Its still hard for me to believe that the Chileans are so badly organized that the President of the United States had to personally intervene in order to get his Secret Service personnel into the hall.
I love these pictures and what they represent. Just walked over and took charge. I love a "can do" kind of man.
Its a miracle that the the Chilean economy is strong enough the survive such incompetance.
read the complete story here: http://www.washtimes.com/national/20041120-113709-8651r.htm
The Secret Service source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the president's security detail and that the Chileans had argued about security procedures all day and that he wasn't surprised to see last night's skirmish unfold.
The Chileans, he said, were determined to take charge of security, but the president of the United States is the only world leader who takes his bodyguards with him wherever he goes. Normally, foreign countries defer to that demand. The Chilean security detail resisted, the source said, and was determined to take a stand at the dinner.
"That's what the argument this afternoon was about," he said. "I saw this coming."
Chilean security knew that the Secret Service always accompanies the president and knows how to identify them by the pins on their lapels, the source said, but blocked them anyway.
The White House downplayed the incident last night.
"Chilean security tried to stop the president's Secret Service from accompanying him," said White House deputy press secretary Claire Buchan. "He told them they were with him, and the issue was resolved."
Have you been to South America? Lots of Machismo and posturing. Little in the way of organization, hard work and responsibility. There is a reason these folks are the way they are, and England and the rest of their former colonies are as they are.