Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President John F. Kennedy

Committee of Cabinet Officers

As Government has become more complex, agencies other than the Secret Service have become involved in phases of the overall problem of protecting national leaders, with the FBI serving as the major domestic investigating agency and the CIA having primary responsibility for collecting intelligence overseas. The Commission believes it is necessary to improve cooperation among these agencies and to emphasize that Presidential protection is a matter of broad national concern. The Commission suggests consideration be given to assigning to a Cabinet-level committee or the National Security Council the responsibility to review and oversee the protective activities of the Secret Service and other Federal agencies assisting in safeguarding the President, with the committee to include the Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General. The foremost assignment of such a Committee would be to insure that the maximum resources of the Federal Government are fully engaged in Presidential protection by defining responsibilities clearly and overseeing their execution, and it would be able to provide guidance in defining the general nature of domestic and foreign dangers to Presidential security and act as a final review board for improvements in advance detection of potential threats. The Commission observes that the Secret Service has functioned largely as an informal part of the White House staff, limiting its practical influence over security precautions surrounding Presidential activities, and that a Cabinet-level committee actively concerned with these problems could discuss them more effectively with the President.