‘A few more heroes’: Secret Service recruits more agents despite federal employee reduction

While swaths of the federal government are experiencing or are expected to face mass layoffs, there’s one agency that is actively recruiting more employees — the U.S. Secret Service. 

USSS on Monday launched an ad campaign “calling for a few more heroes…to step forward,” as the agency staffs up following the July attempted assassination of Donald Trump. 

“Not all heroes wear capes. Some wear a shield,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says in a voiceover while agents wearing their classic suits and sunglasses are shown. “They don’t seek the spotlight. You will find them hidden under the shade.” 

The ad also features D.J. Daniel, the 13-year-old brain cancer survivor who “always dreamed of becoming a police officer” and was surprised with a USSS badge and credentials during Trump’s March address to Congress. 

Noem has been noticeably public-facing in her role as DHS chief. Days into her tenure, the department publicized her presence during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in New York City. Recently, she filmed a video to deter migrants from coming to the U.S. in an El Salvador prison with dozens of inmates in a cell behind her. 

Monday’s recruitment ad follows one shown during the Super Bowl that told potential applicants that “protectors are born, they’re not made” while displaying a photo of Trump raising his fist after he was shot at, except the focus is on Sean Curran, the president’s lead agent who he tapped as USSS director.

The website that both ads direct interested individuals to go to for more information lists the recruiting bonuses available for certain positions at the top of the page. 

Days after the Trump assassination attempt, Matthew Noyes, a senior USSS official, said at the Aspen Security Forum that it has “long been the case” that the agency has been spread too thin with decade-long spending caps limiting hiring. 

An independent panel established by DHS to review USSS’ handling of the incident, however, did not identify staffing as a primary issue. The experts focused mostly on operational decision-making, leadership failures and longstanding structural issues at the agency. They also said a hiring surge would not directly mitigate the security failures that let a gunman nearly kill Trump. 

USSS’ employee engagement and satisfaction score —  as measured by The Partnership for Public Service’s Best Places to Work in the Federal Government rankings, which are based on worker survey data — has been in the bottom quartile since 2013. The agency did, however,  receive a 66.2 score in 2024, which is its highest score in 11 years.