Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey,
Speaker 1: brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbam here. Nothing snarls big city traffic
Speaker 1: quite like a politician headed to another ribbon cutting or
Speaker 1: campaign stump speech. Lights flashing flags, fluttering sirens, blaring traffic
Speaker 1: light ignoring. It's a commuting armageddon, no matter which side
Speaker 1: of the political aisle or city street you happen to
Speaker 1: be stuck on. The granddaddy of these, of course, the
Speaker 1: jammed resistance, if you will, is the presidential motorcade. Ever
Speaker 1: since that day nearly a hundred and seventeen years ago,
Speaker 1: when Teddy Roosevelt reportedly became the first president to use
Speaker 1: a car in an official capacity parading through the streets
Speaker 1: of Hartford, Connecticut, everybody's been moving aside to let the
Speaker 1: Commander in Chief through. From The New York Times on
Speaker 1: August two. On his arrival at Hartford, the President was
Speaker 1: welcomed by a committee of representative citizens and then taken
Speaker 1: for a drive around the city, occupying with Colonel Jacob L. Green,
Speaker 1: a handsome Victoria automobile in charge of two expert New
Speaker 1: York show furs. He was enthusiastically cheered all along the
Speaker 1: route earlier, Roosevelt had landed by yacht in New Haven
Speaker 1: and taken a carriage ride through that city. At the
Speaker 1: times reported by proclamation of the mayor, all traffic over
Speaker 1: the line of March was suspended. The city's factories changed
Speaker 1: the noon hour for the day, and the shops were
Speaker 1: closed between one pm and two thirty pm. The city
Speaker 1: was gaily dressed in flags and bunting. Presidential motorcaids have
Speaker 1: always had an undeniable patriotic panash, even in Washington, d C.
Speaker 1: Where other motorcaids are pretty passe, varying visiting dignitaries, diplomats,
Speaker 1: cabinet members, and the political alike about and of course,
Speaker 1: presidential inaugural parades featuring the presidential motorcaid are particularly decked out,
Speaker 1: even though almost every president since Jimmy Carter in n
Speaker 1: has escaped from their limos to hoof it down Pennsylvania
Speaker 1: Avenue on foot at least for a little bit. But
Speaker 1: however festive they seem, these motorcaids must carry off a
Speaker 1: kind of automobile ballet to get the president safely to
Speaker 1: the destination. We spoke via email with Melissa Mackenzie, a
Speaker 1: spokesperson for these Secret Service, she said, while each motorcaid
Speaker 1: movement is unique, thorough planning precedes any protective movement, requiring
Speaker 1: constant coordination between the Secret Service and its partners. The
Speaker 1: Secret Service believes that this thorough planning is the best
Speaker 1: safeguard against all types of potential pitfalls, but agents are
Speaker 1: prepared and trained to deal with unforeseen circumstances as they arise.
Speaker 1: Those unforeseen circumstances can be the stuff of tragedy and history.
Speaker 1: John F. Kennedy was assassinated riding in a presidential motorcaid
Speaker 1: in Dallas. An assassin shot Ronald Reagan as he prepared
Speaker 1: to get into his limo in a motorcade in d
Speaker 1: c Gerald Ford had to be shoved into his limousine
Speaker 1: twice in the space of two weeks in California, once
Speaker 1: in Sacramento, once in San Francisco to avoid assassination. That's
Speaker 1: why the Secret Service doesn't mess around when it comes
Speaker 1: to presidential motorcaids. Mackenzie pointed out carefully that the Secret
Speaker 1: Service coordinates with state, local, and federal authorities in determining
Speaker 1: a composition of a presidential motorcaid. Often how well equipped
Speaker 1: the local force is determines how many vehicles are involved.
Speaker 1: She said. Motorcaids are comprised of numerous types of vehicles
Speaker 1: belonging to the Secret Service and several other entities. While
Speaker 1: precise alignments and numbers cannot be divulged, most motorcaids include,
Speaker 1: at a minimum, a vehicle for the protectee, vehicles for
Speaker 1: security personnel, and vehicles for local or state law enforcement support.
Speaker 1: At the virtual center of a presidential motorcaid is the
Speaker 1: presidential limo, which carries the president, a few Secret Service agents,
Speaker 1: and other high ranking dignitaries or family members. Franklin D.
Speaker 1: Roosevelt became the first to use an armor plated vehicle
Speaker 1: in December of ninety one, shortly after the Japanese bombed
Speaker 1: Pearl Harbor and the US entered World War Two. That
Speaker 1: particular vehicle was seized by the Treasury Department from gangster
Speaker 1: Al Capone in ninety two. It had bulletproof glass, but
Speaker 1: the body was vulnerable to bullets. The Secret Service started
Speaker 1: armor plating limos in two. Today's well armor presidential limo
Speaker 1: is surrounded by other vehicles in the motorcaid, including decoy
Speaker 1: limos and many support cars. In a article the website
Speaker 1: The Drive suggested that there may be as many as
Speaker 1: twenty different limos in the presidential fleet, though we couldn't
Speaker 1: get Mackenzie to confirm this info. When a president leaves
Speaker 1: d C, the presidential limo and many other cars in
Speaker 1: the motorcaid. However, many of the secret Service deams necessary,
Speaker 1: including perhaps a spare limo, are shipped to the destination
Speaker 1: via air Force planes. The limo carrying the president is
Speaker 1: proceeded in the motorcaid by different vehicles closing streets and
Speaker 1: clearing the way. Often local police on motorcycles do that job,
Speaker 1: and it's closely accompanied by at least one other limo.
Speaker 1: The two limos moved back and forth, swapping places during
Speaker 1: the procession. The Drive reported quote, while the Motorcaid is
Speaker 1: in motion, highly trained Secret Service drivers execute a classic
Speaker 1: roving shell game, weaving stagecoach and spare or spares in
Speaker 1: and out among each other so that a would be
Speaker 1: attacker would have a tough time picking the car actually
Speaker 1: containing the president. The presidential limousines even have identical plates.
Speaker 1: The current presidential limo is known as the Beast. It's
Speaker 1: a Cadillac hybrid. Tech Crunch reported that prior presidential limo
Speaker 1: supported quote bulletproof glass, a supply of the president's blood type,
Speaker 1: and an independent air supply to thwart chemical attack. Secret
Speaker 1: Service details, communications vehicles, and other support vehicles, including a
Speaker 1: lot of heavy duty SUVs, follow the presidential limo. The
Speaker 1: rear of the convoy includes vehicles carrying members of the press,
Speaker 1: an ambulance, and more local police to protect the rear
Speaker 1: of the motorcaid. The Secret Service is always in charge.
Speaker 1: Mackenzie said. Agents assigned to drive in presidential motorcaids received
Speaker 1: extensive training in several areas, and the rehearse and research
Speaker 1: motorcaid routes continually. Things don't always go smoothly. A few
Speaker 1: motorcycle officers assigned the Presidential Motorcaid in Lake Charles, Louisiana
Speaker 1: in May of twenty nineteen were injured in an accident. Still,
Speaker 1: that motorcaide got his job done, delivering President Donald Trump
Speaker 1: safely to his death nation, even if there were a
Speaker 1: few traffic tie ups along the way. Today's episode was
Speaker 1: written by John Donovan and produced by Tyler Clang. The
Speaker 1: Brain Stuff is a production of iHeart Radio's how Stuff Works.
Speaker 1: For more in this and lots of other well organized topics,
Speaker 1: visit our home planet, how stuff Works dot com. And
Speaker 1: for more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the iHeart
Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your
Speaker 1: favorite shows,