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President Donald Trump removed Secret Service protection from Kamala Harris on Thursday, according to a copy of a letter reviewed by CNN.
Former presidents receive Secret Service protection for life, while Harris, as a former vice president, received six months of protection after leaving office, according to federal law.
This period ended on July 21, however, its protection was extended for an additional year through a previously unpublished directive signed by then-President Joe Biden shortly before he left office.
This is the order that Trump rescinded in his letter, titled "Memorandum to the Secretary of Homeland Security" and dated Thursday.
"You are hereby authorized to terminate any security-related procedures previously authorized by Executive Memorandum, beyond those required by law, for the following individual, effective September 1, 2025: Former Vice President Kamala D. Harris," the full letter reads. The White House and Secret Service did not immediately respond to CNN's requests for comment.
The end of Harris's defense of Trump comes as she soon embarks on a high-profile, multi-city book tour around the release of "107 Days," her new memoir about her short presidential campaign, due out Sept. 23. That will put her in more of the public spotlight than she has been since leaving office, during which time she has only attended a handful of public events.
"The vice president is grateful to the United States Secret Service for their professionalism, dedication, and unwavering commitment to security ," Kirsten Allen, a senior adviser to Harris, told CNN.
Presidents and presidential candidates face frequent security threats.
There were two assassination attempts on Trump during his presidential run last year. Harris, according to people familiar with her security operations, faced special security concerns because she was the first woman and the first black woman in the role.
Those concerns only grew after she became a candidate, people familiar with her security operations told CNN, and were still at a high level as late as January after the campaign, with feelings about the election still raw.
A Biden spokesman declined to comment on the reasons that led to the signing of the order extending Harris' protection.
But what will now disappear are not just the agents assigned to guard him personally, 24/7: Secret Service protection includes constant threat intelligence analysis and coverage of live situations, emails, messages and social media.
With her details canceled, Harris' aides are concerned they will lose the same access to threat warnings, people familiar with her security operations said.
Her home, in the middle of Los Angeles, will also no longer be protected by federal agents.
The cost of mounting any similar level of protection privately would be high, perhaps running into millions of dollars per year.
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