Former Vice President Protection Act of 2008

Floor Speech

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Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5938, the Former Vice President Protection Act of 2008, a much-needed permanent solution that would authorize protection for our former Vice Presidents and their families.

As you no doubt know, the President of the United States, along with his or her spouse and children, are provided continued protection by the United States Secret Service after the President leaves office, but the law does not provide such protection for a former Vice President and his or her family. Rather, Congress has, on an intermittent basis, authorized such protection for limited periods of time.

In the near future, Congress will again be faced with this issue. In January, Vice President Cheney will be leaving office, and we will presumably decide to provide continued Secret Service protection for him and his family, as has been done for every Vice President in recent decades. But this ad hoc process is inefficient, and the legislation before us replaces it with a permanent fix to current law. Specifically, it provides for Secret Service protection to a former Vice President, including his or her spouse and children under 16 years of age, for 6 months, and it permits this period to be extended if information or conditions so warrant.

I would urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

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