Barnidge: Secret Service agent dispels JFK conspiracy theories
By Tom Barnidge
Contra Costa Times columnist
12/20/2010
ONE OF THE recurring questions that Gerald Blaine hears as he talks about President John F. Kennedy's assassination is why he now, 47 years later, chose to write a book about the tragedy.
The former Secret Service agent, who served throughout Kennedy's presidency, said someone needed to set the record straight.
"Unfortunately, since the assassination, history has been dominated by a cottage industry called conspiracy theory," he said. "When it finally reached the point where people started accusing the agents of being part of it, well "..."
No event in American history has been more thoroughly debated or dissected than the death of our 35th president. Conspiracy theorists have linked the assassination to organized crime, Fidel Castro and every alphabet organization from the KGB to the FBI to the CIA.
If you Google "JFK assassination," you will get 882,000 hits and dozens of far-flung theories.
Judging by the crowd at the Pleasanton Library on Sunday, when Blaine talked about his book, "Kennedy Detail," interest has not waned. About 250 people crammed into a room where a sign read: "Maximum Occupancy: 139." Dozens more were turned away.
Blaine, 84, said he went years without talking about JFK's death -- not even to his family.
"I didn't want to bother the family," he said, "and I didn't know how to deal with it. I found out that was consistent with every agent who worked for President
Kennedy. Not one of them talked about it."
Blaine is certain that Lee Harvey Oswald worked alone. His marksmanship skills were more than adequate, and he perfectly fit an assassin's profile.
"He had psychiatric problems when he was a young man," Blaine said. "He had problems in military service and problems holding down a job. He even had a problem when he tried to defect, and he had a marriage that failed.
"Also, about a month or two before taking a shot at the president, he took a shot at a general in Texas. The bullet just missed, but it was traced back to Oswald's rifle."
Kennedy was shot while riding in an open-top car -- a president rides only in bulletproof vehicles today, Blaine said -- but that was in keeping with his personality. He wanted to see and be seen by the people.
The fateful Dallas appearance marked the last of several southern stops, including Tampa, Fla., San Antonio and Houston. Earlier in the trip, Secret Service agents rode on the back of the presidential limousine, which likely would have obstructed Oswald's aim. Kennedy stopped that.
"The president told us, 'I've got to use my political style, and my political style is to be among the people, to greet them and have them be able to see me,' " Blaine said.
The assassination still torments the former agent, but what makes matters worse is what he regards as misrepresentation of what he knows to be true.
"How many of you saw the movie 'JFK'?" he asked, referencing a film that reinforced conspiracy theories. "Unfortunately for our youth, that seems to be their history book.
"An article last month in USA Today said 82 percent of young people between 18 and 29 believe that President Kennedy's assassination was a conspiracy. "
He said he has no illusions of transforming the doubters, but he hopes his book, which includes input from fellow agents, will at least put facts on the table.
"If we make history out of the wild stories," he said, "you'll never trust history again." Blaine said he knows the truth about what happened in Dallas. He's had to live with it for 47 years.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Secret Service MANUAL
You won't find any Secret Service manual anywhere from any era: they are classified. And, yes: I am 1000000000000% sure there was and is and always has been a manual. Periodically, I get people randomly questioning the late Col Fletcher Prouty's "contention" that there was a manual...on THAT score, he was correct.
Beyond my absolute certainty, think about it this way: every major employer has an employee handbook---why wouldn't the Secret Service ("no,that's fine, boys; just go out there and fly blind: no written procedures or precedent needed" LOL)
Vince
For the proof there is/was a pre-assassination manual, see the only two over-the counter sources:
http://www.aarclibrary.org/publib/jfk/wc/wcvols/wh18/html/WH_Vol18_0340a.htm
and
Bowen and Neal, "The United States Secret Service" , 1960, p. 209
Vince Palamara
Beyond my absolute certainty, think about it this way: every major employer has an employee handbook---why wouldn't the Secret Service ("no,that's fine, boys; just go out there and fly blind: no written procedures or precedent needed" LOL)
Vince
For the proof there is/was a pre-assassination manual, see the only two over-the counter sources:
http://www.aarclibrary.org/publib/jfk/wc/wcvols/wh18/html/WH_Vol18_0340a.htm
and
Bowen and Neal, "The United States Secret Service" , 1960, p. 209
Vince Palamara
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Slick Propaganda: The Discovery Channel documentary “The Kennedy Detail” (based on the 2010 Gerald Blaine book of the same name)- A Review by Vince Palamara
Slick Propaganda: The Discovery Channel documentary “The Kennedy Detail” (based on the 2010 Gerald Blaine book of the same name)- A Review by Vince Palamara
Before I even begin to discuss this two-hour program, it is necessary for one to have read my lengthy review of the book of the same name, “The Kennedy Detail.” This Discovery Channel documentary originally aired---twice---on 12/2/10 and, again, on 12/4/10 (It was originally supposed to debut on the 47th anniversary of the assassination on 11/22/10 but, for some reason or reasons unknown, the show aired a week and a half later. Like the release of the book on 11/2/10, Election Day, the marketing strategy of Blaine’s work was a tad suspect, in my opinion, but I digress). As one who has interviewed and corresponded with most of the Secret Service agents who served under JFK , I was most looking forward to this documentary, as there can be an appeal to an audio/ visual format of one’s point-of-view that can get lost in translation in strict black and white writings. That said, as with the book of the same name, there are some things to commend in “The Kennedy Detail” television special, while there are also several noteworthy items to condemn or, at the very least, tread cautiously on.
I must give credit where credit is due: I was most impressed with many of the visuals—the many sundry films and photographs used--- in this documentary. In addition, I was also heartened to see then-and –now photographs of the agents and some of their wives, as well. For the record, the JFK Secret Service agents involved in the production were (naturally) Gerald Blaine (in Austin on 11/22/63), Clint Hill (in Dallas on 11/22/63), Paul Landis (same), Winston Lawson (same), David Grant (same, albeit at the Trade Mart), Ron Pontius (the 11/21/63 Houston lead advance agent), and, oddly enough, Toby Chandler (attending Secret Service school in Washington, D.C. on 11/22/63). The non-assassination aspects of this program where, by and large, entertaining and somewhat riveting at times; in this regard, I don’t have much of a problem with these areas of the production, per se, except with the almost too saccharine “Camelot” portrayal of the Kennedys and the “choir-boy”, near angelic image that was portrayed of the agents themselves, traits also to be found in the book, as well. Then again, regarding the latter image portrayal, one would think it would be in Blaine’s best interest to put the best foot forward, so to speak, and present the agents in the finest light possible, especially in light of their miserable failings on 11/22/63, the day President Kennedy was assassinated under their watch.
There is an old saying: “The devil is in the details.” It is with this in mind that a look at some of those details, mentioned in the program or avoided, as they pertain to the Secret Service and the assassination of JFK, is in order now.
In a curious and ironic program note, the 2009 Discovery Channel documentary “Secrets of the Secret Service” aired right before both initial airings of “The Kennedy Detail” program and, in this show, an official Secret Service documentary, the narrator, as well as a couple former agents, Joseph Funk and Joe Petro, briefly mention the mistakes the agents made with regard to the assassination that go directly against what is being espoused in the Blaine production; quite a noticeable contrast, to say the least, and one many people, myself included, noticed immediately ! In general, the “blame-the-victim” (JFK) notion that is such part and parcel of both the Blaine book and the documentary is largely replaced by rightfully noting the mistakes made by the agency (taking the president through Dealey Plaza, in particular), as well as the equally false “blame-the-staff” idea, a notion Blaine does not even MENTION in his book and is, for the record, like blaming JFK for the security deficiencies, false. Specifically, the most alarming contrast with “The Kennedy Detail” program is what “The Secrets of the Secret Service” decided TO deal with that the Blaine show strangely avoided (although it is mentioned in his book ): the infamous WFAA/ ABC black and white video of an agent being recalled at Love Field during the start of the motorcade in Dallas. This program “buys into” my notion of what is being depicted hook, line, and sinker, which is quite an endorsement, considering that, once again, this is an official Secret Service documentary, made with agency input (as mentioned in my review of the book, many other people “bought into” my notion of what is being shown in this footage, including, notably, former JFK agent Larry Newman, the Rybka family, and countless authors and researchers who have viewed the video, not to mention the 3 million plus people who have viewed this controversial video, popularized by myself, on You Tube). It is strange that Blaine chose not to show this footage, even to debunk it. Equally disturbing is the aforementioned contrast between his views, as espoused only in his book, and my views, as displayed on the very same network on the very same night of Blaine’s documentary!
To his “credit”, Blaine and Hill both endorse their book point-of-view regarding the Love Field agent recall video during their joint appearance on C-SPAN on 11/28/10 . Ironically, I was discussed by the agents and host Brian Lamb on the show (I was also noted in a major review of the book in the Vancouver Sun but, again, I digress)! For her part, co-author Lisa McCubbin posted the following on 11/24/10 on the official Facebook edition of “The Kennedy Detail” : “Contrary to Vince Palamara's claims, the book was absolutely NOT written to counteract his letter to Clint Hill. Mr. Hill never read Palamara's letter--it went straight into the trash. Gerald Blaine wrote this book on his volition, and Mr. Hill contributed after much deliberation (emphasis added).” For his part, Hill told Brian Lamb on the aforementioned C-SPAN program four days later: “I recall receiving a letter which I sent back to him. I didn’t bother with it…he called me and I said ”Hello” but that was about it. But he alleges that because he sent me a letter 22 pages in length apparently, and that I discussed that with Jerry. I forgot that I ever got a 22-page letter from this particular individual until I heard him say it on TV and I never discussed it with Jerry or anybody else because it wasn’t important to me (emphasis added).” Yet, in the biggest contradiction of all, Blaine QUOTED FROM MY LETTER TO HILL when I spoke to him on 6/10/05 and mentioned his deep friendship with Hill, as well, extending back to the late 1950’s! For the record, I received Hill’s signed receipt for the letter and it was NEVER returned to me, either. For his part, Blaine stated on the very same C-SPAN program: “I have never talked to any author of a book,” another blatant falsehood that went unchallenged---Blaine was interviewed on 5/12/65 for Manchester’s massive best-selling “The Death of a President” (Blaine is also thanked in Manchester’s “One Brief Shining Moment”, to boot) AND he was interviewed 2/7/04 and 6/10/05, not to mention e-mail correspondence, by myself for MY book “Survivor’s Guilt: The Secret Service & The Failure To Protect The President.”
Bear with this seeming digression just a tad more, for it does indeed bear directly on both Blaine’s book and on the documentary under specific discussion herein. On the C-SPAN appearance with Hill, regarding myself, Blaine stated: “I am familiar with him, I don’t know him… My assessment of Mr. Palamara is that he called probably all of the agents [true], and what agent who answers a phone is going to answer a question ”Was President Kennedy easy to protect?” [many of them did, and, like Blaine, told me that JFK was a very nice man, never interfered with the actions of the Secret Service at all, nor did President Kennedy ever order the agents off his limousine] Well, probably he was too easy to protect because he was assassinated [what?]. But the fact that the agents aren’t going to tell him anything [many told me information of much value, Blaine included]and he alludes to the fact that when I wrote the book, most of these people were dead. Well, I worked with these people, I knew them like brothers and I knew exactly what was going on and always respected Jim Rowley because he stood up to the issue and said ”Look, we can’t say the President invited himself to be killed so let’s squash this.” So that was the word throughout the Secret Service and he – Mr. Palamara is – there are a number of things that had happened [sic] that he has no credibility [your opinion, Mr. Blaine], he is a self-described expert in his area which I don’t know what it is, he was born after the assassination [as was your co-author, Lisa McCubbin!]and he keeps creating solutions to the assassination until they are proven wrong [again, your opinion, Mr. Blaine].” But Blaine wasn’t finished with me just yet: “The Zapruder film, when the Zapruder film was run at normal speed, another theme that Palamara throws out is that Bill Greer stopped the car, when it’s run at its normal speed, you will notice the car absolutely does not stop at all. This happened in less than six seconds after the President was hit in the throat and moving along (emphasis added).” Oh, so you agree with my “solutions” that JFK was shot in the neck from the FRONT, do you, Mr. Blaine? And there were close to SIXTY WITNESSES to the limousine slowing or stopping, including SEVEN SECRET SERVICE AGENTS AND JACQUELINE KENNEDY---not my “theme” or theory, just the facts. Returning directly to “The Kennedy Detail” documentary, Ron Pontius specifically refers to one of my articles (also a part of a chapter in my book ) without naming me . As the narrator, Martin Sheen, notes: “The most painful theories point fingers at the agents themselves.” To his credit, Pontius mentioned earlier in the program how the threats to Kennedy’s life increased dramatically over those directed toward Eisenhower when JFK took office. That said, the same narrator later mentioned that “Dallas worried the men on the detail,” a notion seemingly not made manifest in the security preparations for the fateful Dallas trip.
Keeping all of these points into focus, as with the book itself, it is the fraudulent allegations that JFK ordered the agents off the limousine in Tampa, Florida on 11/18/63, which allegedly were made into standing orders for Kennedy’s trip to Texas four days later, that is given a spotlight herein. Blaine’s words are simply incredible (literally, NOT credible) and deserve to be quoted, verbatim, here: “President Kennedy made a decision, and he politely told everybody, ‘You know, we’re starting the campaign now, and the people are my asset,’" said agent Jerry Blaine. "And so, we all of a sudden understood. It left a firm command to stay off the back of the car." Huh? “Everybody”? THAT alleged statement “left a firm command”? As I stated in the review for Blaine’s book, not only do many films and photos depict the agents (still) riding on (or walking/ jogging very near) the rear of the limousine in Tampa , INCLUDING A FEW SHOWN IN THIS DOCUMENTARY, Congressman Sam Gibbons, who actually rode a mere foot away IN the car with JFK, wrote to me in a letter 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.” Also, photographer Tony Zappone, then a 16-year-old witness to the motorcade in Tampa (one of whose photos for this motorcade was ironically used in The Kennedy Detail!), told me that the agents were “definitely on the back of the car for most of the day until they started back for MacDill AFB at the end of the day.” Agent Hill fibs and blames the entering of the freeway via Dealey Plaza as the reason agents weren’t on the back of the car during the shooting , neglecting to mention the fact that, during prior trips, the agents rode on the rear of the car at fast highway speeds, including IN TAMPA four days before, as well as in Berlin and Bogota, Columbia, to name just a couple others. Again, please see my detailed review of “The Kennedy Detail” book for much more on this.
While it is nice to see Toby Chandler and David Grant talk about JFK, they add little or nothing to the assassination debate itself (and neither Grant nor Hill mention the fact that Grant is Clint Hill’s brother in law, a fact revealed to myself when I spoke to Gerald Blaine on 6/10/05). For his part, Paul Landis lambastes researchers for “having a field day” with conspiracy theories, yet doesn’t mention that HE himself tremendously helped these “theorists” via his reports (plural) describing a shot to JFK from the FRONT. Hill further confirms that the back of JFK’s head was gone. Finally, Agent Lawson says that there were only three shots, yet fails to mention that, around the very same time as the filming of this documentary, he also stated that he “saw a huge hole in the back of the president’s head.”
Is it any wonder, then, why I refer to “The Kennedy Detail” Discovery Channel documentary as being slick propaganda, designed to blame President Kennedy for his own assassination by falsely stating that he ordered the agents off his limousine, as well as propagating the whole Oswald-acted-alone mantra?
Viewer beware.
Before I even begin to discuss this two-hour program, it is necessary for one to have read my lengthy review of the book of the same name, “The Kennedy Detail.” This Discovery Channel documentary originally aired---twice---on 12/2/10 and, again, on 12/4/10 (It was originally supposed to debut on the 47th anniversary of the assassination on 11/22/10 but, for some reason or reasons unknown, the show aired a week and a half later. Like the release of the book on 11/2/10, Election Day, the marketing strategy of Blaine’s work was a tad suspect, in my opinion, but I digress). As one who has interviewed and corresponded with most of the Secret Service agents who served under JFK , I was most looking forward to this documentary, as there can be an appeal to an audio/ visual format of one’s point-of-view that can get lost in translation in strict black and white writings. That said, as with the book of the same name, there are some things to commend in “The Kennedy Detail” television special, while there are also several noteworthy items to condemn or, at the very least, tread cautiously on.
I must give credit where credit is due: I was most impressed with many of the visuals—the many sundry films and photographs used--- in this documentary. In addition, I was also heartened to see then-and –now photographs of the agents and some of their wives, as well. For the record, the JFK Secret Service agents involved in the production were (naturally) Gerald Blaine (in Austin on 11/22/63), Clint Hill (in Dallas on 11/22/63), Paul Landis (same), Winston Lawson (same), David Grant (same, albeit at the Trade Mart), Ron Pontius (the 11/21/63 Houston lead advance agent), and, oddly enough, Toby Chandler (attending Secret Service school in Washington, D.C. on 11/22/63). The non-assassination aspects of this program where, by and large, entertaining and somewhat riveting at times; in this regard, I don’t have much of a problem with these areas of the production, per se, except with the almost too saccharine “Camelot” portrayal of the Kennedys and the “choir-boy”, near angelic image that was portrayed of the agents themselves, traits also to be found in the book, as well. Then again, regarding the latter image portrayal, one would think it would be in Blaine’s best interest to put the best foot forward, so to speak, and present the agents in the finest light possible, especially in light of their miserable failings on 11/22/63, the day President Kennedy was assassinated under their watch.
There is an old saying: “The devil is in the details.” It is with this in mind that a look at some of those details, mentioned in the program or avoided, as they pertain to the Secret Service and the assassination of JFK, is in order now.
In a curious and ironic program note, the 2009 Discovery Channel documentary “Secrets of the Secret Service” aired right before both initial airings of “The Kennedy Detail” program and, in this show, an official Secret Service documentary, the narrator, as well as a couple former agents, Joseph Funk and Joe Petro, briefly mention the mistakes the agents made with regard to the assassination that go directly against what is being espoused in the Blaine production; quite a noticeable contrast, to say the least, and one many people, myself included, noticed immediately ! In general, the “blame-the-victim” (JFK) notion that is such part and parcel of both the Blaine book and the documentary is largely replaced by rightfully noting the mistakes made by the agency (taking the president through Dealey Plaza, in particular), as well as the equally false “blame-the-staff” idea, a notion Blaine does not even MENTION in his book and is, for the record, like blaming JFK for the security deficiencies, false. Specifically, the most alarming contrast with “The Kennedy Detail” program is what “The Secrets of the Secret Service” decided TO deal with that the Blaine show strangely avoided (although it is mentioned in his book ): the infamous WFAA/ ABC black and white video of an agent being recalled at Love Field during the start of the motorcade in Dallas. This program “buys into” my notion of what is being depicted hook, line, and sinker, which is quite an endorsement, considering that, once again, this is an official Secret Service documentary, made with agency input (as mentioned in my review of the book, many other people “bought into” my notion of what is being shown in this footage, including, notably, former JFK agent Larry Newman, the Rybka family, and countless authors and researchers who have viewed the video, not to mention the 3 million plus people who have viewed this controversial video, popularized by myself, on You Tube). It is strange that Blaine chose not to show this footage, even to debunk it. Equally disturbing is the aforementioned contrast between his views, as espoused only in his book, and my views, as displayed on the very same network on the very same night of Blaine’s documentary!
To his “credit”, Blaine and Hill both endorse their book point-of-view regarding the Love Field agent recall video during their joint appearance on C-SPAN on 11/28/10 . Ironically, I was discussed by the agents and host Brian Lamb on the show (I was also noted in a major review of the book in the Vancouver Sun but, again, I digress)! For her part, co-author Lisa McCubbin posted the following on 11/24/10 on the official Facebook edition of “The Kennedy Detail” : “Contrary to Vince Palamara's claims, the book was absolutely NOT written to counteract his letter to Clint Hill. Mr. Hill never read Palamara's letter--it went straight into the trash. Gerald Blaine wrote this book on his volition, and Mr. Hill contributed after much deliberation (emphasis added).” For his part, Hill told Brian Lamb on the aforementioned C-SPAN program four days later: “I recall receiving a letter which I sent back to him. I didn’t bother with it…he called me and I said ”Hello” but that was about it. But he alleges that because he sent me a letter 22 pages in length apparently, and that I discussed that with Jerry. I forgot that I ever got a 22-page letter from this particular individual until I heard him say it on TV and I never discussed it with Jerry or anybody else because it wasn’t important to me (emphasis added).” Yet, in the biggest contradiction of all, Blaine QUOTED FROM MY LETTER TO HILL when I spoke to him on 6/10/05 and mentioned his deep friendship with Hill, as well, extending back to the late 1950’s! For the record, I received Hill’s signed receipt for the letter and it was NEVER returned to me, either. For his part, Blaine stated on the very same C-SPAN program: “I have never talked to any author of a book,” another blatant falsehood that went unchallenged---Blaine was interviewed on 5/12/65 for Manchester’s massive best-selling “The Death of a President” (Blaine is also thanked in Manchester’s “One Brief Shining Moment”, to boot) AND he was interviewed 2/7/04 and 6/10/05, not to mention e-mail correspondence, by myself for MY book “Survivor’s Guilt: The Secret Service & The Failure To Protect The President.”
Bear with this seeming digression just a tad more, for it does indeed bear directly on both Blaine’s book and on the documentary under specific discussion herein. On the C-SPAN appearance with Hill, regarding myself, Blaine stated: “I am familiar with him, I don’t know him… My assessment of Mr. Palamara is that he called probably all of the agents [true], and what agent who answers a phone is going to answer a question ”Was President Kennedy easy to protect?” [many of them did, and, like Blaine, told me that JFK was a very nice man, never interfered with the actions of the Secret Service at all, nor did President Kennedy ever order the agents off his limousine] Well, probably he was too easy to protect because he was assassinated [what?]. But the fact that the agents aren’t going to tell him anything [many told me information of much value, Blaine included]and he alludes to the fact that when I wrote the book, most of these people were dead. Well, I worked with these people, I knew them like brothers and I knew exactly what was going on and always respected Jim Rowley because he stood up to the issue and said ”Look, we can’t say the President invited himself to be killed so let’s squash this.” So that was the word throughout the Secret Service and he – Mr. Palamara is – there are a number of things that had happened [sic] that he has no credibility [your opinion, Mr. Blaine], he is a self-described expert in his area which I don’t know what it is, he was born after the assassination [as was your co-author, Lisa McCubbin!]and he keeps creating solutions to the assassination until they are proven wrong [again, your opinion, Mr. Blaine].” But Blaine wasn’t finished with me just yet: “The Zapruder film, when the Zapruder film was run at normal speed, another theme that Palamara throws out is that Bill Greer stopped the car, when it’s run at its normal speed, you will notice the car absolutely does not stop at all. This happened in less than six seconds after the President was hit in the throat and moving along (emphasis added).” Oh, so you agree with my “solutions” that JFK was shot in the neck from the FRONT, do you, Mr. Blaine? And there were close to SIXTY WITNESSES to the limousine slowing or stopping, including SEVEN SECRET SERVICE AGENTS AND JACQUELINE KENNEDY---not my “theme” or theory, just the facts. Returning directly to “The Kennedy Detail” documentary, Ron Pontius specifically refers to one of my articles (also a part of a chapter in my book ) without naming me . As the narrator, Martin Sheen, notes: “The most painful theories point fingers at the agents themselves.” To his credit, Pontius mentioned earlier in the program how the threats to Kennedy’s life increased dramatically over those directed toward Eisenhower when JFK took office. That said, the same narrator later mentioned that “Dallas worried the men on the detail,” a notion seemingly not made manifest in the security preparations for the fateful Dallas trip.
Keeping all of these points into focus, as with the book itself, it is the fraudulent allegations that JFK ordered the agents off the limousine in Tampa, Florida on 11/18/63, which allegedly were made into standing orders for Kennedy’s trip to Texas four days later, that is given a spotlight herein. Blaine’s words are simply incredible (literally, NOT credible) and deserve to be quoted, verbatim, here: “President Kennedy made a decision, and he politely told everybody, ‘You know, we’re starting the campaign now, and the people are my asset,’" said agent Jerry Blaine. "And so, we all of a sudden understood. It left a firm command to stay off the back of the car." Huh? “Everybody”? THAT alleged statement “left a firm command”? As I stated in the review for Blaine’s book, not only do many films and photos depict the agents (still) riding on (or walking/ jogging very near) the rear of the limousine in Tampa , INCLUDING A FEW SHOWN IN THIS DOCUMENTARY, Congressman Sam Gibbons, who actually rode a mere foot away IN the car with JFK, wrote to me in a letter 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.” Also, photographer Tony Zappone, then a 16-year-old witness to the motorcade in Tampa (one of whose photos for this motorcade was ironically used in The Kennedy Detail!), told me that the agents were “definitely on the back of the car for most of the day until they started back for MacDill AFB at the end of the day.” Agent Hill fibs and blames the entering of the freeway via Dealey Plaza as the reason agents weren’t on the back of the car during the shooting , neglecting to mention the fact that, during prior trips, the agents rode on the rear of the car at fast highway speeds, including IN TAMPA four days before, as well as in Berlin and Bogota, Columbia, to name just a couple others. Again, please see my detailed review of “The Kennedy Detail” book for much more on this.
While it is nice to see Toby Chandler and David Grant talk about JFK, they add little or nothing to the assassination debate itself (and neither Grant nor Hill mention the fact that Grant is Clint Hill’s brother in law, a fact revealed to myself when I spoke to Gerald Blaine on 6/10/05). For his part, Paul Landis lambastes researchers for “having a field day” with conspiracy theories, yet doesn’t mention that HE himself tremendously helped these “theorists” via his reports (plural) describing a shot to JFK from the FRONT. Hill further confirms that the back of JFK’s head was gone. Finally, Agent Lawson says that there were only three shots, yet fails to mention that, around the very same time as the filming of this documentary, he also stated that he “saw a huge hole in the back of the president’s head.”
Is it any wonder, then, why I refer to “The Kennedy Detail” Discovery Channel documentary as being slick propaganda, designed to blame President Kennedy for his own assassination by falsely stating that he ordered the agents off his limousine, as well as propagating the whole Oswald-acted-alone mantra?
Viewer beware.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
VERY funny re: Amazon reviews of "The Kennedy Detail"
VERY funny re: Amazon reviews of "The Kennedy Detail"
It is VERY obvious that the grand majority of the 5-star, glowing reviews are from family and friends---one is from former agent Andy Berger's daughter, a few are from Colorado (where Blaine lives), and one is from a friend of former agent Win Lawson. One review even states "Read the book-not the REVIEWS" ...could it be because the reviews are mixed to awful, perhaps?
Expect years---decades---of my rebuttal and response to this stuff. I don't take too kindly to certified letters. To quote Rambo: "Let it go! Let it go or I'll give you a war you won't believe." He didn't "let it go" (C-Span lies, etc.)...so you know the rest.
Vince Palamara
Like Lisa McCubbin, born AFTER 11/22/63---and you point is???
It is VERY obvious that the grand majority of the 5-star, glowing reviews are from family and friends---one is from former agent Andy Berger's daughter, a few are from Colorado (where Blaine lives), and one is from a friend of former agent Win Lawson. One review even states "Read the book-not the REVIEWS" ...could it be because the reviews are mixed to awful, perhaps?
Expect years---decades---of my rebuttal and response to this stuff. I don't take too kindly to certified letters. To quote Rambo: "Let it go! Let it go or I'll give you a war you won't believe." He didn't "let it go" (C-Span lies, etc.)...so you know the rest.
Vince Palamara
Like Lisa McCubbin, born AFTER 11/22/63---and you point is???
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Excellent comments on "The Kennedy Detail" Discovery Channel special by Randy Gunter & Randy Owen
"The Warren Omission Channel Strikes Again!"
Sat Dec-04-10 12:57 AM by Randy Gunter
think it is very easy to see this presentation from the “Warren Omission Channel” aka Discovery Channel, for what it is; An attempt by these remaining USSS agents to do a self-cleansing of their souls before they check out to meet their maker. These agents have waited 47 years to return to Dallas and basically address or disclose nothing? Why? Because they are still tormented by the Dealey Plaza Demons and Ghosts of November 22, 1963. Did you notice Win Lawson in his hospital room or convalescent home? He's on his deathbed and trying to exorcise the demons.
Like many others have said, they addressed none of the plethora of USSS issues that occurred during the Dallas Debacle but yet had the nerve to complain about “their workload”, “their long hours” and “their low pay” of 1963. Jerry Blaine made the comment “I was on poverty level, had I lived in Chicago.” I think this is a gross lie, his current day annual salary comes in around $65K.
Sorry fellows, if you’re looking for sympathy from me, it isn’t happening. You chose your job, and you failed miserably at it. If you didn’t like it, quit and move on to something else (Like Jerry “Complain” Blaine did after JFK was killed). He said he "walked out and later had regrets".
As a veteran of numerous USSS missions, I can speak personally to the life of a USSS agent. You have the prestige of protecting the most important person in the world and his family, and other heads of state. You travel to some of the most exotic and exciting places in the world. You stay in some of the best hotels, resorts, and eat some of the finest cuisine known to mankind. You have the US Government provide you with PERDIEM for travel and a clothing allowance to purchase business suits and wardrobe on top of your regular pay. You meet famous persons from all types of venues. You draw a federal retirement when you're eligible. How is this so bad again?
The USSS detail had a full day on November 21, 1963; Houston, San Antonio, and a return to Fort Worth at Midnight. So, what did they do? Go to sleep? No. They decided to make a long day the longest day by going out and staying out drinking and carousing until 5 or 6 in the a.m. on November 22nd. Then report for duty within 1-2 hours to protect the President. This ladies and gentlemen was “Dereliction of Duty” in it’s highest regard.
They were sworn to protect the President and his family, and prohibited from drinking alcohol while serving in this capacity. Whenever, I was performing a USSS mission, I was cautioned, counseled, whatever you wish to call it, that I if I was found to be drinking alcohol or drunk during a USSS mission (either by being caught in the act or the smell of alcohol on my breath), I would be court-martialed by the UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice).
Total Dereliction of Duty by these agents, but yet was anyone ever punished or reprimanded for their actions? No. They are viewed by some as “Heros”. Since when are the actions I have described, one of a “Hero”?
Clint Hill said the only way he came to understand and accept what happened in DP that fateful day was by admitting “That the shooter had the advantage that day.”
Oh really, Mr. Hill? If that isn’t the biggest copout I’ve ever heard, I don’t know what is. So you and your fellow USSS agents were doing all you could by staying out all night drinking, and by compromising the security and integrity of the parade route (i.e. By not posting agents or security in high threat and vulnerable areas such as the slow turns where open windows were prevalent and where cover and concealment were obvious threats (i.e. Grassy Knoll, Storm Drains, Open Building Windows), and by ordering agents not to react even when JFK was under attack?
Wow, I guess when you give all of those advantages away without a fight and saying that “The shooter had all the advantage that day”, you are correct Mr. Hill.
Randy
"A young man who does not have what it takes to perform military service is not likely to have what it takes to make a living." - John F. Kennedy
---------------
After a delay in the U.S., “The Kennedy Detail” documentary aired last night on the Canadian Discovery Channel. The two-hour special, with former Secret Service agents, has its highlights and lowlights.
For those interested in seeing rare family films and photos of the Kennedys, the show aired several I have never seen before. There is some remarkable footage and fascinating anecdotes by some of the agents. Recently, documentary filmmakers have been using an interesting technique to make still photographs come alive. It's a simulated 3-D effect in which the subjects in the photo appear closer to the camera than the rest of the picture, and in some cases, there is a slow zoom-in on the subjects making it appear they are slowly moving. Unfortunately, the producers and edits picked the wrong picture to use this technique on. I'll explain later.
In the lead-up to the assassination, the documentary did an excellent job of showing what the Secret Service agents went through during the course of their duties...the low pay, the days and weeks of being away from their own families, and their attachment to the subjects they were supposed to protect. The agents' memories of the death of infant Patrick Kennedy is just one of the very moving segments of the show.
There are some rare views of JFK's visit to Florida in the days before his death. However, there is no discussion of possible plots to kill him, as alleged in some recent books.
As for the assassination, there is a lot of rarely seen footage. For longtime researchers, they won't find anything new, however. There is a cool animation showing the location of some of the agents in the motorcade.
It's heartbreaking to see interview subjects break down and cry, like several did in the 1988 series “The Men Who Killed Kennedy.” That was 25 years after the assassination. Now, nearly 50 years later, it's probably even more heartbreaking to see some of the agents come to tears during parts of their narrative after all these years.
Some of the issues not addressed in the show include:
-JFK's infidelities (I'd like to know what they knew and how it made them feel—this was addressed in the 2003 book “The Dark Side of Camelot” and the ABC-TV special back then “Dangerous World,” but I would have liked to have heard these particular agents' versions),
-the late night in Fort Worth the night before (not one word was mentioned about this),
-the stand-down footage at Love Field (not only was it not addressed, it wasn't even shown),
-reports of a dead SS agent (I would have liked to have seen how the agents thought this story got started—there has been some coverage elsewhere of the agents' wives who thought the worst when they heard these reports),
-the confrontation with the FBI at Parkland (an FBI agent was reportedly “decked” by a SS agent when the G-man entered the emergency area of Parkland),
-the cleaning of the limo at Parkland (any ideas on who did it and why),
-preparations for the WC investigation (I'd like to know if they received instructions, like James Hosty of the FBI--”I was told not to volunteer any information, just to answer their questions”),
-reactions to the deaths of RFK, and JFK Jr.,
-and the destruction of documents that were supposed to have been turned over to the Assassination Records Review Board in the 1990's.
No surprise that the agents believe Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone assassin. I may disagree, but still respect their opinions. However, Gerald Blaine, co-author of the book that inspired this program, says Oswald fit the profile of an assassin. Really? First, there have been reports over the years that a CIA pyschological profile of Oswald showed he did not fit the profile of an assassin. Also, unlike most lone assassins, Oswald had a wife and two daughters and never claimed responsibility for his act. Hardly the profile of an assassin. While Oswald may fit some characteristics of an assassin, he just as easily as he fits some of the characteristics of a patsy.
Oh, the problem with the 3-D effect? One of the controversial photos taken during LBJ's swearing-in is the one of the “wink.” I was surprised to see it on the show. However, the 3-D effect makes the foreground subjects look larger than they really were in the photo and because of this Lady Bird Johnson's hair covered up the wink! For the producers and editors, it was a bad choice and a bad effect to use on that particular photo.
Three of the agents, Hill, Landis and Lawson, returned to Dealey Plaza and while inside the former Texas School Book Depository remarked how easy the shots were to make. I'm sure Jesse Ventura, a former Navy Seal and sharpshooter, and other marksmen would disagree.
Nearly 50 years after the murder in Dallas, it is still fascinating to see the event still resonates emotionally with the agents. One agent in particular still shows a high degree of anger when discussing Oswald's demeanor during his interrogations.
While there is very little discussion of conspiracy theories (or even conspiracy evidence), it seems the agents fail to realize one reason the theories have proliferated is because of their silence over the years. The agents also seem to not know that some conspiracy theorists or researchers have actually helped debunk some of the wilder accusations made against the Secret Service. Robert Groden has been very effective in disputing the theory that agent Bill Greer, the driver of the limousine, fatally shot JFK. Other researchers have also helped to counter the myth JFK was accidentally shot by an agent in the followup car.
Evidence aside, the show does put a human face on the agents whose service required them to be secret while carrying out their public duties. Even with a lack of counselling, the fact these agents survived an event that took a such a heavily emotional and destructive toll speaks volumes. It's unfortunate that their silence over the years, sometimes self-imposed, caused them long-suffering depression. It's also obvious that the scars of this event will not go away even after all these years.
I applaud the agents for coming forward now with their stories. I only wish they had done it sooner. One lesson to be learned from this sad chapter in history: when government officials hold back on revealing the truth at the time, it will be almost impossible to reveal it later and have people believe it.
Randy
Sat Dec-04-10 12:57 AM by Randy Gunter
think it is very easy to see this presentation from the “Warren Omission Channel” aka Discovery Channel, for what it is; An attempt by these remaining USSS agents to do a self-cleansing of their souls before they check out to meet their maker. These agents have waited 47 years to return to Dallas and basically address or disclose nothing? Why? Because they are still tormented by the Dealey Plaza Demons and Ghosts of November 22, 1963. Did you notice Win Lawson in his hospital room or convalescent home? He's on his deathbed and trying to exorcise the demons.
Like many others have said, they addressed none of the plethora of USSS issues that occurred during the Dallas Debacle but yet had the nerve to complain about “their workload”, “their long hours” and “their low pay” of 1963. Jerry Blaine made the comment “I was on poverty level, had I lived in Chicago.” I think this is a gross lie, his current day annual salary comes in around $65K.
Sorry fellows, if you’re looking for sympathy from me, it isn’t happening. You chose your job, and you failed miserably at it. If you didn’t like it, quit and move on to something else (Like Jerry “Complain” Blaine did after JFK was killed). He said he "walked out and later had regrets".
As a veteran of numerous USSS missions, I can speak personally to the life of a USSS agent. You have the prestige of protecting the most important person in the world and his family, and other heads of state. You travel to some of the most exotic and exciting places in the world. You stay in some of the best hotels, resorts, and eat some of the finest cuisine known to mankind. You have the US Government provide you with PERDIEM for travel and a clothing allowance to purchase business suits and wardrobe on top of your regular pay. You meet famous persons from all types of venues. You draw a federal retirement when you're eligible. How is this so bad again?
The USSS detail had a full day on November 21, 1963; Houston, San Antonio, and a return to Fort Worth at Midnight. So, what did they do? Go to sleep? No. They decided to make a long day the longest day by going out and staying out drinking and carousing until 5 or 6 in the a.m. on November 22nd. Then report for duty within 1-2 hours to protect the President. This ladies and gentlemen was “Dereliction of Duty” in it’s highest regard.
They were sworn to protect the President and his family, and prohibited from drinking alcohol while serving in this capacity. Whenever, I was performing a USSS mission, I was cautioned, counseled, whatever you wish to call it, that I if I was found to be drinking alcohol or drunk during a USSS mission (either by being caught in the act or the smell of alcohol on my breath), I would be court-martialed by the UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice).
Total Dereliction of Duty by these agents, but yet was anyone ever punished or reprimanded for their actions? No. They are viewed by some as “Heros”. Since when are the actions I have described, one of a “Hero”?
Clint Hill said the only way he came to understand and accept what happened in DP that fateful day was by admitting “That the shooter had the advantage that day.”
Oh really, Mr. Hill? If that isn’t the biggest copout I’ve ever heard, I don’t know what is. So you and your fellow USSS agents were doing all you could by staying out all night drinking, and by compromising the security and integrity of the parade route (i.e. By not posting agents or security in high threat and vulnerable areas such as the slow turns where open windows were prevalent and where cover and concealment were obvious threats (i.e. Grassy Knoll, Storm Drains, Open Building Windows), and by ordering agents not to react even when JFK was under attack?
Wow, I guess when you give all of those advantages away without a fight and saying that “The shooter had all the advantage that day”, you are correct Mr. Hill.
Randy
"A young man who does not have what it takes to perform military service is not likely to have what it takes to make a living." - John F. Kennedy
---------------
After a delay in the U.S., “The Kennedy Detail” documentary aired last night on the Canadian Discovery Channel. The two-hour special, with former Secret Service agents, has its highlights and lowlights.
For those interested in seeing rare family films and photos of the Kennedys, the show aired several I have never seen before. There is some remarkable footage and fascinating anecdotes by some of the agents. Recently, documentary filmmakers have been using an interesting technique to make still photographs come alive. It's a simulated 3-D effect in which the subjects in the photo appear closer to the camera than the rest of the picture, and in some cases, there is a slow zoom-in on the subjects making it appear they are slowly moving. Unfortunately, the producers and edits picked the wrong picture to use this technique on. I'll explain later.
In the lead-up to the assassination, the documentary did an excellent job of showing what the Secret Service agents went through during the course of their duties...the low pay, the days and weeks of being away from their own families, and their attachment to the subjects they were supposed to protect. The agents' memories of the death of infant Patrick Kennedy is just one of the very moving segments of the show.
There are some rare views of JFK's visit to Florida in the days before his death. However, there is no discussion of possible plots to kill him, as alleged in some recent books.
As for the assassination, there is a lot of rarely seen footage. For longtime researchers, they won't find anything new, however. There is a cool animation showing the location of some of the agents in the motorcade.
It's heartbreaking to see interview subjects break down and cry, like several did in the 1988 series “The Men Who Killed Kennedy.” That was 25 years after the assassination. Now, nearly 50 years later, it's probably even more heartbreaking to see some of the agents come to tears during parts of their narrative after all these years.
Some of the issues not addressed in the show include:
-JFK's infidelities (I'd like to know what they knew and how it made them feel—this was addressed in the 2003 book “The Dark Side of Camelot” and the ABC-TV special back then “Dangerous World,” but I would have liked to have heard these particular agents' versions),
-the late night in Fort Worth the night before (not one word was mentioned about this),
-the stand-down footage at Love Field (not only was it not addressed, it wasn't even shown),
-reports of a dead SS agent (I would have liked to have seen how the agents thought this story got started—there has been some coverage elsewhere of the agents' wives who thought the worst when they heard these reports),
-the confrontation with the FBI at Parkland (an FBI agent was reportedly “decked” by a SS agent when the G-man entered the emergency area of Parkland),
-the cleaning of the limo at Parkland (any ideas on who did it and why),
-preparations for the WC investigation (I'd like to know if they received instructions, like James Hosty of the FBI--”I was told not to volunteer any information, just to answer their questions”),
-reactions to the deaths of RFK, and JFK Jr.,
-and the destruction of documents that were supposed to have been turned over to the Assassination Records Review Board in the 1990's.
No surprise that the agents believe Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone assassin. I may disagree, but still respect their opinions. However, Gerald Blaine, co-author of the book that inspired this program, says Oswald fit the profile of an assassin. Really? First, there have been reports over the years that a CIA pyschological profile of Oswald showed he did not fit the profile of an assassin. Also, unlike most lone assassins, Oswald had a wife and two daughters and never claimed responsibility for his act. Hardly the profile of an assassin. While Oswald may fit some characteristics of an assassin, he just as easily as he fits some of the characteristics of a patsy.
Oh, the problem with the 3-D effect? One of the controversial photos taken during LBJ's swearing-in is the one of the “wink.” I was surprised to see it on the show. However, the 3-D effect makes the foreground subjects look larger than they really were in the photo and because of this Lady Bird Johnson's hair covered up the wink! For the producers and editors, it was a bad choice and a bad effect to use on that particular photo.
Three of the agents, Hill, Landis and Lawson, returned to Dealey Plaza and while inside the former Texas School Book Depository remarked how easy the shots were to make. I'm sure Jesse Ventura, a former Navy Seal and sharpshooter, and other marksmen would disagree.
Nearly 50 years after the murder in Dallas, it is still fascinating to see the event still resonates emotionally with the agents. One agent in particular still shows a high degree of anger when discussing Oswald's demeanor during his interrogations.
While there is very little discussion of conspiracy theories (or even conspiracy evidence), it seems the agents fail to realize one reason the theories have proliferated is because of their silence over the years. The agents also seem to not know that some conspiracy theorists or researchers have actually helped debunk some of the wilder accusations made against the Secret Service. Robert Groden has been very effective in disputing the theory that agent Bill Greer, the driver of the limousine, fatally shot JFK. Other researchers have also helped to counter the myth JFK was accidentally shot by an agent in the followup car.
Evidence aside, the show does put a human face on the agents whose service required them to be secret while carrying out their public duties. Even with a lack of counselling, the fact these agents survived an event that took a such a heavily emotional and destructive toll speaks volumes. It's unfortunate that their silence over the years, sometimes self-imposed, caused them long-suffering depression. It's also obvious that the scars of this event will not go away even after all these years.
I applaud the agents for coming forward now with their stories. I only wish they had done it sooner. One lesson to be learned from this sad chapter in history: when government officials hold back on revealing the truth at the time, it will be almost impossible to reveal it later and have people believe it.
Randy
Thursday, December 2, 2010
"Secrets of the Secret Service" AND "The Kennedy Detail" on Discovery Channel tonight: HUGE CONTRADICTORY IRONIES
"Secrets of the Secret Service" AND "The Kennedy Detail" on Discovery Channel tonight: HUGE CONTRADICTORY IRONIES
IMPORTANT:
The DISCOVERY Channel will ALSO be airing an official Secret Service documentary from Dec 2009 (repeat) at 8 pm (right before THE KENNEDY DETAIL) called "Secrets of the Secret Service" which AGREES WITH MY TAKE ON THE LOVE FIELD RECALL FOOTAGE! ( I have videos on You Tube dissecting this, as well as several blogs)
HOW IS THAT FOR SOME CONTRADICTORY IRONY? :o)
Vince Palamara
PLEASE SEE
http://www.ctka.net/reviews/kennedydetailreview.html
IMPORTANT:
The DISCOVERY Channel will ALSO be airing an official Secret Service documentary from Dec 2009 (repeat) at 8 pm (right before THE KENNEDY DETAIL) called "Secrets of the Secret Service" which AGREES WITH MY TAKE ON THE LOVE FIELD RECALL FOOTAGE! ( I have videos on You Tube dissecting this, as well as several blogs)
HOW IS THAT FOR SOME CONTRADICTORY IRONY? :o)
Vince Palamara
PLEASE SEE
http://www.ctka.net/reviews/kennedydetailreview.html
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
MAJOR REVIEW: "The Kennedy Detail" by Gerald Blaine & Clint Hill
http://www.ctka.net/reviews/kennedydetailreview.html
Vince Palamara
Vince Palamara
Jim DiEugenio re: Vince Palamara in Vince Bugliosi's book :)
Jim DiEugenio re: Vince Palamara in Vince Bugliosi's book :)
Jim writes---
"Bugliosi’s next chapter deals with the Secret Service. Again, I can hardly recall any notable book saying that the Secret Service was the main plotter in the JFK case. The only one I can think of is the 1974 self-published effort entitled Murder from Within. It is a book that few people even know about, let alone use. Bugliosi seems to understand this, as he did not with the FBI. So he writes that “One other U.S. intelligence agency has had the suggestion of complicity in the assassination leveled against it by the conspiracy theorists, the Secret Service, but nowhere near as much as the CIA and FBI.” (p. 1239, italics added) But in his continual efforts to have it both ways, he later changes this to the Secret Service being behind the assassination. (p. 1241) Why does he do this, when in fact, there is virtually no one who says this? Probably so he can land another of his straw man broadsides: “... the notion that the Secret Service was behind the assassination is, like virtually all the conspiracy theories, ridiculous on its face.” (p. 1241) Yep, especially when virtually no one is saying it.
Now what does Bugliosi do with his two classifications of the Secret Service as being both “complicit” and/or “being behind” the assassination? As is his usual bent, he severely limits the discussion of both. How does he do that? Consider the following: “With respect to the Secret Service, for all intents and purposes, the inquiry about complicity in the assassination begins and ends with the motorcade route.” (ibid) This is a shocking statement. Even for someone as agenda-driven as this author is. Let me drop just one name to show how Bugliosi’s self-imposed limits are nothing but solipsistic: Abraham Bolden. Secret Service agent Bolden has described an assassination plot on Kennedy in Chicago in early November that is very similar in design to what happened in Dallas. But as I demonstrated in Part 3 of this series, since Bugliosi does all he can to curtail any discussion of the plot to kill Kennedy in Chicago, he can ignore that vitally important episode.
Let me drop another name to show how solipsistic Bugliosi’s take on the subject of the Secret Service is: Elmer Moore. As I wrote in Part 4 of this series, Moore has become one of the most important discoveries of the ARRB. As Pat Speer, Doug Horne, Gary Aguilar, and myself have noted, it is not unjustified to say that Moore was one of the most important players in the cover-up. The Secret Service agent eventually became a personal valet to Earl Warren. Again, Bugliosi does not have to deal with the very important figure of Moore. Why? For the simple reason that he does not mention him in the nearly 2,700 pages of his book.
Surprisingly, the author glosses over the name of Pat Kirkwood in this chapter. Kirkwood ran an after-hours club called The Cellar located in Fort Worth. Within days of the assassination, it became fairly well known that Secret Service agents had been at the Fort Worth club well into the early hours of the morning. Drew Pearson mentioned it this way, “Obviously, men who have been drinking until nearly 3 AM are in no condition to be trigger-alert or in the best physical shape to protect anyone.” (Jim Marrs, Crossfire, p. 246) As Marrs notes, this was a clear violation of the Secret Service rules and regulations as expressed in their manual. But James Rowley decided not to discipline any of the agents involved, even though four of them rode on the car behind the presidential limousine. Why? Because if he did, it “might have given rise to an inference that the violation of the regulation had contributed to the tragic events of November 22.” (ibid, p. 247) Which some people have said was the case. Both Ken O’Donnell and Ralph Yarborough noted the slow reaction time by the Secret Service to the fusillade.
Pat Kirkwood later elucidated what had happened. At about midnight the evening before the murder, some reporters called him and said they were out with about 17 Secret Service agents. They asked him if they could bring the agents over. According to Kirkwood, they were still there at 3:30 AM, joking about how local firemen had to replace them in guarding the president at the Fort Worth hotel. After the episode got in the papers, the White House called and told Kirkwood not to talk to anyone because the Secret Service had taken a beating in the press already. So Kirkwood and his manager didn’t say anything for years. But later manager Jim Hill said that the agents were clearly drunk since they were drinking nothing but alcohol. (ibid, p. 248) It’s incredible that Bugliosi deals with all this in one paragraph. In fact, I have told you more about what actually happened than he does. Further, the man, who has all kinds of boilerplate condemnation of the critical community, does not condemn this unprofessional and irresponsible behavior. Which actually borders on negligence.
The man who has done the best work on the Secret Service failure in Dealey Plaza is Vince Palamara. Bugliosi mentions his book called Survivor’s Guilt and briefly discusses it. (See p. 1243) What the author leaves out from Palamara is rather interesting. Thankfully, Doug Horne put it in Vol. 5 of his series Inside the ARRB.
As Horne notes, in the original security design, there was included motorcycle escorts traveling to the side of the limo. At a meeting on November 21st, Secret Service agent Winston Lawson did two things: he cut the number of guarding escort motorcycles in half—from four to two—and he then placed them to the rear of the car, not to the side. (Horne, p. 1402) Further, Horne notes that Lawson then lied about this by saying that it was Kennedy who wanted the motorcycles to the rear. (ibid, p. 1403) Palamara has also proven that it was standard practice to have motorcycles ride to the side of the limousine. Therefore, what happened in Dallas appears to be a deliberate anomaly. (ibid) As Horne writes, “If motorcycle patrolmen had been riding abreast of the limousine on Elm Street, their positioning may have obscured the President from shooters firing in front of the limousine.” (Horne, p. 1404)
This weird formation of the motorcycles is backed up by B. J. Martin, one of the cyclists. He said he was given instructions at Love Field to ride to the rear of the limousine. He said he had never heard of such a formation. (ibid, p. 1404) The HSCA investigated these charges and found them soundly based. They called the formation around the president, “uniquely insecure.” (ibid, p. 1405) In addition, Palamara found out that Floyd Boring had told Clint Hill that JFK did not want agents riding on the rear steps of the presidential limousine in Dallas. (ibid, p. 1406) As Horne writes, this assignment of agents may have obscured the aim of an assassin firing from the rear of the car. Again, the failure to do this was falsely attributed to President Kennedy. (ibid, p. 1409) Even though Bugliosi has read Palamara, there is not a word about any of this in Reclaiming History.
Just like there is not a mention of the name of Henry Rybka. Rybka is a Secret Service agent who has become famous due to a YouTube film clip. This film was shot by local television in black and white. It depicts both the presidential limo and the follow up car leaving Love Field. Agent Henry Rybka is running along the rear fender of the presidential limo as the car pulls out of the airport. As Rybka is doing this, agent Emory Roberts calls him back away from the car. Rybka is surprised by the Roberts order. He turns, shrugs his shoulders, and stretches out his arms—three times. Rybka apparently thought he was going to be on the rear steps of the limo. That is, obstructing any shots from the rear of the car. Apparently, he can’t believe he is being called off.
Palamara calls what happened in Dallas—the altering of the motorcycle formation and cutting it in half, and the removal of agents from standing on the rear of the car—“security stripping”. This clearly resulted in the assassins having a much better opportunity to hit their target than if the proper procedures had been followed. No surprise, Bugliosi apparently did not think any of this was important in discussing Secret Service complicity in the assassination."
. . . . .
Jim writes---
"Bugliosi’s next chapter deals with the Secret Service. Again, I can hardly recall any notable book saying that the Secret Service was the main plotter in the JFK case. The only one I can think of is the 1974 self-published effort entitled Murder from Within. It is a book that few people even know about, let alone use. Bugliosi seems to understand this, as he did not with the FBI. So he writes that “One other U.S. intelligence agency has had the suggestion of complicity in the assassination leveled against it by the conspiracy theorists, the Secret Service, but nowhere near as much as the CIA and FBI.” (p. 1239, italics added) But in his continual efforts to have it both ways, he later changes this to the Secret Service being behind the assassination. (p. 1241) Why does he do this, when in fact, there is virtually no one who says this? Probably so he can land another of his straw man broadsides: “... the notion that the Secret Service was behind the assassination is, like virtually all the conspiracy theories, ridiculous on its face.” (p. 1241) Yep, especially when virtually no one is saying it.
Now what does Bugliosi do with his two classifications of the Secret Service as being both “complicit” and/or “being behind” the assassination? As is his usual bent, he severely limits the discussion of both. How does he do that? Consider the following: “With respect to the Secret Service, for all intents and purposes, the inquiry about complicity in the assassination begins and ends with the motorcade route.” (ibid) This is a shocking statement. Even for someone as agenda-driven as this author is. Let me drop just one name to show how Bugliosi’s self-imposed limits are nothing but solipsistic: Abraham Bolden. Secret Service agent Bolden has described an assassination plot on Kennedy in Chicago in early November that is very similar in design to what happened in Dallas. But as I demonstrated in Part 3 of this series, since Bugliosi does all he can to curtail any discussion of the plot to kill Kennedy in Chicago, he can ignore that vitally important episode.
Let me drop another name to show how solipsistic Bugliosi’s take on the subject of the Secret Service is: Elmer Moore. As I wrote in Part 4 of this series, Moore has become one of the most important discoveries of the ARRB. As Pat Speer, Doug Horne, Gary Aguilar, and myself have noted, it is not unjustified to say that Moore was one of the most important players in the cover-up. The Secret Service agent eventually became a personal valet to Earl Warren. Again, Bugliosi does not have to deal with the very important figure of Moore. Why? For the simple reason that he does not mention him in the nearly 2,700 pages of his book.
Surprisingly, the author glosses over the name of Pat Kirkwood in this chapter. Kirkwood ran an after-hours club called The Cellar located in Fort Worth. Within days of the assassination, it became fairly well known that Secret Service agents had been at the Fort Worth club well into the early hours of the morning. Drew Pearson mentioned it this way, “Obviously, men who have been drinking until nearly 3 AM are in no condition to be trigger-alert or in the best physical shape to protect anyone.” (Jim Marrs, Crossfire, p. 246) As Marrs notes, this was a clear violation of the Secret Service rules and regulations as expressed in their manual. But James Rowley decided not to discipline any of the agents involved, even though four of them rode on the car behind the presidential limousine. Why? Because if he did, it “might have given rise to an inference that the violation of the regulation had contributed to the tragic events of November 22.” (ibid, p. 247) Which some people have said was the case. Both Ken O’Donnell and Ralph Yarborough noted the slow reaction time by the Secret Service to the fusillade.
Pat Kirkwood later elucidated what had happened. At about midnight the evening before the murder, some reporters called him and said they were out with about 17 Secret Service agents. They asked him if they could bring the agents over. According to Kirkwood, they were still there at 3:30 AM, joking about how local firemen had to replace them in guarding the president at the Fort Worth hotel. After the episode got in the papers, the White House called and told Kirkwood not to talk to anyone because the Secret Service had taken a beating in the press already. So Kirkwood and his manager didn’t say anything for years. But later manager Jim Hill said that the agents were clearly drunk since they were drinking nothing but alcohol. (ibid, p. 248) It’s incredible that Bugliosi deals with all this in one paragraph. In fact, I have told you more about what actually happened than he does. Further, the man, who has all kinds of boilerplate condemnation of the critical community, does not condemn this unprofessional and irresponsible behavior. Which actually borders on negligence.
The man who has done the best work on the Secret Service failure in Dealey Plaza is Vince Palamara. Bugliosi mentions his book called Survivor’s Guilt and briefly discusses it. (See p. 1243) What the author leaves out from Palamara is rather interesting. Thankfully, Doug Horne put it in Vol. 5 of his series Inside the ARRB.
As Horne notes, in the original security design, there was included motorcycle escorts traveling to the side of the limo. At a meeting on November 21st, Secret Service agent Winston Lawson did two things: he cut the number of guarding escort motorcycles in half—from four to two—and he then placed them to the rear of the car, not to the side. (Horne, p. 1402) Further, Horne notes that Lawson then lied about this by saying that it was Kennedy who wanted the motorcycles to the rear. (ibid, p. 1403) Palamara has also proven that it was standard practice to have motorcycles ride to the side of the limousine. Therefore, what happened in Dallas appears to be a deliberate anomaly. (ibid) As Horne writes, “If motorcycle patrolmen had been riding abreast of the limousine on Elm Street, their positioning may have obscured the President from shooters firing in front of the limousine.” (Horne, p. 1404)
This weird formation of the motorcycles is backed up by B. J. Martin, one of the cyclists. He said he was given instructions at Love Field to ride to the rear of the limousine. He said he had never heard of such a formation. (ibid, p. 1404) The HSCA investigated these charges and found them soundly based. They called the formation around the president, “uniquely insecure.” (ibid, p. 1405) In addition, Palamara found out that Floyd Boring had told Clint Hill that JFK did not want agents riding on the rear steps of the presidential limousine in Dallas. (ibid, p. 1406) As Horne writes, this assignment of agents may have obscured the aim of an assassin firing from the rear of the car. Again, the failure to do this was falsely attributed to President Kennedy. (ibid, p. 1409) Even though Bugliosi has read Palamara, there is not a word about any of this in Reclaiming History.
Just like there is not a mention of the name of Henry Rybka. Rybka is a Secret Service agent who has become famous due to a YouTube film clip. This film was shot by local television in black and white. It depicts both the presidential limo and the follow up car leaving Love Field. Agent Henry Rybka is running along the rear fender of the presidential limo as the car pulls out of the airport. As Rybka is doing this, agent Emory Roberts calls him back away from the car. Rybka is surprised by the Roberts order. He turns, shrugs his shoulders, and stretches out his arms—three times. Rybka apparently thought he was going to be on the rear steps of the limo. That is, obstructing any shots from the rear of the car. Apparently, he can’t believe he is being called off.
Palamara calls what happened in Dallas—the altering of the motorcycle formation and cutting it in half, and the removal of agents from standing on the rear of the car—“security stripping”. This clearly resulted in the assassins having a much better opportunity to hit their target than if the proper procedures had been followed. No surprise, Bugliosi apparently did not think any of this was important in discussing Secret Service complicity in the assassination."
. . . . .
Secret Service Agent John Lardner passes away-yet ANOTHER agent who didn't participate in "The Kennedy Detail"
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/obituaries/articles/2010/12/01/john_joseph_lardner_former_secret_service_agent/
John Joseph Lardner, former Secret Service agent
John Joseph Lardner guarded President Kennedy on a winter day, with his right hand — and his trigger finger — exposed.
By J.M. Lawrence
Globe Correspondent / December 1, 2010
E-mail this article To: Invalid E-mail address Add a personal message:(80 character limit) Your E-mail: Invalid E-mail address
Sending your articleYour article has been sent. E-mail| Print| Reprints| Text size – + When John F. Kennedy was inaugurated in 1961, Secret Service agent John Joseph Lardner rode behind him on Pennsylvania Avenue. He was proud to be a kid from Lowell who grew up to guard the president, he told his family.
Tweet Be the first to Tweet this!Submit to DiggdiggsdiggYahoo! Buzz ShareThis There was little else he ever shared about those Kennedy years. “There’s a reason we’re called the Secret Service,’’ Mr. Lardner would often tell his nephew, Michael Walsh of Bedford, N.H.
Mr. Lardner, a US Marine Corps captain who was a Secret Service agent from 1959 to his retirement in 1983 as special agent in charge of Rhode Island and Bristol County, died of a heart attack at his home in Easton Nov. 19.
He was 80.
“My dad lived his life by the Marine Corps code,’’ God, corps, and country, said his oldest daughter, Kristin M. Brown of East Sandwich.
“It was just the way his life was.’’
Mr. Lardner would never discuss his assignment on the day Kennedy was shot or say whether he was in Dallas.
“He would never tell,’’ his daughter said.
“He had strong opinions about the assassination, but it was very difficult for him to talk about. He was never a man at a loss for words, but it was the one subject you just couldn’t approach him about.’’
Following the assassination, Mr. Lardner was assigned to the detail guarding Jacqueline Kennedy and her children. His family said they believe Mrs. Kennedy personally requested him.
After his sudden death, his daughter began sorting through his personal papers and found thank you notes from Mrs. Kennedy and jokes in the agent’s old spiral bound notebook jotted by a young Caroline Kennedy.
In one old photo, Mr. Lardner walks behind the president as he leaves a hospital pushing Mrs. Kennedy in a wheelchair. A nurse carries newborn John Jr.
In another photo, Mr. Lardner stands next to President Kennedy on a winter day. The agent wears one glove on his left hand, leaving his right hand — and his trigger finger — exposed.
Born in the Bronx, Mr. Lardner was the only son of a brick mason John and a nurse, Mary (Corcoran), who emigrated from County Kerry, Ireland. His sister Eileen died in 2009.
Mr. Lardner graduated in 1949 from Lowell High, where he played football.
He became an apprentice brick mason under his father and grandfather while going to Northeastern University. He graduated with a degree in business in 1954 and joined the Marines.
He was married more than 35 years to Karen M. (Buchwald). They met at a pub in Boston in the 1970s when she was a nurse. They had three children. His daughter Kristin recalled reveling at the sight of her father’s dress uniform.
“He would have me lead the charge through the house with my brothers and sisters in marching cadence. ‘Over hill over dale, we will hit the dusty trail . . .’ I can sing the entire song to his day,’’ said Kristin, who is a paramedic.
Mr. Lardner started out in the forgery and counterfeit department of the Secret Service before he was assigned to presidential details.
Mr. Lardner, who was known as Jack, showed little interest in his former colleague Gerald Blaine’s just published book, “The Kennedy Detail: JFK’s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence,’’ according to his family.
“I said, Jack you’re not going to buy the book? He said, ‘Mike, there’s a reason why we were called the Secret Service,’ ’’ his nephew said.
“I said man, oh, man, that’s old school talking.’’
Mr. Lardner also was a life-long Republican and supported Republican candidates in Massachusetts, including Senator Scott Brown.
“The only time I saw him cry in the 33 years I knew him was the day President Reagan died,’’ said his daughter. “He adored him.’’
Mr. Lardner was active in local government in Easton, where he was on the Finance Committee for several years. He was an avid tennis player and an expert skier.
In recent years, he enjoyed investing in the stock market and sharing stock tips with his family. However, he would never talk about substantial topics over cordless phones, his nephew said.
“He would always say, ‘Are you hardwired?’ He was very careful of what he would say on a telephone,’’ Michael said.
In addition to his oldest daughter and wife, Mr. Lardner leaves his son, J. Adam of Easton; another daughter, Kerry A. of Truro; and five grandchildren.
Services have been held.
John Joseph Lardner, former Secret Service agent
John Joseph Lardner guarded President Kennedy on a winter day, with his right hand — and his trigger finger — exposed.
By J.M. Lawrence
Globe Correspondent / December 1, 2010
E-mail this article To: Invalid E-mail address Add a personal message:(80 character limit) Your E-mail: Invalid E-mail address
Sending your articleYour article has been sent. E-mail| Print| Reprints| Text size – + When John F. Kennedy was inaugurated in 1961, Secret Service agent John Joseph Lardner rode behind him on Pennsylvania Avenue. He was proud to be a kid from Lowell who grew up to guard the president, he told his family.
Tweet Be the first to Tweet this!Submit to DiggdiggsdiggYahoo! Buzz ShareThis There was little else he ever shared about those Kennedy years. “There’s a reason we’re called the Secret Service,’’ Mr. Lardner would often tell his nephew, Michael Walsh of Bedford, N.H.
Mr. Lardner, a US Marine Corps captain who was a Secret Service agent from 1959 to his retirement in 1983 as special agent in charge of Rhode Island and Bristol County, died of a heart attack at his home in Easton Nov. 19.
He was 80.
“My dad lived his life by the Marine Corps code,’’ God, corps, and country, said his oldest daughter, Kristin M. Brown of East Sandwich.
“It was just the way his life was.’’
Mr. Lardner would never discuss his assignment on the day Kennedy was shot or say whether he was in Dallas.
“He would never tell,’’ his daughter said.
“He had strong opinions about the assassination, but it was very difficult for him to talk about. He was never a man at a loss for words, but it was the one subject you just couldn’t approach him about.’’
Following the assassination, Mr. Lardner was assigned to the detail guarding Jacqueline Kennedy and her children. His family said they believe Mrs. Kennedy personally requested him.
After his sudden death, his daughter began sorting through his personal papers and found thank you notes from Mrs. Kennedy and jokes in the agent’s old spiral bound notebook jotted by a young Caroline Kennedy.
In one old photo, Mr. Lardner walks behind the president as he leaves a hospital pushing Mrs. Kennedy in a wheelchair. A nurse carries newborn John Jr.
In another photo, Mr. Lardner stands next to President Kennedy on a winter day. The agent wears one glove on his left hand, leaving his right hand — and his trigger finger — exposed.
Born in the Bronx, Mr. Lardner was the only son of a brick mason John and a nurse, Mary (Corcoran), who emigrated from County Kerry, Ireland. His sister Eileen died in 2009.
Mr. Lardner graduated in 1949 from Lowell High, where he played football.
He became an apprentice brick mason under his father and grandfather while going to Northeastern University. He graduated with a degree in business in 1954 and joined the Marines.
He was married more than 35 years to Karen M. (Buchwald). They met at a pub in Boston in the 1970s when she was a nurse. They had three children. His daughter Kristin recalled reveling at the sight of her father’s dress uniform.
“He would have me lead the charge through the house with my brothers and sisters in marching cadence. ‘Over hill over dale, we will hit the dusty trail . . .’ I can sing the entire song to his day,’’ said Kristin, who is a paramedic.
Mr. Lardner started out in the forgery and counterfeit department of the Secret Service before he was assigned to presidential details.
Mr. Lardner, who was known as Jack, showed little interest in his former colleague Gerald Blaine’s just published book, “The Kennedy Detail: JFK’s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence,’’ according to his family.
“I said, Jack you’re not going to buy the book? He said, ‘Mike, there’s a reason why we were called the Secret Service,’ ’’ his nephew said.
“I said man, oh, man, that’s old school talking.’’
Mr. Lardner also was a life-long Republican and supported Republican candidates in Massachusetts, including Senator Scott Brown.
“The only time I saw him cry in the 33 years I knew him was the day President Reagan died,’’ said his daughter. “He adored him.’’
Mr. Lardner was active in local government in Easton, where he was on the Finance Committee for several years. He was an avid tennis player and an expert skier.
In recent years, he enjoyed investing in the stock market and sharing stock tips with his family. However, he would never talk about substantial topics over cordless phones, his nephew said.
“He would always say, ‘Are you hardwired?’ He was very careful of what he would say on a telephone,’’ Michael said.
In addition to his oldest daughter and wife, Mr. Lardner leaves his son, J. Adam of Easton; another daughter, Kerry A. of Truro; and five grandchildren.
Services have been held.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
BEST review of "The Kennedy Detail"-Gerald Blaine The Kennedy Detail Secret Service JFK
“The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: The Kennedy Detail is a Compelling But Dangerous Mix of Fact, Faction, and Fiction”
By Vince Palamara, Secret Service expert (as noted by The History Channel, Vince Bugliosi, the Assassination Records Review Board, and, condescendingly, by Blaine himself!)
A detailed and exhaustive review of “The Kennedy Detail”, a book written by Gerald Blaine with Lisa McCubbin; Foreword by Clint Hill (2010, Gallery Books)
On June 1, 2005, I sent a 22-page registered letter, signed receipt required, to former Secret Service agent Clint Hill (infamous for his leap onto the back of the limousine during the assassination of President Kennedy on November 22, 1963). My letter was, in essence, a “cliff notes” version of my own book “Survivor’s Guilt: The Secret Service & The Failure To Protect The President” , focusing mainly on the issue of the agents’ presence---or lack thereof---on the rear of the presidential limousine on 11/22/63, as well as the actions and inactions of three specific agents I have many misgivings about: Floyd Boring (the number two agent on the Kennedy Detail and the Secret Service planner of the Texas trip), Shift Leader Emory Roberts (the commander of the agents in the follow-up car in Dallas), and William Greer (the driver of JFK's limousine). When I phoned the gentleman on June 13, 2005, I received a very cantankerous “non reply”, so to speak: “[Refering to my letter:] About what? Yeah, I’m here. I’m just not interested in talking to you.” I did not really expect much, but it was worth a try (having received an unexpected recommendation to talk to Mr. Hill from former agent Lynn Meredith, who was gracious enough to provide Mr. Hill’s unlisted address and phone number).
On June 10, 2005, I phoned fellow former agent Gerald Blaine (having previously spoken to the gentleman on 2/7/04). Blaine confirmed his deep friendship with Hill and, much to my surprise, seemingly out of nowhere, said: “Don’t be too hard on Emory Roberts. He was a double, even a triple checker. He probably took Jack Ready’s life into consideration.” It was at that moment that I realized that Clint Hill shared the contents of my letter to Blaine; probably with a good dose of anger and indignation, as well. When I received word that Blaine was coming out with a book called “The Kennedy Detail” AND that Clint Hill was writing the Foreword, I KNEW that I was responsible, as a catalyst, for their endevours! Blaine and Hill are now on a book tour together, as well as appearing jointly on several news and media outlets, including in an upcoming Discovery Channel documentary, based on the book.
In fact, Blaine even admitted to Grand Junction Sentinel reporter Bob Silbernagel that it was during this exact time that he “began contacting all he could of the 38 agents who were in the Kennedy Detail on Nov. 22, 1963,” adding further that once “he began seeing all the misinformation and outright deceit about the assassination on the Internet, as well as in books and films, he decided, “Essentially, it was a book that had to be written.” There was no question in my mind that I ruffled feathers with Blaine and Hill. If all this weren’t enough, Blaine’s attorney even sent me a certified letter in November 2009, a year before his book was to appear, asking me to take down a blog that Blaine noticed on my main Secret Service blog that merely announced their forthcoming book. Blaine thought I was trying to say that I was the co-author, which was the furthest thing from the truth-I was innocently telling my readers of a book thye might find of interest. In any event, after writing back to Blaine and his lawyer, I decided to take that specific blog down…but this incident let me know, in no uncertain terms: Blaine and Hill were men on a mission. This is further evidenced by what Blaine himself wrote on his blog : “At the annual conference of the 2500 member former Secret Service Agents Association [AFAUSSS] last week (8/26-8/28/10) in New York City, Lisa McCubbin and I [Gerald Blaine] presented an overview of the book at the business meeting to ensure the agents that the publication was “Worthy of Trust and Confidence.”; “At the conference opening reception Clint Hill, Lisa McCubbin and I [Gerald Blaine] met with Secret Service Director Sullivan and discussed the book from the perspective of today’s operations. Clint Hill, who lives in the Washington DC area, had previously briefed the Director on the accuracy and purpose of writing the book.”; “I [Gerald Blaine] am the sole surviving charter member and a past president of the organization. The association was conceived by Floyd Boring and Jerry Behn with the assistance of fifteen charter members. Jerry Behn was the Special Agent in Charge of the Kennedy Detail and Floyd Boring was an Assistant Agent in Charge. The organization's mission is to maintain social and professional relationships, to liaison with the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies [Emphasis added]”
To quote from a popular commercial, “Can you hear me now?”
I knew their “mission” was to circle the wagons, so to speak, and attempt to counter my prolific research on the failings of the Secret Service on November 22, 1963-specifically, the statements by many of their colleagues---including BLAINE himself---that President Kennedy was a very nice man, never interfered with the actions of the Secret Service and, to the point, did NOT order the agents off his limousine…ever! These men, as well as several important NON agency personnel (such as Dave Powers, Congressman Sam Gibbons, and Cecil Stoughton, among others), provided information, on the phone and/ or in writing, to a total stranger---myself---with no trepidation whatsoever. “Official” history---the Warren Report, the HSCA Report, William Manchester’s “The Death of a President”, and Jim Bishop’s “The Day Kennedy Was Shot”---espouses a decidedly different verdict: President Kennedy was reckless with his security and did order the agents off his limousine-not in Dallas, but during the major trip before, in Tampa, FL, on 11/18/63, which allegedly had grave consequences for JFK’s protection on the day he was assassinated.
First, a detailed look at the contents of ”The Kennedy Detail” is in order.
The book gets off on the wrong foot with myself and others right away with the bold pronouncement: “ JFK’s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence” (which is also the subtitle of the book). This is hogwash: not only did several agents, including Clint Hill, testify to the Warren Commission, many of the agents spoke to the aforementioned William Manchester (including Blaine and Hill ), Jim Bishop, and the HSCA, as well as to, among others, Prof. Philip Melanson (for his book “The Secret Service: The Hidden History of an Enigmatic Agency”), several prominent Secret Service television documentaries between 1995 and 2004 (Hill was involved in all of these productions that made their way to VHS and/ or DVD, as well), and, last but certainly not least, to myself, Vince Palamara, between 1992 and 2006 (again, including Blaine and Hill)! Things only get worse once one gets to the inside flap jacket: Blaine writes that JFK “banned agents from his car”, which is patently false- as Winston Lawson, the lead advance agent for the fateful Dallas trip, wrote to me in a letter dated 1/12/04: “I do not know of any standing orders for the agents to stay off the back of the car. After all, foot holds and handholds were built into that particular vehicle…it never came to my attention as such. I am certain agents were on the back on certain occasions.” For his part, ATSAIC (Shift Leader) Art Godfrey told this reviewer on May 30, 1996, regarding the notion that JFK ordered the agents not to do certain things which included removing themselves from the rear of the limousine: “That’s a bunch of baloney; that’s not true. He never ordered us to do anything. He was a very nice man … cooperative.” Godfrey reiterated this on June 7, 1996. In a letter dated November 24, 1997, Godfrey stated the following: “All I can speak for is myself. When I was working [with] President Kennedy he never ask[ed] me to have my shift leave the limo when we [were] working it,” thus confirming what he had also told the author telephonically on two prior occasions. As we shall see, Blaine makes much ado about this issue…for obvious reasons (Thou Protest Too Much).
Although very well written and containg some nice photographs, “The Kennedy Detail” provides the reader a generous dose of fact, “faction” (playing hard and loose with alleged ‘facts’ and encompassing reconstructed dialogue and supposed meetings that allegedly occurred without documentation) and fiction. In fact, there are no footnotes, endnotes, sources, or a bibliography to be found (although, to his credit, Blaine did include an impressive index). It is important to note that many important former agents and officials, such as “the brass”---Treasury Secretary Douglas Dillon, Asst Sec. G. d’Andelot Belin, Chief James Rowley, Aide to the Chief Walter Blaschak, Deputy Chief Paul Paterni, Assistant Chief Russell Daniels, Assistant Chief Ed Wildy, Chief U.E. Baughman, Special Agent In Charge (SAIC) Gerald Behn, ASAIC Floyd Boring (the planner of the Texas trip), ASAIC Roy Kellerman (rode in JFK’s limo), ASAIC John Campion, ATSAIC (Shift Leader) Emory Roberts (rode in follow up car), ATSAIC Stu Stout (on Texas trip), ATSAIC Art Godfrey (on Texas trip), SAIC of Personnel Howard Anderson, SAIC of PRS Robert Bouck, ASAIC of LBJ Detail (and former JFK agent) Rufus Youngblood, Head Inspector of PRS Elliot Thacker, Chief Inspector Jackson Krill, Inspector Thomas Kelley, Inspector Gerard McCann, & Inspector Burrill Peterson---and many “privates”, such as Bill Bacherman, Glen Bennett (of PRS; rode in motorcade), Andy Berger (on the Texas trip), Bert deFreese (on the Texas trip), Jerry Dolan, Paul Doster, PRS Dick Flohr, Morgan Gies, William Greer (the driver of JFK’s limo), Dennis Halterman (on the Texas trip), Ned Hall II (on the Texas trip), Harvey Henderson, George Hickey (rode in the follow-up car), Andy Hutch, Jim Jeffries, Sam Kinney (drove the follow-up car), PRS Elmer Lawrence, James Mastrovito, John “Muggsy” O’Leary (on the Texas trip), Bill Payne (on the Texas trip), PRS Walter Pine, Wade Rodham , Henry Rybka (on the Texas trip), Thomas Shipman (deceased 10/14/63!), PRS Frank Stoner, & PRS Walter Young---not to mention countless agents from field offices (such as the SAIC of the Dallas Office Forrest Sorrels and his assistant Robert Steuart AND Charlie Kunkel), DIED YEARS BEFORE THIS BOOK WAS EVEN A THOUGHT. In addition, since there are no specific references, it is hard to know exactly WHO among the living WAS interviewed, as Blaine recently admitted that “three agents still cannot discuss the emotional aspects of that day in Dallas” and he was unable “to contact three other agents who served.” In addition, several OTHER agents (such as Lynn Meredith, Bob Foster, Paul Burns, Jerry Kivett and Stu Knight) passed away during the time Blaine was writing his book, so we are unable to know if they were contacted, as well.
That said, it is most telling that Blaine admitted that three agents---Larry Newman, Tony Sherman, and Tim McIntyre (rode in the follow-up car)--- were not contacted because they had “responded to Seymour Hirsch's [sic] book The Dark Side of Camelot, which violated the code of silence” , yet, the fourth agent, Joe Paolella, apparently WAS interviewed for Blaine’s volume-why wasn’t he banished from his work, as well? Using this criteria, several (perhaps many) of the agents who spoke to myself and others should have been ignored, as well (example: former agent Walt Coughlin told me that LBJ was “a first-class prick” ). It was obvious why Blaine ignored former agent Abraham Bolden: the controversial nature of Bolden’s beliefs and so forth . So, it appears a little selectivity, necessary and otherwise, was used regarding former agent interviews for “The Kennedy Detail.”
As for the aforementioned Newman, Sherman, McIntyre, and Paolella, they waxed on to Seymour Hersh (and others, including the December 1997 ABC/ Peter Jennings special “Dangerous World: The Kennedy Years”) about their anger and disgust over JFK’s private lives; incredibly, even Emory Roberts’ concerns over these issues was voiced by McIntyre. This is very disturbing because it shows a MOTIVE FOR INACTION on 11/22/63. For his part, McIntyre told ABC News, regarding JFK’s private life: “Prostitution—that’s illegal. A procurement is illegal. And if you have a procurer with prostitutes paraded in front of you, then, as a sworn law enforcement officer, you’re asking yourself, ‘Well, what do they think of us?’ ” McIntyre felt this way after having only spent a very brief time with JFK before the assassination: he joined the WHD in the fall of 1963. McIntyre also told Hersh: “His shift supervisor, the highly respected Emory Roberts, took him aside and warned … that ‘you’re going to see a lot of shit around here. Stuff with the President. Just forget about it. Keep it to yourself. Don’t even talk to your wife.’ … Roberts was nervous about it. Emory would say, McIntyre recalled with a laugh, ‘How in the hell do you know what’s going on? He could be hurt in there. What if one bites him’ in a sensitive area? Roberts ‘talked about it a lot’, McIntyre said. ‘Bites’ … In McIntyre’s view, a public scandal about Kennedy’s incessant womanizing was inevitable. ‘It would have had to come out in the next year or so. In the campaign, maybe.’ McIntyre said he and some of his colleagues … felt abused by their service on behalf of President Kennedy … McIntyre said he eventually realized that he had compromised his law enforcement beliefs to the point where he wondered whether it was ‘time to get out of there. I was disappointed by what I saw.’ ” [Emphasis added.] Blaine chose to ignore these men and this issue entirely in his book: is this good history? I think not. It might not be pleasant, but these men said what they said-to ignore this matter speaks of a cover up of guilty knowledge. I did not ignore it.
From the first photo section and page 19 of his book (and, later, on pages 240 and 288), we learn something I had already reported years before: that SAIC Gerald Behn “always traveled with the president. In the three years since Kennedy had been elected, Jerry Behn had not taken one day of vacation...He took his first vacation in four years the week JFK was assassinated.” Quirk of fate or convenient absence? You decide. I have.
Also on page 19, Blaine begins to (using a lawyer’s term) “lay the foundation”, as it were, for blaming the victim (JFK) and, in the process, makes a real whopper-Blaine writes: “the Secret Service was not authorized to override a presidential decision.” Wrong! Ample proof to the contrary abounds. Chief James J. Rowley testified under oath to the Warren Commission: “No President will tell the Secret Service what they can or cannot do.” In fact, Rowley’s predecessor, former Chief U. E. Baughman, who had served under JFK from Election Night 1960 until September 1961, had written in his 1962 book Secret Service Chief: “Now the Chief of the Secret Service is legally empowered to countermand a decision made by anybody in this country if it might endanger the life or limb of the Chief Executive. This means I could veto a decision of the President himself if I decided it would be dangerous not to. The President of course knew this fact.” Indeed, an Associated Press story from November 15, 1963 stated: “The (Secret) Service can overrule even the President where his personal security is involved.” Even President Truman agreed, stating, “The Secret Service was the only boss that the President of the United States really had.” Finally, In an 11/23/63 UPI story written by Robert J. Serling from Washington entitled “Secret Service Men Wary of Motorcade”, based in part on “private conversations” with unnamed agents: “An agent is the only man in the world who can order a President of the United States around if the latter’s safety is believed at stake … in certain situations an agent outranks even a President.” [Emphasis added.]
One major myth down, one major one left to demolish.
Peppered throughout the book, but starting on page 74, Blaine begins to bring up the issue of the agents’ presence (or lack thereof) on the back of JFK’s limousine (in Tampa on 11/18/63, in Dallas on 11/22/63, and elsewhere---further “laying the foundation” for his false premise of blaming the victim), accurately stating for the record, AFTER revealing his knowledge of the Joseph Milteer threat received via the Miami Police Department before JFK’s trip to Florida: “…the only way to have a chance at protecting the president against a shooter from a tall building would be to have agents posted on the back of the car.” Indeed, on pages 81-84, as various films and photos confirm, Blaine tells of his having rode on the rear of President Kennedy’s limousine in Rome and Naples, Italy (7/2/63). In addition, his first photo section depicts Blaine and his colleagues on or near the rear of JFK’s car in Costa Rica (March 1963), Berlin, Germany (June, 1963) and Ireland (also in June 1963), while his second photo section depicts yet another photo of the agents on the car in Ireland, as well as in Tampa, Florida (11/18/63) and even agent Clint Hill on the rear of the car in Dallas, Texas on 11/22/63, albeit before the motorcade reached Dealey Plaza.
It is on pages 100-101, in his zeal to set up his premise, that Blaine makes a costly error-Blaine writes: “Fortunately, they’d have SS100X [JFK’s special 1961 Lincoln Continental] in Dallas, which had the rear steps and handholds so two agents could be perched directly behind the president and could react quickly. He’d [Win Lawson would] be sure to tell Roy Kellerman, the Special Agent in Charge for the Texas trip, that when the motorcade was driving through downtown, agents would need to be on the back of the car.” However, as we have seen, and it bears repeating, Win Lawson wrote to this reviewer on 1/12/04, before this book was even a thought, and said: “I do not know of any standing orders for the agents to stay off the back of the car. After all, foot holds and handholds were built into that particular vehicle…it never came to my attention as such. [emphasis added].” Needless to say, this is in direct contradiction to these statements, attributed to Lawson by Blaine, in “The Kennedy Detail.”
Blaine makes much of the 11/18/63 trip JFK took to Tampa as ‘evidence’ that President Kennedy ordered the agents off the car (as did the Secret Service, exactly five months after the assassination, via five reports submitted to the Warren Commission by Chief Rowley ). As with SAIC Behn’s first-time absence, we now supposedly have another instance of a brand new notion, as Blaine writes on page 148: “In the three years he’d been with JFK, he’d never heard the president call the agents off the back of the car in the middle of a motorcade.” Indeed, on page 162, Blaine reports that agent Ron Pontius stated: “I’ve never heard the president say anything about agents on the back of the car,” registering his astonishment based on allegedly hearing this, for the first time, on 11/21/63 from long-deceased agent Bert deFreese (in a 47-year-old reconstructed conversation—faction? Fiction?---that Blaine makes in the book). Blaine is alleging that JFK ordered the agents (specifically, agents Don Lawton and Chuck Zboril) off the back of the car in Tampa, allegedly using the phrase made infamous by William Manchester : “Floyd [Boring], have the Ivy League charlatans drop back to the follow-up car.” Blaine later adds, on page 184: “None of the agents understood why he [JFK] was willing to be so reckless.” If that weren’t enough, Blaine also stated (on the upcoming Discovery Channel documentary airing on 11/22/10): "President Kennedy made a decision, and he politely told everybody, 'You know, we're starting the campaign now, and the people are my asset,'" said agent Jerry Blaine. "And so, we all of a sudden understood. It left a firm command to stay off the back of the car." Huh? “Everybody”? THAT alleged statement “left a firm command”? In any event, once again, we have a major conflict with reality---not only do many films and photos depict the agents (still) riding on (or walking/ jogging very near) the rear of the limousine in Tampa , Congressman Sam Gibbons, who actually rode a mere foot away IN the car with JFK, wrote to me in a letter 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.” Also, photographer Tony Zappone, then a 16-year-old witness to the motorcade in Tampa (one of whose photos for this motorcade was ironically used in “The Kennedy Detail”!), told me that the agents were “definitely on the back of the car for most of the day until they started back for MacDill AFB at the end of the day [Emphasis added].”
As for the “Ivy League Charlatans” remark JFK allegedly uttered to ASAIC Floyd Boring and, again, first made famous by Manchester, Boring this author, “I never told him [Manchester]that.” As for the merit of the quote itself, Boring said, “No, no, no—that’s not true,” thus contradicting his own report in the process, stating further: “He actually—No, I told them … He didn’t tell them anything … He just—I looked at the back and I seen these fellahs were hanging on the limousine—I told them to return to the car … [JFK] was a very easy-going guy … he didn’t interfere with our actions at all.” In a later interview, Boring expounded further: “Well that’s not true. That’s not true. He was a very nice man; he never interfered with us at all.” If that weren’t enough, Boring also wrote the author: “He [JFK] was very cooperative with the Secret Service.” Incredibly, Boring was not even interviewed for Manchester’s book! We may never know Mr. Manchester’s source for this curious statement: he told the author on August 23, 1993 that “… all that material is under seal and won’t be released in my lifetime” and denied the author access to his notes (Manchester has since passed away). Interestingly, Manchester did interview the late Emory Roberts---an agent this reviewer is most suspicious of --- and GERALD BLAINE, Manchester’s probable “source(s)” .
As for Blaine, this is what he told this reviewer: Blaine told the author on February 7, 2004 that President Kennedy was “very cooperative. He didn’t interfere with our actions. President Kennedy was very likeable—he never had a harsh word for anyone. He never interfered with our actions.” [Emphasis added.] When the author asked Blaine how often the agents rode on the back of JFK’s limousine, the former agent said it was a “fairly common” occurrence that depended on the crowd and the speed of the cars. In fact, just as one example, Blaine rode on the rear of JFK’s limousine in Germany in June 1963, along with fellow Texas trip veterans Paul A. Burns and Samuel E. Sulliman. Blaine added, in specific reference to the agents on the follow-up car in Dallas: “You have to remember, they were fairly young agents,” seeming to imply that their youth was a disadvantage, or perhaps this was seen as an excuse for their poor performance on November 22, 1963. Surprisingly, Blaine, the WHD advance agent for the Tampa trip of November 18, 1963, said that JFK did make the comment “I don’t need Ivy League charlatans back there,” but emphasized this was a “low-key remark” said “kiddingly” and demonstrating Kennedy’s “Irish sense of humor”. However, according to the “official” story, President Kennedy allegedly made these remarks only to Boring while traveling in the presidential limousine in Tampa: Blaine was nowhere near the vehicle at the time, so Boring, despite what he conveyed to this reviewer, had to be his source for this story (more on this in a moment) ! In addition to Emory Roberts, one now wonders, as mentioned previously, if Blaine was a source (or perhaps the source) for Manchester’s exaggerated “quote” attributed to Boring, as Agent Blaine was also interviewed by Manchester . Blaine would not respond to a follow-up letter on this subject.
However, when the author phoned Blaine on June 10, 2005, the former agent said the remark “Ivy League charlatans” came “from the guys … I can’t remember who [said it] … I can’t remember [emphasis added].” Thus, Blaine confirms that he did not hear the remark from JFK. That said, Blaine’s memory got a whole lot “better” 5 years later: he writes on page 148: “The message came though loud and clear on Blaine’s walkie-talkie.” Incredible.
As for ASAIC Floyd Boring, this reviewer has no doubt that Boring DID INDEED CONVEY the fraudelent notion that JFK had asked that the agents remove themselves from the limo between 11/18-11/19/63, but that the former agent was telling the TRUTH of the matter when he spoke to me years later. You see, Clint Hill wrote in his report: ““I ... never personally was requested by President John F. Kennedy not to ride on the rear of the Presidential automobile. I did receive information passed verbally from the administrative offices of the White House Detail of the Secret Service to Agents assigned to that Detail that Presi-dent Kennedy had made such requests. I do not know from whom I received this information ... No written instructions regarding this were ever distributed ... [I] received this information after the President’s return to Washington, D.C. This would have been between November 19, 1963 and November 21, 1963 [note the time frame!]. I do not know specifically who advised me of this request by the President.” [Emphasis added.] Mr. Hill’s undated report was presumably written in April 1964, as the other four reports were written at that time. Why Mr. Hill could not “remember” the specific name of the agent who gave him JFK’s alleged desires is very troubling—he revealed it on March 9, 1964, presumably before his report was written, in his (obviously pre-rehearsed) testimony under oath to the future Senator Arlen Specter, then a lawyer with the Warren Commission :
Specter: “Did you have any other occasion en route from Love Field to downtown Dallas to leave the follow-up car and mount that portion of the President’s car [rear portion of limousine]?”
Hill: “I did the same thing approximately four times.”
Specter: “What are the standard regulations and practices, if any, governing such an action on your part?”
Hill: “It is left to the agent’s discretion more or less to move to that particular position when he feels that there is a danger to the President: to place himself as close to the President or the First Lady as my case was, as possible, which I did.”
Specter: “Are those practices specified in any written documents of the Secret Service?”
Hill: “No, they are not.”
Specter: “Now, had there been any instruction or comment about your performance of that type of a duty with respect to anything President Kennedy himself had said in the period immediately preceding the trip to Texas?”
Hill: “Yes, sir; there was. The preceding Monday, the President was on a trip to Tampa, Florida, and he requested that the agents not ride on either of those two steps.”
Specter: “And to whom did the President make that request?”
Hill: “Assistant Special Agent in Charge Boring.”
Specter: “Was Assistant Special Agent in Charge Boring the individual in charge of that trip to Florida?”
Hill: “He was riding in the Presidential automobile on that trip in Florida, and I presume that he was. I was not along.”
Specter: “Well, on that occasion would he have been in a position comparable to that occupied by Special Agent Kellerman on this trip to Texas?”
Hill: “Yes sir; the same position.”
Specter: “And Special Agent Boring informed you of that instruction by President Kennedy?”
Hill: “Yes sir, he did.”
Specter: “Did he make it a point to inform other special agents of that same instruction?”
Hill: “I believe that he did, sir.”
Specter: “And, as a result of what President Kennedy said to him, did he instruct you to observe that Presidential admonition?”
Hill: “Yes, sir.”
Specter: “How, if at all, did that instruction of President Kennedy affect your action and—your action in safeguarding him on this trip to Dallas?”
Hill: “We did not ride on the rear portions of the automobile. I did on those four occasions because the motorcycles had to drop back and there was no protection on the left-hand side of the car.”
[Emphasis added.]
However, keeping in mind what Boring told this reviewer, the ARRB’s Doug Horne---by request of this reviewer--- interviewed Mr. Boring regarding this matter on 9/18/96. Horne wrote: “Mr. Boring was asked to read pages 136–137 of Clint Hill’s Warren Commission testimony, in which Clint Hill recounted that Floyd Boring had told him just days prior to the assassination that during the President’s Tampa trip on Monday, November 18, 1963, JFK had requested that agents not ride on the rear steps of the limousine, and that Boring had also so informed other agents of the White House detail, and that as a result, agents in Dallas (except Clint Hill, on brief occasions) did not ride on the rear steps of the limousine. Mr. Boring affirmed that he did make these statements to Clint Hill, but stated that he was not relaying a policy change, but rather simply telling an anecdote about the President’s kindness and consideration in Tampa in not wanting agents to have to ride on the rear of the Lincoln limousine when it was not necessary to do so because of a lack of crowds along the street.” [Emphasis added.]
This reviewer finds this admission startling, especially because the one agent who decided to ride on the rear of the limousine in Dallas anyway—and on at least four 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 exactly constituted a “crowd”, as agents did ride on the rear steps of the limousine in Tampa on November 18, 1963 anyway (agents Donald J. Lawton, Andrew E. Berger, and Charles T. Zboril, to be exact)! (Perhaps this is why Blaine felt the need to caption a photo of Boring with the following: “[Boring] was highly respected by all the agents, as well as by JFK”)
“Presidential admonition” (as Specter said to Hill)? Simply an “anecdote” of “the President’s kindness” (what Boring said to Horne)? “Not true” (what Boring said to this reviewer)? You decide. I have…and so has Blaine: twice, in fact---what he told this reviewer and what he now claims in “The Kennedy Detail (see the flapjacket, pages 148-150, 162, 183-184, 206, 208, 209, 232).”
On page 162, Blaine alleges that SAIC Gerald Behn, from his office in the White House, told agent Ron Pontius on 11/21/63: “[JFK] wanted the agents off the back of the car [in Tampa and Dallas] in order for the people to get an unobstructed view.” However, in a contradiction Blaine doesn’t even notice (although he previously mentioned it on page 19 and in the first photo section), BEHN WAS ON VACATION DURING THIS TIME! Perhaps most importantly, Behn told this reviewer on 9/27/92: “I don’t remember Kennedy ever saying that he didn’t want anybody on the back of his car. “I think if you watch the newsreel pictures you’ll find agents on there from time to time.” In fact, MANY former agents and White House aides told this reviewer the same thing Lawson, Boring, and Behn all said!
And yet, despite all of this defensive posturing, faction, and fabricating, Blaine states, with regard to the agents’ not being on the rear of the car in Dealey Plaza (on page 209): “It was standard procedure---regardless of the president’s request---for all agents to fall back to the follow-up car in this situation.” (see also page 289)
But Blaine wasn’t done just yet.
In what this reviewer regards as a clever fabrication with “faction” (reconstructing alleged dialogue, 47 years later, from long-dead colleagues), Blaine claims (on pages 285-289 & 360) that there was a meeting at 8 a.m. on 11/25/63, the morning of JFK’s funeral, in which the issue of JFK’s alleged orders to remove the agents from the car in Tampa (and Dallas) was allegedly covered up so the public would not blame the president for his own death…SOMETHING THIS BOOK, AND ESPECIALLY THIS “TALE”, DOES WITH VIGOR! Blaine claims that this meeting was attended by himself, Chief James Rowley (deceased 11/1/92), Rowley’s secretary Walter Blaschak (long deceased) , ASAIC Floyd Boring (deceased 2/1/08 and in ill heath long beforehand), SAIC Jerry Behn (as noted previously, deceased 4/21/93), ATSAIC Stu Stout (deceased December 1974), and ATSAIC Emory Roberts (deceased 10/8/73). ASAIC Roy Kellerman (deceased 3/22/84) allegedly did NOT attend and, while Blaine mentions that “every supervising agent” was in attendance, he does not mention ATSAIC Art Godfrey (deceased 5/12/2002) by name, although it is ‘inferred’ that he was there, as well. It must be said forcefully: there is NO documentation whatsoever that this alleged meeting occurred and all the participants, save Blaine (imagine that), are long dead AND many of them said and wrote things to this reviewer contradictory to the substance of this alleged meeting. On page 288, Blaine writes, speaking for SAIC Behn: “Jim, after Floyd told me about the incident [the alleged JFK orders to remove the agents 11/18/63 in Tampa], I told him to relay the information to the shift leaders---Emory Roberts, Art Godfrey, and Stu Stout---and I know that he did that. They in turn told the men on their shift, which included the agents out on advances.” Incredible. We already know what Behn, Boring, Blaine, Godfrey, and Lawson said to this reviewer; Stout and Kellerman never said anything officially, one way or the other on the matter. Roberts’ report confirms nothing except that ASAIC Boring told him to remove the agents from the car on 11/18/63; nothing about JFK or anything else. What about the other “agents out on advances”? Frank Yeager, Blaine’s advance partner in Tampa, in a letter to this reviewer dated December 29, 2003, Yeager wrote: “I did not think that President Kennedy was particularly “difficult” to protect. In fact, I thought that his personality made it easier than some because he was easy to get along with ….” [Emphasis added.] With regard to the author’s question “Did President Kennedy ever order the agents off the rear of his limousine?”, Yeager responded: “I know of no ‘order’ directly from President Kennedy. I think that after we got back from Tampa, Florida where I did the advance for the President, a few days before Dallas, Kenny O’Donnell, Chief of Staff, requested that the Secret Service agents not ride the rear running board of the Presidential car during parades involving political events so that the president would not be screened by an agent. I don’t know what form or detail that this request was made to the Secret Service who worked closely with O’Donnell. I also do not know who actually made the final decision, but we did not have agents on the rear of the President’s car in Dallas.” [Emphasis added.] Like Hill’s report mentioned above, please note the timing . Further regarding the notion of JFK’s staff having a hand in this matter, in a letter to the author dated January 15, 2004, former agent Gerald O’Rourke, who was on Blaine’s shift on the Texas trip, wrote: “Did President Kennedy order us (agents) off the steps of the limo? To my knowledge President Kennedy never ordered us to leave the limo. You must remember at times we had to deal with the Chief of Staff” [Emphasis added.] The agent added: “President Kennedy was easy to protect as he completely trusted the agents of the Secret Service. We always had to be entirely honest with him and up front so we did not lose his trust.”. So, while both agents say JFK was easy to protect and that no order came from JFK, they imply, or seem to imply, that the Chief of Staff---O’Donnell---had something to do with this. More on this crucially important matter in a moment, as we shall look at the other advance agents and what they conveyed to this reviewer.
J. Walter Coughlin, who helped do the San Antonio advance with the late Dennis Halterman (deceased 1988), wrote this reviewer: “In almost all parade situations that I was involved w[ith] we rode or walked the limo [emphasis added].” Coughlin later wrote: “We often rode on the back of the car.” (For the record, Ned Hall II, who helped with the advance in Fort Worth, passed away in 1998; his son, Ned Hall III, had no comment to make on the matter. The other agent on the Fort Worth advance, Bill Duncan, never has said a thing regarding this issue, officially or otherwise, and it is not apparent if he was even contacted for Blaine’s book or not). Ronald Pontius, who helped advance the Houston stop with the late Bert deFreese (died sometime in the 1980’s), wrote this reviewer that JFK DID convey these alleged orders “through his staff [emphasis added],” and here is why this “staff” notion is so important: this is a notion that Blaine doesn’t even touch in the book! For the record, Presidential Aide (Chief of Staff / Appointments Secretary) Kenneth P. O’Donnell does not mention anything with regard to telling the agents to remove themselves from the limousine (based on JFK’s alleged “desires”) during his lengthy Warren Commission testimony (nor to author William Manchester, nor even in his or his daughter’s books, for that matter); the same is true for the other two Presidential aides: Larry O’Brien and Dave Powers. In fact, Powers refutes this whole idea—he wrote this reviewer in a letter dated 9/10/93 that “they never had to be told to ‘get off’ the limousine. “ JFK’s staff is not mentioned as a factor during any of the agents’ Warren Commission testimony, nor in the aforementioned five reports submitted in April 1964. Furthermore, Helen O’Donnell wrote this reviewer on 10/11/10: “Suffice to say that you are correct; JFK did not order anybody off the car, he never interfered with my dad’s direction on the Secret Service, and this is much backed up by my Dad’s [audio] tapes. I think and know from the tapes Dallas always haunted him because of the might-have-beens---but they involved the motorcade route [only].” In addition, former agents Art Godfrey and Kinney denounced the “staff/O’Donnell” notion to this reviewer, despite what a small minority of the agents I contacted---Yeager, O’Rourke, and Pontius---suggested (although, again, Yeager and O’Rourke agreed that JFK was easy to protect and that no order came from him).
Just WHY are these seemingly contradictory accounts of this minority of agents’ Yeager, O’Rourke, and Pontius (seemingly contradictory, that is, to this reviewer AND definitely contradictory to Blaine) so very important? Because Blaine’s alleged 11/25/63 “meeting” mentions not a thing about staff interference or input, his BOOK mentions not a thing about staff interference or input, and, in fact, on page 352, Blaine even writes: “If ever asked about whether JFK had ordered them [the former agents] off the back of his car, the answer was always, “Oh, no. President Kennedy was wonderful. He was very easy to protect. No, I don’t remember him ever ordering agents off the back of his car [Emphasis added].” This is simply false. In addition to the aforementioned three agents (Yeager, O’Rourke, and Pontius), several agents contacted by the author would not comment, several would claim not to remember, and three (one, contacted by myself, the other two, via the HSCA) gave hazy second-hand information (of dubious quality) seeming to blame JFK after all! If that weren’t enough, Rufus Youngblood in his book and Emory Roberts in his report , claimed it was THE MOTORCYCLES that got in the way of the agents (Ready especially) getting onto the rear of the car…geez. Finally, in addition to Blaine, former agents Lynn Meredith, Larry Newman, and Don Lawton mentioned the “Ivy League Charlatan” remark to myself, although none claimed to have heard it from JFK (Meredith told me: “I must admit that I was not along on the trip and was back at the White House with Caroline and John, Jr. .. I do not know first hand if President Kennedy ordered agents off the back end of his limousine .” The former agent said that “No Secret Service agents riding on the rear of the limousine” was the number one reason JFK was killed! Newman, not interviewed for Blaine’s book, said “supposedly, I didn’t hear this [the “Ivy league charlatan” comment] directly” and that Manchester’s book was “part of myth, part of truth”. Newman added: “There was not a directive, per se” from President Kennedy to remove the agents from their positions on the back of his limousine. For his part, Lawton told me: “I didn’t hear the President say it, no. The word was relayed to us—I forget who told us now—you know, ‘come back to the follow-up car.’ ” Lawton also added: “Everyone felt bad. It was our job to protect the President. You still have regrets, remorse. Who knows, if they had left guys on the back of the car … you can hindsight yourself to death.” )
You see, almost none of these former agents were contacted by anyone other than this reviewer, as the agents had unlisted addresses and phone numbers; only the hospitality of a couple former agents led me to these men. Blaine’s comment on page 352 (and, indeed, his whole book) were aimed squarely at myself and my 22-page letter mentioned at the beginning of this review. After calling me a “self-described “Secret Service expert”---without actually naming me--- on page 359 (guilty as charged; that said, The History Channel, Vince Bugliosi, the Assassination Records Review Board, and many authors and researchers have given me this tag), Blaine saves his special ire for me on page 360: “This same “expert” who had been interviewed for many conspiracy theory books relentlessly blamed the Secret Service for JFK’s death by using their own statements against them [no theories, just facts---it is what it is: they said what they said, they wrote what they wrote, and to a total stranger, to boot]. In many cases he called agents and recorded their conversations without their knowledge [not “in many cases”: only in a very few instances many years ago and these agents are now deceased. That said, thank God I did: WHO would chose to believe my word NOW, especially with Blaine’s book out now for public consumption?]” And HERE is the kicker, in the context of the aforementioned alleged “meeting” Blaine detailed on pages 285-289 (and on page 352), Blaine continues (still on page 360): “When asked whether President Kennedy had ever ordered the agents off the back of his car, the agents gave him the standard line that Chief Rowley requested they give. And as the agents upheld their code, Rowley’s words from the day of President Kennedy’s funeral resonating in their minds, the Secret Service “expert” turned around and used their words to stab them---and their brothers---in the back with baseless accusations.” Incredible.
There was NO morning-of-JFK’s-funeral-meeting to cover for the dead president so he wouldn’t be blamed for ordering the agents off his car---this was used as a clever device to diffuse and cast aside the damning evidence of just what all these men (including BLAINE himself!) said and wrote to me, many of whom died years before this book—and this alleged meeting---was even a figment of Blaine’s imagination. Again, there is no documentation for this 47-year-old meeting---we have to take Blaine, the “sole survivor” of this alleged meeting, at his word. And, what—all these men are LIARS now for what they said and wrote to myself? In the context of my 22-page letter, I believe this “meeting” to be a total fabrication. But it IS clever for another reason: I am sure there WAS most likely A meeting regarding the security detail’s coverage of all the dignitaries and their walk with Jackie to St. Matthew’s Cathedral and so forth; a clever cover story, indeed.
That said, there are two major reasons why Blaine’s 47-year-old cover story is patently false: first, several important NON Secret Service agents (Dave Powers, Congressman Sam Gibbons, Marty Underwood, Helen O’Donnell, and Pierre Salinger, among others, such as various newsmen on 11/22/63, etc. ) ALSO told this reviewer that JFK did NOT interfere with the Secret Service or order the agents off his car---what “code” would THEY have been following, Mr. Blaine? Why would they be “lying” to me (yes, I am being facetitious)? Methinks this is why Blaine chose to ignore the other cover story of blaming the staff: he had no control over THEIR refutations.
The second reason also reveals an embarassing error on Blaine’s part---he writes on page 360: “If these “experts” [me!] and “researchers” had only read some of the documents that were released in 1992 and available online, they would have found a letter from Chief James J. Rowley written in response to J. Lee Rankin, general counsel on the Warren Commission, in which Rowley admitted what he so desperately did not want to become public. He did not want it to look as if the Secret Service was in any way blaming President Kennedy for his own death [Emphasis added].” (see also page 289 of Blaine’s book) Epic fail---not only does this book achieve Rowley’s “non-goal” of blaming JFK for the security inefficiencies in Dallas, but these “documents” were released in 1964 in the Warren Commission Volumes: 18 H 803–9, to be exact! In addition, Rowley’s alleged “desperation” to ‘hide’ JFK’s own alleged culpability in his own death was a monster failure of epic proportions: as we know, Clint Hill testified to the Warren Commission and this testimony was mentioned in the Warren Report, a massive best-seller which was also quoted by many major newspapers and magazines the world over and, if that weren’t enough, the 5 reports were mentioned by Jim Bishop in his own massive best-seller “The Day Kennedy Was Shot”; many other books mention these reports (and/ or Hill’s testimony). And just WHY would Rowley even NEED these 5 after-the-fact reports: why didn’t he just tell Rankin, in “confidence”, about the meeting they all supposedly had on the matter on 11/25/63? Why, indeed. For what it’s worth, Blaine (on pages 360-363) proceeds to quote from the five reports but does NOT state what they each say in verbatim fashion. Interestingly, nothing is mentioned specifically about JFK’s alleged desires regarding THE motorcade of November 22, 1963, as was requested by the Commission. And, 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 SAIC Behn, mentions the same November 18, 1963 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). Again, both Behn and Boring totally contradicted the contents of their reports at different times, independent of each other, to the author, while Roberts report is nothing more than his having heard BORING telling him to have the agents removed from the car on 11/18/63; Ready and Hill freely admit they weren’t even ON the Tampa trip in the first place in these reports (and, as Blaine omits, Hill wrote “I do not know from whom I received this information ... I do not know specifically who advised me of this request by the President.”. In addition, agents did ride on the rear of the limousine on July 2, 1963 and November 18, 1963 anyway, despite these alleged Presidential requests, as the film and photo record proves. Needless to say, with Boring joining Behn in refuting the substance of their reports, the official Secret Service ‘explanation’ falls like a house of cards.
All these reports are supposedly evidence of JFK expressing his desire to keep Secret Service agents off the limousine, particularly in Tampa, Florida on November 18, 1963.
Importantly, no mention is made of any alleged orders via President Kennedy’s staff.
And, again, there is nothing about what JFK said or “requested” on November 22, 1963, the critical day in question!
(As a “postscript” to Blaine’s cover stories about the agents removal from the car, on page 343 of his book, Blaine makes yet another embarrassing error: “When it came to the agents and whether they should or should not have been on the back of the car, the [Warren ] report stated that “the configuration of the presidential car and the seating arrangements of the Secret Service agents in the car did not afford the Secret Service agents the opportunity they should have had to be of immediate assistance to the president at the first sign of danger,” but this was in reference to AGENT ROY KELLERMAN’S position in the front seat and the obstacles he may have faced, NOT the agents who should have been on or near the REAR of the car using the UNOBSTRUCTED grabhandles!)
Regarding the issue of the bubbletop, although Blaine (on page 188) states that agent Lawson conveyed to Sam Kinney, the driver of the follow-up car, that the bubbletop was to be removed in Dallas, Sam told this reviewer on 10/19/92 and, again, on 3/4/94 and 4/15/94 : “It was my fault the top was off [the limousine in Dallas]—I am the sole responsibility of that.” In addition, Kinney’s oft-ignored report dated November 30, 1963 confirms this fact , as does the former agent’s recently-released February 26, 1978 HSCA interview: “… SA Kinney indicated that he felt that his was the responsibility for making the final decision about whether to use the bubble-top.” Blaine later states, on page 244, that the bubbletop “was meant to shield the passengers from the weather-he [agent Sam Kinney] could count on one hand how many times it had been used,” but this is simply untrue on two counts: the bubbletop was often used in nice weather conditions and was used more frequently that Blaine, speaking for the long-deceased Kinney (died 7/21/97), admits.
On page 193, Blaine states that agent Henry J. Rybka “never worked [the] follow-up [car], other than driving,” yet the record indicates otherwise.
Predictably, on pages 306-307 & 312-313, Blaine covers up the infamous drinking incident involving NINE agents of the Secret Service, including Clint Hill, Paul Landis, Glen Bennett, and Jack Ready! Interestingly, they were all from Shift Leader Emory Roberts’ particular shift. Significantly, None of the agents from the V.P. LBJ detail were involved in the drinking incident.
Blaine doesn’t even touch the issue of the Secret Service and their involvement of removing motorcycle coverage for JFK on 11/22/63. During a November 19, 1963 security meeting in Dallas, with no Secret Service men present, it was agreed that eighteen motorcycles would be used, some positioned along side the limousine, similar to the plan used in the prior Texas cities of San Antonio, Houston, and Fort Worth. However, there was another meeting on November 21, 1963 in which those plans were changed. Captain Perdue Lawrence of the Dallas Police testified to the Warren Commission: “I heard one of the Secret Service men say that President Kennedy did not desire any motorcycle officer directly on each side of him, between him and the crowd, but he would want the officers to the rear.”
Mr. Dulles: “… do you recall that any orders were given by or on behalf of the President with regard to the location of those motorcycles that were particularly attached to his car?”
Mr. Lawson: “Not specifically at this instance orders from him [emphasis added].”
The HSCA summed up the situation best:
The Secret Service’s alteration of the original Dallas Police Department motorcycle deployment plan prevented the use of maximum possible security precautions … Surprisingly, the security measure used in the prior motorcades during the same Texas visit shows that the deployment of motorcycles in Dallas by the Secret Service may have been uniquely insecure.
Blaine ALSO does not deal with the issue of the press and photographer’s displacement from the motorcade. Dallas Morning News reporter Tom Dillard testified to the Warren Commission: “We lost our position at the airport. I understood we were to have been quite a bit closer. We were assigned as the prime photographic car which, as you probably know, normally a truck precedes the President on these things [moto-cades] and certain representatives of the photographic press ride with the truck. In this case, as you know, we didn’t have any and this car that I was in was to take photographs which was of spot-news nature.”
On pages 221-222, Blaine, referring to the president’s physician, Admiral George Burkley, writes: “Normally the admiral rode in a staff car in the motorcade, or in the rear seat of the follow-up car, but he and the president’s secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, had misjudged the timing of the motorcade’s departure from Love Field and wound up scurrying to the VIP bus. He was furious for not having been in his normal seat but had nobody to blame but himself. His sole purpose for being in the motorcade was to be close to the president in case anything happened, but who could have predicted this? [Emphasis added]” Again, the record indicates otherwise: “Dr. George Burkley … felt that he should be close to the President at all times … Dr. Burkley was unhappy … this time the admiral protested. He could be of no assistance to the President if a doctor was needed quickly.” Burkley also said: “It’s not right … the President’s personal physician should be much closer to him,” even to the extent of “… sitting on an agent’s lap”. Burkley stated a few years after the assassination: “I accompanied President Kennedy on every trip that he took during his time as President … I went on all trips … we had a regular setup … all the pos-sible angles were covered by cooperation with the Secret Service, in that we knew the areas of most likely danger. We knew where additional medical aid would be available, and things of that nature … When we were in Fort Worth, Mrs. [Evelyn] Lincoln and I were in the second car in the motorcade … [in Dallas] I complained to the Secret Service that I should be either in the follow up car or the lead car … this was brought to their [the Secret Service’s] attention very strongly at the foot of the stairway from the airplane [Air Force One] … Most of the time, however, I was within one or two cars of the President. This was one of the few times that this did not occur [Emphasis added].” In fact, Burkley rode in the lead car in Miami on November 18, 1963. “The only other time that it did not occur, to my direct recollection, is when we were in Rome [July 2, 1963] … [emphasis added],” which was a model of very good security in every other respect.
Evelyn Lincoln, JFK’s secretary, confirmed Burkley’s feelings on the matter to the HSCA: “Mrs. Lincoln also mentioned what she thought was a curious incident in Dallas prior to the assassination. She said she was with Dr. Burkley … when they left Love Field for the beginning of the motorcade. She said they were somewhat surprised at being ‘shoved’ back in the motorcade into a bus. She said they usually rode in an automobile a few cars behind the car carrying the President.” It appears even Jackie Kennedy and, by extension, Dave Powers, were wondering about this situation regarding Burkley: On the weekend after President Kennedy’s funeral, Powers showed Mrs. Kennedy the color still frames from the Zapruder film as displayed in that week’s Life magazine. The pictures, of course, depict Jackie leaving the rear seat to crawl onto the back of the car. “Dave, what do you think I was trying to do?” she asked. Dave could only sug-gest that maybe she was searching for the President’s doctor, Rear Admiral George G. Burkley, who was in a bus at the rear of the motorcade.”
Incredibly, as documented in agent Andy Berger’s report , Blaine writes on page 233, with regard to Parkland Hospital: “A representative of the CIA appeared a while later.”
Also, as Blaine never even mentions, JFK’s Military Aide, General Godfrey McHugh, a devout Kennedy loyalist was relegated to the distant VIP car in the Dallas motorcade , stated that he was asked by the Secret Service “for the first time” to “ride in a car in the back [of the motorcade], instead, as normally I would do, between the driver and the Secret Service agent in charge of the trip.” Indeed, McHugh had just occupied this very spot on JFK’s previous trip to Florida, not to mention countless other times beforehand when either himself or fellow military aide, General Ted Clifton, rode in this position. (Greer admitted that many times an aide rode in the front seat of the limo with the driver and the supervisor , as the film and photo record bears out.) McHugh admitted that this was “unusual”: “That’s exactly what I thought.” The reason? “To give the President full exposure … they told me it would be helpful politically to the President [emphasis added].” There’s that qualifier again: “politically”. The HSCA’s Mark Flanagan, who interviewed McHugh, reported: “Ordinarily McHugh rode in the Presidential limousine in the front seat. This was the first time he was instructed not to ride in the car so that all attention would be focused on the President to accentuate full exposure.”
In yet another matter Blaine chose to ignore, Dallas Sheriff Bill Decker, who rode in the lead car with Lawson and Sorrels, told his men to in no way participate in the security of the motorcade. As verified in several films and photos, Decker’s men were standing idle at the corner of Main and Houston as mere spectators, nothing more. Indeed, Deputy Sheriff Luke Mooney told author Larry Sneed: “I was merely a spectator with a number of other plain clothes officers on Main Street just north of the Old Red Court House. We in the sheriff’s department had nothing to do with security.” Decker had given this unusual order to his men after telling Forrest Sorrels the previous day that he had agreed to incorporate additional personnel for security purposes, and even offered his full support to the agent: Decker had agreed to furnishing fifteen of his men for duty! Incredibly, the Dallas Morning News on October 26, 1963 reported the following, based on an interview with DPD Chief Jesse Curry: “LARGE POLICE GUARD PLANNED FOR KENNEDY—Signs Friday pointed to the greatest concentration of Dallas police ever for the protection of a high-ranking dignitary when President Kennedy visits Dallas next month … The deployment of the special force, he [Curry] said, is yet to be worked out with the U.S. Secret Service.” Yet Homicide Detective Gus Rose said: “I didn’t hear of any extraordinary security measures being set up thus we continued our normal rotation.”
Blaine also is seemingly unaware of the following, as noted by reporter Seth Kantor: "Will Fritz's men called off nite before by SS. Had planned to ride closed car w/ machine guns in car behind Pres." [which could mean someplace behind JFK's car, as was the case in Chicago, IL, on 3/23/63 & New York on 11/15/63]
Furthermore, Milton Wright, a Texas Highway Patrolman who was the driver of Mayor Cabell's car, wrote this reviewer: "As I recall, prior to the President arriving at the airport we were already staged on the tarmac. I do not recall what position I was in at that time but it was not #1[the number taped to his car's windshield]. At the last minute there was a lot of shuffling and I ended up in the 5th vehicle. My vehicle was the last to leave downtown after the shooting because the police set up a road block behind my car."
On page 224, Blaine writes: “It was very rare for both the president and vice president to be together at the same time in the same place.” This is an understatement---being in the same MOTORCADE was unique! Agent Youngblood later wrote: “It is strictly taboo, from the security standpoint, for the President and the Vice President to ride together in the same car, boat, plane, wagon, or anything else.” As J. F. terHorst (from the White House Press Corps), a man who covered every major presidential trip—including November 22, 1963—both at home and abroad, and Colonel Ralph Albertazzie (Nixon’s Air Force One pilot) observed in their book: “Beyond the environs of Washington, the Vice President rarely accompanies the President. The reason is not only a matter of physical security but one of politics … But Texas was a special case, the exception that proved the rule.” As HSCA attorney Belford Lawson succinctly put it: “Why for the first time in American history were the President and Vice-President together in the same motorcade?”
Blaine ALSO ignores the fact that the roofs along the route were not manned or checked. SAIC of the Nashville office Paul Doster told the Nashville Banner back on May 18, 1963 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.” The roofs of buildings were also guarded on November 18, 1963 , four short days before Dallas, in addition to San Antonio on November 21, 1963 , just the day before, as well as in Fort Worth on the morning of the assassination.
On page 201, regarding agent Bill Greer, the driver of JFK’s car in Dallas, Blaine writes: “And, God forbid, if he [Greer]ever did have to make a sudden getaway, he knew the 7,500-pound car with its 300-horsepower engine just didn’t gather speed as quickly as he would like.” If that wasn’t enough, Blaine adds, on page 212: “[Greer, after the shooting commenced] quickly tapped on the brake to see how the car would respond.” Finally, on page 356, Blaine delivers the coup de grace: “Yes, Bill Greer put his foot on the brake after the first shot. But for God’s sake, it had nothing to do with a conspiracy, or negligence-he was merely responding as any professionally trained driver would respond.”
Oh, really? Sixty witnesses (ten police officers, seven Secret Service agents, thirty-eight spectators, two Presidential aides, one Senator, Governor Connally, and Jackie Kennedy) and the Zapruder film document Secret Service agent William R. Greer’s deceleration of the presidential limousine, as well as his two separate looks back at JFK during the assassination (Greer denied all of this to the Warren Commission ). By decelerating from an already slow 11.2 mph, Greer greatly endangered the President’s life, and, as even Gerald Posner admitted, Greer contributed greatly to the success of the assassination. When we consider that Greer disobeyed a direct order from his superior, Roy Kellerman, to get out of line before the fatal shot struck the President’s head, it is hard to give Agent Greer the benefit of the doubt. As ASAIC Roy H. Kellerman said: “Greer then looked in the back of the car. Maybe he didn’t believe me.” Ken O’Donnell stated: “Greer had been remorseful all day, feeling that he could have saved President Kennedy’s life by swerving the car or speeding suddenly after the first shots.” In addition, Greer told Jackie the following on November 22, 1963 at Parkland Hospital, shortly after the murder: “Oh, Mrs. Kennedy, oh my God, oh my God. I didn’t mean to do it, I didn’t hear, I should have swerved the car, I couldn’t help it. Oh, Mrs. Kennedy, as soon as I saw it I swerved. If only I’d seen it in time! Oh!” Finally, Dave Powers confirmed Greer’s guilt to CBS newsman Charles Kuralt on November 22, 1988, also adding that if Greer would have sped up before the fatal headshot, JFK might still be alive today.
When this reviewer asked Richard Greer, the surviving son of Bill Greer, on 9/17/91: “What did your father think of JFK?”, Richard did not respond the first time. When this author asked him a second time, Greer responded: “Well, we’re Methodists … and JFK was Catholic.” Bill Greer was born and raised in County Tyrone, Ireland, coming to America in February 1930 and, if that weren’t enough, “worked one summer on the estate of Henry Cabot Lodge” , JFK’s two-time political opponent (a staunch Republican defeated twice by Kennedy) and Ambassador to Saigon during the CIA and U.S. government–sponsored assassi-nation of President Diem of Vietnam on November 2, 1963 (Lodge was principally involved ). Obviously, Greer, just from his association with Lodge, as well as his work in and around Boston, had to have known about Kennedy, as well as his rich family, Ambassador father Joe, and their controversial heritage of alleged bootlegging, Nazi sympathizing, and political history in Boston.
The sequence is crucial:
1. First shot (or shots) rings out: the car slows.
2. Greer turns around once.
3. Kellerman orders Greer to “get out of line; we’ve been hit!”.
4. Greer disobeys his superior’s order and turns around to stare at JFK for the second time, until after the fatal headshot finds its mark!
As stated before, Greer was responsible, at fault, and felt remorse. In short, Greer had survivor’s guilt.
But, then, stories and feelings changed.
Agent Greer to the FBI, November 22, 1963: “Greer stated that he first heard what he thought was possibly a motorcycle backfire and glanced around and noticed that the President had evidently been hit [notice that, early on, Greer admits seeing JFK, which the Zapruder proves he did two times before the fatal head shot occurred]. He thereafter got on the radio and communicated with the other vehicles, stating that they desired to get the President to the hospital immediately [in reality, Greer did not talk on the radio, and Greer went on to deny ever saying this during his Warren Commission testimony] … Greer stated that they (the Secret Service) have always been instructed to keep the motorcade moving at a considerable speed inasmuch as a moving car offers a much more difficult target than a vehicle traveling at a very slow speed. He pointed out that on numerous occasions he has attempted to keep the car moving at a rather fast rate, but in view of the President’s popularity and desire to maintain close liaison with the people, he has, on occasion, been instructed by the President to ‘slow down’. Greer stated that he has been asking himself if there was any-thing he could have done to avoid this incident, but stated that things hap-pened so fast that he could not account for full developments in this matter ….” [The “JFK-as-scapegoat” theme—and so much for Greer’s remorse from earlier the same day.]
Finally, what did Jacqueline Kennedy think of Greer’s performance on 11/22/63? Mary Gallagher reported in her book: “She mentioned one Secret Service man who had not acted during the crucial moment, and said bitterly to me, ‘He might just as well have been Miss Shaw!’ ” Jackie also told Gallagher: “You should get yourself a good driver so that nothing ever happens to you.” Secret Service agent Marty Venker confirmed that the agent Jackie was referring to was Agent Greer: “If the agent had hit the gas before the third shot, she griped, Jack might still be alive.” Later, authors C. David Heymann and Edward Klein further corroborated that the agent Mrs. Kennedy was referring to was indeed Greer. Manchester wrote: “[Mrs. Kennedy] had heard Kellerman on the radio and had wondered why it had taken the car so long to leave.” In addition, Jackie “played the events over and over in her mind …. She did not want to accept Jack’s death as a freak accident, for that meant his life could have been spared—if only the driver in the front seat of the presidential limousine [Agent William R. Greer] had reacted more quickly and stepped on the gas … if only the Secret Service had stationed agents on the rear bumper … [emphasis added].”
Incredibly, ASAIC Roy Kellerman told the following to FBI agents' Sibert & O'Neil on the night of the murder: "The advanced security arrangements made for this specific trip were the most stringent and thorough ever employed by the Secret Service for the visit of a President to an American city" Perhaps THIS is why JFK reassured a worried San Antonio Congressman Henry Gonzalez on 11/21/63 by saying: "The Secret Service told me that they had taken care of everything - there's nothing to worry about." If that weren’t enough, President Kennedy told an equally concerned advance man, Marty Underwood, on 11/21/63: in Houston "Marty, You worry about me too much."
On pages 230-231, Blaine seeks to pass the blame on to others once again, this time in the form of JFK’s Chief of Staff, Ken O’Donnell: “Ken O’Donnell agreed…that Johnson should return to Washington as soon as possible and that yes, he should leave Dallas on Air Force One.” However, O’Donnell denied this, telling author William Manchester: “The President and I had no conversation regarding Air Force One. If we had known he was going on Air Force One, we would have taken Air Force Two. One plane was like the other.” In fact, when Arlen Specter of the Warren Commission asked O’Donnell, “Was there any discussion about his [LBJ] taking the presidential plane, AF–1, as opposed to AF–2?”, O’Donnell responded: “There was not.” In this regard, O’Donnell later wrote in his book Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye that a Warren Commission attorney—the aforementioned Arlen Specter—asked him to “change his testimony so that it would agree with the President’s”: an offer O’Donnell refused. With this in mind, author Jim Bishop reported: “Emory Roberts suggested that Johnson leave at once for Air Force One … Roberts asked Kenny O’Donnell and he said: ‘Yes.’ Johnson refused to move. Roberts returned to O’Donnell and asked again: ‘Is it all right for Mr. Johnson to board Air Force One now?’ ‘Yes,’ O’Donnell said, ‘Yes.’ ” [Emphasis added.] This author believes O’Donnell when he says he had no part in LBJ going to Air Force One over Air Force Two. This was a Secret Service (Emory Roberts) decision. Presidential aides Ken O’Donnell and Dave Powers best summed up the situation when they wrote: “Roberts, one of President Kennedy’s agents … had decided to switch to Johnson as soon as Kennedy was shot.” In addition, four other authors have noted Agent Roberts’ “switch of allegiance”, including Chief Curry. Incredibly, Roberts was the President’s receptionist during the Johnson administration while still a member of the Secret Service, receiving a Special Service Award from the Treasury Department for improving communications and services to the public in 1968! LBJ thought highly of Roberts, and the feeling was mutual---President Johnson told a gathering that “Emory Roberts, who I am sorry can't be here today--he greets me every morning and tells me goodbye every night.” (For the record, LBJ didn’t think much of Roy Kellerman: “This fellow Kellerman … he was about as loyal a man as you could find. But he was about as dumb as an ox.” )
Also predictably, on pages 334-335 & 356-357, Blaine seeks to minimize former agent Abraham Bolden’s claims of Secret Service negligence and conspiracy.
Blaine (on pages 350 and 352) seeks to cast away ANY notion that the Secret Service agents believed there was a conspiracy, yet there is the record that says differently:
From the February 22, 1978 House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) interview of Miami SAIC John Marshall, former White House Detail agent who conducted all the advance work on President Kennedy’s frequent trips to Palm Beach:
TWICE DURING THE INTERVIEW, MR. MARSHALL MENTIONED THAT, FOR ALL HE KNEW, SOMEONE IN THE SECRET SERVICE COULD POSSIBLY HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN THE ASSASSINATION. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME AN AGENT HAS MENTIONED THE POSSIBILITY THAT A CONSPIRACY EXISTED, BUT IT IS THE FIRST TIME THAT AN AGENT HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THE POSSIBILITY THAT THE SECRET SERVICE COULD HAVE BEEN INVOLVED.
In addition, former agents Jerry O’Rourke, Sam Kinney, Abraham Bolden, and Maurice Martineau believed there was a conspiracy, as well!
“The Kennedy Detail”, a book firmly rooted in the “Oswald-did-it-alone” camp, also contains contradictory evidence of conspiracy in its pages. On page 216, Blaine describes the shooting sequence in this manner: the first shot strikes the president, the second shot strikes Governor Connally, and the third shot strikes JFK in the head…there is no acknowledgement of the Warren Commission’s fictional single bullet theory or the known missed shot that struck bystander James Tague! This is a pattern Hill and Blaine repeat on national television. On page 217, Blaine writes that agent Clint Hill saw “a bloody, gaping, fist-sized hole clearly visible in the back of his head,” clear evidence that JFK was struck by a shot from the FRONT, as also confirmed by Hill’s report and Warren Commission testimony , not to mention the reports (plural) from fellow agent Paul Landis (whose contents were confirmed by Landis to the HSCA) , no matter what Landis or Blaine say now (see pages 225 & 352-353), as well as the statements made by agent Sam Kinney to Vince Palamara (and, ironically, in Blaine’s own book, pages 216 & 218, regarding blood hitting his windshield!) and agent Win Lawson, who also “saw a huge hole in the back of the president's head.” Blaine also uses this same language later in the book (page 258): “Now the men who just four and a half hours earlier had seen the back of President Kennedy’s head blown off hauled the casket holding his dead body...” Finally, regarding Hill, Blaine describes his friends’ recollections of the autopsy (page 266): “Six inches down from the neckline, just to the right of the spinal column, there was a small wound, a hole in the skin…All Clint could see was that the right rear portion of President Kennedy’s head was completely gone.”
On page 261, Blaine writes: “[7:55 p.m., 11/22/63] For about twenty minutes [Chief James J] Rowley gave [the agents] what could only be called a pep talk…There was no feeling that he blamed anyone or that the assassination could somehow have been prevented.” On page 275, Blaine says of SAIC Behn (deceased 4/21/93): “From everything Jerry Behn had heard about the tragedy in Dallas, nobody was to blame.” Blaine carries this incredibly dumb statement even further during television interviews for the book---he told MSNBC’s Chris Matthews on 11/12/10: “No, there was nothing that could have been done to stop it.”
On pages 264-265, Blaine related how he almost shot President Johnson on 11/23/63 with his Thompson submachine gun, a tale of dubious merit that garnered much press before the release of the book.
Blaine seems to be unaware of the following, as reported by the Assassination Records Review Board in 1998: “Congress passed the JFK Act of 1992. One month later, the Secret Service began its compliance efforts. However, in January 1995, the Secret Service destroyed presidential protection survey reports for some of President Kennedy's trips in the fall of 1963. The Review Board learned of the destruction approximately one week after the Secret Service destroyed them, when the Board was drafting its request for additional information. The Board believed that the Secret Service files on the President's travel in the weeks preceding his murder would be relevant.”
On page 359, Blaine identifies the agent recalled at Love Field as SA Don Lawton, the OTHER agent (along with SA Henry Rybka) “ostensibly” left to secure Love Field for the President’s departure, and takes this reviewer to task for his misidentification. In the interest of time, please see this reviewer’s online videos wherein he fully explains himself, his rationale, and his belief that, regardless of WHO the agent is (and he is willing to concede that it was probably Lawton after all), the SUBSTANCE of what is being depicted in the video---the essence---remains the same. Suffice to say that many people were “fooled” by this footage---former JFK agent Larry Newman, the ARRB, The History Channel, Rybka’s family, millions of You Tube viewers, countless authors and researchers, and even a December 2009 Discovery Channel Secret Service documentary “Secrets of the Secret Service”!
Although very well written, along with some nice photographs, as well, "The Kennedy Detail" is really a thinly veiled attempt to rewrite history (a la Gerald Posner and Vince Bugliosi, who believe 11/22/63 was the act of a single lone man) and absolve the agents of their collective survivor's guilt (and to counter the prolific writings of a certain reviewer). In the eyes of those from "The Kennedy Detail", the assassination was the act of TWO "lone men": Oswald, who pulled the trigger, and JFK, who set himself up as the target. Simply put: President Kennedy WAS indeed a very nice man, did not interfere with the actions of the Secret Service, did not order the agents off his limousine (in Tampa, in Dallas, or elsewhere), and did not have his staff convey any anti-security sentiments, either. The sheer force and power of what these men all told me, a complete stranger, in correspondence and on the phone, is all the more strong because, not only did they have a vested interest to protect themselves, the vast majority believe that Oswald acted alone and that all official "stories" are correct.
In light of the work of this reviewer, future pensions, professional and personal reputations, and so forth, "The Kennedy Detail" makes perfect sense. After the reviewer's letter to Clint Hill, it truly WAS "a book that HAD to be written".
A postscript: Gerald Blaine stated on 11/11/10 on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”: “We felt we were 100% failure.”
Finally, you said something we can ALL agree on, Mr. Blaine.
By Vince Palamara, Secret Service expert (as noted by The History Channel, Vince Bugliosi, the Assassination Records Review Board, and, condescendingly, by Blaine himself!)
A detailed and exhaustive review of “The Kennedy Detail”, a book written by Gerald Blaine with Lisa McCubbin; Foreword by Clint Hill (2010, Gallery Books)
On June 1, 2005, I sent a 22-page registered letter, signed receipt required, to former Secret Service agent Clint Hill (infamous for his leap onto the back of the limousine during the assassination of President Kennedy on November 22, 1963). My letter was, in essence, a “cliff notes” version of my own book “Survivor’s Guilt: The Secret Service & The Failure To Protect The President” , focusing mainly on the issue of the agents’ presence---or lack thereof---on the rear of the presidential limousine on 11/22/63, as well as the actions and inactions of three specific agents I have many misgivings about: Floyd Boring (the number two agent on the Kennedy Detail and the Secret Service planner of the Texas trip), Shift Leader Emory Roberts (the commander of the agents in the follow-up car in Dallas), and William Greer (the driver of JFK's limousine). When I phoned the gentleman on June 13, 2005, I received a very cantankerous “non reply”, so to speak: “[Refering to my letter:] About what? Yeah, I’m here. I’m just not interested in talking to you.” I did not really expect much, but it was worth a try (having received an unexpected recommendation to talk to Mr. Hill from former agent Lynn Meredith, who was gracious enough to provide Mr. Hill’s unlisted address and phone number).
On June 10, 2005, I phoned fellow former agent Gerald Blaine (having previously spoken to the gentleman on 2/7/04). Blaine confirmed his deep friendship with Hill and, much to my surprise, seemingly out of nowhere, said: “Don’t be too hard on Emory Roberts. He was a double, even a triple checker. He probably took Jack Ready’s life into consideration.” It was at that moment that I realized that Clint Hill shared the contents of my letter to Blaine; probably with a good dose of anger and indignation, as well. When I received word that Blaine was coming out with a book called “The Kennedy Detail” AND that Clint Hill was writing the Foreword, I KNEW that I was responsible, as a catalyst, for their endevours! Blaine and Hill are now on a book tour together, as well as appearing jointly on several news and media outlets, including in an upcoming Discovery Channel documentary, based on the book.
In fact, Blaine even admitted to Grand Junction Sentinel reporter Bob Silbernagel that it was during this exact time that he “began contacting all he could of the 38 agents who were in the Kennedy Detail on Nov. 22, 1963,” adding further that once “he began seeing all the misinformation and outright deceit about the assassination on the Internet, as well as in books and films, he decided, “Essentially, it was a book that had to be written.” There was no question in my mind that I ruffled feathers with Blaine and Hill. If all this weren’t enough, Blaine’s attorney even sent me a certified letter in November 2009, a year before his book was to appear, asking me to take down a blog that Blaine noticed on my main Secret Service blog that merely announced their forthcoming book. Blaine thought I was trying to say that I was the co-author, which was the furthest thing from the truth-I was innocently telling my readers of a book thye might find of interest. In any event, after writing back to Blaine and his lawyer, I decided to take that specific blog down…but this incident let me know, in no uncertain terms: Blaine and Hill were men on a mission. This is further evidenced by what Blaine himself wrote on his blog : “At the annual conference of the 2500 member former Secret Service Agents Association [AFAUSSS] last week (8/26-8/28/10) in New York City, Lisa McCubbin and I [Gerald Blaine] presented an overview of the book at the business meeting to ensure the agents that the publication was “Worthy of Trust and Confidence.”; “At the conference opening reception Clint Hill, Lisa McCubbin and I [Gerald Blaine] met with Secret Service Director Sullivan and discussed the book from the perspective of today’s operations. Clint Hill, who lives in the Washington DC area, had previously briefed the Director on the accuracy and purpose of writing the book.”; “I [Gerald Blaine] am the sole surviving charter member and a past president of the organization. The association was conceived by Floyd Boring and Jerry Behn with the assistance of fifteen charter members. Jerry Behn was the Special Agent in Charge of the Kennedy Detail and Floyd Boring was an Assistant Agent in Charge. The organization's mission is to maintain social and professional relationships, to liaison with the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies [Emphasis added]”
To quote from a popular commercial, “Can you hear me now?”
I knew their “mission” was to circle the wagons, so to speak, and attempt to counter my prolific research on the failings of the Secret Service on November 22, 1963-specifically, the statements by many of their colleagues---including BLAINE himself---that President Kennedy was a very nice man, never interfered with the actions of the Secret Service and, to the point, did NOT order the agents off his limousine…ever! These men, as well as several important NON agency personnel (such as Dave Powers, Congressman Sam Gibbons, and Cecil Stoughton, among others), provided information, on the phone and/ or in writing, to a total stranger---myself---with no trepidation whatsoever. “Official” history---the Warren Report, the HSCA Report, William Manchester’s “The Death of a President”, and Jim Bishop’s “The Day Kennedy Was Shot”---espouses a decidedly different verdict: President Kennedy was reckless with his security and did order the agents off his limousine-not in Dallas, but during the major trip before, in Tampa, FL, on 11/18/63, which allegedly had grave consequences for JFK’s protection on the day he was assassinated.
First, a detailed look at the contents of ”The Kennedy Detail” is in order.
The book gets off on the wrong foot with myself and others right away with the bold pronouncement: “ JFK’s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence” (which is also the subtitle of the book). This is hogwash: not only did several agents, including Clint Hill, testify to the Warren Commission, many of the agents spoke to the aforementioned William Manchester (including Blaine and Hill ), Jim Bishop, and the HSCA, as well as to, among others, Prof. Philip Melanson (for his book “The Secret Service: The Hidden History of an Enigmatic Agency”), several prominent Secret Service television documentaries between 1995 and 2004 (Hill was involved in all of these productions that made their way to VHS and/ or DVD, as well), and, last but certainly not least, to myself, Vince Palamara, between 1992 and 2006 (again, including Blaine and Hill)! Things only get worse once one gets to the inside flap jacket: Blaine writes that JFK “banned agents from his car”, which is patently false- as Winston Lawson, the lead advance agent for the fateful Dallas trip, wrote to me in a letter dated 1/12/04: “I do not know of any standing orders for the agents to stay off the back of the car. After all, foot holds and handholds were built into that particular vehicle…it never came to my attention as such. I am certain agents were on the back on certain occasions.” For his part, ATSAIC (Shift Leader) Art Godfrey told this reviewer on May 30, 1996, regarding the notion that JFK ordered the agents not to do certain things which included removing themselves from the rear of the limousine: “That’s a bunch of baloney; that’s not true. He never ordered us to do anything. He was a very nice man … cooperative.” Godfrey reiterated this on June 7, 1996. In a letter dated November 24, 1997, Godfrey stated the following: “All I can speak for is myself. When I was working [with] President Kennedy he never ask[ed] me to have my shift leave the limo when we [were] working it,” thus confirming what he had also told the author telephonically on two prior occasions. As we shall see, Blaine makes much ado about this issue…for obvious reasons (Thou Protest Too Much).
Although very well written and containg some nice photographs, “The Kennedy Detail” provides the reader a generous dose of fact, “faction” (playing hard and loose with alleged ‘facts’ and encompassing reconstructed dialogue and supposed meetings that allegedly occurred without documentation) and fiction. In fact, there are no footnotes, endnotes, sources, or a bibliography to be found (although, to his credit, Blaine did include an impressive index). It is important to note that many important former agents and officials, such as “the brass”---Treasury Secretary Douglas Dillon, Asst Sec. G. d’Andelot Belin, Chief James Rowley, Aide to the Chief Walter Blaschak, Deputy Chief Paul Paterni, Assistant Chief Russell Daniels, Assistant Chief Ed Wildy, Chief U.E. Baughman, Special Agent In Charge (SAIC) Gerald Behn, ASAIC Floyd Boring (the planner of the Texas trip), ASAIC Roy Kellerman (rode in JFK’s limo), ASAIC John Campion, ATSAIC (Shift Leader) Emory Roberts (rode in follow up car), ATSAIC Stu Stout (on Texas trip), ATSAIC Art Godfrey (on Texas trip), SAIC of Personnel Howard Anderson, SAIC of PRS Robert Bouck, ASAIC of LBJ Detail (and former JFK agent) Rufus Youngblood, Head Inspector of PRS Elliot Thacker, Chief Inspector Jackson Krill, Inspector Thomas Kelley, Inspector Gerard McCann, & Inspector Burrill Peterson---and many “privates”, such as Bill Bacherman, Glen Bennett (of PRS; rode in motorcade), Andy Berger (on the Texas trip), Bert deFreese (on the Texas trip), Jerry Dolan, Paul Doster, PRS Dick Flohr, Morgan Gies, William Greer (the driver of JFK’s limo), Dennis Halterman (on the Texas trip), Ned Hall II (on the Texas trip), Harvey Henderson, George Hickey (rode in the follow-up car), Andy Hutch, Jim Jeffries, Sam Kinney (drove the follow-up car), PRS Elmer Lawrence, James Mastrovito, John “Muggsy” O’Leary (on the Texas trip), Bill Payne (on the Texas trip), PRS Walter Pine, Wade Rodham , Henry Rybka (on the Texas trip), Thomas Shipman (deceased 10/14/63!), PRS Frank Stoner, & PRS Walter Young---not to mention countless agents from field offices (such as the SAIC of the Dallas Office Forrest Sorrels and his assistant Robert Steuart AND Charlie Kunkel), DIED YEARS BEFORE THIS BOOK WAS EVEN A THOUGHT. In addition, since there are no specific references, it is hard to know exactly WHO among the living WAS interviewed, as Blaine recently admitted that “three agents still cannot discuss the emotional aspects of that day in Dallas” and he was unable “to contact three other agents who served.” In addition, several OTHER agents (such as Lynn Meredith, Bob Foster, Paul Burns, Jerry Kivett and Stu Knight) passed away during the time Blaine was writing his book, so we are unable to know if they were contacted, as well.
That said, it is most telling that Blaine admitted that three agents---Larry Newman, Tony Sherman, and Tim McIntyre (rode in the follow-up car)--- were not contacted because they had “responded to Seymour Hirsch's [sic] book The Dark Side of Camelot, which violated the code of silence” , yet, the fourth agent, Joe Paolella, apparently WAS interviewed for Blaine’s volume-why wasn’t he banished from his work, as well? Using this criteria, several (perhaps many) of the agents who spoke to myself and others should have been ignored, as well (example: former agent Walt Coughlin told me that LBJ was “a first-class prick” ). It was obvious why Blaine ignored former agent Abraham Bolden: the controversial nature of Bolden’s beliefs and so forth . So, it appears a little selectivity, necessary and otherwise, was used regarding former agent interviews for “The Kennedy Detail.”
As for the aforementioned Newman, Sherman, McIntyre, and Paolella, they waxed on to Seymour Hersh (and others, including the December 1997 ABC/ Peter Jennings special “Dangerous World: The Kennedy Years”) about their anger and disgust over JFK’s private lives; incredibly, even Emory Roberts’ concerns over these issues was voiced by McIntyre. This is very disturbing because it shows a MOTIVE FOR INACTION on 11/22/63. For his part, McIntyre told ABC News, regarding JFK’s private life: “Prostitution—that’s illegal. A procurement is illegal. And if you have a procurer with prostitutes paraded in front of you, then, as a sworn law enforcement officer, you’re asking yourself, ‘Well, what do they think of us?’ ” McIntyre felt this way after having only spent a very brief time with JFK before the assassination: he joined the WHD in the fall of 1963. McIntyre also told Hersh: “His shift supervisor, the highly respected Emory Roberts, took him aside and warned … that ‘you’re going to see a lot of shit around here. Stuff with the President. Just forget about it. Keep it to yourself. Don’t even talk to your wife.’ … Roberts was nervous about it. Emory would say, McIntyre recalled with a laugh, ‘How in the hell do you know what’s going on? He could be hurt in there. What if one bites him’ in a sensitive area? Roberts ‘talked about it a lot’, McIntyre said. ‘Bites’ … In McIntyre’s view, a public scandal about Kennedy’s incessant womanizing was inevitable. ‘It would have had to come out in the next year or so. In the campaign, maybe.’ McIntyre said he and some of his colleagues … felt abused by their service on behalf of President Kennedy … McIntyre said he eventually realized that he had compromised his law enforcement beliefs to the point where he wondered whether it was ‘time to get out of there. I was disappointed by what I saw.’ ” [Emphasis added.] Blaine chose to ignore these men and this issue entirely in his book: is this good history? I think not. It might not be pleasant, but these men said what they said-to ignore this matter speaks of a cover up of guilty knowledge. I did not ignore it.
From the first photo section and page 19 of his book (and, later, on pages 240 and 288), we learn something I had already reported years before: that SAIC Gerald Behn “always traveled with the president. In the three years since Kennedy had been elected, Jerry Behn had not taken one day of vacation...He took his first vacation in four years the week JFK was assassinated.” Quirk of fate or convenient absence? You decide. I have.
Also on page 19, Blaine begins to (using a lawyer’s term) “lay the foundation”, as it were, for blaming the victim (JFK) and, in the process, makes a real whopper-Blaine writes: “the Secret Service was not authorized to override a presidential decision.” Wrong! Ample proof to the contrary abounds. Chief James J. Rowley testified under oath to the Warren Commission: “No President will tell the Secret Service what they can or cannot do.” In fact, Rowley’s predecessor, former Chief U. E. Baughman, who had served under JFK from Election Night 1960 until September 1961, had written in his 1962 book Secret Service Chief: “Now the Chief of the Secret Service is legally empowered to countermand a decision made by anybody in this country if it might endanger the life or limb of the Chief Executive. This means I could veto a decision of the President himself if I decided it would be dangerous not to. The President of course knew this fact.” Indeed, an Associated Press story from November 15, 1963 stated: “The (Secret) Service can overrule even the President where his personal security is involved.” Even President Truman agreed, stating, “The Secret Service was the only boss that the President of the United States really had.” Finally, In an 11/23/63 UPI story written by Robert J. Serling from Washington entitled “Secret Service Men Wary of Motorcade”, based in part on “private conversations” with unnamed agents: “An agent is the only man in the world who can order a President of the United States around if the latter’s safety is believed at stake … in certain situations an agent outranks even a President.” [Emphasis added.]
One major myth down, one major one left to demolish.
Peppered throughout the book, but starting on page 74, Blaine begins to bring up the issue of the agents’ presence (or lack thereof) on the back of JFK’s limousine (in Tampa on 11/18/63, in Dallas on 11/22/63, and elsewhere---further “laying the foundation” for his false premise of blaming the victim), accurately stating for the record, AFTER revealing his knowledge of the Joseph Milteer threat received via the Miami Police Department before JFK’s trip to Florida: “…the only way to have a chance at protecting the president against a shooter from a tall building would be to have agents posted on the back of the car.” Indeed, on pages 81-84, as various films and photos confirm, Blaine tells of his having rode on the rear of President Kennedy’s limousine in Rome and Naples, Italy (7/2/63). In addition, his first photo section depicts Blaine and his colleagues on or near the rear of JFK’s car in Costa Rica (March 1963), Berlin, Germany (June, 1963) and Ireland (also in June 1963), while his second photo section depicts yet another photo of the agents on the car in Ireland, as well as in Tampa, Florida (11/18/63) and even agent Clint Hill on the rear of the car in Dallas, Texas on 11/22/63, albeit before the motorcade reached Dealey Plaza.
It is on pages 100-101, in his zeal to set up his premise, that Blaine makes a costly error-Blaine writes: “Fortunately, they’d have SS100X [JFK’s special 1961 Lincoln Continental] in Dallas, which had the rear steps and handholds so two agents could be perched directly behind the president and could react quickly. He’d [Win Lawson would] be sure to tell Roy Kellerman, the Special Agent in Charge for the Texas trip, that when the motorcade was driving through downtown, agents would need to be on the back of the car.” However, as we have seen, and it bears repeating, Win Lawson wrote to this reviewer on 1/12/04, before this book was even a thought, and said: “I do not know of any standing orders for the agents to stay off the back of the car. After all, foot holds and handholds were built into that particular vehicle…it never came to my attention as such. [emphasis added].” Needless to say, this is in direct contradiction to these statements, attributed to Lawson by Blaine, in “The Kennedy Detail.”
Blaine makes much of the 11/18/63 trip JFK took to Tampa as ‘evidence’ that President Kennedy ordered the agents off the car (as did the Secret Service, exactly five months after the assassination, via five reports submitted to the Warren Commission by Chief Rowley ). As with SAIC Behn’s first-time absence, we now supposedly have another instance of a brand new notion, as Blaine writes on page 148: “In the three years he’d been with JFK, he’d never heard the president call the agents off the back of the car in the middle of a motorcade.” Indeed, on page 162, Blaine reports that agent Ron Pontius stated: “I’ve never heard the president say anything about agents on the back of the car,” registering his astonishment based on allegedly hearing this, for the first time, on 11/21/63 from long-deceased agent Bert deFreese (in a 47-year-old reconstructed conversation—faction? Fiction?---that Blaine makes in the book). Blaine is alleging that JFK ordered the agents (specifically, agents Don Lawton and Chuck Zboril) off the back of the car in Tampa, allegedly using the phrase made infamous by William Manchester : “Floyd [Boring], have the Ivy League charlatans drop back to the follow-up car.” Blaine later adds, on page 184: “None of the agents understood why he [JFK] was willing to be so reckless.” If that weren’t enough, Blaine also stated (on the upcoming Discovery Channel documentary airing on 11/22/10): "President Kennedy made a decision, and he politely told everybody, 'You know, we're starting the campaign now, and the people are my asset,'" said agent Jerry Blaine. "And so, we all of a sudden understood. It left a firm command to stay off the back of the car." Huh? “Everybody”? THAT alleged statement “left a firm command”? In any event, once again, we have a major conflict with reality---not only do many films and photos depict the agents (still) riding on (or walking/ jogging very near) the rear of the limousine in Tampa , Congressman Sam Gibbons, who actually rode a mere foot away IN the car with JFK, wrote to me in a letter 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.” Also, photographer Tony Zappone, then a 16-year-old witness to the motorcade in Tampa (one of whose photos for this motorcade was ironically used in “The Kennedy Detail”!), told me that the agents were “definitely on the back of the car for most of the day until they started back for MacDill AFB at the end of the day [Emphasis added].”
As for the “Ivy League Charlatans” remark JFK allegedly uttered to ASAIC Floyd Boring and, again, first made famous by Manchester, Boring this author, “I never told him [Manchester]that.” As for the merit of the quote itself, Boring said, “No, no, no—that’s not true,” thus contradicting his own report in the process, stating further: “He actually—No, I told them … He didn’t tell them anything … He just—I looked at the back and I seen these fellahs were hanging on the limousine—I told them to return to the car … [JFK] was a very easy-going guy … he didn’t interfere with our actions at all.” In a later interview, Boring expounded further: “Well that’s not true. That’s not true. He was a very nice man; he never interfered with us at all.” If that weren’t enough, Boring also wrote the author: “He [JFK] was very cooperative with the Secret Service.” Incredibly, Boring was not even interviewed for Manchester’s book! We may never know Mr. Manchester’s source for this curious statement: he told the author on August 23, 1993 that “… all that material is under seal and won’t be released in my lifetime” and denied the author access to his notes (Manchester has since passed away). Interestingly, Manchester did interview the late Emory Roberts---an agent this reviewer is most suspicious of --- and GERALD BLAINE, Manchester’s probable “source(s)” .
As for Blaine, this is what he told this reviewer: Blaine told the author on February 7, 2004 that President Kennedy was “very cooperative. He didn’t interfere with our actions. President Kennedy was very likeable—he never had a harsh word for anyone. He never interfered with our actions.” [Emphasis added.] When the author asked Blaine how often the agents rode on the back of JFK’s limousine, the former agent said it was a “fairly common” occurrence that depended on the crowd and the speed of the cars. In fact, just as one example, Blaine rode on the rear of JFK’s limousine in Germany in June 1963, along with fellow Texas trip veterans Paul A. Burns and Samuel E. Sulliman. Blaine added, in specific reference to the agents on the follow-up car in Dallas: “You have to remember, they were fairly young agents,” seeming to imply that their youth was a disadvantage, or perhaps this was seen as an excuse for their poor performance on November 22, 1963. Surprisingly, Blaine, the WHD advance agent for the Tampa trip of November 18, 1963, said that JFK did make the comment “I don’t need Ivy League charlatans back there,” but emphasized this was a “low-key remark” said “kiddingly” and demonstrating Kennedy’s “Irish sense of humor”. However, according to the “official” story, President Kennedy allegedly made these remarks only to Boring while traveling in the presidential limousine in Tampa: Blaine was nowhere near the vehicle at the time, so Boring, despite what he conveyed to this reviewer, had to be his source for this story (more on this in a moment) ! In addition to Emory Roberts, one now wonders, as mentioned previously, if Blaine was a source (or perhaps the source) for Manchester’s exaggerated “quote” attributed to Boring, as Agent Blaine was also interviewed by Manchester . Blaine would not respond to a follow-up letter on this subject.
However, when the author phoned Blaine on June 10, 2005, the former agent said the remark “Ivy League charlatans” came “from the guys … I can’t remember who [said it] … I can’t remember [emphasis added].” Thus, Blaine confirms that he did not hear the remark from JFK. That said, Blaine’s memory got a whole lot “better” 5 years later: he writes on page 148: “The message came though loud and clear on Blaine’s walkie-talkie.” Incredible.
As for ASAIC Floyd Boring, this reviewer has no doubt that Boring DID INDEED CONVEY the fraudelent notion that JFK had asked that the agents remove themselves from the limo between 11/18-11/19/63, but that the former agent was telling the TRUTH of the matter when he spoke to me years later. You see, Clint Hill wrote in his report: ““I ... never personally was requested by President John F. Kennedy not to ride on the rear of the Presidential automobile. I did receive information passed verbally from the administrative offices of the White House Detail of the Secret Service to Agents assigned to that Detail that Presi-dent Kennedy had made such requests. I do not know from whom I received this information ... No written instructions regarding this were ever distributed ... [I] received this information after the President’s return to Washington, D.C. This would have been between November 19, 1963 and November 21, 1963 [note the time frame!]. I do not know specifically who advised me of this request by the President.” [Emphasis added.] Mr. Hill’s undated report was presumably written in April 1964, as the other four reports were written at that time. Why Mr. Hill could not “remember” the specific name of the agent who gave him JFK’s alleged desires is very troubling—he revealed it on March 9, 1964, presumably before his report was written, in his (obviously pre-rehearsed) testimony under oath to the future Senator Arlen Specter, then a lawyer with the Warren Commission :
Specter: “Did you have any other occasion en route from Love Field to downtown Dallas to leave the follow-up car and mount that portion of the President’s car [rear portion of limousine]?”
Hill: “I did the same thing approximately four times.”
Specter: “What are the standard regulations and practices, if any, governing such an action on your part?”
Hill: “It is left to the agent’s discretion more or less to move to that particular position when he feels that there is a danger to the President: to place himself as close to the President or the First Lady as my case was, as possible, which I did.”
Specter: “Are those practices specified in any written documents of the Secret Service?”
Hill: “No, they are not.”
Specter: “Now, had there been any instruction or comment about your performance of that type of a duty with respect to anything President Kennedy himself had said in the period immediately preceding the trip to Texas?”
Hill: “Yes, sir; there was. The preceding Monday, the President was on a trip to Tampa, Florida, and he requested that the agents not ride on either of those two steps.”
Specter: “And to whom did the President make that request?”
Hill: “Assistant Special Agent in Charge Boring.”
Specter: “Was Assistant Special Agent in Charge Boring the individual in charge of that trip to Florida?”
Hill: “He was riding in the Presidential automobile on that trip in Florida, and I presume that he was. I was not along.”
Specter: “Well, on that occasion would he have been in a position comparable to that occupied by Special Agent Kellerman on this trip to Texas?”
Hill: “Yes sir; the same position.”
Specter: “And Special Agent Boring informed you of that instruction by President Kennedy?”
Hill: “Yes sir, he did.”
Specter: “Did he make it a point to inform other special agents of that same instruction?”
Hill: “I believe that he did, sir.”
Specter: “And, as a result of what President Kennedy said to him, did he instruct you to observe that Presidential admonition?”
Hill: “Yes, sir.”
Specter: “How, if at all, did that instruction of President Kennedy affect your action and—your action in safeguarding him on this trip to Dallas?”
Hill: “We did not ride on the rear portions of the automobile. I did on those four occasions because the motorcycles had to drop back and there was no protection on the left-hand side of the car.”
[Emphasis added.]
However, keeping in mind what Boring told this reviewer, the ARRB’s Doug Horne---by request of this reviewer--- interviewed Mr. Boring regarding this matter on 9/18/96. Horne wrote: “Mr. Boring was asked to read pages 136–137 of Clint Hill’s Warren Commission testimony, in which Clint Hill recounted that Floyd Boring had told him just days prior to the assassination that during the President’s Tampa trip on Monday, November 18, 1963, JFK had requested that agents not ride on the rear steps of the limousine, and that Boring had also so informed other agents of the White House detail, and that as a result, agents in Dallas (except Clint Hill, on brief occasions) did not ride on the rear steps of the limousine. Mr. Boring affirmed that he did make these statements to Clint Hill, but stated that he was not relaying a policy change, but rather simply telling an anecdote about the President’s kindness and consideration in Tampa in not wanting agents to have to ride on the rear of the Lincoln limousine when it was not necessary to do so because of a lack of crowds along the street.” [Emphasis added.]
This reviewer finds this admission startling, especially because the one agent who decided to ride on the rear of the limousine in Dallas anyway—and on at least four 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 exactly constituted a “crowd”, as agents did ride on the rear steps of the limousine in Tampa on November 18, 1963 anyway (agents Donald J. Lawton, Andrew E. Berger, and Charles T. Zboril, to be exact)! (Perhaps this is why Blaine felt the need to caption a photo of Boring with the following: “[Boring] was highly respected by all the agents, as well as by JFK”)
“Presidential admonition” (as Specter said to Hill)? Simply an “anecdote” of “the President’s kindness” (what Boring said to Horne)? “Not true” (what Boring said to this reviewer)? You decide. I have…and so has Blaine: twice, in fact---what he told this reviewer and what he now claims in “The Kennedy Detail (see the flapjacket, pages 148-150, 162, 183-184, 206, 208, 209, 232).”
On page 162, Blaine alleges that SAIC Gerald Behn, from his office in the White House, told agent Ron Pontius on 11/21/63: “[JFK] wanted the agents off the back of the car [in Tampa and Dallas] in order for the people to get an unobstructed view.” However, in a contradiction Blaine doesn’t even notice (although he previously mentioned it on page 19 and in the first photo section), BEHN WAS ON VACATION DURING THIS TIME! Perhaps most importantly, Behn told this reviewer on 9/27/92: “I don’t remember Kennedy ever saying that he didn’t want anybody on the back of his car. “I think if you watch the newsreel pictures you’ll find agents on there from time to time.” In fact, MANY former agents and White House aides told this reviewer the same thing Lawson, Boring, and Behn all said!
And yet, despite all of this defensive posturing, faction, and fabricating, Blaine states, with regard to the agents’ not being on the rear of the car in Dealey Plaza (on page 209): “It was standard procedure---regardless of the president’s request---for all agents to fall back to the follow-up car in this situation.” (see also page 289)
But Blaine wasn’t done just yet.
In what this reviewer regards as a clever fabrication with “faction” (reconstructing alleged dialogue, 47 years later, from long-dead colleagues), Blaine claims (on pages 285-289 & 360) that there was a meeting at 8 a.m. on 11/25/63, the morning of JFK’s funeral, in which the issue of JFK’s alleged orders to remove the agents from the car in Tampa (and Dallas) was allegedly covered up so the public would not blame the president for his own death…SOMETHING THIS BOOK, AND ESPECIALLY THIS “TALE”, DOES WITH VIGOR! Blaine claims that this meeting was attended by himself, Chief James Rowley (deceased 11/1/92), Rowley’s secretary Walter Blaschak (long deceased) , ASAIC Floyd Boring (deceased 2/1/08 and in ill heath long beforehand), SAIC Jerry Behn (as noted previously, deceased 4/21/93), ATSAIC Stu Stout (deceased December 1974), and ATSAIC Emory Roberts (deceased 10/8/73). ASAIC Roy Kellerman (deceased 3/22/84) allegedly did NOT attend and, while Blaine mentions that “every supervising agent” was in attendance, he does not mention ATSAIC Art Godfrey (deceased 5/12/2002) by name, although it is ‘inferred’ that he was there, as well. It must be said forcefully: there is NO documentation whatsoever that this alleged meeting occurred and all the participants, save Blaine (imagine that), are long dead AND many of them said and wrote things to this reviewer contradictory to the substance of this alleged meeting. On page 288, Blaine writes, speaking for SAIC Behn: “Jim, after Floyd told me about the incident [the alleged JFK orders to remove the agents 11/18/63 in Tampa], I told him to relay the information to the shift leaders---Emory Roberts, Art Godfrey, and Stu Stout---and I know that he did that. They in turn told the men on their shift, which included the agents out on advances.” Incredible. We already know what Behn, Boring, Blaine, Godfrey, and Lawson said to this reviewer; Stout and Kellerman never said anything officially, one way or the other on the matter. Roberts’ report confirms nothing except that ASAIC Boring told him to remove the agents from the car on 11/18/63; nothing about JFK or anything else. What about the other “agents out on advances”? Frank Yeager, Blaine’s advance partner in Tampa, in a letter to this reviewer dated December 29, 2003, Yeager wrote: “I did not think that President Kennedy was particularly “difficult” to protect. In fact, I thought that his personality made it easier than some because he was easy to get along with ….” [Emphasis added.] With regard to the author’s question “Did President Kennedy ever order the agents off the rear of his limousine?”, Yeager responded: “I know of no ‘order’ directly from President Kennedy. I think that after we got back from Tampa, Florida where I did the advance for the President, a few days before Dallas, Kenny O’Donnell, Chief of Staff, requested that the Secret Service agents not ride the rear running board of the Presidential car during parades involving political events so that the president would not be screened by an agent. I don’t know what form or detail that this request was made to the Secret Service who worked closely with O’Donnell. I also do not know who actually made the final decision, but we did not have agents on the rear of the President’s car in Dallas.” [Emphasis added.] Like Hill’s report mentioned above, please note the timing . Further regarding the notion of JFK’s staff having a hand in this matter, in a letter to the author dated January 15, 2004, former agent Gerald O’Rourke, who was on Blaine’s shift on the Texas trip, wrote: “Did President Kennedy order us (agents) off the steps of the limo? To my knowledge President Kennedy never ordered us to leave the limo. You must remember at times we had to deal with the Chief of Staff” [Emphasis added.] The agent added: “President Kennedy was easy to protect as he completely trusted the agents of the Secret Service. We always had to be entirely honest with him and up front so we did not lose his trust.”. So, while both agents say JFK was easy to protect and that no order came from JFK, they imply, or seem to imply, that the Chief of Staff---O’Donnell---had something to do with this. More on this crucially important matter in a moment, as we shall look at the other advance agents and what they conveyed to this reviewer.
J. Walter Coughlin, who helped do the San Antonio advance with the late Dennis Halterman (deceased 1988), wrote this reviewer: “In almost all parade situations that I was involved w[ith] we rode or walked the limo [emphasis added].” Coughlin later wrote: “We often rode on the back of the car.” (For the record, Ned Hall II, who helped with the advance in Fort Worth, passed away in 1998; his son, Ned Hall III, had no comment to make on the matter. The other agent on the Fort Worth advance, Bill Duncan, never has said a thing regarding this issue, officially or otherwise, and it is not apparent if he was even contacted for Blaine’s book or not). Ronald Pontius, who helped advance the Houston stop with the late Bert deFreese (died sometime in the 1980’s), wrote this reviewer that JFK DID convey these alleged orders “through his staff [emphasis added],” and here is why this “staff” notion is so important: this is a notion that Blaine doesn’t even touch in the book! For the record, Presidential Aide (Chief of Staff / Appointments Secretary) Kenneth P. O’Donnell does not mention anything with regard to telling the agents to remove themselves from the limousine (based on JFK’s alleged “desires”) during his lengthy Warren Commission testimony (nor to author William Manchester, nor even in his or his daughter’s books, for that matter); the same is true for the other two Presidential aides: Larry O’Brien and Dave Powers. In fact, Powers refutes this whole idea—he wrote this reviewer in a letter dated 9/10/93 that “they never had to be told to ‘get off’ the limousine. “ JFK’s staff is not mentioned as a factor during any of the agents’ Warren Commission testimony, nor in the aforementioned five reports submitted in April 1964. Furthermore, Helen O’Donnell wrote this reviewer on 10/11/10: “Suffice to say that you are correct; JFK did not order anybody off the car, he never interfered with my dad’s direction on the Secret Service, and this is much backed up by my Dad’s [audio] tapes. I think and know from the tapes Dallas always haunted him because of the might-have-beens---but they involved the motorcade route [only].” In addition, former agents Art Godfrey and Kinney denounced the “staff/O’Donnell” notion to this reviewer, despite what a small minority of the agents I contacted---Yeager, O’Rourke, and Pontius---suggested (although, again, Yeager and O’Rourke agreed that JFK was easy to protect and that no order came from him).
Just WHY are these seemingly contradictory accounts of this minority of agents’ Yeager, O’Rourke, and Pontius (seemingly contradictory, that is, to this reviewer AND definitely contradictory to Blaine) so very important? Because Blaine’s alleged 11/25/63 “meeting” mentions not a thing about staff interference or input, his BOOK mentions not a thing about staff interference or input, and, in fact, on page 352, Blaine even writes: “If ever asked about whether JFK had ordered them [the former agents] off the back of his car, the answer was always, “Oh, no. President Kennedy was wonderful. He was very easy to protect. No, I don’t remember him ever ordering agents off the back of his car [Emphasis added].” This is simply false. In addition to the aforementioned three agents (Yeager, O’Rourke, and Pontius), several agents contacted by the author would not comment, several would claim not to remember, and three (one, contacted by myself, the other two, via the HSCA) gave hazy second-hand information (of dubious quality) seeming to blame JFK after all! If that weren’t enough, Rufus Youngblood in his book and Emory Roberts in his report , claimed it was THE MOTORCYCLES that got in the way of the agents (Ready especially) getting onto the rear of the car…geez. Finally, in addition to Blaine, former agents Lynn Meredith, Larry Newman, and Don Lawton mentioned the “Ivy League Charlatan” remark to myself, although none claimed to have heard it from JFK (Meredith told me: “I must admit that I was not along on the trip and was back at the White House with Caroline and John, Jr. .. I do not know first hand if President Kennedy ordered agents off the back end of his limousine .” The former agent said that “No Secret Service agents riding on the rear of the limousine” was the number one reason JFK was killed! Newman, not interviewed for Blaine’s book, said “supposedly, I didn’t hear this [the “Ivy league charlatan” comment] directly” and that Manchester’s book was “part of myth, part of truth”. Newman added: “There was not a directive, per se” from President Kennedy to remove the agents from their positions on the back of his limousine. For his part, Lawton told me: “I didn’t hear the President say it, no. The word was relayed to us—I forget who told us now—you know, ‘come back to the follow-up car.’ ” Lawton also added: “Everyone felt bad. It was our job to protect the President. You still have regrets, remorse. Who knows, if they had left guys on the back of the car … you can hindsight yourself to death.” )
You see, almost none of these former agents were contacted by anyone other than this reviewer, as the agents had unlisted addresses and phone numbers; only the hospitality of a couple former agents led me to these men. Blaine’s comment on page 352 (and, indeed, his whole book) were aimed squarely at myself and my 22-page letter mentioned at the beginning of this review. After calling me a “self-described “Secret Service expert”---without actually naming me--- on page 359 (guilty as charged; that said, The History Channel, Vince Bugliosi, the Assassination Records Review Board, and many authors and researchers have given me this tag), Blaine saves his special ire for me on page 360: “This same “expert” who had been interviewed for many conspiracy theory books relentlessly blamed the Secret Service for JFK’s death by using their own statements against them [no theories, just facts---it is what it is: they said what they said, they wrote what they wrote, and to a total stranger, to boot]. In many cases he called agents and recorded their conversations without their knowledge [not “in many cases”: only in a very few instances many years ago and these agents are now deceased. That said, thank God I did: WHO would chose to believe my word NOW, especially with Blaine’s book out now for public consumption?]” And HERE is the kicker, in the context of the aforementioned alleged “meeting” Blaine detailed on pages 285-289 (and on page 352), Blaine continues (still on page 360): “When asked whether President Kennedy had ever ordered the agents off the back of his car, the agents gave him the standard line that Chief Rowley requested they give. And as the agents upheld their code, Rowley’s words from the day of President Kennedy’s funeral resonating in their minds, the Secret Service “expert” turned around and used their words to stab them---and their brothers---in the back with baseless accusations.” Incredible.
There was NO morning-of-JFK’s-funeral-meeting to cover for the dead president so he wouldn’t be blamed for ordering the agents off his car---this was used as a clever device to diffuse and cast aside the damning evidence of just what all these men (including BLAINE himself!) said and wrote to me, many of whom died years before this book—and this alleged meeting---was even a figment of Blaine’s imagination. Again, there is no documentation for this 47-year-old meeting---we have to take Blaine, the “sole survivor” of this alleged meeting, at his word. And, what—all these men are LIARS now for what they said and wrote to myself? In the context of my 22-page letter, I believe this “meeting” to be a total fabrication. But it IS clever for another reason: I am sure there WAS most likely A meeting regarding the security detail’s coverage of all the dignitaries and their walk with Jackie to St. Matthew’s Cathedral and so forth; a clever cover story, indeed.
That said, there are two major reasons why Blaine’s 47-year-old cover story is patently false: first, several important NON Secret Service agents (Dave Powers, Congressman Sam Gibbons, Marty Underwood, Helen O’Donnell, and Pierre Salinger, among others, such as various newsmen on 11/22/63, etc. ) ALSO told this reviewer that JFK did NOT interfere with the Secret Service or order the agents off his car---what “code” would THEY have been following, Mr. Blaine? Why would they be “lying” to me (yes, I am being facetitious)? Methinks this is why Blaine chose to ignore the other cover story of blaming the staff: he had no control over THEIR refutations.
The second reason also reveals an embarassing error on Blaine’s part---he writes on page 360: “If these “experts” [me!] and “researchers” had only read some of the documents that were released in 1992 and available online, they would have found a letter from Chief James J. Rowley written in response to J. Lee Rankin, general counsel on the Warren Commission, in which Rowley admitted what he so desperately did not want to become public. He did not want it to look as if the Secret Service was in any way blaming President Kennedy for his own death [Emphasis added].” (see also page 289 of Blaine’s book) Epic fail---not only does this book achieve Rowley’s “non-goal” of blaming JFK for the security inefficiencies in Dallas, but these “documents” were released in 1964 in the Warren Commission Volumes: 18 H 803–9, to be exact! In addition, Rowley’s alleged “desperation” to ‘hide’ JFK’s own alleged culpability in his own death was a monster failure of epic proportions: as we know, Clint Hill testified to the Warren Commission and this testimony was mentioned in the Warren Report, a massive best-seller which was also quoted by many major newspapers and magazines the world over and, if that weren’t enough, the 5 reports were mentioned by Jim Bishop in his own massive best-seller “The Day Kennedy Was Shot”; many other books mention these reports (and/ or Hill’s testimony). And just WHY would Rowley even NEED these 5 after-the-fact reports: why didn’t he just tell Rankin, in “confidence”, about the meeting they all supposedly had on the matter on 11/25/63? Why, indeed. For what it’s worth, Blaine (on pages 360-363) proceeds to quote from the five reports but does NOT state what they each say in verbatim fashion. Interestingly, nothing is mentioned specifically about JFK’s alleged desires regarding THE motorcade of November 22, 1963, as was requested by the Commission. And, 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 SAIC Behn, mentions the same November 18, 1963 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). Again, both Behn and Boring totally contradicted the contents of their reports at different times, independent of each other, to the author, while Roberts report is nothing more than his having heard BORING telling him to have the agents removed from the car on 11/18/63; Ready and Hill freely admit they weren’t even ON the Tampa trip in the first place in these reports (and, as Blaine omits, Hill wrote “I do not know from whom I received this information ... I do not know specifically who advised me of this request by the President.”. In addition, agents did ride on the rear of the limousine on July 2, 1963 and November 18, 1963 anyway, despite these alleged Presidential requests, as the film and photo record proves. Needless to say, with Boring joining Behn in refuting the substance of their reports, the official Secret Service ‘explanation’ falls like a house of cards.
All these reports are supposedly evidence of JFK expressing his desire to keep Secret Service agents off the limousine, particularly in Tampa, Florida on November 18, 1963.
Importantly, no mention is made of any alleged orders via President Kennedy’s staff.
And, again, there is nothing about what JFK said or “requested” on November 22, 1963, the critical day in question!
(As a “postscript” to Blaine’s cover stories about the agents removal from the car, on page 343 of his book, Blaine makes yet another embarrassing error: “When it came to the agents and whether they should or should not have been on the back of the car, the [Warren ] report stated that “the configuration of the presidential car and the seating arrangements of the Secret Service agents in the car did not afford the Secret Service agents the opportunity they should have had to be of immediate assistance to the president at the first sign of danger,” but this was in reference to AGENT ROY KELLERMAN’S position in the front seat and the obstacles he may have faced, NOT the agents who should have been on or near the REAR of the car using the UNOBSTRUCTED grabhandles!)
Regarding the issue of the bubbletop, although Blaine (on page 188) states that agent Lawson conveyed to Sam Kinney, the driver of the follow-up car, that the bubbletop was to be removed in Dallas, Sam told this reviewer on 10/19/92 and, again, on 3/4/94 and 4/15/94 : “It was my fault the top was off [the limousine in Dallas]—I am the sole responsibility of that.” In addition, Kinney’s oft-ignored report dated November 30, 1963 confirms this fact , as does the former agent’s recently-released February 26, 1978 HSCA interview: “… SA Kinney indicated that he felt that his was the responsibility for making the final decision about whether to use the bubble-top.” Blaine later states, on page 244, that the bubbletop “was meant to shield the passengers from the weather-he [agent Sam Kinney] could count on one hand how many times it had been used,” but this is simply untrue on two counts: the bubbletop was often used in nice weather conditions and was used more frequently that Blaine, speaking for the long-deceased Kinney (died 7/21/97), admits.
On page 193, Blaine states that agent Henry J. Rybka “never worked [the] follow-up [car], other than driving,” yet the record indicates otherwise.
Predictably, on pages 306-307 & 312-313, Blaine covers up the infamous drinking incident involving NINE agents of the Secret Service, including Clint Hill, Paul Landis, Glen Bennett, and Jack Ready! Interestingly, they were all from Shift Leader Emory Roberts’ particular shift. Significantly, None of the agents from the V.P. LBJ detail were involved in the drinking incident.
Blaine doesn’t even touch the issue of the Secret Service and their involvement of removing motorcycle coverage for JFK on 11/22/63. During a November 19, 1963 security meeting in Dallas, with no Secret Service men present, it was agreed that eighteen motorcycles would be used, some positioned along side the limousine, similar to the plan used in the prior Texas cities of San Antonio, Houston, and Fort Worth. However, there was another meeting on November 21, 1963 in which those plans were changed. Captain Perdue Lawrence of the Dallas Police testified to the Warren Commission: “I heard one of the Secret Service men say that President Kennedy did not desire any motorcycle officer directly on each side of him, between him and the crowd, but he would want the officers to the rear.”
Mr. Dulles: “… do you recall that any orders were given by or on behalf of the President with regard to the location of those motorcycles that were particularly attached to his car?”
Mr. Lawson: “Not specifically at this instance orders from him [emphasis added].”
The HSCA summed up the situation best:
The Secret Service’s alteration of the original Dallas Police Department motorcycle deployment plan prevented the use of maximum possible security precautions … Surprisingly, the security measure used in the prior motorcades during the same Texas visit shows that the deployment of motorcycles in Dallas by the Secret Service may have been uniquely insecure.
Blaine ALSO does not deal with the issue of the press and photographer’s displacement from the motorcade. Dallas Morning News reporter Tom Dillard testified to the Warren Commission: “We lost our position at the airport. I understood we were to have been quite a bit closer. We were assigned as the prime photographic car which, as you probably know, normally a truck precedes the President on these things [moto-cades] and certain representatives of the photographic press ride with the truck. In this case, as you know, we didn’t have any and this car that I was in was to take photographs which was of spot-news nature.”
On pages 221-222, Blaine, referring to the president’s physician, Admiral George Burkley, writes: “Normally the admiral rode in a staff car in the motorcade, or in the rear seat of the follow-up car, but he and the president’s secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, had misjudged the timing of the motorcade’s departure from Love Field and wound up scurrying to the VIP bus. He was furious for not having been in his normal seat but had nobody to blame but himself. His sole purpose for being in the motorcade was to be close to the president in case anything happened, but who could have predicted this? [Emphasis added]” Again, the record indicates otherwise: “Dr. George Burkley … felt that he should be close to the President at all times … Dr. Burkley was unhappy … this time the admiral protested. He could be of no assistance to the President if a doctor was needed quickly.” Burkley also said: “It’s not right … the President’s personal physician should be much closer to him,” even to the extent of “… sitting on an agent’s lap”. Burkley stated a few years after the assassination: “I accompanied President Kennedy on every trip that he took during his time as President … I went on all trips … we had a regular setup … all the pos-sible angles were covered by cooperation with the Secret Service, in that we knew the areas of most likely danger. We knew where additional medical aid would be available, and things of that nature … When we were in Fort Worth, Mrs. [Evelyn] Lincoln and I were in the second car in the motorcade … [in Dallas] I complained to the Secret Service that I should be either in the follow up car or the lead car … this was brought to their [the Secret Service’s] attention very strongly at the foot of the stairway from the airplane [Air Force One] … Most of the time, however, I was within one or two cars of the President. This was one of the few times that this did not occur [Emphasis added].” In fact, Burkley rode in the lead car in Miami on November 18, 1963. “The only other time that it did not occur, to my direct recollection, is when we were in Rome [July 2, 1963] … [emphasis added],” which was a model of very good security in every other respect.
Evelyn Lincoln, JFK’s secretary, confirmed Burkley’s feelings on the matter to the HSCA: “Mrs. Lincoln also mentioned what she thought was a curious incident in Dallas prior to the assassination. She said she was with Dr. Burkley … when they left Love Field for the beginning of the motorcade. She said they were somewhat surprised at being ‘shoved’ back in the motorcade into a bus. She said they usually rode in an automobile a few cars behind the car carrying the President.” It appears even Jackie Kennedy and, by extension, Dave Powers, were wondering about this situation regarding Burkley: On the weekend after President Kennedy’s funeral, Powers showed Mrs. Kennedy the color still frames from the Zapruder film as displayed in that week’s Life magazine. The pictures, of course, depict Jackie leaving the rear seat to crawl onto the back of the car. “Dave, what do you think I was trying to do?” she asked. Dave could only sug-gest that maybe she was searching for the President’s doctor, Rear Admiral George G. Burkley, who was in a bus at the rear of the motorcade.”
Incredibly, as documented in agent Andy Berger’s report , Blaine writes on page 233, with regard to Parkland Hospital: “A representative of the CIA appeared a while later.”
Also, as Blaine never even mentions, JFK’s Military Aide, General Godfrey McHugh, a devout Kennedy loyalist was relegated to the distant VIP car in the Dallas motorcade , stated that he was asked by the Secret Service “for the first time” to “ride in a car in the back [of the motorcade], instead, as normally I would do, between the driver and the Secret Service agent in charge of the trip.” Indeed, McHugh had just occupied this very spot on JFK’s previous trip to Florida, not to mention countless other times beforehand when either himself or fellow military aide, General Ted Clifton, rode in this position. (Greer admitted that many times an aide rode in the front seat of the limo with the driver and the supervisor , as the film and photo record bears out.) McHugh admitted that this was “unusual”: “That’s exactly what I thought.” The reason? “To give the President full exposure … they told me it would be helpful politically to the President [emphasis added].” There’s that qualifier again: “politically”. The HSCA’s Mark Flanagan, who interviewed McHugh, reported: “Ordinarily McHugh rode in the Presidential limousine in the front seat. This was the first time he was instructed not to ride in the car so that all attention would be focused on the President to accentuate full exposure.”
In yet another matter Blaine chose to ignore, Dallas Sheriff Bill Decker, who rode in the lead car with Lawson and Sorrels, told his men to in no way participate in the security of the motorcade. As verified in several films and photos, Decker’s men were standing idle at the corner of Main and Houston as mere spectators, nothing more. Indeed, Deputy Sheriff Luke Mooney told author Larry Sneed: “I was merely a spectator with a number of other plain clothes officers on Main Street just north of the Old Red Court House. We in the sheriff’s department had nothing to do with security.” Decker had given this unusual order to his men after telling Forrest Sorrels the previous day that he had agreed to incorporate additional personnel for security purposes, and even offered his full support to the agent: Decker had agreed to furnishing fifteen of his men for duty! Incredibly, the Dallas Morning News on October 26, 1963 reported the following, based on an interview with DPD Chief Jesse Curry: “LARGE POLICE GUARD PLANNED FOR KENNEDY—Signs Friday pointed to the greatest concentration of Dallas police ever for the protection of a high-ranking dignitary when President Kennedy visits Dallas next month … The deployment of the special force, he [Curry] said, is yet to be worked out with the U.S. Secret Service.” Yet Homicide Detective Gus Rose said: “I didn’t hear of any extraordinary security measures being set up thus we continued our normal rotation.”
Blaine also is seemingly unaware of the following, as noted by reporter Seth Kantor: "Will Fritz's men called off nite before by SS. Had planned to ride closed car w/ machine guns in car behind Pres." [which could mean someplace behind JFK's car, as was the case in Chicago, IL, on 3/23/63 & New York on 11/15/63]
Furthermore, Milton Wright, a Texas Highway Patrolman who was the driver of Mayor Cabell's car, wrote this reviewer: "As I recall, prior to the President arriving at the airport we were already staged on the tarmac. I do not recall what position I was in at that time but it was not #1[the number taped to his car's windshield]. At the last minute there was a lot of shuffling and I ended up in the 5th vehicle. My vehicle was the last to leave downtown after the shooting because the police set up a road block behind my car."
On page 224, Blaine writes: “It was very rare for both the president and vice president to be together at the same time in the same place.” This is an understatement---being in the same MOTORCADE was unique! Agent Youngblood later wrote: “It is strictly taboo, from the security standpoint, for the President and the Vice President to ride together in the same car, boat, plane, wagon, or anything else.” As J. F. terHorst (from the White House Press Corps), a man who covered every major presidential trip—including November 22, 1963—both at home and abroad, and Colonel Ralph Albertazzie (Nixon’s Air Force One pilot) observed in their book: “Beyond the environs of Washington, the Vice President rarely accompanies the President. The reason is not only a matter of physical security but one of politics … But Texas was a special case, the exception that proved the rule.” As HSCA attorney Belford Lawson succinctly put it: “Why for the first time in American history were the President and Vice-President together in the same motorcade?”
Blaine ALSO ignores the fact that the roofs along the route were not manned or checked. SAIC of the Nashville office Paul Doster told the Nashville Banner back on May 18, 1963 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.” The roofs of buildings were also guarded on November 18, 1963 , four short days before Dallas, in addition to San Antonio on November 21, 1963 , just the day before, as well as in Fort Worth on the morning of the assassination.
On page 201, regarding agent Bill Greer, the driver of JFK’s car in Dallas, Blaine writes: “And, God forbid, if he [Greer]ever did have to make a sudden getaway, he knew the 7,500-pound car with its 300-horsepower engine just didn’t gather speed as quickly as he would like.” If that wasn’t enough, Blaine adds, on page 212: “[Greer, after the shooting commenced] quickly tapped on the brake to see how the car would respond.” Finally, on page 356, Blaine delivers the coup de grace: “Yes, Bill Greer put his foot on the brake after the first shot. But for God’s sake, it had nothing to do with a conspiracy, or negligence-he was merely responding as any professionally trained driver would respond.”
Oh, really? Sixty witnesses (ten police officers, seven Secret Service agents, thirty-eight spectators, two Presidential aides, one Senator, Governor Connally, and Jackie Kennedy) and the Zapruder film document Secret Service agent William R. Greer’s deceleration of the presidential limousine, as well as his two separate looks back at JFK during the assassination (Greer denied all of this to the Warren Commission ). By decelerating from an already slow 11.2 mph, Greer greatly endangered the President’s life, and, as even Gerald Posner admitted, Greer contributed greatly to the success of the assassination. When we consider that Greer disobeyed a direct order from his superior, Roy Kellerman, to get out of line before the fatal shot struck the President’s head, it is hard to give Agent Greer the benefit of the doubt. As ASAIC Roy H. Kellerman said: “Greer then looked in the back of the car. Maybe he didn’t believe me.” Ken O’Donnell stated: “Greer had been remorseful all day, feeling that he could have saved President Kennedy’s life by swerving the car or speeding suddenly after the first shots.” In addition, Greer told Jackie the following on November 22, 1963 at Parkland Hospital, shortly after the murder: “Oh, Mrs. Kennedy, oh my God, oh my God. I didn’t mean to do it, I didn’t hear, I should have swerved the car, I couldn’t help it. Oh, Mrs. Kennedy, as soon as I saw it I swerved. If only I’d seen it in time! Oh!” Finally, Dave Powers confirmed Greer’s guilt to CBS newsman Charles Kuralt on November 22, 1988, also adding that if Greer would have sped up before the fatal headshot, JFK might still be alive today.
When this reviewer asked Richard Greer, the surviving son of Bill Greer, on 9/17/91: “What did your father think of JFK?”, Richard did not respond the first time. When this author asked him a second time, Greer responded: “Well, we’re Methodists … and JFK was Catholic.” Bill Greer was born and raised in County Tyrone, Ireland, coming to America in February 1930 and, if that weren’t enough, “worked one summer on the estate of Henry Cabot Lodge” , JFK’s two-time political opponent (a staunch Republican defeated twice by Kennedy) and Ambassador to Saigon during the CIA and U.S. government–sponsored assassi-nation of President Diem of Vietnam on November 2, 1963 (Lodge was principally involved ). Obviously, Greer, just from his association with Lodge, as well as his work in and around Boston, had to have known about Kennedy, as well as his rich family, Ambassador father Joe, and their controversial heritage of alleged bootlegging, Nazi sympathizing, and political history in Boston.
The sequence is crucial:
1. First shot (or shots) rings out: the car slows.
2. Greer turns around once.
3. Kellerman orders Greer to “get out of line; we’ve been hit!”.
4. Greer disobeys his superior’s order and turns around to stare at JFK for the second time, until after the fatal headshot finds its mark!
As stated before, Greer was responsible, at fault, and felt remorse. In short, Greer had survivor’s guilt.
But, then, stories and feelings changed.
Agent Greer to the FBI, November 22, 1963: “Greer stated that he first heard what he thought was possibly a motorcycle backfire and glanced around and noticed that the President had evidently been hit [notice that, early on, Greer admits seeing JFK, which the Zapruder proves he did two times before the fatal head shot occurred]. He thereafter got on the radio and communicated with the other vehicles, stating that they desired to get the President to the hospital immediately [in reality, Greer did not talk on the radio, and Greer went on to deny ever saying this during his Warren Commission testimony] … Greer stated that they (the Secret Service) have always been instructed to keep the motorcade moving at a considerable speed inasmuch as a moving car offers a much more difficult target than a vehicle traveling at a very slow speed. He pointed out that on numerous occasions he has attempted to keep the car moving at a rather fast rate, but in view of the President’s popularity and desire to maintain close liaison with the people, he has, on occasion, been instructed by the President to ‘slow down’. Greer stated that he has been asking himself if there was any-thing he could have done to avoid this incident, but stated that things hap-pened so fast that he could not account for full developments in this matter ….” [The “JFK-as-scapegoat” theme—and so much for Greer’s remorse from earlier the same day.]
Finally, what did Jacqueline Kennedy think of Greer’s performance on 11/22/63? Mary Gallagher reported in her book: “She mentioned one Secret Service man who had not acted during the crucial moment, and said bitterly to me, ‘He might just as well have been Miss Shaw!’ ” Jackie also told Gallagher: “You should get yourself a good driver so that nothing ever happens to you.” Secret Service agent Marty Venker confirmed that the agent Jackie was referring to was Agent Greer: “If the agent had hit the gas before the third shot, she griped, Jack might still be alive.” Later, authors C. David Heymann and Edward Klein further corroborated that the agent Mrs. Kennedy was referring to was indeed Greer. Manchester wrote: “[Mrs. Kennedy] had heard Kellerman on the radio and had wondered why it had taken the car so long to leave.” In addition, Jackie “played the events over and over in her mind …. She did not want to accept Jack’s death as a freak accident, for that meant his life could have been spared—if only the driver in the front seat of the presidential limousine [Agent William R. Greer] had reacted more quickly and stepped on the gas … if only the Secret Service had stationed agents on the rear bumper … [emphasis added].”
Incredibly, ASAIC Roy Kellerman told the following to FBI agents' Sibert & O'Neil on the night of the murder: "The advanced security arrangements made for this specific trip were the most stringent and thorough ever employed by the Secret Service for the visit of a President to an American city" Perhaps THIS is why JFK reassured a worried San Antonio Congressman Henry Gonzalez on 11/21/63 by saying: "The Secret Service told me that they had taken care of everything - there's nothing to worry about." If that weren’t enough, President Kennedy told an equally concerned advance man, Marty Underwood, on 11/21/63: in Houston "Marty, You worry about me too much."
On pages 230-231, Blaine seeks to pass the blame on to others once again, this time in the form of JFK’s Chief of Staff, Ken O’Donnell: “Ken O’Donnell agreed…that Johnson should return to Washington as soon as possible and that yes, he should leave Dallas on Air Force One.” However, O’Donnell denied this, telling author William Manchester: “The President and I had no conversation regarding Air Force One. If we had known he was going on Air Force One, we would have taken Air Force Two. One plane was like the other.” In fact, when Arlen Specter of the Warren Commission asked O’Donnell, “Was there any discussion about his [LBJ] taking the presidential plane, AF–1, as opposed to AF–2?”, O’Donnell responded: “There was not.” In this regard, O’Donnell later wrote in his book Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye that a Warren Commission attorney—the aforementioned Arlen Specter—asked him to “change his testimony so that it would agree with the President’s”: an offer O’Donnell refused. With this in mind, author Jim Bishop reported: “Emory Roberts suggested that Johnson leave at once for Air Force One … Roberts asked Kenny O’Donnell and he said: ‘Yes.’ Johnson refused to move. Roberts returned to O’Donnell and asked again: ‘Is it all right for Mr. Johnson to board Air Force One now?’ ‘Yes,’ O’Donnell said, ‘Yes.’ ” [Emphasis added.] This author believes O’Donnell when he says he had no part in LBJ going to Air Force One over Air Force Two. This was a Secret Service (Emory Roberts) decision. Presidential aides Ken O’Donnell and Dave Powers best summed up the situation when they wrote: “Roberts, one of President Kennedy’s agents … had decided to switch to Johnson as soon as Kennedy was shot.” In addition, four other authors have noted Agent Roberts’ “switch of allegiance”, including Chief Curry. Incredibly, Roberts was the President’s receptionist during the Johnson administration while still a member of the Secret Service, receiving a Special Service Award from the Treasury Department for improving communications and services to the public in 1968! LBJ thought highly of Roberts, and the feeling was mutual---President Johnson told a gathering that “Emory Roberts, who I am sorry can't be here today--he greets me every morning and tells me goodbye every night.” (For the record, LBJ didn’t think much of Roy Kellerman: “This fellow Kellerman … he was about as loyal a man as you could find. But he was about as dumb as an ox.” )
Also predictably, on pages 334-335 & 356-357, Blaine seeks to minimize former agent Abraham Bolden’s claims of Secret Service negligence and conspiracy.
Blaine (on pages 350 and 352) seeks to cast away ANY notion that the Secret Service agents believed there was a conspiracy, yet there is the record that says differently:
From the February 22, 1978 House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) interview of Miami SAIC John Marshall, former White House Detail agent who conducted all the advance work on President Kennedy’s frequent trips to Palm Beach:
TWICE DURING THE INTERVIEW, MR. MARSHALL MENTIONED THAT, FOR ALL HE KNEW, SOMEONE IN THE SECRET SERVICE COULD POSSIBLY HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN THE ASSASSINATION. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME AN AGENT HAS MENTIONED THE POSSIBILITY THAT A CONSPIRACY EXISTED, BUT IT IS THE FIRST TIME THAT AN AGENT HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THE POSSIBILITY THAT THE SECRET SERVICE COULD HAVE BEEN INVOLVED.
In addition, former agents Jerry O’Rourke, Sam Kinney, Abraham Bolden, and Maurice Martineau believed there was a conspiracy, as well!
“The Kennedy Detail”, a book firmly rooted in the “Oswald-did-it-alone” camp, also contains contradictory evidence of conspiracy in its pages. On page 216, Blaine describes the shooting sequence in this manner: the first shot strikes the president, the second shot strikes Governor Connally, and the third shot strikes JFK in the head…there is no acknowledgement of the Warren Commission’s fictional single bullet theory or the known missed shot that struck bystander James Tague! This is a pattern Hill and Blaine repeat on national television. On page 217, Blaine writes that agent Clint Hill saw “a bloody, gaping, fist-sized hole clearly visible in the back of his head,” clear evidence that JFK was struck by a shot from the FRONT, as also confirmed by Hill’s report and Warren Commission testimony , not to mention the reports (plural) from fellow agent Paul Landis (whose contents were confirmed by Landis to the HSCA) , no matter what Landis or Blaine say now (see pages 225 & 352-353), as well as the statements made by agent Sam Kinney to Vince Palamara (and, ironically, in Blaine’s own book, pages 216 & 218, regarding blood hitting his windshield!) and agent Win Lawson, who also “saw a huge hole in the back of the president's head.” Blaine also uses this same language later in the book (page 258): “Now the men who just four and a half hours earlier had seen the back of President Kennedy’s head blown off hauled the casket holding his dead body...” Finally, regarding Hill, Blaine describes his friends’ recollections of the autopsy (page 266): “Six inches down from the neckline, just to the right of the spinal column, there was a small wound, a hole in the skin…All Clint could see was that the right rear portion of President Kennedy’s head was completely gone.”
On page 261, Blaine writes: “[7:55 p.m., 11/22/63] For about twenty minutes [Chief James J] Rowley gave [the agents] what could only be called a pep talk…There was no feeling that he blamed anyone or that the assassination could somehow have been prevented.” On page 275, Blaine says of SAIC Behn (deceased 4/21/93): “From everything Jerry Behn had heard about the tragedy in Dallas, nobody was to blame.” Blaine carries this incredibly dumb statement even further during television interviews for the book---he told MSNBC’s Chris Matthews on 11/12/10: “No, there was nothing that could have been done to stop it.”
On pages 264-265, Blaine related how he almost shot President Johnson on 11/23/63 with his Thompson submachine gun, a tale of dubious merit that garnered much press before the release of the book.
Blaine seems to be unaware of the following, as reported by the Assassination Records Review Board in 1998: “Congress passed the JFK Act of 1992. One month later, the Secret Service began its compliance efforts. However, in January 1995, the Secret Service destroyed presidential protection survey reports for some of President Kennedy's trips in the fall of 1963. The Review Board learned of the destruction approximately one week after the Secret Service destroyed them, when the Board was drafting its request for additional information. The Board believed that the Secret Service files on the President's travel in the weeks preceding his murder would be relevant.”
On page 359, Blaine identifies the agent recalled at Love Field as SA Don Lawton, the OTHER agent (along with SA Henry Rybka) “ostensibly” left to secure Love Field for the President’s departure, and takes this reviewer to task for his misidentification. In the interest of time, please see this reviewer’s online videos wherein he fully explains himself, his rationale, and his belief that, regardless of WHO the agent is (and he is willing to concede that it was probably Lawton after all), the SUBSTANCE of what is being depicted in the video---the essence---remains the same. Suffice to say that many people were “fooled” by this footage---former JFK agent Larry Newman, the ARRB, The History Channel, Rybka’s family, millions of You Tube viewers, countless authors and researchers, and even a December 2009 Discovery Channel Secret Service documentary “Secrets of the Secret Service”!
Although very well written, along with some nice photographs, as well, "The Kennedy Detail" is really a thinly veiled attempt to rewrite history (a la Gerald Posner and Vince Bugliosi, who believe 11/22/63 was the act of a single lone man) and absolve the agents of their collective survivor's guilt (and to counter the prolific writings of a certain reviewer). In the eyes of those from "The Kennedy Detail", the assassination was the act of TWO "lone men": Oswald, who pulled the trigger, and JFK, who set himself up as the target. Simply put: President Kennedy WAS indeed a very nice man, did not interfere with the actions of the Secret Service, did not order the agents off his limousine (in Tampa, in Dallas, or elsewhere), and did not have his staff convey any anti-security sentiments, either. The sheer force and power of what these men all told me, a complete stranger, in correspondence and on the phone, is all the more strong because, not only did they have a vested interest to protect themselves, the vast majority believe that Oswald acted alone and that all official "stories" are correct.
In light of the work of this reviewer, future pensions, professional and personal reputations, and so forth, "The Kennedy Detail" makes perfect sense. After the reviewer's letter to Clint Hill, it truly WAS "a book that HAD to be written".
A postscript: Gerald Blaine stated on 11/11/10 on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”: “We felt we were 100% failure.”
Finally, you said something we can ALL agree on, Mr. Blaine.
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