WASHINGTON — The name expresses it all — the Secret Service is supposed to operate in the shadows as an apolitical agency protecting U.S. officials and their families. Like oxygen, it should be vital but largely invisible.
So when it emerged that Secret Service text messages tied to last year’s lethal attack on the U.S. Capitol had been deleted, and that Vice President Mike Pence disagreed with the agents on the scene, grievous questions of integrity and politicization loomed. Had the agency been hijacked by Donald Trump?
“This feeds the perception that they’ve taken a side in the political war,” said Paul Rosenzweig, who helped oversee the service during the George W. Bush administration.
