For the Secret Service, this is war. The agency doesn’t want to surrender any of its expanded authority. Ever since the 1981 attempt on Ronald Reagan’s life, agents have been stationed inside the First Family’s living quarters. Horrified at the intrusion into their privacy, the Clintons shifted them to a second-floor outpost. Don Edwards, spokesman for the Secret Service, insists the agency was never threatened and “is not resisting anything.” But he acknowledges that Clinton is an energetic, accessible president, and everyone is adjusting–some apparently better than others. Like the waiter who shows displeasure by spitting in the soup, some agents apparently began telling tales of what might be called spirited discussions between the Clintons. Pretty soon, Washington dinner parties were buzzing with stories of Hillary throwing-take your pick-a lamp, a briefing book or a Bible at Bill. One outlandish tale has an angry Hillary lighting a cigarette to trigger her husband’s allergies-this from a woman who banned smoking in the White House.
There is no evidence to support any of the stories. White House spokesman George Stephanopoulos denies everything from the home-front battles to dissension with the Secret Service. “It’s ill informed, malicious, untrue gossip,” he says, adding, “It’s part of the air here.” That much is true. When it comes to gossip, Washington is a small town. The late Alice Roosevelt Longworth kept a needlepoint pillow that said, “If you haven’t got anything good to say about anyone, come and sit by me.” Rightwing Republicans have been most active in spreading the notion that Hillary is the power in front of the throne, calling the shots and cursing like a man. But even White House aides feed the rumor mill in a can-you-top-this competition. The conservative Washington Times last week traced the rumor about Hillary throwing a Bible to stories about another First Lady, the wife of a governor who has been accused of bullying her security guards.
Rumors are a reality the Clintons will have to learn to live with. But adjusting to the ever-present Secret Service may be more difficult. Other presidents have learned to coexist. George Bush made a point of spending Christmas in the White House instead of at Camp David so his agents could be with their families. Still, living in the fishbowl of the White House is hard enough without worrying about a Secret Service that can’t keep mum.
