General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy believed President Kennedy was killed by a conspiracy. [View all]stopbush
(24,396 posts)the fact is that SS agents DID ride on the rear bumper of JFK's limo during parts of the motorcade. So your preposterous idea that they were ordered off the rear bumper of the limo for the length of the motorcade route is, well, preposterous.
However, it was general knowledge among JFK's SS detail that JFK had on numerous previous occasions ordered the agents off the rear step of his limo while he was riding in it.
This was all covered in the WCR and stands as CE1025 (see here: http://jfkhistory.com/secretservice.pdf ). That exhibit contains a cover letter from James J Rowley (Chief of the SS) to Lee Rankin (General Counsel for the WC) along with 5 statements made by agents who were involved in protecting the president on that fatal day (Special Agent in Charge Behn; Asst Special Agent in Charge Charge Boring; Assistane Speciial Agent in charge Roberts; Special Agents Ready and Hill).
Here are some excerpts from those SS Agent statements:
"November 23, 1963, during the presidential motorcade in Dallas, Texas, prior to the assassination of President Kennedy, I did ride on the rear of the presidential automobile on approximately four (4) separate instances. This was necessitated by the fact that the motorcycles which were flanking the presidential automobile on the left side were forced to drop back from their normal positions because of the closeness of the crowd on this side which did not allow sufficient room for the motorcycles to keep moving. I did, on these specific instances, move from my position on the front portion of the left running board to the left rear step of the presidential automobile. I was not requested by anyone to do so, and there was not sufficient time involved for such a request to be made, but rather did so at my own discretion. SS Agt Clinton Hill
"The policy of the special agents covering the presidential vehicle is flexible...certainly not least but perhaps the dominant factor (being) the desire or instructions of the President. As stated in the first paragraph the desires and instructions of the President were a major factor in this policy. On numerous occasions during motorcades where the pace was slow and crowds were fairly well-controlled by the police, but the agents were none the less in position around the presidential car, the President would either tell me to tell the agents, or he would attempt to tell the agents on his side of the car, to get back." - SS Agt Gerald Behn
Agent Floyd Boring relates two instances (in Tampa on Nov 18, 1963 - 4 days before the assassination, and in Rome) where JFK requested he (Boring) dismount from the rear bumper of his limo, then writes: "It was the understanding among the agents assigned on the White House detail to the President that they should not jump onto the rear steps of the presidential limousine when the crowds along the route were sparse unless it was absolutely necessary."
"It was common knowledge among the majority of the White House detail agents that President John F. Kennedy, on several occasions, had asked that agents not ride on the rear steps of the presidential limo." - Agent John Ready
Ergo, there was nothing unusual, nefarious or conspiratorial about SS agents not riding on the rear step of JFK's limo that day. In fact, Agt Hill DID ride on the rear step of the limo four times that day during the Dallas motorcade. It is only bad luck that one of those times was not while the limo was making it's way down Elm Street, though the fact that Agt Hill reported that he rode on the LEFT side of the limo means that he would not have blocked Oswald's view of JFK in any case. However, Agt Hill would have been in position to leap forward over the trunk of the limo to protect JFK had he heard either the first or second shots being fired.
The agents in their depositions refer to JFK ordering agents off the rear step of his limo as "policy." What could be clearer?
That doesn't mean that SS agents couldn't override JFK's wishes at any time, just as they could have this day (I doubt that anyone was yelling for Agent Hill to "get off that rear step, Hill! You're going to block Oswald's shots!" each of the 4 times he rode on the rear step of the limo that day). In retrospect, they made a horrible decision not to position themselves on the rear step for the duration of the Dallas motorcade.
No conspiracy here. Just sad and tragic coincidence that was the result of bad policy and bad decision making.