Aside from Vice President Joe Biden, no unstable man contributed more to the safety and security of the president in 2014 than former Army Special Forces sniper Omar Gonzalez, aka the White House Fence Jumper.
On Sept. 19, Gonzalez did the unthinkable and climbed over the White House fence, sprinted unobstructed across the lawn, ran through the front door, barreled over an officer described as "physically too small to tackle" him, and ascended the first flight of stairs of the executive mansion, all while armed with a 3.5-inch knife and unarmed with 800 rounds of ammunition left behind in his car.
Despite the multitude of massive failures by the U.S. Secret Service recently, it can be safely said that Gonzalez’s achievement in the field of national security breaches have had the greatest impact in reforming a security agency riddled with perversion and malaise since President Obama assumed office in 2009.
On Oct. 1, the Director of the Secret Service Julia Pierson resigned in the wake of jumper scandal and was replaced by interim director Joseph Clancy, who began immediate implementation of new security protocols.
After learning that agents on duty during the Gonzalez raid not only kept the dogs leashed, but they were surprised that the "bushes didn’t stop him," Clancy instituted the first of his reforms, ordering agents to stop taking phone calls while on duty and "release the hounds" on the next intruder.
Sure enough, a mere month after Gonzalez’s run, Dominic Adesanya of Bel Air, Md., was apprehended by heroic Secret Service attack dogs and subsequently arrested after jumping the fence only a few yards into his attempt.
By nearly singlehandedly reforming the U.S. Secret Service and for his recently rediscovered competence to stand trial, Omar has more than earned his status as a Washington Free Beacon Man of the Year.
