From shopping trips abroad to golf games in Scotland, a President never stops being President, complete with immunity, convoys, and taxpayer-funded security. The office travels with him, whether the public likes it or not.
An Executive President of a sovereign country does not suddenly turn into a private citizen just because he is crossing borders. Wherever he goes, he remains Head of State, carrying with him all the authority, dignity, and perks of the office. Whether on a family holiday, a so-called private visit, or browsing shops overseas, the institution of the Presidency and the bill for maintaining it, accompanies him. The individual may look like a tourist, but he embodies the State, and his privileges do not pause simply because he sets foot on foreign soil.
The Presidency is not a job one can clock out of; it is a constitutional office stitched into the fabric of power. Its rights, powers, and responsibilities are bound to the office itself, not to geography. A President abroad is still Commander-in-Chief, still the face of the nation, still cloaked in legal protections. This is the continuity of sovereignty: uninterrupted, unyielding, and immune to airline tickets and time zones.
International law doubles down on this. Through doctrines of extraterritoriality and immunity, Heads of State enjoy personal inviolability, protected by conventions like the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961) and the UN Convention on Special Missions (1969). Even outside their homeland, their status as sovereign leaders travels with them. They may not exercise local powers, but they remain untouchable, respected or resented as symbols of their state.
Security, naturally, follows them everywhere. Protection abroad is a joint project of home and host governments, with the host obligated to safeguard visiting leaders using police, intelligence, and special services. Meanwhile, Presidents also arrive with their own bodyguards, special units, or military escorts. They remain glued to the leader, often without weapons unless agreements allow. The U.S. Secret Service is the model: moving in tandem with host security to guarantee that no matter where the President steps, he remains beyond reach of ordinary threats and ordinary accountability.
The only real difference between official and private visits lies in protocol, not power. Ceremonial visibility is adjusted, honours may be subdued, security scaled up or down. But the sovereignty remains intact. Whether playing golf in Scotland, shaking hands with royalty in Buckingham Palace, or enjoying a “quiet” overseas retreat, the President retains the full dignity, immunity, and perks of his role. There is no private citizen here, no matter how casual the trip appears. For an Executive President, there is simply no clocking out.
