Ron Kessler Dishes to Daily Show on Secret Service

Newsmax correspondent Ron Kessler appeared on "The Daily Show with John Stewart" on Comedy Central Monday night to discuss his new book "In the President's Secret Service: Behind the Scenes With Agents in the Line of Fire and the Presidents They Protect."

Stewart noted that Secret Service agents see the president and others in their most "human moments."

Kessler responded: "They're like human surveillance cameras who see everything behind the scenes, whether it's Jenna Bush and her boyfriend getting so drunk that the boyfriend has to be taken to a hospital by the Secret Service, whether it's Spiro Agnew having an affair, whether it's Mary Cheney giving a hard time to the Secret Service."

President Barack Obama is "very very considerate of the Secret Service" and his wife Michelle is "very considerate," Kessler said, "but on the other hand Barack Obama does smoke on a regular basis in spite of his claims that he gave it up."

Stewart quipped that he preferred smoking to "bombing countries."

Kessler went on to say: "The Secret Service management, since the Secret Service was acquired by Homeland Security, has been cutting corners to the point where they really risk the assassination of the president because they will stop magnetometer screening, metal detection."

"Because of budget cuts?" Stewart asked.

"That's part of it," Kessler said. "And just laziness."

Stewart: "Should you be telling me that?"

Kessler: "Yes, because hopefully tomorrow the Secret Service will stop that practice and will start doing their job, which they used to do.

"When I interviewed former agents, up to the level of deputy director, they said, my God, we would never stop magnetometer screening. That risks having a terrorist come in with guns or grenades and assassinating."

Stewart: "I'm sure they're fixing that now."

Kessler: "I'm sure they're fixing that now."

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