Conrad Black: All US Presidential Assassinations Could Have Easily Been Avoided

What was adequate medical attention at the time isn’t what we think of as adequate medical attention today. If I remember correctly, Garfield’s chief doctor after the assassination didn’t believe in the germ theory of infection. There were people at the time who did, but respectable medical opinion wasn’t yet convinced of the necessity of sterilization practices.

Also, what was adequate secret service protection varied over the years. Understand that early on presidents had days when they shook hands with hundreds of visitors to the White House. Lincoln probably could have been saved if his bodyguard didn’t decide to go drinking, but Garfield and McKinley probably would have been shot because a massive security presence wasn’t considered, let alone deemed necessary, back then.

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