other things):

Oh, yes: Yeager was assistant advance agent in Tampa with GERALD BLAINE, the same trip FLOYD BORING was on!

I told you Boring was interesting!

Secret Service security and press coverage for JFK pre-11/22/63

(CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE!)

EVEN THE PRESS WAS CURIOUS ABOUT THE LACK OF PROTECTION AND AGENTS NOT BEING BESIDE THE LIMO AS THEY NORMALLY WERE ON 11/22/63:

Things that happened on 11/18/63 in Tampa that did not happen on 11/22/63 in Dallas:  

1. agents on the rear of the limo (other than Clint Hill, briefly, 4 times before they got to Dealey Plaza; JFK is falsely blamed for the agents not being there);
2. military aide in front seat between driver and agent in charge (McHugh was asked, for the first time in Dallas, not to ride there!);
3. press photographers flatbed truck in front of limo (canceled at last minute at Love Field);
4. fast speed of cars (slow in Dallas; Greer attempted to blame JFK for the slow speed on the night of the murder after being remorseful all day);
5. ASAIC Boring on trip (SAIC Behn and Boring always accompanied JFK in motorcades. A third-stringer, Kellerman, goes in their place- one of if not the first major trip Kellerman took on his own); 
6. multi story rooftops guarded (officially, no buildings were guarded in Dallas. Eyewitnesses Arnold and Barbara Rowland did see a man with a rifle in the Texas School Book Depository building before the motorcade reached the eventual site of the assassination and, tellingly, thought the man was a Secret Service agent.15 Rowland later testified to the Warren Commission on his thought process at the time: “I must honestly say my opinion was based on movies I have seen, on the attempted assassination of Theodore Roosevelt where they had Secret Service men up in the building such as that with rifles watching the crowds, and another one concerned with attempted assassination of the other one, Franklin Roosevelt, and both of these had Secret Service men up in windows or on top of buildings with rifles, and this is how my opinion was based and why it didn’t alarm me.”16);
7. multiple motorcycles running next to JFK in a wedge formation (they repeated this coverage 11/18-11/22/63 [morning in Fort Worth]until Dallas, when the Secret Service reduced the coverage and had the few motorcycles that were remaining drop back from the rear wheels of JFK’s limo, rendering them ineffective or, as the HSCA stated, “uniquely insecure”);
8. White House Press Photographer Cecil Stoughton riding in follow-up car taking photos (he did 11/18-11/21/63…until they got to Dallas. No satisfactory answer has ever been given as to why Stoughton was not there on 11/22/63);
9. Pierre Salinger on trip (Assistant Malcolm Kilduff makes his first trip on his own to Texas; Salinger said he missed only “one or two trips” with JFK…Texas was one of them! Agent Bob Lilley told me that Salinger was extremely knowledgeable about motorcade security and planning);
10. Dr Burkley close to JFK (Burkley protested being placed far away from JFK in Dallas, for this was the only time, save in Rome, this ever happened to him…and Rome was a model of great security in every other respect);————————————————————-

Tampa was the longest motorcade President Kennedy undertook domestically (only the one in Berlin was longer). In contrast, the motorcade in Dallas was far shorter and, thus, more manageable.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy_Boulevard_(Tampa,_Florida)

“During the research for my first book Survivor’s Guilt: The Secret Service & the Failure to Protect President Kennedy, I made a major discovery, based on both personal interviews with former agents and through newspaper archives and other somewhat obscure source material: not merely as a response to the JFK assassination were building rooftops guarded during motorcades…they were regularly guarded at least from the 1940’s onward! I knew there had to be a reason (or reasons) that presidents survived before the Kennedy murder beyond just good old-fashioned luck. In short, this method of protection – along with the intermingling of police in the crowds themselves, often in plainclothes – was how the Secret Service “got around” the so-called lack of manpower they sometimes faced, as well as the need to not always look so obtrusive with security, not to mention being able to protect our presidents with confidence. This was a major factor that eluded me for years, as well-meaning people would sometimes play devil’s advocate with me, observing a still photo from some motorcade online or in a book that, on the surface, appeared to leave President Kennedy a sitting duck. Compared to today’s very overt security, with notable exceptions, it is rather easy to find a photo from the Kennedy years that can appear to make JFK’s security seem paltry, to put it mildly. What cannot be gauged in a still photo is the speed of the limousine, the presence of protective officers in the crowd, and, again, building rooftops (at least multi-story structures) guarded along the route of travel. I cannot emphasize how important this discovery is – not only would a well-designed conspiracy have been foiled if these measures were employed in Dallas (which they were not), even the designs of a lone-nut killer would perhaps have stood an even greater chance of failure. Imagine if Dealey Plaza would have had some well-armed men, whose job it was to protect the president and vice president, standing tall and maintaining vigilance from above.”

Here is a good example- Nashville motorcade photo, 5/18/63:

Looks bad, doesn’t it? However:

SAIC of the Nashville office (and former JFK WHD agent) Paul Doster told the Nashville Banner on 5/18/63 that “a complete check of the entire motorcade route” was done for JFK’s trip to Nashville. In addition, Doster stated, “Other [police] officers were assigned atop the municipal terminal and other buildings along the route. These men took their posts at 8 a.m. and remained at their rooftop stations until the president and his party passed.” A helicopter was used on the route, as well. This information only became known to myself in 1999 when researcher Bill Adams sent me the actual yellowing newspaper article itself!  Unfortunately, this was before I had a scanner or was very internet or computer savvy, so I literally recorded what was said there word for word, then I threw out the paper (!)

However, there is much to back up the guarding of buildings rooftops:

Milwaukee, WI 5/12/62:

Pueblo, CO 8/17/62:

 

The next image is from a 1962 book written with the help of Chief Inspector Michael Torina, as well as Chief James Rowley and the Secret Service, in general. Torina, whom I corresponded with twice, confirmed the veracity of what is written. These important standard security procedures were not used in Dallas. Chief Inspector Michael W. Torina, WHO WROTE THE SECRET SERVICE MANUAL [The United States Secret Service by Walter S. Bowen & Harry E. Neal (New York: Chilton, 1960), page 209], told author William Manchester back in 1961 that wherever a Presidential motorcade must slow down for a turn, the entire intersection must be checked in advance. [The Death of a President, 1988 anniversary edition by William Manchester, page 32]

11/21/63 San Antonio, TX- the view from a police helicopter:

The live video of the 6/6/63 San Diego trip is sometimes used to attempt to say that the motorcade here was the same as in Dallas…WRONG! What they CONVENIENTLY fail to mention are the countless Marines lined on each side of the street 5-6 feet apart FACING THE CROWD (as even the live television newscaster makes note of), SAIC Behn on the trip (riding in the front seat) and TWO FLATBED TRUCKS TAKING STILL PHOTOS, MOTION PICTURES, AND A LIVE TELEVISION FEED! Building rooftops were also guarded:

Miscellaneous motorcades

Boston, MA April 1963:

San Juan, Puerto Rico December 1961

Bogota, Columbia Dec 1961:

Mexico July 1 1962: JFK, Jackie, Clint Hill…and the bubbletop in nice weather

Washington, D.C.

Hawaii 6/9/63; Washington, D.C. 6/5/62

Chicago, IL 3/23/63:

Col. George J. McNally, White House Signal Corps and former Secret Service agent, wrote in his book: “But during the Chicago visit [3/23/63], the motorcade was slowed to the pace of a mounted Black Horse Troop, and the police got a warning of Puerto Rican snipers. Helicopters searched the roofs along the way, and no incidents occurred.”[A Million Miles of Presidents, p. 204]. Agent Don Lawton rode on the rear of the limousine and six motorcycles bracketed the vehicle.

Death threats preceded JFK’s 1963 Ireland visit: “Police, newspaper received warnings months before president’s killing. “The documents indicated that 6,404 police officers were on duty throughout Ireland the night Kennedy arrived, of whom 2,690 lined the U.S. president’s route from Dublin airport to the Phoenix Park mansion of Irish President Eamon de Valera. “Costigan wrote that, although the death threats were considered likely to be hoaxes, his officers would use binoculars to monitor rooftops along the route of the presidential motorcade. He said some police would carry firearms, an exceptional measure in a country with a largely unarmed police force, to engage any would-be sniper. “A rifle as well as Thompson guns and revolvers were carried for use against a possible sniper,” Costigan wrote in a post-Kennedy visit memorandum released Friday.

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/16390691/

Police were on rooftops in Billings, MT–September 1963: This was confirmed by researcher Deb Galentine’s assistant police chief father who worked on the security for this trip, as conveyed to the author on 2/17/14. Deb further wrote: “Weeks before JFK’s arrival, my father, who would be in charge of the local police protection, met with Billings’ leaders and some of President Kennedy’s advance people. JFK’s planners wanted the fastest, safest routes possible. They desired routes with no tall buildings and hoped to avoid Billings’ Rimrocks as well. The Rimrocks, a natural sandstone formation riddled with caves, paths, and ledges and dotted with pine trees and shrubs, unevenly jut about 500 feet above the city of Billings. Avoiding them would be impossible since Billings’ airport lies perched atop them. Three separate routes were available from the airport to the President’s venue, and the planners decided to use the one that provided the safest and fastest passage away from the Rimrocks.”

JFK’s trip to Duluth, MN 9/24/63: The following appeared on p. 6 in the October 31, 1963 issue of The Wanderer, which catered predominantly to right-wingers. The Taylor Caldwell that wrote the following letter is the well-known author and John Bircher. Caldwell is replying to Sheldon Emry’s letter dated Oct. 17 commenting on the extensive protection that JFK had around him on his trip to Duluth in early October 1963. “President Kennedy in Danger?” By Taylor Caldwell: “I was deeply interested in Sheldon Emrey’s [sic] account [Wanderer Forum, October 17th] of Air Force men, soldiers with rifles at the ready, Highway Patrol officers, helicopters, guards, etc., being out in full force day and night when President Kennedy visited Duluth. This account is most extraordinary – but even more alarming, and not for the reasons Mr. Emery [sic] gives: “Mr. Kennedy is now showing a visible power in the soldiers that he had not openly displayed before”…It is possible that Mr. Kennedy is in personal jeopardy from them, a matter which is not being mentioned in the newspapers. Indeed, it is very probable. Presidents have been murdered before in our history, and in less dreadful times…The very fact that Mr. Kennedy is apparently now being so closely guarded should alarm all of us very deeply, whether or not we agree with the President on political matters. The mere thought of Mr. Kennedy being assassinated should make all of us shudder for the repercussions in America would be most terrible and disorder would result at the very least [emphasis added].” The bubbletop was used on this trip, as well. Researcher Chad Carlson wrote to me regarding this very same trip: “I am friends with a man here who was in charge of JFK’s trip to Duluth, MN here in September of 1963. I ask him a lot about JFK. He got to talk one on-one with the President for 30 minutes before he made his rounds and speeches. His name is Larry Yetka, former Minnesota Supreme Court justice. Larry said that he wondered what [Mafia boss] Sam Giancana of Chicago was up to on 11-22-63. I told him that I had been watching the motorcade in Dallas on 11-22-63 and told him it looked very “lax.” He said, “Yes it was.” So I asked him how was security in Duluth in Sept.1963? He said, “Tight as hell-men were on the rooftops even.” So that’s the answers I got out of him on that. Vince, that Larry Yetka guy is quite the man. He had met President’s Truman, Kennedy, and LBJ. He was close friends with former Vice-President Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota. He also met former Vice-President Walter Mondale of Minnesota. Larry went to the 1956 and 1964 Democratic National Conventions…at one of them he exchanged unpleasant words with Texas Gov. John Connolly. I’d have to ask him again what happened with that. He was invited to the White House rose garden ceremony under LBJ. The man was a lawyer, and a Minnesota Supreme Court Justice. I think he’s around 86 so the time to ask questions is now.

JFK’s trip to Miami 11/18/63: Bob Hoelscher worked for the Miami-Dade Police Department for 50 years and was a counter-sniper and observer on the terrace deck of the airport hotel on November 18, 1963, the day Kennedy arrived in Miami. He guarded almost every VIP that came through Dade County from Kennedy to Clinton and started the tactical special weapons team, later known as SWAT, in 1970. Documents reveal a bomb threat against JFK in Miami just days before his death. Hoelscher told CBSMiami.com that he knew of potential threats to the president ahead of his November visit. “I was told that information had been developed that the Cubans might start a protest at an unknown location and they might make an attempt on the life of the President if there was sufficient distraction,” Hoelscher said. “I was told to keep this information to myself, watch the periphery and look for anything unusual.” While Hoelscher and some others in the police department knew, it was strictly on a “need to know” basis. “The information about the death threat was not shared with the rank and file out of fear that the media would find out,” Hoelscher said.

 

 

Agents Blaine, Giannoules, Hill, Landis and Pontius surround JFK and Jackie in the limo, Orange Bowl, FL December 1962:

The aforementioned 11/18/63 Tampa trip:

7/2/63 Rome:

The aforementioned June 1963 Berlin trip:

New York 9/20/63:

North Carolina 1961:

France April 1961:

Different motorcades- press photographers (still, motion picture) in FRONT of the limousine:

JFK CHICAGO, IL 1961–FLATBED TRUCK IN FRONT OF LIMO, STILL AND MOTION PHOTOGRAPHERS

Dallas? Cancelled at the last minute:

Motorcycles? The HSCA termed the Dallas trip “uniquely insecure”:

11/21/63 Houston:

Chief Curry wanted a police car inserted into the motorcade, which was fairly common in prior motorcades:

So did Captain Fritz of Homicide (again, like the police car, a detective car was used to augment the Secret Service follow-up car in many prior motorcades):

President Kennedy didn’t have “hundreds” of motorcades. He had a very finite number of motorcades and trips: