Former presidents receive Secret Service protection for life; should former vice presidents too?
The bill comes in response to some Capitol Building rioters chanting “Hang Mike Pence!” as they stormed the building.
Context
Over time, the vice president and their family members have gradually increased their Secret Service protection.
Starting in 1951, a vice president could first receive the protection if they requested it. In 1962, the protection became required rather than opt-in. In 1971, the protection began for both Democratic and Republican vice presidential nominees, several months before they were potentially sworn in. In 1974, protection began for the vice president’s immediate family (spouse and children). In 1976, immediate family protection was added for major-party vice presidential nominees as well.
All those changes were instituted to mirror the protection that a president or major-party presidential nominee received. Today, there remains only one glaring discrepancy between presidential and vice presidential protection. While presidents and their spouses are given Secret Service protection for life, as well as their children up to age 16, vice presidents and their families are only given those same protections for six months after leaving office.
But some fear for former Vice President Mike Pence, after the January 6 riot and insurrection against the Capitol Building featured rioters chanting “Hang Mike Pence!” because he was slated to certify Donald Trump’s election loss later that day inside the building, which he ultimately did. Pence also attracted ire from many Trump supporters for attending Joe Biden’s inauguration even as Trump refused to attend.
What the bill does
The Protecting Vice Presidents Act would grant Secret Service protection for any former vice president and their spouse for life, as well as their children up until age 16. It was introduced in the House on January 19 as bill number H.R. 368, by Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA35).
Who would this bill cover in practice? At the moment, 11 people.
There are currently six living vice presidents or former vice presidents who would fall under the bill’s provisions: Walter Mondale, Dick Cheney, Dan Quayle, Al Gore, and Mike Pence, and Kamala Harris. Biden, another former vice president, will now receive protection for life anyway because he ascended to the presidency.
There are also five living “second spouses” or former second spouses who would qualify: Marilyn Quayle, Tipper Gore, Lynne Cheney, Karen Pence, and Kamala Harris’s husband Doug Emhoff. Like Joe Biden, Jill Biden will now also receive protection for life anyway because she became First Lady.
(Although Tipper divorced Al Gore a few years after his vice presidency, she would presumably still be entitled to lifetime protection under this bill. Presidential spouses are entitled to lifetime protection even if they’re divorced or widowed, unless they remarry. It’s unclear whether that same provision would apply in this bill.)
As for vice presidential children? None would currently qualify. Kamala Harris’s two stepchildren Cole and Ella are 26 and 21, so they wouldn’t be covered after her vice presidency, which would only cover children up through age 16.
What supporters say
Supporters argue that just as vice presidents and their families have consistently seen their Secret Service protection upgraded through the decades to match the president’s protection level, the same should happen again here.
“Every American heard the chants threatening Vice President Pence’s life on cell phone videos from the January 6th attack on our Capitol,” Rep. Torres said in a press release. “Vice Presidents serve every American, regardless of their party affiliation or political ideology. They must be free to conduct their official duties without fear of violence or retribution, whether it comes while they are in office or later as a private citizen.”
“The bill… removes that concern,” Rep. Torres continued, “and ensures the threat of violence will never prevail over the oath these public servants swear.”
What opponents say
While GovTrack Insider was unable to locate any explicit statements of opposition, some may criticize the bill for being expensive and unnecessary.
There have only been two vice presidential assassination attempts, on Andrew Johnson in 1865 and Thomas Marshall in 1915, neither of which were successful. Both occurred while the men held the vice presidency, meaning there has never been a single assassination attempt on a former vice president.
(There have, however, been at least two assassination attempts on former presidents: Theodore Roosevelt in 1912 and George H.W. Bush in 1993. Neither were successful, either.)
Odds of passage
The bill has not yet attracted any cosponsors. It awaits a potential vote in the House Judiciary Committee.
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This article was written by GovTrack Insider staff writer Jesse Rifkin.
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