JUDY FINN, CNN VIEWER: My name is Judy Finn from Houston, Texas, and I want to ask CNN why is the Secret Service a branch of the Treasury Department and not the FBI?</s>MARC CONNOLLY, ASST. SPECIAL ATGEN IN CHARGE, U.S. SECRET SERVICE: Thank you very much for the question. It's an excellent one. The Secret Service was created in 1865 as a branch of the Treasury Department in order to suppress counterfieting. It was estimated that at that time, 1/3 to 1/2 of all the currency in circulation was counterfeit. It wasn't until 1901, following the assassination of President William McKinley, that the Secret Service began its protective responsibilities. Today the Secret Service still has a dual mission. We protect our nation's leaders and we also protect the integrity of our nation's financial system.
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