secret service

     

Because of both the secrecy of secret services an the controversial nature of the issues involved, there is some difficulty in separating the definitions of secret service, secret police, intelligence agency etc. For instance a country may establish a secret service which has some policing powers (such as surveillance) but not others. A secret police may also be said to be a secret service. The powers and duties of a government organization may be partly secret and partly not. The organization may be said to operate openly at home and secretly abroad, or vice versa.

Trivia about secret service

  • On April 14, 1865 Abraham Lincoln authorized this govt. agency; its main job then was to protect against counterfeiting
  • In addition to protecting all of us from funny money, it protects the president
  • Fittingly, in 4 films Ronald Reagan played Brass Bancroft, one of these agents who guard the U.S. president
  • In 1971 Congress told this agency to start protecting visiting heads of state
  • In 2003 this federal agency that protects national VIPs was absorbed into the department
  • Taking a bullet for the chief exec isn't enough; this Treasury Dept. division also goes after counterfeiters