Thaindian News

New York, Aug 3 (ANI): A new book has taken the lid off the secret lives of US presidents, as described by Secret Service agents who have protected them over the years.

The book, titled ‘In the President’s Secret Service’, written by New York Times best-selling author and Newsmax chief Washington correspondent Ronald Kessler, is based on exclusive interviews with more than a hundred current and former agents.

The book has spilled spicy details about former and current White House residents, right from John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton to Barack Obama

The presidents and their lives covered by the book are as follows:

John F. Kennedy

Secret Service agents assigned to John F. Kennedy revealed that he led a double life.

He was the charismatic leader of the free world, but in his other life he was the cheating, reckless husband whose aides snuck women into the White House to appease his sexual appetite.

According to Secret Service agents, Kennedy had sex with Marilyn Monroe at New York hotels and in a loft above the Justice Department office of then-Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, the president’s brother.

Besides one-night stands, Kennedy had several consorts within the White House, some of whom would even have threesomes with Kennedy.

Lyndon Johnson

Secret Service agents said that Lyndon B. Johnson was uncouth, nasty and often drunk.

In fact, once Lady Bird Johnson caught him having sex on a sofa in the Oval Office with one of his secretaries. Johnson became furious at the Secret Service for not warning him.

Johnson had a “stable” of women with whom he had sex, including some who stayed at the ranch when Lady Bird was home, said another former agent.

Air Force One crew members have said that Johnson often closed the door to his stateroom and spent hours alone locked up with pretty secretaries, even when his wife was on board.

Richard Nixon

The Secret Service found Richard Nixon and his family to be the strangest protectees.

“He never held hands with his wife,” The New York Post quoted a Secret Service agent as saying.

The couple slept in different bedrooms. Also, the president’s wife Pat Nixon was an alcoholic who tippled martinis.

Quite contrary to his blustering in taped conversations, Nixon seemed passive and often out of it when in private. However, he did have a sense of humour.

Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter was known by the Secret Service as the least likeable modern president.

At a press conference, Carter denied reports that White House aides had to ask him for permission to use the tennis courts.

In fact, even when he was travelling on Air Force One, Carter insisted that aides ask him for permission.

Carter thought of himself as a better runner than his Secret Service agents and would challenge them to races.

Ronald Reagan

The book revealed that Ronald Reagan was just like his cowboy persona, real and down to earth.

Quite often Reagan quietly wrote personal checks to people who had written him with hard-luck stories.

George H.W. Bush

George H.W. Bush was a favourite of the Secret Service.

William Clinton

Bill Clinton often strained agents’ patience with his chronic tardiness.

“Anywhere he went, he shook hands; he’d go out of his way to shake the hand of a worker,” says a former agent who was on his detail.

But Clinton’s wings were clipped after he confessed in 1998 to a relationship that was “wrong” with White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

His wife Hillary Clinton kept a check on his moves and made him do things her way.

“Clinton loves mingling with people and he loves to play golf, but she was having none of that. He was being punished. It was like he was grounded,” said an agent.

Barack Obama and John McCain

The Secret Service began protecting Barack Obama in May 2007, 18 months before the presidential elections. It was the earliest point at which the Secret Service had ever protected a candidate.

Agents have said that Obama and wife Michelle treat them with respect, as does Vice President Joe Biden.

However, agents do not have the same opinion on Republican leader John McCain, and said that he was irritable, impatient and displayed his famous temper over trivial annoyances.

“McCain’s really hard to work with. He’s always complaining, just making comments. We get in his way. We impede his ability to meet people,” said an agent says.

The book is set to hit the shelves on August 4. (ANI)