“I looked up at the presidential box above the stage where Abe Lincoln had been sitting the night he was shot and felt a curious sensation … I thought that even with all the Secret Service protection we now had, it was probably still possible for someone who had enough determination to get close enough to the president to shoot him.”

Ronald Reagan (March 21 1981)

March 30 2021 — On this day 40 years ago, Ronald Reagan narrowly escaped becoming the fifth US president to be assassinated. It is only through sheer luck that Reagan was not killed. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY

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At 2:27 p.m.,Reagan exited the Hilton hotel through “President’s Walk” on Florida Avenue, where reporters waited.

He left the T Street NW exit toward his waiting limousine as John Hinckley waited within the crowd of admirers.

The Secret Service had extensively screened those attending the president’s speech, but greatly erred by allowing an unscreened group to stand within 15 ft (4.6 m) of him, behind a rope line.

As several hundred people applauded Reagan, the president unexpectedly passed right in front of Hinckley.

Reporters standing behind a rope barricade 20 feet away asked questions.

As Mike Putzel of the Associated Press shouted “Mr. President—”, John Hinckley fired a Röhm RG-14 .22 LR blue steel revolver six times in 1.7 seconds.

The last of the bullets had ricocheted off the presidential limousine, hit Reagan under the left arm, penetrated his lung and lodged an inch from his heart.

Sheer Luck [The Fifth Bullet]

The fifth round hit the bullet-resistant glass of the window on the open rear door of the limousine as Reagan was passing behind it. 

Last week, while reading a book about Medical Intelligence, I stumbled on a piece of information I had never read anywhere else.

The limousine used by the Secret Service protection team on that day was the only one in their fleet having the rear door opening towards the back.

Reagan believed that God had spared his life so that he might go on to fulfill a greater purpose. A meeting with Pope John Paul II reinforced his belief.

RELATED POST: US Historian: “CIA concluded GRU behind John Paul II assassination attempt”

Statistics

Four sitting presidents have been killed: Abraham Lincoln (1865), James A. Garfield (1881), William McKinley (1901), and John F. Kennedy (1963).

Additionally, two presidents have been injured in attempted assassinations: Theodore Roosevelt (1912; former president at the time) and Ronald Reagan (1981).

More than 30 attempts to kill an incumbent or former president, or a president-elect have been made since the early 19th century.

And, for the conspiracy-minded among you, I will point out that the circumstances surrounding the strange death of President Harding (1930) led serious historians to suspect that he had been poisoned.

Obviously, the US Presidency is a very dangerous job! Joe Biden is the 46th president of the United States. Do the math…

The probability that Biden is assassinated is about 9%, which is higher than the Coronavirus death rate, even for a 78 year old.

Reagan assassination attempt

REFERENCES

Attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan — Wikipedia

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40 Years Ago — Reagan assassination attempt [March 30 1981]