The above, "shoulda woulda" scenario is comically uninformed. SA Clint Hill was SPECIFICALLY Assigned to protect Jackie Kennedy. Why do you think he was climbing onto the Limo Trunk DIRECTLY behind Jackie Kennedy? Clint Hill was hitting the "hard stuff" the night previous. Other SS Agents were too. Personally, I believe what you are labeling as a "slow response time", is what Joe 6 Pack calls a "hang over". The SS is held to an exceptionally high standard. Those numerous SS Agents downing the "Who Hit John" the night before, failed miserably at even coming close to this high bar.
To have a "hang over" that seriously affects a person requires more than just a few drinks, do you have any proof that they were completely sloshed? In my younger days, I have overindulged and woke up feeling like crap but soldiered on and went to work and could do my job with reasonable efficiency within an hour or two, and by lunch was operating at 100%!
Now, I'm not condoning their actions and if Rowley, Chief of the U.S. Secret Service is correct, a few of them were hardly inebriated.
BTW, this was never a secret and has been known at for least since the Warren report was released, to me it's just an easy target for people who throw stones while living in glass houses.
Mr. RANKIN. Did you learn in connection with the trip when the assassination occurred that certain of the Secret Service agents had been in the press club and what is called the Cellar, at Fort Worth, the night before?
Mr. ROWLEY. Well, that came to my attention through a broadcast that Mr. Pearson made, that the agents were inebriated .the night before at the Fort Worth Press Club. I immediately dispatched Inspector McCann to Fort Worth to investigate the report, and to interview the agents.
Mr. RANKIN. What did you learn?
Mr. ROWLEY. I learned that there were nine agents involved at the Press Club. And I might say this--the agents on duty throughout that day had no opportunity to eat. When they arrived at Fort Worth, they were informed that there was a buffet to be served at the Fort Worth Club. This is what I ascertained in personal interviews. Upon going over there, they leaned there was no buffet, and some of them stayed for a drink. Three, I think, had one scotch, and others had two or three beers. They were in and out--from the time they arrived, I would say roughly around 12:30, until the place closed at 2 o'clock.
Now, after that some of them went to the Cellar. This is a place that does not serve alcoholic beverages. They went there primarily, I think, out of curiosity, because this was some kind of a beatnik place where someone gets up and recites, or plays the guitar.JohnM