The President's Book of Secrets Page #2

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drove a lot of things that the

President did over the years.

One of them was dealing with a

surprise attack by the Soviet

Union-- the bolt from the blue.

Missiles on the way.

Our retaliatory strategy was

massive retaliation during most

of that time-- mutually assured

destruction.

Metzger:
According to the

Constitution, the President of

the United States is the person

who would make that decision,

and so there was a notion that

something that the President had

to have the capability to make

that decision anywhere and

everywhere and at all times.

Lichtman:
Forget about

togetherness between the

President and his wife.

The real togetherness is between

the President and the carrier of

the nuclear football that

contains the nuclear codes.

Narrator:
During his

transition, the President-elect

is briefed on how to use the

codes.

Then, during the inauguration,

the military readies two cases--

one each for both the outgoing

and incoming presidents.

This serves to both immediately

transfer power and to deter any

surprise attacks.

Lichtman:
Let's say there's a

report of some kind of a nuclear

attack on the United States.

They open the football, there is

this complicated list of all the

various options the President

has, from all-out launching

everything and destroying the

world to a surgical attack to

using tactical weapons, and the

President has got to absorb all

this information in literally a

matter of minutes and decide

what to do.

Narrator:
But while a new

President comes into office

knowing he will receive the

nuclear codes, is he, in fact,

the only person who can

authorize a nuclear attack?

(Edward Luttwak) In theory, no

nuclear weapon, in theory, could

be launched without the

President's say-so

in practice, there was

delegation in the case of the

ballistic missile submarines.

Because submarines could not be

reached all the time reliably,

had authority to act

independently, in reality,

although this was a very

delicate subject.

Narrator:
Fortunately, since

World War II, no President has

authorized the use of nuclear

weapons against an enemy target.

But what if the unthinkable does

happen and the military is

caught off guard?

Just what are the President's

plans for his and the country's

survival?

Could they be found in an actual

book of secrets?

Narrator:
In the event of

a national emergency, it is

likely that a President's book

of secrets would contain

information concerning hidden

bunkers, secret escape routes,

and destinations designed to

protect the chief executive,

his family and key members of

his administration.

Such information would have

been essential on September 11,

2001, when a team of terrorists

hijacked four airliners,

piloting two of them into the

towers of the World Trade Center

in New York...

...A third into the Pentagon...

And a fourth allegedly

targeting the capitol building

in Washington, DC.

The last two planes were still

in the air when President

George W. Bush, while visiting

with schoolchildren in Florida,

was informed of the attack and

soon after escorted

to Air Force One.

(Brian Montgomery) I was

traveling with President Bush,

all day on September 11, as

well.

And we took off, probably

the quickest takeoff I'd

ever experienced on Air Force

One.

Tech:
Clear for takeoff.

Montgomery:
Suffice it to say

that there are plans and

protocols for a lot of

contingencies.

So we knew that we were going

to one of several places.

Narrator:
With the

government of the United States

apparently under siege, staff

at the White House also

responded to the news.

(Anita McBride) I was having

breakfast with a colleague in

the White House mess, in the

basement of the West Wing lobby.

At that point, then we gathered

the staff, evacuated, just told

them to run, run out of the

complex as fast as you can.

Narrator:
But while the

staff were ordered to evacuate,

Secret Service agents quickly

escorted Vice President Dick

Cheney and several high-ranking

officials to a hidden bunker

below the White House, known as

the President's emergency

operation center, or PEOC.

Bohn:
It's in the East Wing

basement.

It's an old World War II bomb

shelter with a great big, heavy

door, full of bunks and

canned foods and canned water

and all that.

Cheney and Condi Rice and a few

other people rode out the storm

on 9/11 in the PEOC.

Narrator:
But what if the

President's home and office had

been threatened?

Are there methods or avenues of

escape from the White House

itself?

And could this information be

outlined in a book of secrets?

(Karen Keller) I was very

surprised to learn the quick

routes that needed to be taken

in case of an emergency.

And not something that I can

discuss, but there are ways

that the President can be moved

from point A to point B very

quickly, in an emergency

situation.

(Susan Ford Bales) There is a

back staircase from the second

floor of the White House to the

third floor of the White House,

and the door was hidden and

painted into the wall.

There was no doorknob, you just

touched the door and it opened.

And then there's also tunnels

from the White House under the

Treasury building to get out on

the other side, and so I would

use the tunnels and get out

that way so I didn't have to go

out the front gate.

(Natasha Neely) There were

evacuation plans.

They'd give you a yellow pouch

probably about yea big.

And it actually turns into

gas mask in case if there's any

type of chemical attack or

biological attack-- anything

that's airborne, that could

threaten the individual.

So they give you that; It's

supposed to help you breathe for

long enough to get out of

the city.

(Dana Perino) We were all

responsible for knowing what we

were supposed to do in an

emergency.

And you had regular briefings

and updates to make sure that

you knew.

Because it could happen.

It could happen any moment.

Bohn:
There are other places

around town.

But it's pretty sensitive.

Their location and their

capabilities, I really can't

talk about.

Lichtman:
We know that

not far from Washington DC,

there are major underground

facilities.

(Indistinct radio communication)

There's one in Virginia in the

Shenandoah Mountains known as

the Mount Weather Facility

which apparently is an entire

underground city.

And of course there is another

command post in Colorado.

And I would guess there are

probably hundreds of these

secure locations around the

country to which the President

could be brought.

Narrator:
Could there really

be hundreds of these secret

bunkers, spread out across the

United States,

and, if so, are they all kept

ready to secure the President's

safety at a moment's note?

(Al V. Corbi) The very first

thing you need is isolation.

You need to be isolated from

the threat.

If the threat gets to you, the

facility is of no use.

Once you've isolated the

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