In case you haven’t had a chance to see the news this weekend, President Bush, at the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Chile, had to wade into a scrum to rescue his Secret Service agent (video).
As the President was entering some function, in full view of the cameras, the Chilean security closed ranks behind him and wouldn’t let his agents through. Pushing and shoving ensued and the President turned around, waded into the crowd, and pulled his agent through by the lapel.
I guess it’s not a real big deal, but I think it says something about the character of the man, as well as the relationship that can develop between a president and his detail. I know that after Reagan left office, his chief of the protective detail continued to work for him and then, after he retired, became a close friend of the President.
As for Bush’s character, it says that he’s not afraid to do what has to be done in any situation, to take charge, and that he sees the people who work for him not just as servants, but as important in their own right. I can’t picture Bill Clinton (or John Kerry, for that matter) doing the same thing. Remember, it was Kerry who called one of his agents an SOB in front of reporters when he fell down skiing last winter. Another indicator of why I’m glad Bush beat Kerry.
