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U.S.Army When I was in the White House, I was part of a small army detachment, called WHASA, the White House Army Signal Agency, that maintained and provided voice secure, and other communications, including television, microwave, crypto, and wideband plus multiplex communications at land-based facilities like HIGH POINT (Mt. Weather bunker) and at Camp David and in the White House Communications Bunker and the Oval Office.
At Camp David there was a small hardened command center on the site which was controlled by us in the White House Military Office, and of course staffed predominantly by the the army. The Navy got the mundane facilities management duties. We provided the communications.
However, we did at times work with the Navy and I was to spend some time in the Naval Security Agency. The Navy operated several remote, hardened (against nuclear attack) Presidential Emergency Facilities which were in support of the White house Military Office WHMO. The WHMO was charged with Presidential emergency actions and to secure the relocation of the President and his National Command Authority during a crisis.
My boss was President Dwight Eisenhower, who was a former Army 5-star General and Allied Commander during World War II. There are several memorable quotes from Ike in my
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
an original picture of Ike I felt then and still do that Ike was one of the real good guys and I was dedicated to him during my service in the White House. I spent a great deal of time at Mt Weather and also in the Basement Communications Bunker at the White House and each morning I would change the crypto cards in the voice security crypto equipment in the Oval Office.
Ike loved to run us through military scenarios and we did extensive planning for a nuclear attack. And, then there were the many trips how long does weed stay in your system with the boss to far and distant places (which we were not allowed to speak about).
We also had our share of middle of the night exercises and Ike was often there.
There was some speculation that there was also a nuclear submarine which served as a wartime National Command Authority Platform to provide long-term survivability and shelter for the President during an attack. But, that was just speculation.