Outside the Secret Service Podcast

Joining us for this episode is Randy Sowell, archivist of the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library, whose knowledge and perspective help bring this remarkable chapter of Secret Service history to life.

On November 1, 1950, two Puerto Rican nationalists launched a brazen assassination attempt against President Harry S. Truman outside Blair House, the temporary presidential residence across from the White House. What followed was a violent gun battle that placed White House Police officers and Secret Service agents in a fight for the President's life.

In this episode of Outside the Secret Service, we revisit the events of that extraordinary day, examining the actions and contributions of the men who confronted the attackers. We remember White House Police Officer Leslie Coffelt, who, despite suffering mortal wounds, delivered the decisive shot that helped bring the assault to an end. We also explore the capture and prosecution of the surviving attacker and the lasting legal and security implications of the attack.

Retired Special Agent in Charge Nick Steen joins the podcast this week for a fascinating conversation about a career spanning decades in state and federal law enforcement.

Steen shares stories from his early days with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, his transition to the Secret Service, assignments in the Polygraph Division, and his service on presidential protection details - including his time as Special Agent in Charge of the former President Jimmy Carter Detail.

Nick takes us behind the scenes with frontline memories from the White House in the wake of 9/11, protecting President Carter, navigating high-tension campaign rallies, and the unique challenges and realities of working on small protective details.

This episode offers a candid look at the human side of protection work, the lessons learned over decades in the field, and why the job stays with agents long after they turn in their badge.

Retired Deputy Special Agent in Charge, Paul Eckloff spent over 22 years in the US Secret Service. In this episode of OTSS, we get a glimpse into his multiple tenures of service on the President's Detail as well as his time in recruitment and public affairs. Buckle up for an unfiltered and often hilarious look at life on the job as Paul shares candid anecdotes from White House access control, international advances, training, and memorable pranks and celebrity encounters. We also tackle the challenges regarding recruitment and retention in the Secret Service. #OperationSwaggerBack

Paul currently serves as the Senior Director of Public Relations for LexisNexis Risk Solutions while occasionally sparring with news anchors and panel hosts on cable news.

Here's a recent session (referenced in our episode) with a CNN anchor where the word "naive" may or may not have been invoked by Paul at around the 4min mark: https://youtu.be/i0ZtZP_ylv8?si=GPj_ETxD_OJtK2GS

Here's a link to his creative, hilarious, and informative YouTube Page, Fraud House Rock: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWKytWMs4bBrG_fJFCIFF5Q

Here's where you can find him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pauleckloff/

On this episode of OTSS, we hear from Retired Assistant Director, Mike Centrella. Mike is kind enough to share insights from 25-year Secret Service career. Fresh from college, Mike was part of the Young Agent Program in the New York Field Office and was to the Islamic terror attacks on 9/11. His career presented leadership roles in protective intelligence, investigations, inspection, the Agent in Charge of the Philadelphia Field Office, then back to headquarters where he oversaw the agency's investigative mission.

Mike offers insights into making the most of a career (regardless of your assignment), his transition to cybersecurity in the private sector, and his continued connection to the Service through family and colleagues.

He has been described as "an agent's agent" and "a great boss". Both are high praise in the ranks of the Secret Service.

Retired Resident Agent in Charge Hazel Cerra recounts her 26-year Secret Service career—from training and fieldwork in Newark and Philadelphia to the Clinton detail and leading the Atlantic City office. She discusses recruiting innovations, evolving investigations from physical skimming to network intrusions, and her transition into the digital security space at Black Cloak.

The episode highlights adaptive leadership, resilience, and practical advice for new agents, showing how Secret Service methods apply to modern cyber threats and personal digital protection. You'll also hear, first hand, how the Secret Service brand and culture calls you to be accountable to those who came before you and responsible for those who come after.

Retired Assistant Special Agent in Charge Mike Nason walks us through his 27-year Secret Service career, from small‑town resident agent assignments and protective details to counter surveillance operations, inspections, and media relations. He takes us behind the scenes of the infamous shoe-throwing incident in Baghdad involving Former President Bush, campaign improvisation, and explains how technology, recruitment, and agency culture shaped his service.

Mike offers deep insights on the rewards and strains of the job, lessons learned about leadership, accountability, work‑life balance, and why the agency’s people and traditions still matter as he moves into retirement.

#GoArmyBeatNavy

Retired Special Agent Brad Beeler (1999–2024) discusses his new book Tell Me Everything, recounting 25 years in the US Secret Service, including many as a polygrapher. Join us as Brad shares vivid and insightful stories - from high‑profile counterfeit cases and child‑exploitation - and explains how polygraph and interviewing techniques shaped investigations and relationships.

The episode also offers practical communication takeaways: how preparation, listening, and strategic empathy coax truth, why leaders should create safe settings for conversations, and how law‑enforcement lessons translate to everyday leadership, parenting, and negotiation.

Brad is genuine, funny and a wildly entertaining interview. You can find him and links to awesome new book below:

http://bradleybeeler.com/ https://a.co/d/04Uo6yTq https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Tell-Me-Everything/Brad-Beeler/9781637748428

On April 25, 2026, during the White House Correspondents' Dinner (WHCD) at the Washington Hilton, an armed man charged past a magnetometer checkpoint, shot a uniformed Secret Service Officer and was subsequently apprehended as he attempted to make his way to the ballroom where the President, Vice President and a host of other USSS Protectees and Cabinet Officials were seated.

On this episode of Outside the Secret Service, I'm joined by retired SAIC Tom Landry (Episode 008), retired DSAIC Todd Jenkins (Episode 001), and Former Special Agent, and current CNN Law Analyst, Jon Wackrow (Episode 018). Together, our goal is to help listeners gain a better understanding of the events of the WHCD, offer insight and perspective from Special Agents who have actually walked the space, evaluate the response, dispel misinformation and conspiracy theories, and highlight what worked and what will be reviewed.

Former Special Agent Jason Russell recounts his unconventional path to the Secret Service beginning with a remarkably unremarkable high school tenure. When he took his first criminal justice course in college, his life's purpose came into focus. Passionate about service and law enforcement, Jason bookended his time with the US Secret Service with a local department and another federal agency. Each uniquely preparing him for that moment when preparation met inspiration.

Jason shares how the tragic murders at Sandy Hook moved him to consider how he might prevent future such tragedies. Jason left government service and founded Secure Environment Consultants helping schools, childcare centers, and numerous other organizations with security assessments, emergency planning, and training—applying Secret Service methods and principles of resourcefulness and preparedness to protect our most vulnerable communities.

You can learn more about Secure Environment Consultants here: https://secprotects.com/

Today we site down with Retired Assistant Special Agent in Charge, Mark Youngblood, to re-trace his 23-year Secret Service Career.

Mark is a natural storyteller and this episode features vivid anecdotes - from getaway trips during training, Rwandan goodwill moments, airspace operations and the Bitcoin/Silk Road investigation fallout - as well as reflections on timing, teamwork, leadership, and the challenges that lead to retirement.

Mark also discusses his transition to the private sectore with American Global Strategies and the lasting lessons he took from life in the US Secret Service.

Former Special Agent Tate Jarrow joins the podcast to share his journey from West Point to wiretaps. We talk about his path through combat deployments to the U.S. Secret Service, where he tackled major cyber investigations like the Liberty Reserve takedown and JPMorgan intrusion, served on the Counter Assault Team, and later transitioned to tech and startups focused on online safety.

This episode dives into polygraph myths, training realities, wild protection logistics (including a multi-boat extraction from the lawless tribal region of Nantucket), life-saving moments, and why personal privacy and consumer protection matter more than ever.

Tate is a natural and a cutting-edge leader in online safety and personal privacy. You can find his worthwhile offerings here:

https://onlinesafety.substack.com/

and here:

https://trustrebound.com/

They tell you not to start a show with a "show stopper", so I saved this for Episode 2 of Season 2.

Barry Spodak is a mostly-retired clinical specialist, senior consultant and trainer, whose simulation-based training and collaboration with researchers shaped behavioral threat assessment and protective intelligence for the U.S. Secret Service.

The episode traces Spodak’s 40-year impact on generations of agents and officers: teaching them to interview people with mental illness, recognizing the ‘‘path to violence,’’ using realistic role-play simulations, and focusing on threat assessment and management to prevent targeted violence.

Here is a link to the US Secret Service's Exceptional Case Study Project that started it all: https://nij.ojp.gov/library/publications/preventing-assassination-secret-service-exceptional-case-study-project

Today we welcome Brian Lewis to the Outside the Secret Service Podcast. Brian is a Navy veteran and now retired Roseville, CA Police Lieutenant. On this episode we cover his fast-paced two years in the Secret Service which included a stint on a campaign advance team, and protecting a high-level foreign dignitary (Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai); and the ping-pong match that may have saved US-Afghan relations.

While Brian's story is uniquely his, the pace of his career and the decision to leave represent an all-to-familiar pattern in the ranks of the Secret Service. His story is equal parts impressive, inspiring and instructive.

On this Season 1 finale of OTSS, we sit down with Retired ATSAIC of the US Secret Service, Sean Quarmby. We cover his 25-year career that started in New York, saw time in Washington DC, then finishing in Charlotte (which is definitely in one of the Carolinas). Sean shares great stories and unique insights of what it's like to work inside the White Houses access control section (housed in Room 23), protective details, and memorable moments like running with a President who was all gas and no break.

As fascinating as his career with the USSS was, his life retirement life remains one of service and daring feats. In addition to teaching the next generation of law enforcement professionals at a local community college, Sean has found time to write an award-winning novel, 'Room 23: A Secret Service Agent's Story of Espionage and Intrigue' which readers say is "an easy read that's intellectually stimulating and action packed". You can find the link to purchase the book here: https://a.co/d/9NxlJIO . It will definitely arrive in time for Christmas!

Retired Assistant Special Agent in Charge Charlie White recounts his 27-year Secret Service career spanning San Francisco Field Office fraud squads, Counter Assault Team work, Presidential Protective Division, and long-term overseas liaison posts in Bonn, Germany and Moscow, Russia.

Charlie's career offers a unique insight into how cultural differences can shape security operations abroad. He reflects on leadership, integrity, and relationship-building as the key lessons he took into the private sector after retirement.

Retired Assistant Special Agent in Charge Robert "Bobby Mac" McDonald joins the OTSS podcast to trace his path from serving as a federal probation officer to 20+ years in the U.S. Secret Service. He generously shares behind-the-scenes stories from New Haven, D.C., both the Presidential and Vice Presidential detail and his post-USSS time with the NBA.

Now an assistant professor at the University of New Haven, Bobby Mac reflects on ethics, leadership, preparing the next generation of practitioners, and practical insights about AI, accountability, and life after federal service.

Retired Deputy Chief Katrina Bonus, shares her start-to-finish journey in the Secret Service Uniformed Division, tracing its history, mission, and day-to-day duties protecting the White House complex, and so much more, in the Nation's Capitol.

She recalls defining moments from Oklahoma City, memorable encounters on post, the challenges of construction and security, serving as the first woman Deputy Chief, and her transition to retirement where she continues to serve the US Secret Service.

#Patriotism #WhiteHouseHistory #Profession #ServiceToOthers #WonderWoman

This week, I'm fortunate to sit down with the inestimable Jerome Pickett. Jerome started as an intern in the New York Field Office, then hired on as a Special Agent in the same office. He later served on the Counter Assault Team and the Presidential Protective Division where he always made a positive impact.

As interesting as his career in the Secret Service is the road which lead him there and the path he charted afterwards. After leaving the Secret Service, Jerome served as the Chief Security Officer for the NBA, McDonalds and, now, Elevance Health. He is as kind as he is competent and the kind of leader we hope to be or work for.

Retired Special Agent John Constantine joins us to discuss his 20+ year career in the US Secret Service, focusing on life after retirement, identity transition, and the mindset needed for protective operations.

The episode covers counter‑assault team experiences, leadership lessons, physical and mental health challenges for retirees, diplomatic and operational demands of global protective work, and John’s post‑service plans including consulting and a forthcoming book.

Join fan favorites Kevin Dye and Todd Jenkins as we unpack the Secret Service’s role in securing New York City for the annual United Nations General Assembly. We share firsthand stories about the massive logistics undertaking, long hours, cultural clashes, and unexpected moments that define UNGA in New York City.

The episode is heavy on humor and hard-earned lessons, post assignments, and memorable incidents — offering you a behind-the-scenes look at how one of the world’s largest security operations is planned and executed.