The President’s limo, code name “Stagecoach,” looks more like a truck tank than a car, even with a Cadillac grille, headlights and taillights. The current model went into service in 2018. This 20,000-pound vehicle is constructed on a GM Kodiak heavy-duty truck chassis at around $1.5 million a copy; the number of limo units delivered to the Secret Service for chauffeuring is classified. However, it is believed there are nearly a dozen secretly located at military bases nationwide. Drivers are highly trained and qualified to operate the Beast, which has its own C-17 Globemaster Air Force transport to haul the brute.
This rolling bunker is a testament to modern defense technology. It is an anti-ballistic marvel with eight-inch military-grade steel and ceramic armor. The five-inch-thick layered transparent armor windows can withstand armor-piercing bullets. Massive Kevlar-reinforced run-flat Goodyear tires, driven by a GM Duramax diesel engine, keep “Cadillac One” on the road. Oversized wheel wells allow space so the vehicle can drive over objects, with reinforced steel plating underneath to shield it from roadside bombs. An armor-plated fuel tank is encased in foam to thwart explosions. Agents can also spray an oil slick and a smokescreen behind them if pursued.
Stepping inside the ‘Stagecoach,’ you enter a world of comfort and security. The seven-seat interior is a sealed sanctuary designed to protect the President from biological or chemical attacks. This vehicle is equipped with tear gas cannons, night vision cameras, automatic handheld weapons, shotguns, an onboard oxygen supply and medical provisions, including a refrigerator stocked with bottles of the President’s blood type. Communication is vital, and the ‘Stagecoach’ is equipped with a direct phone to the Vice President, a satellite telephone and other highly classified communication equipment. And if an intruder tries to open a door, they will receive an electrical shock when touching a door handle. Except for the driver, the windows do not open, ensuring the President’s safety while allowing communication.
The front fenders carry small flag stanchions and have miniature spotlights illuminating the Presidential and American flags—the front bumper sports fog lights, flashers in red and white, and super bright high beams. The night driving camera is secreted in the grill. Arrayed under the rear trunk lid are five antennas. The President can dispatch codes to fire a nuclear weapon from his seat. As for executive comfort, I am told the car has an integrated 10-disk CD changer, reclining rear seats with massaging adaptive cushions and a foldaway desktop. The President has the switches for the climate control and sound systems at his fingertips. If the head of state is infodemic, tweets can also resonate from the vehicle.
A small, dark blue flag with the official Presidential Seal is meticulously hand-stitched and flown from the driver’s front fender’s stanchion. Two identical flags are hand-stitched back-to-back and fringed silk is added to the edges with gold and white loop threads. This official flag is never for sale. While working in Washington, I was fortunate to obtain one through sources I have never disclosed. This column includes a photo of that flag framed in my office featuring four Secret Service badges, two from ceremonial Presidential Inaugurals, a Uniformed Division Secret Service badge and the badge carried by non-uniformed agents protecting the President.
When I worked in Washington, on the Hill, or near the White House, I never tired of watching a Presidential motorcade. They moved swiftly through the city like an intricately arranged ballet. First, you hear it coming. Then, you see the flashing red, blue and white lights from escort motorcycles, followed by the Presidential limo, plus a replica decoy car. One never knows which vehicle carries the President. The ubiquitous, black Chevy Suburban stuffed with communication equipment and heavily armed Secret Service Agents quickly shadows the limo. Vehicles with press members, an ambulance, and additional security follow cars bring up the rear. I have never had the privilege to be in a Presidential limo. I did stand near one with the back door open and could see where President Ronald Reagan had been sitting when he returned to the White House after meetings on the Hill.
Cadillac has built all of the President’s fleet of vehicles since 1993 because no other manufacturer was interested.
Jerry Wilkerson, winner of the State of Arizona Press Community Column Writers Award, lives in SaddleBrooke. He is a former press secretary for two U.S. Congressmen and a prior WBBM CBS NewsRadio Chicago and Chicago Daily News correspondent. He is a retired police commissioner and Navy veteran. Email: franchise@att.net.
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