I guess when you have Secret Service protection, you can afford to walk around New York City with your purse hanging completely open behind your back.
Let me tell you about NYC purse snatchers.
Back in 1989 or early 1990 Dem. Brooklyn DA Liz Holtzman was returning from the NY Times offices, where she was scmoozing the editors for her Comptroller run, when her purse was snatched at the corner of West 43rd and Ninth Ave at mid-day. A notorious crack corner because of the rare functioning public telephone. The two detective bodyguards had backed off just past evesdropping range, about 8 feet when a very speedy yout made his strafing hit and run and sped through the midblock parking lot to 42nd.
As I exited the Korean deli I saw the two plaincloths cops pull their guns and shout for the perp to stop. Then I recognized Holtzman. What she had to say was quite unladylike but in keeping with Dem. Party standards.
So even the prescence of 2 armed bodyguards is not enough in the Big Apple.
Had that occurred today with a knife wielding ROP member she would have been laying in the street, throat cut, bleeding out. Happened that fast.