Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), announced on July 15 that independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will receive Secret Service protection moving forward.
âIn light of this weekendâs events, the president has directed me to work with the Secret Service to provide protection to Robert Kennedy Jr.,â Mr. Mayorkas said.
The announcement was made at a White House press briefing with press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
Mr. Mayorkas said security protection will increase for the 2024 presidential candidates and for this weekâs Republican National Convention (RNC) after a 20-year-old man tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump on July 13.
âThank you to President Biden for granting me Secret Service protection,â he said. âAnd I am so grateful to Gavin deBecker & Associates for keeping me safe for the last 15 months of my Presidential campaign.â
Mr. Mayorkas said RNC security has been ramped up. âWe have steadily increased implementation of significant physical and technical enhancements at every protective venue in support of protectees, including miles of anti-scale fencing, screening, technology, and tactical support,â he said.
âIn light of what is going on in the world today, I believe it is imperative that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. receive Secret Service protectionâimmediately. Given the history of the Kennedy Family, this is the obvious right thing to do!â the 45th president said.
Previous Requests
Mr. Kennedy said on April 25 that a ânumberâ of his siblings had asked President Biden to authorize Secret Service protection for him, but that the DHS had said he didnât qualify. The most recent request came in late March.
Federal law indicates that it is the president and the Secretary of Homeland Security who have the âbroad discretionâ to authorize Secret Service protection of presidential candidates.
Mr. Kennedy previously alleged that it was a âpoliticalâ decision to deny his repeated requests for Secret Service protection.
âI worry about the safety of my family and the safety of bystanders if there happens to be a more serious incident,â he told reporters after a campaign stop in Des Moines, Iowa, in April.
His campaign has encountered security issues. In September 2023, security personnel arrested an armed man impersonating a U.S. Marshal outside a campaign event in Los Angeles.
One month later, another armed man was arrested after twice attempting to break into Mr. Kennedyâs Los Angeles home. When he was released after the first incident under a restraining order, he returned to the candidateâs home and again tried to break in before authorities arrested him a second time.
Following Mr. Mayorkasâs fifth denial of Secret Service protection in April, Mr. Kennedy threatened to sue the DHS.
Protection for Candidates
Gavin de Becker, whose firm provides private security for Mr. Kennedy, said last year that Secret Service protection is often issued to candidates before the 120-day window, pointing to former President Jimmy Carter giving then-candidate Ronald Reagan and other GOP candidates security âlong before the 1980 election.â
Mr. de Becker also noted that the Carter administration provided Sen. Edward Kennedy, Mr. Kennedyâs uncle, with Secret Service protection 441 days before the 1980 election, âeven though [Sen.] Kennedy hadnât formally announced his candidacy.â
This was repeated by the Reagan administration in 1983 and 1987 when it provided security protection to Democrat presidential candidate Jesse Jackson 362 days before the 1984 election and 351 days before the 1988 election, the security expert said.
âEvery administration for 55 years afforded early Secret Service protection to candidates who requested protection. [This] refusal is the sole outlier, making the Biden administration the only one to refuse a protection request,â Mr. de Becker said.
âThe Secret Service has no role in determining who is to be considered a major candidate. The Secretary of the Homeland Security determines who qualifies as a major candidate and when such protection should commence ⊠This determination is made in consultation with an advisory committee,â the agency wrote.
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