U.S. Secret Service
The U.S. Secret Service protects the President and other designated officials and investigates certain financial crimes, operating within the Department of Homeland Security. Entries naming it record investigative visits and the collection of information about individuals in connection with speech directed at officials.
2026 Events (2)
GWAR frontman said in a June 17 podcast interview that the Secret Service had contacted the band over a mock execution of a Trump effigy
In a June 2026 interview, GWAR frontman Mike "Blöthar" Bishop said the U.S. Secret Service contacted the veteran heavy-metal band after it staged a mock onstage execution of a Donald Trump effigy during a Warped Tour performance in Washington, D.C. Bishop said the band had performed identical faux executions of other figures — including Barack Obama and Joe Biden — for decades without ever drawing federal attention. Asked by Reason, a Secret Service spokesperson declined to confirm or deny an investigation, saying only that the agency "investigates anything that can be perceived as a threat toward our protectees."
Secret Service, Trump White House barred JD Vance critic from Bangor event over her online criticism, lawsuit alleges
On May 14, 2026, armed U.S. Secret Service agents and other officials organizing Vice President JD Vance's public event in Bangor, Maine, identified Amanda McGonigle — creator of the @CatsOnACouch social media accounts that mock Vance — by name in the registration line and denied her entry despite her having registered and received official guest confirmation from the Executive Office of the President. McGonigle sued Secret Service Director Sean Curran, Office of Presidential Advance Director John Hiller, the Executive Office of the President, and the Secret Service, alleging First Amendment retaliation and viewpoint discrimination.
2025 Events (2)
DHS agents forcibly removed and handcuffed Senator Alex Padilla at Noem press conference in Los Angeles
On June 12, 2025, FBI police officers and U.S. Secret Service agents physically seized California Senator Alex Padilla, dragged him from the room, and handcuffed him face-down outside after he stood to question Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem about immigration enforcement operations at her press conference at the FBI Los Angeles Field Office. Padilla was not arrested and no charges were filed; video showed him identifying himself as a senator before agents removed him. The incident drew bipartisan condemnation, with Republican Senators Collins and Murkowski calling it "disturbing," and Senate Democrats demanding a congressional investigation.
Trump administration pressured Secret Service to warrantlessly surveil Comey after 'seashells' post
On the night of May 15, 2025, President Trump and administration officials pressured U.S. Secret Service agents to warrantlessly access former FBI Director James Comey's phone location data after Comey posted an Instagram photo of seashells arranged to spell "86 47." Secret Service personnel warned internally that they lacked a warrant or a reasonable basis to believe Comey posed an imminent threat, but the agency issued an emergency request to Verizon and tracked Comey's phone as he drove from North Carolina toward Virginia. The pressure and warrantless tracking were disclosed in July 2026 through internal Secret Service records filed in Comey's separate federal criminal case.