January 15, 2021
U.S. Secret Service: Threats to and Assaults on Presidents and
Vice Presidents
Overview
from the authorized list of protectees—presidentially
On January 6, 2021, Vice President Mike Pence was
designated federal officials temporarily representing the
presiding over a joint session of Congress to certify the
United States abroad.
November 2020 presidential election electoral votes when a
crowd breached the U.S. Capitol’s security. Due to these
Over the past century, congressional action has focused
events, some Members of Congress have expressed a
primarily on the USSS’s protection mission. The most
renewed interest in U.S. Secret Service (USSS) protective
recent changes were enacted by the Federal Restricted
detail operations.
Buildings and Grounds Improvement Act of 2011, which
amended 18 U.S.C. 1752 and made it a crime for an
USSS has two mandated missions: (1) criminal
unauthorized person to enter a building secured by USSS.
investigations, and (2) protection of persons and facilities.
Criminal investigations focus primarily on financial crimes,
Protected Individuals and Facilities
whereas protection focuses on the safety and security of
The following individuals are currently authorized USSS
specific government officials and specifically identified
protection under 18 U.S.C. Section 3056(a):
government facilities. The criminal investigation mission is
the USSS’s oldest mission; however, the protection mission
 President, Vice President, President- and Vice
is the one that often receives the most public and media
President-elect;
attention. USSS protects the President, Vice President, their
families, former Presidents, and major candidates for those
 immediate families of those listed above;
offices, along with the White House and the Vice
President’s official residence. Protective activities also
 former Presidents, their spouses, and their children
extend to foreign missions in the District of Columbia
under the age of 16;
(embassies, consulates, residences, and other buildings used
by foreign governments) and to designated individuals,
 former Vice Presidents, their spouses, and their children
such as the Secretary of Homeland Security and visiting
under the age 16;
dignitaries. Separate from protecting these specific
mandated individuals and facilities, USSS is responsible for
 visiting heads of foreign states or governments;
coordinating security activities for National Special
Security Events (NSSE), including inauguration
 distinguished foreign visitors and official United States
ceremonies, major party quadrennial national conventions,
representatives on special missions abroad; and
and certain international conferences and events held in the
United States.
 major presidential and vice presidential candidates
within 120 days of the general presidential elections,
History of USSS Protection
and their spouses.
In March 2003, USSS was transferred from the Department
of the Treasury to the Department of Homeland Security
The USSS is also required to secure the White House
(DHS). With this transfer, DHS generally, and USSS
complex, the Vice President’s official residence at the
specifically, became the federal department responsible for
Naval Observatory, the Treasury Building, foreign
protecting significant and specified persons and property.
diplomatic missions in Washington, DC, and during their
Prior to the enactment of the Homeland Security Act of
presidential administration, the personal residences of the
2002, the Treasury Department had been responsible for
President and Vice President. The USSS’s Uniformed
this protection (through USSS) for over 100 years.
Division primarily secures these facilities.
USSS has been protecting presidents from President Grover
Specific Protection Activities
Cleveland in 1894 on a part-time basis to the continuous,
As the pool of protectees has evolved over time, so has the
round-the-clock protection of the President today. Over the
manner in which they are protected. Originally, USSS
years, the USSS protection mission has been determined by
protection primarily involved agents acting as “body
unofficial decisions (such as the one to protect President
guards” and providing personal security to protectees.
Cleveland) and congressional mandates (such as the one to
Today, protection operations include not only the presence
protect major presidential candidates). USSS protection
of agents in close proximity to the protectee, but also
activities have generally expanded with an increase in the
advance security surveys of locations to be visited;
number of protected individuals; there has been one
coordination with foreign, state, and local law enforcement
instance of a specified type of protectee being removed
entities; and intelligence analysis of present and future
https://crsreports.congress.gov

---

U.S. Secret Service: Threats to and Assaults on Presidents and Vice Presidents
threats. The USSS protection mission comprises human
Assailants
resources, physical barriers, technology, and reviews of
and
critical infrastructure and their vulnerabilities. 18 U.S.C.
Date
President
Location
Reasons
3056(e)-(f) also authorizes the USSS to conduct other
activities, such as planning, coordination, and
11/22/1963 John F.
Dallas, TX
Lee Harvey
implementation of security operations at NSSEs; and
Kennedy
Oswald,
providing forensic and investigative assistance involving
motive
missing and exploited children.
unknown
Threats to Protectees
09/05/1975 Gerald R. Ford Sacramento,
Lynette Alice
Presidential safety is and has been a concern throughout the
CA
Fromme,
nation’s history. For example, fears of kidnapping and
member of
assassination threats towards Abraham Lincoln began with
extremist
his journey to Washington, DC, for the 1861 inauguration.
“Manson
The number of attempted and successful assaults against
Family” and
Presidents legitimizes concern for presidential safety. Ten
mentally
presidents have been victims of direct assaults by assassins,
unstable
with four resulting in death (Presidents Abraham Lincoln,
09/22/1975 Gerald R. Ford San Francisco, Sara Jane
James A. Garfield, William McKinley, and John F.
CA
Moore,
Kennedy). President Woodrow Wilson’s Vice President,
revolutionary
Thomas R. Marshall, is the only known Vice President to
have been targeted for assassination. In 1915, a German-
03/30/1981 Ronald W.
Washington,
John W.
American opposed to the United States selling weapons and
Reagan
DC
Hinckley, Jr.,
material to the Allies bombed the U.S. Senate Chamber’s
mentally
reception room, which was next to the Vice President’s
unstable
office. Vice President Marshall had been receiving death
10/29/1994 Wil iam J.
Washington,
Francisco M.
threats from opponents to American policy in World War I,
Clinton
DC
Duran,
in letters, for weeks. There was potentially a threat to Vice
motive
President Pence on January 6, 2021, but the events of that
unknown
day are still being investigated.
05/10/2005 George W.
Tbilisi,
Vladimir
Since USSS started officially protecting Presidents in
Bush
Republic of
Arutyunian,
1906—in 1917, Congress enacted legislation (39 Stat. 919)
Georgia
motive
that made it a crime to threaten the President—seven
unknown
assaults have occurred, with one, President Kennedy,

resulting in death. The USSS does not provide information
on any threats to protectees or investigations related to
In recent years, for the USSS mission of “protection of
threats made against protectees. Thus, the extent to which
persons and facilities,” Congress has appropriated:
protectees have been threatened or targeted remains a
matter of conjecture.
FY2016 (P.L. 114-113)—$509.8 million;
The following table provides information on assaults
FY2017 (P.L. 115-31 and P.L. 115-56)—$627.9 million;
against Presidents who were protected by USSS; it does not
include information on assaults against Presidents prior to
FY2018 (P.L. 115-72 and P.L. 115-141)—$711.2 million;
the USSS assuming the responsibility of presidential safety.
FY2019 (P.L. 116-6)—$740.9 million;
Table 1.Direct Assaults on Presidents Protected by
the U.S. Secret Service
FY2020 (P.L. 116-93)—$754.5 million; and
Assailants
and
FY2021 (P.L. 116-260)—$818.8 million.
Date
President
Location
Reasons

11/01/1950 Harry S.
Washington,
Oscar
Truman
DC
Col azo and
Shawn Reese, Analyst in Emergency Management and
Griseilio
Homeland Security Policy
Torressola,
advocates for
IF11732
Puerto Rican
independence


https://crsreports.congress.gov

---

U.S. Secret Service: Threats to and Assaults on Presidents and Vice Presidents


Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to
congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress.
Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has
been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the
United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be
reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include
copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you
wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.

https://crsreports.congress.gov | IF11732 · VERSION 1 · NEW

---