Friday, October 5, 2018

Secret Service names.

As everyone knows, at least thanks to Wikipedia, the Secret Service uses code names for U.S. presidents and their families, assigned by the White House Communications Agency. The agency provides a list, and the president can make the choice among them. (President Obama chose "Renegade," because there's nothing more anti-establishment than the President of the United States, I guess. I think Trump may be "Le Grand Orange," since that's available now.) Seems silly that code names would be publicized, but apparently there's no real secrecy need for them anymore--they are useful as shorthand and for the sake of tradition.

The practice started with Truman, who was "General." Ike, who had been an actual general, was stuck with "Scorecard." Kennedy had the appropriate name "Lancer." Reagan's was also appropriate: "Rawhide." Curious that Clinton's was "Eagle" and not, maybe, "Pants."

Secret Service protection for the president dates back to the assassination of McKinley in 1901. But you have to wonder what some of our other presidents would have had as their code names, were the practice of guarding and naming older than they are. Hmm... perhaps something like...

Abraham Lincoln: Stretch

Franklin Pierce: Cipher

Rutherford B. Hayes: Fuzz

William Taft: Lumpy

John Quincy Adams: Littlejohn

George Washington: Optimus Prime

William Henry Harrison: Sneezy

James Madison: Half-Pint

James Monroe: Pint

Andrew Jackson: Quart

Ulysses S. Grant: Gallon

Calvin Coolidge: Hush

(First term) Grover Cleveland: Rocks

(Second term) Grover Cleveland: Redux

Theodore Roosevelt: Chaps

Franklin D. Roosevelt: Specs

Thomas Jefferson: Ploughman

Woodrow Wilson: Nag

Martin Van Buren: Baldy

James Buchanan: Freebird

Chester A. Arthur: Buddy

C'mon, doesn't he look like a Buddy to you? 


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