Joseph Petro served for 23 years as a special agent in the United States Secret Service; eleven of them with presidents and vice presidents. For four of those years he stood by the side of Ronald Reagan.Following his career as a Navy Lieutenant, during which he patrolled the rivers and canals along the Vietnamese-Cambodian border, he worked his way up through the Secret Service to become one of … become one of the key men in charge of protecting the President. That journey through the Secret Service provides an individual look inside the most discreet law enforcement agency in the world, and a uniquely intimate account of the Reagan presidency.
Engagingly, Joseph Petro tells “first hand” stories of: riding horses with the Reagans; eluding the press and sneaking the President and Mrs. Reagan out of the White House; rehearsing assassination attempts and working, then re-working every detail of the president’s trips around the world; negotiating the president’s protection with the KGB; diverting a 26 car presidential motorcade in downtown Tokyo; protecting Vice-President Dan Quayle at Rajiv Gandhi’s funeral where he was surrounded by Yassir Arafat’s heavily armed bodyguards; taking charge of the single largest protective effort in the history of the Secret Service-Pope John Paul II’s 1987 visit to the United States; and being only one of three witnesses at the private meeting between President Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev that ushered in the end of the Cold War.
Joseph Petro provides an original and fascinating perspective of the Secret Service, the inner workings of the White House and a little seen view of world leaders, as a man who stood next to history.
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A fascinating view of what it’s like working for the Secret Service. A walk through history of some of my favorite people.
Interesting insight to the operation of government and the Secret service during a specific timeframe.
A look behind the scenes of life with the secret service and all that
a ‘simple’ trip involves. 19 planes to china for the presidents visit… simple
right??!!
Excellent
Great insider view replete with insider stories
Very interesting insights into what it is like to an FBI agent within the inner circle of the President. The complexities of simply getting the President out of his vehicle to shake hands with people in a crowd is eye-opening not to mention the many trips required to create a safe overseas trip.
Entertaining peek into the Secret Service
A part of history and understanding of the duties of the secret service that few people know about.
I enjoyed every page. So did my hudsband because I kept reading him passages. Thanks for writing it. Enjoyed the inside view.
Interesting view of the job of the secret service.
A good read
Liked it as a historical buff. Irritated me for the standpoint of the amount of money spent on presidential trips.
Quite an education on the Secret Service. I had always thought highly of the Secret Service, I certainly wasn’t aware of all the personal sacrifices agents must make. GREAT READ