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Thursday, May 27, 2021

FEATURED 5 The White House Communications Agency (1965-1970)-revised



The White House Communications Agency
Presidential Service Badge
                                
Type Of Activity Communications support for the White House
Location
Location
Washington DC
Date of Activity
 Nov 1965 to Dec 1973
Coordinates
  38°53′52″N 77°02′11″W

WHCA’s Role in Providing Communications Support to the President, and The Early Presidential Emergency Facilities (PEF)

The White House Communications Agency (WHCA), originally known as the White House Signal Detachment (WHSD), was officially formed by the United States Department of War on 25 March 1942 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The WHSD was created to provide normal and emergency communications requirements in support of the President. The WHSD provided mobile radio, teletype, telephone and cryptographic aides in the White House and at Shangri-La, now known as Camp David. The mission of the WHSD was to provide a premier communication system that would enable the President to lead the nation effectively regardless of his location worldwide, and in any emergency situation. In 1954 WHSD was reorganized and renamed the White House Army Signal Agency (WHASA).

In 1962 WHASA was discontinued and its duties were transferred to the auspices of the Defense Communications Agency under the operational control of the White House Military Office, and reestablished as the White House Communications Agency (WHCA). WHCA was divided into three units:

The Defense Communications Operations Unit (DCOU) was located on M St. in Washington DC and was responsible to maintain the communications equipment used to support the White House when the President Traveled outside of Washington DC either in the USA or worldwide. All trip equipment was staged at this location. The equipment included all FM hand held radios and base stations, switchboard, all communications center equipment with secure voice and TTY, as well as all AV equipment necessary for all media events.

Entrance to Checkmate (The Shop) from Wisconsin Ave NW in Washington D.C. (1973)

Entrance to Checkmate (2011)

The Defense Communications Administrative Unit (DCAU) was also located on M St. in Washington DC. This unit was responsible for all Personnel functions including recruitment, formulating travel rosters and arranging WHCA transportation necessary for all domestic and worldwide Presidential trips.

The Defense Communication Support Unit (DCSU) was headquartered at Camp David, and was responsible for the operation of the seven Presidential Emergency Facilities (PEF) locations as well as the Eisenhower farm in Gettysburg Pa. and the communications equipment on the Presidential Train “CRATE” in Harrisburg, Pa.

The USSS CP at the Eisenhower farm in Gettysburg PA

DCSU would also be responsible for communications at the LBJ Ranch in Johnson City TX, as well as President Nixon’s homes in San Clemente Ca. and Key Biscayne Fl.

WHCA was commissioned to provide reliable communications support to the President, Vice President, Executive Office of the President senior staff, National Security Council, Secret Service and others as directed by the White House Military Office. WHCA ‘s primary duty would be call communications in the White House starting with the President’s desk phone in the Oval Office This support includes FM mobile and HF radio communications, non-secure voice, secure voice, record communications, audio-visual services, automated data processing support and photographic and drafting services both in Washington, D.C. , anywhere in the USA and worldwide. In the ten years that I worked with WHCA we used state of the art communications equipment but it took many people and thousands of pounds of equipment at each stop to provide quality communications. Advances in technology not only reduced the size and weight of the equipment but also dramatically reduced the number people required to provide the same quality of service.

Changes in the WHCA Trip Requirements

The trip packages had not change much by 1987, other than they were traveling with Dimension PBX electronic switchboards instead of the mini boards; otherwise you would not have noticed a difference in the trip environment. The Motorola radios got smaller and then added Data Encryption Standard (DES) which was a headache because sometimes the key change for the network would change while in route to a trip location. Each radio needed to be keyed with a device called a "squirt gun" and at a designated time the new key would take effect. Later a reserve key was loaded at the same time in the event that you needed to remotely update because of a lost radio. The WH Staff just couldn't understand that some of the safe guards about tampering with a "lost" radio would cause it to dump the key codes and only be available in clear mode. 

Now the switchboard and FM radio sections just called AT&T and Motorola and tell them to package the latest and greatest and it is done. All of radio nets have been encrypted with DES and it was an issue when someone dumped the memory and needed to re-key the code at a trip site. The AV section has progressed to some more modern modular PA systems, and is now WHCA’s primary function.

The only thing different in the Commenter in 1987 to the Model 28 TTY paper tape 100 baud noisy machines, was the owner of the finger prints on the boxes. The crypto element is now reduced to a controlled "credit card" sized module similar to Direct TV. No more guarding the boxes and don't they don't have to go through the load the plane routine. 
                            
The USSS still has all the same frequencies, but about 1986 they had an encrypted cellular site in the EOB. The Mobile Telephone Switching Office (MTSO) would route all calls from Electronic Serial Number (ESN's) assigned to the White House to that cellular hub and they were actually drawing WH Centrex dial tone, plus it was capable of encryption over the non-copper segments. I am sure that over another 20 years and it has continued to improve. 

WHCA Communications Van (Roadrunner)

The first WHCA mobile Communications Van (Roadrunner) was a plywood pallet that was slipped into a Ford Econoline Van with a Model 28 TTY, and a 19" rack of base stations. WHCA used the old "ALPHA" FM frequency and transmitted TTY back to CROWN, when Roadrunner stopped, the operators team would hop out and start a small Honda Generator for power.   While in route there was a power inverter, but the RPM's of the engine needed to be in a  roar  to maintain voltages and lots of blown fuses and plenty of burned up power supplies in the beginning.  The newer Roadrunners are were electronic platforms built into GMC Suburban with a satellite dome, lots of auxiliary power from multiple inverters, full complement of base stations, and a trunking satellite mini-cellular so the event site could link back to Camp and draw dial tone.  Lower ranking WH Staff would use their own cell phones over the public network; but rest assured that cell saturation around a POTUS event is highly possible.  They have worked out an agreement with the all of the common carriers a priority way to block normal traffic on a certain percentage of trunks that is all behind the scenes negotiations, a normal person just gets a no service indication.

Now that we have the Internet and cellular network, the role of WHCA is somewhat limited to Command and Control circuits. Camp David is the satellite downlink point and all trip sites carry small suitcase multiplexers and pull in mini-cells in the hotel and they have the WH Centrex available on their permanently assigned smart phones. All staff members carry encrypted personal digital assistant (PDA's) so the comm. center is basically out of business on the road other than to assemble the news summary and the program database (PDB) so I have been told. AV is the biggest job for WHCA now. They shrink wrap a trip load and put it on a common carrier freight truck 2-3 days before a visit and it arrives on the hotel loading dock. No more deck loading cargo planes, which are now C-17's except for overseas trips. 

The south lawn of the White House

At the end of the trip, all the equipment is returned to a Rental Truck and delivered to a common carrier freight company and returned to Anacostia. Only short notice trips get airlifted from Andrews, with anything planned, the trucks roll down the Interstate. WHCA has a couple of semi-trailers and their own drivers for big swings and will try to save money and drive multiple stops and drop them off and recover them at end of trip in a few days. Most of it is commercial carriers. Remember LBJ, he would be airborne before WHCA was ever notified, I can remember Trucks loaded and waiting at Checkmate.

I always said that it the American taxpayers knew what it cost for our President to travel anywhere that they would demand that he never left Washington!

Experiences and Comments

I re-enlisted in the Army in Dec. 1964 for Microwave Repair School at Ft Monmouth in Eatontown, NJ. We rented an efficiency apartment in North Branch, NJ for about a month while we waited to be assigned to Gov’t Quarters. 

Don at Ft Monmouth, NJ Gov’t Housing (1965)

Joanne and Don in April 1965 Long Branch NJ

Don was a little over a year old when we moved to NJ but had already lived in Chicago and Seattle while I was assigned to Nike Missile bases in those cities. We would relocate four times while working in WHCA.

Microwave school was twenty six weeks long, and I learned that upon completion of the course that most of the graduates went on to advanced training on Troposcatter Radio, and then on to Viet Nam. This was indeed true but in July of 1965, I was interviewed by a recruiting team from WHCA and this interview would change everything!

I was pulled from class and was told to report to a conference room where I was asked about my background by four individuals dressed in civilian clothes. They talked about the Agency, what they did and what would take place if I were selected. One requirement was for them to complete an intensive background investigation to receive a Top Secret Clearance. Since I already had a Secret clearance I didn’t see a problem. Little did I know that they would visit all of my references and talk to them about me and my family? I also was required to pass a polygraph examination prior to actual assignment to in WHCA. The polygraph examination took place about a month after the interview. I have to say that I was really nervous while they asked me a series of questions to insure that I was not concealing anything that might have been used against me and that I would be handling very sensitive information. I answered all of the questions without a problem until the last one, “Have you answered truthfully to all of the previous questions?” all of a sudden the needles went crazy. I Had to do it again with the same result. I was given a short recess and after a third try, I PASSED! Now all I had to do was to finish school and wait for the security clearance to be completed.

Finally on November 16, 1965 I received orders transferring me to WHCA and to report to Washington DC. We packed up and headed south. Since we were not heading to a Military Base all my orders contained was a street address in Washington, DC. Unfortunately for us this address was incorrect and we circled for an hour never finding this location. Luckily I had been given a phone number to call if I had any questions while I was waiting for my Top Secret security clearance to be approved. So I called the number and found out that the address was an old location and the Agency had moved. The facility was located in an unmarked building on M St. in Georgetown.

It was then that I found out that I would be going to be assigned to Camp David as part of the Detachment maintaining the microwave network providing communications to the Presidential Emergency Facilities (PEF) in and around the Washington DC area.

The WHCA Shop in Georgetown
3248 M St entrance today

Type Of Activity
WHCA Operations
Location
Location
3248 M St NW Georgetown
Date of Activity
1965 to 1976
Coordinates

A little history of The “WHCA Shop” in Georgetown:

For over a decade from 1965 to 1976, the WHCA base of operations resided at 3248 M St NW in Georgetown. A plain unmarked building it contained all of the logistical elements necessary to support the President and Vice President providing communications for all domestic and international travel.

Parts of the structure located on M Street predate 1838 when it was used as a tobacco warehouse that opened up directly onto the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. In the 1850s, the building was purchased by John E. Reeside and Gilbert Vanderwerken and converted into stables for their omnibus line. The building continued to be used as stables for the first horse car line, the Washington and Georgetown Railroad. It was later converted into a machine shop for streetcars. The parts of the building that face the canal and the facade of the M Street entrance remain from those earlier periods. After the demise of Washington's streetcars in 1962, the building served as the United States Defense Communications Annex E before being converted to WHCA’s base of operations in 1964.
I received my orders after I graduated Microwave repair school at Ft Monmouth to report to a street address in Washington D.C. in Nov of 1965. I loaded my family in the car and headed to my new assignment in WHCA. When I arrived in Washington, I tried to locate the address, not knowing the city I made several wrong turns and ended up in VA, several times so we decided to stop and get something to eat. Luckily, I had a contact number for MSG Joe Terrian, I called him, and he informed me that they had moved to a location in Georgetown, and Ft Monmouth gave me the wrong address. The old building had been razed and all that was left was a hole in the ground. Now I had passed that hole in the ground at least a half a dozen times that morning. The old location was located at 26th Street and D Street NW. This is where WHCA had occupied a building that was in the Olde Heurich Brewing Company in Foggy Bottom. The brewery buildings were razed to make room for the new Kennedy Center which occupies that space today, the old shop moved from 26th St in May 1965. It had been DC transits street car repair shop, a monstrous old facility. GSA rented it from O. Roy Chalk, gutted it and remodeled it. The new location fronted on M St with two entrances one was WHCA personnel and the second was a non affiliated DCA office that had had no access to the rest of the building. MSG Joe Terrian gave me WHCA's official address which was 3248 M Street NW. It was an unmarked white front building with no columns but having a few steps that went up to a black door. Behind that door was an iron security gate.

3248 M St NW entrance  2017

The windows on the left of the front door was the Drafting and Reproduction Branch. The windows to the right was DCAU commander's office. Both on the first floor. Personnel was just inside the entrance way. The indoor parking garage was behind Personnel and the Photo Lab was located to the rear of the indoor parking garage on the backside of the building closest to the C and O Canal side.

WHCA’s Audio-Visual Branch stored all of their travel equipment at the shop on M Street. Everyone in the group had their own specific set of equipment... audio mixer, multiple for media feeds, tape recorders, mics and cables. Each individual was responsible to make sure everything was in working order in case of instant travel. The AV Group had their own maintenance shop at M Street where they maintained all the AV gear and stored all the trip packages there.
 
WHCA’s Wisconsin Ave entrance in 1974

The Wisconsin St entrance was the main access for all vehicles. As you entered on the left was the Fabrication and Carpenter Shop in a separate building which sat between the Wisconsin Ave entrance and exit gates. The machine shop was adjacent in the main building there was an incinerator outside the carpenter shop for classified burns...that caused some outside interest on occasion, also along the entry drive was a big diesel generator for emergency Power.

As you entered the facility and the Parking garage you immediately saw the WHCA dispatcher who monitored all incoming traffic and access to the parking garage. The call sign for the M Street dispatcher was Checkmate. The Transportation Group also had motor pool was equipped with a lift and a car wash facility. Transportation was responsible for the maintenance of all the WHCA vehicles including the rented station wagons from a civilian contractor and WHCA own trucks and Van's, the rented Chevy Kingwood wagons were eventually replaced with GSA supplied Ford wagons.

On the right was the entrance to the Radio and TV shops. These two groups maintained and repaired all of the Motorola radio Equipment(base stations and hand held units) HF /SSB radios as well as associated radio and paging consoles, all TV’s were also maintained in this area.

Material and Supply and was located between the Electronics Shop and Budget/Accounting who had a small office located between supply and WHCA Dispatch.

The Comm Center or 13a group had a secure office and crypto vault on the first floor, behind Transportation.

Crown Radio was located at the "M" street shop on the Second floor above the radio shop and wood shop. Access to the second floor was by using an outside stairway to the right of the driveway off Wisconsin Ave.

Crown Radio had two consoles one was the DC FM network. The other one was for the Nationwide System (E/F), and secure voice All of WHCA and USSS FM locations in the Washington DC area terminated there, as well as the Echo/Fox Nationwide air-to-ground Communications for AF1. That was the old E/F console built by Mario Lilla. It was operated from there until Crown Radio moved to the OEOB shortly after the new WECO 608 was cut into service there.

In the basement there was an underground storage vault below the radio shop which belonged to 13A. One nice feature at M Street was the basement barroom where we had our Friday afternoon off-duty beer call -- the most recently promoted guys bought the beer, there were many attitudes adjusted there. The Technical Library was also located in the basement behind the Keg.

In the five years that I was assigned to Camp David I was sent on roughly forty trips where I left from the shop. All of the equipment needed for every trip was staged at the shop, loaded on box trucks if needed or in the back of station wagon on smaller trips and all personnel would be provided transportation to the various D.C. Airports for departure. Upon the return from all trips and from all groups the equipment would be sent to the shop to test and or repair would be staged for the next trip.

The current store that occupies that spot where the door was located is "H & M". It cannot be verified if the white trim around the doorway of H & M is a reproduction or a real artifact of the facade of the entryway to The M Street door of WHCA. I do not know who had it before them, and maybe it was "Victoria's Secret". Part of the movie "True Lies" with Arnold Schwarzenegger and "No Way Out" with Kevin Costner were filmed in parts of the mall. Arnold may have crashed through the window of Victoria's Secret in the movie.

I remember the stories of the WHCA shop as being a secret CIA HQ where it was found out by a local Georgetown rag in the late 60s-early 70s.

The people that worked in Riggs Bank was saying that our paychecks were coming from different parts of the country which was true. Air Force had paychecks from Randolph AFB in Texas, Army checks were coming from Indianapolis, and Navy was from another place. They saw license plates of our POV's from states around the country going into the shop through one gate and then coming out in government cars from the other gate with radio antennas on them. They saw all the antennas fencing on the roof of the building and cameras and speakers down on the street level at all the buildings entrances/exits. WHCA personnel going into a warehouse type of building with suits and ties seemed out of place for this Georgetown location.

CIA building on M St

Folks put all this together and came up with the caption for the article in the local paper saying, "Why is the CIA in Georgetown?" Little did they know that the real CIA was occupying a building in Georgetown, but that was at the end of M Street near Key Bridge in another building called The Car Barn {the building with the clock tower} that was also a trolley car warehouse which was right next door to the stairs used in the film The Exorcist!!! The red building on the right was occupied by the CIA.

The Exorcist Stairs

The WHCA building and the one the CIA had were leased to the government by the same firm.

In the early 1970’s the decision was made to move the shop to a more secure location in Anacostia. Over a period of time a phased move was coordinated to relocate all Groups and Departments to their new location. When WHCA vacated the location that was the “shop” in Georgetown the building was totally remodeled and was turned into a a very upscale mall, the Georgetown Park Mall now occupies the space on M St.

Georgetown Park Mall M St Entrance

First floor interior of the Georgetown Park Mall

Wisconsin Ave Entrance Today

The shop was a drab place in the late sixties, unlike today's décor. It was in a good spot, though -- right across from Blues Alley and just down the street from Mister Henry's, the Cellar Door and other late-night fun spots. Henry Kissinger used to take his movie-star girlfriends for dinner at the Rive Gauche restaurant next door. Here is a picture of the inside of Rive Gauche where President Ford also ate a couple of times.

Rive Gauche Restaurant

I enjoyed working at the Georgetown location before it was all moved to Anacostia.

WHCA HEADQUARTERS     
                                               
Col George J McNally building

Type of Activity
IG audit of Communications Support
Location
Location
Washington DC
Date of Activity
May 16, 1996, June 13 1996
Coordinates
38°53'51.2"N 77°02'20.9"W

DCAU started moving to Anacostia in the early 70's. There was Bldg. 94 which held Personnel, Material and Supply, and maybe a few other Offices.

Building 94

WHCA location at Anacostia mid 70’s

There was a building Bldg. 47 which was a converted double hanger. Electronics Branch was on the ground floor and The Photo Lab occupied the entire 2nd floor. The Photo Lab was one of the last groups to leave the M Street complex.

WHCA operations at Anacostia 

Between Bldg. 47 and Bldg. 94 was a single hanger type building that Transportation occupied. Building 91, became WHCA's Training Center. If you go back in WHCA far enough, you'll remember that was the old HMX-1 facility before WHCA obtained it and turned it into today’s training center. M street was closed when they finished the remodel of the hanger next to Bldg. 94 about 1976.

Construction of the Col George J McNally building was completed in 1991 and became the permanent home of The White House Communications Agency (WHCA).

Rear entrance to the WHCA facility building 399

 Oversight of the White House Communications Agency 

When I arrived in WHCA in the mid-1960's, the term "Ranch" was the LBJ Ranch in Texas. Since then, we have had Santa Barbara and Crawford. Nixon was still the king of compounds, had three if you count Key Biscayne, San Clemente, and the other private retreat at Grand Cay, in the Bahamas. The WHCA budget to support Walkers Cay, Grand Bahama Island, and Grand Cay, along with the NASA sub-cable from the Cape to GBI was off the charts.

The large remote Detachments from the days of LBJ, Nixon, Reagan started to become flags for Congressional budget oversight. Those jobs and slots were justified based on disbursement of assets for quick response, and on paper were to eliminate TDY travel when the President went home for weekend! The permanent building leases, alarms, Long Lines, TTY, vehicles, maintenance, all added up and the original planned savings was almost non-existent.

There is little history on the actual budget for the Nixon compound built on Grand Cay with relay sites at Walkers Cay, Grand Bahama Island, and overseas cable head at Cape Canaveral. I would guess we spent more on the Bahamas retreat than actual costs of Key Biscayne. There was also another Coral Reef house owned by Bebe Rebozo in the Card Sound area that had many government "improvements". After Nixon and Key Biscayne and San Clemente, the budgets were under more oversight for future Presidents.

The White House Communications Agency is formally charged with providing telecommunications and other similar services to the President, First Lady, and staff. 

It has existed since the1940's, when it had a trivial budget and a staff of 30 people.Today, late the White House Communications Agency has over 900 employees and over a $100 million budget.

The initial attempts to conduct oversight of this 900-person, $100 million-a-year White House-directed agency were made by Congress 2 years ago in 1994. Those attempts were met with repeated  delays  and White House stonewalling. Early last year, after meetings with the White House Counsel's office, GAO, and the Department of Defense IG's office, Congress finally received the approval to have an IG investigation done going back 5 years.

WHCA has been a deep, dark hole over at the White House into which there has been spending nearly $100 million annually without any executive branch oversight. It  has  also become  a  pot of money devoted to many things-kind of a miscellaneous pot of money-that have nothing to do with telecommunications or the President.

The White House Communications Agency has had a totally unique mission, and the staff who serves there perform their duties exceptionally well and have done so for more than 50 years and for 11 Presidents, both Democrats and Republicans.

The DODIG’s report concluded that WHCA's budgets have gone largely unreviewed. Its annual performance plan has failed to meet DOD standards. Its acquisition planning has violated DOD  regulations and resulted in wasteful purchases.

 Finally, the DODIG concluded that WHCA is providing the White House with services and equipment which are outside way, out­side of the scope of its mission of telecommunications support to the President of the United States.

 Congressional hearings conducted on May 16 and June 13, 1996

Congressional Hearings complete Transcript

 The following individuals testified  

                           HENRY L. HINTON, JR., ASSISTANT COMPI'ROLLER GENERAL                             NATIONAL SECURITY AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS DIVSION

                             ROBERT J. LIEBERMAN, ASSISTANT INSPECTOR GENERAL                               FOR AUDITING, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

                                       COL. JOSEPH J. SIMMONS IV, COMMANDER                                              WHITE HOUSE COMMUNICATIONS AGENCY

                               EMMETT PAIGE, JR., ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE                               (COMMAND, CONTROL, COMMUNICATIONS, AND INTELLIGENCE)

 Oversight of the White House Communications Agency, was the topic of these particular hearings that grew out of a Department of Defense Inspector General's investigation and the efforts by Congress to have the General Accounting Office investigate the allegations of waste and mismanagement at the White House communications Agency.


In fact, this was only the second  hearing ever on the White House Communications Agency, with the previous hearing being held before the House Defense Appropriations Sub­ committee in 1977. Also, this is the first-ever audit of the agencies 55-year history.

The DOD IG’s audit review primarily focused on FYs 1991 through 1995, but we did examine some documentation  dated  as  far  back  as  1967  and  as  recent as FY 1996.

There were several areas of concern identified and without further correction and White House commitment, the problems will continue:

  •  $577,000 worth of missing equipment will remain unaccounted for.
  • $300,000 software packages will be purchased yet sit unopened.
  • $294,000 will be paid for services never provided.
  • $784,000 in illegal contracts will continue to be let.
  • $4.9 million unusable communications trailers will continue to be purchased.
  • $2.1 million maintenance contracts will continue to be sole sourced to WHCA friends in total violation of Federal contracting law.
  •  services quoted at $35,000 will be billed at $91,000, and those bills will be paid.
  • $14.5 million in outstanding obligations will remain unvalidated.

There is a clear need for reform according to the DOD IG. Operational control of WHCA remains at the White House, and the White House is uncommitted to reform and unwilling to discuss change.

The DOD Inspector General reported on issues beyond those that were noted in their preliminary work. 

For example, the Inspector General reported that WHCA's inventory of short-haul telecommunications equipment and services, such as circuits and maintenance, was neither complete nor accurate because WHCA failed to record some of the equipment and services, terminate the equipment  from  the  inventory, or update costs. The Inspector General's April 1996 report found that WHCA had made little progress in correcting deficiencies identified in its earlier November 1995 report and the inventory remained auditable.

The DOD Inspector General's detailed examination identified $7.8 million in services (audiovisual, news wire, and stenographic services) and the procurement of camera equipment that the Inspector General found were outside of WHCA's mission.

For example, WHCA's Audiovisual Unit provides flags at presidential events, develops, and prints photographs of the President and First Lady, and mounts and frames photographs. WHCA also provides stenographic services for the White House Office of the Press Secretary. WHCA has tried unsuccessfully since 1971 to transfer funding for these services to the White House or the General Services Administration, but the White House has prevented the  transfer.

Also, the White House deploys Department of Defense moneys to fund an elaborate frame shop in the basement of the White House, which frames any staffer's pictures. It funds stenographic services, audiovisual services, photos and emblems, podiums, and other non-telecommunications expenditures. WHCA's activities are undertaken pursuant to a number of laws and regulations.

These activities range from providing communications support, such as non secure voice, secure voice, and recorded communications, to other support, including automated data processing and construction of presidential podiums. The IG did not determine the cost of the activities or how they were funded and reported since the White House would not release the necessary documents.

The DOD Inspector General's detailed review disclosed that since 1991, WHCA had provided communications support to the Secret Service on a non-reimbursable basis and failed to report to the Office of the Secretary of Defense all costs for providing communications support to the Secret Service. WHCA had not charged the Secret Service for the support because a 1989 WHCA and Secret Service memorandum of agreement did not clearly delineate reimbursable and non-reimbursable communications support to be provided. As a result, from 1990 to 1995, the Secret Service did not reimburse DOD for annual communications support totaling $4.3 million and Congress was not informed of communications support totaling $3.2 million that WHCA had provided to the Secret Service. Because DOD absorbed costs of support to the Secret Service, the Secret Service's budget was augmented by $4.3 million.

The DOD Inspector General's detailed review disclosed that WHCA expended $4.9 million on a mobile communications system known as the Air Transportable Integrated Communications System (ATICS) that did not meet operational needs. According to the WHCA "Enterprise Architecture Document, February 3, 1995, WHCA had planned to use the mobile communications system to provide telecommunications support on most Presidential trips. WHCA specified that the mobile communications system must fit on C- 141 and C-5 aircraft but did not consider the additional equipment normally carried on the aircraft. As a result, the mobile communications system and all WHCA equipment needed to support the President do not fit on one C-141 aircraft. In addition, the design of the communications system does not allow WHCA personnel to operate efficiently. 

Because it was determined that the communications system did not meet all operational needs, WHCA did not exercise contract options to purchase additional communications systems .

 DETAILS OF THE DOD IG AUDIT REPORTS

 First report: Report No. 96-033, November 1995:

Finding A - About $7.8 million in services and equipment provided to the White House were not within the scope of the White House Communications Agency telecommunications mission as presently defined and should be funded by the Executive Office of the President.

Response: A Memorandum of Agreement between the White House Office of Management and Administration and Assistant Secretary of Defense, Command, Control Communications and Intelligence validated and expanded DISA's functional oversight over the White House Communications Agency to include responsibility for funding managing, contracting, and purchasing of audiovisual, news wire, and stenographic services and camera equipment to the Executive Office of the President. DISA will sample services provided to determine if these services are as provided for in the Memorandum of Agreement.

Finding B - The White House Communications Agency was not reimbursed for permanent support to the Secret Service, as required by law, and understated support costs to Congress by $3.2 million. The Secret Service did not reimburse about $4.3 million for support and, because DoD absorbed support costs, the Secret Service budget was augmented by that amount.

Response: This finding was addressed in a Memorandum of Understanding between the White House Communications Agency and the Secret Service was revised to specify permanent and temporary support provided to the Secret Service and which support is reimbursable or non-reimbursable. DISA will review the support provided to the Secret Service to make sure it agrees with the provisions of the revised Memorandum of Understanding. It should be noted that a change of the DoD Appropriation  Act of 1996 has  changed  all  support  to the Secret Service to be on a non-reimbursable basis.

Finding C - The White House Communications Agency managers did not maintain control over repair parts inventories and contracting officer's representatives did not document maintenance data.

Response: DISA will review the management of maintenance operations and verify that the White House Communications Agency has fully implemented the existing maintenance  management  system,  turned in excess repair  parts, updated  lists of equipment under maintenance contracts, and used vendor service reports to assess the cost-effectiveness of maintenance contracts.

Finding D - The White House Communications Agency lacked accountability for non-expendable property on hand and had excess expendable supplies valued at about $226,000. Property valued at about $577,000 was not accounted for and is at risk for potential waste or loss.

Response: DISA will evaluate the White House Communications Agency's procedures for receiving property and recording it in the property book. DISA will also perform tests necessary to determine if information in the property book is accurate and current.

Finding E - The inventory of base communications equipment and services is neither complete nor accurate. Consequently, the inventory could not be audited, and White House Communications Agency could neither review and revalidate communications requirements nor assess the cost effectiveness of configurations for equipment and services.

Response: DISA will determine if the White House Communications Agency has implemented efficient and effective procedures to conduct a complete ana accurate inventory of short-haul equipment and services and to maintain required inventory records.

Finding F - The White House Communications Agency paid for leased long-haul telecommunications circuits and equipment that were no longer needed.

Response: DISA will ensure that the  White  House  Communications  Agency  terminates unneeded long-haul circuits and equipment and establishes  a  review  and  revalidation program for equipment and services.

Finding G - The White House Communications Agency did not validate bills for long-haul telecommunications equipment and services before verifying that the bills were accurate.

Response: DISA will verify that the White House Communications Agency has established effective bill validation procedures to make sure that payments would not be made for terminated services or services ordered but not installed.

Second Report: Report No. 96-100, April 29, 1996:

Finding A - DISA exercised limited administrative, financial, and operational oversight responsibility for the White House Communications Agency.

ResponseThis process has been streamlined in the March 1996 Memorandum of Agreement that I signed, specifying the oversight responsibility for the White House Communications Agency. DISA will evaluate procedures established to ensure that DISA provides the required administrative, financial, and operational oversight of the White House Communications Agency.

Finding B - The White House Communications Agency did not comply with contracting and payment procedures and did  not  establish  duties and  responsibilities to ensure the most cost-effective methods of leasing telecommunications equipment and services.

Response: The White House Communications Agency is holding discussions with the Defense Information Technology Contracting Office (DITCO), an  operating unit of DISA (regarding contracting support) and with the Defense Finance Accounting Service - Pensacola (regarding payment functions). Interim procedures have been established with the U.S. Army Information Systems Command to ensure that a formal contract is in place before communications vendors provide telecommunications equipment and services to WHCA. DISA will monitor these actions for proper implementation and later follow-up to see if the actions correct any reported deficiencies. 

Finding C - The White House Communications Agency could not validate outstanding unliquidated obligations totaling $14.1 million for telecommunications equipment and services. Of note, the $14.5 million figure has been reduced to $4.5 million today.

A March  1996 memorandum of agreement between the White House Office of Management and Administration and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Command, Control, and Communications and Intelligence again assigned these functions and the associated  funding  to WHCA.

The DOD IG’s audit was performed in  two  phases,  with  two  reports,  because  of the volume of audit tests required to review all WHCA activities,  the  lack  of previous coverage, and the need to report initial audit  results in  a  timely  manner.  We had a positive working relationship during the audit with WHCA and the other organizations involved, and the DOD IG obtained access to all information that was requested.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

The audit found that WHCA did a superior job in accomplishing its operational mission of supporting the Office of the President. It also found no evidence of theft, or gross malfeasance, and management controls were generally adequate. However, the audit did identify areas that needed improvement and opportunities to cut future operating costs. Some of the problems that were identified, such as duplicate payments, unneeded circuits, and invalid unliquidated obligation balances, are similar to what we have found at many other DoD organizations. WHCA funds the contract for the stenographers, they do not control the stenographers. In addition to developing and  printing  photographic  film,  WHCA  pays for camera equipment used by the White House photographers. We estimated that providing such services and equipment that are not usually considered telecommunications cost the DoD about $7.8 million in FY 1995.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, both a comprehensive audit and a more formal, explicit delineation of responsibilities were long overdue for WHCA Although management controls were generally satisfactory, there were deficiencies in several areas that needed attention. More systematic oversight is important in the future to assist WHCA in being as efficient and effective as possible. The DOD IG will work closely with DISA and WHCA to make sure that the problems found in the audit get fixed.

Besides the obvious improvements in procedures for accountability and oversight, the stipulations in the Memorandum of Understanding represent some profound changes and a great opportunity. The previous relationships were somewhat limiting, because of the distinction made between operational support and oversight by all members of the team, including the White House, DoD, DISA, and WHCA. That distinction has changed, with this Administration permitting, for the first time, the DoD Inspector General to perform a thorough review of the operations and administrative functions of WHCA. The reinforced and well-defined relationship between the WHCA and DISA provides an opportunity to optimize the suite of capabilities and services provided to the White House. The Director, DISA, can use the expertise and the capabilities developed to support the President. This will ensure a continuous capability for our National Command Authorities that has served the country well over the last thirty-three years.

Camp David Catoctin Mountain,  Md.

Camp David Insignia

Elevation
 1,900 ft. (579.1 m)
Location
Location
 Frederick County, Maryland, USA
Range
 Appalachian Mountains
Coordinates
 +39.648333N  -77.466667 W

November of 1965 to Camp David

Camp David was originally built as a camp for federal government agencies and their families, by the WPA, starting in 1935, opening in 1938. About Camp David

On July 5 1942 the President inspected the retreat, which he had named "Shangri-La" in April. Among the names Roosevelt applied to individual buildings were "The Bear's Den" (the main lodge), "The Soap Dish" (the laundry), "The Baker Street Urchins" (Secret Service building), and "Little Luzon" (Philippine stewards' cabin).

Entrance to the Presidential Retreat (1942)

In April 1942 President Roosevelt visited the camp and chose as its nucleus and his personal residence an existing cabin, a one-room frame structure with a huge stone fireplace, an open porch, and an outside kitchen. Rebuilt by local laborers and the crew of the U.S.S. Potomac, which was transferred to the retreat in June, the completed structure, or lodge, contained a living-dining room, probably the original room; an enlarged, screened-in porch; a bedroom wing to the south; and a kitchen wing to the north. The exterior was constructed of local stone and hardwood; the interior, mainly of commercially obtained materials.

Laborers also assembled a communications building out of three existing cabins; combined two others to form a guest lodge; altered another structure for use as servants' sleeping quarters; and constructed a log gatehouse to guard the access road. Landscaping included selective removal of trees and shrubbery to accommodate the eastward view; additional planting in the vicinity of the main lodge; some clearing to aid in construction; and the obliteration of old service roads. Labor in the swimming pool area involved landscaping, road improvement, and the erection of a frame platform and tent for use as a dressing room. Utility work included the installation of water, power, and telephone lines and an underground intercommunication system.

Main Entrance to Camp David 

Roosevelt's successor, Harry S Truman, used the retreat only a few times. President Eisenhower, however, was a frequent visitor and renamed it Camp David in honor of his grandson. He also re-designated the main lodge as "Aspen." The Eisenhower’s not only repaired, repainted, and refurbished most of the cabins, but they also added a large flagstone terrace and picnic and outdoor cooking facility in the area of the main lodge and also installed a single golf green and several tees. President Eisenhower also had an Underground Bomb Shelter constructed behind Aspen Lodge.

Marine Guard Post at the Entrance to Camp David

Aspen Lodge (1965)

Aspen Lodge after renovations (1970)

Presidents Kennedy and Johnson rarely utilized Camp David.  It was President Nixon's favorite retreat when he was in Washington, not only for relaxing and meeting with foreign dignitaries, but also for working.  Nixon approved extensive modernization of the facilities at the camp, including major renovation to Aspen Lodge, installation of a helicopter pad, new figure-eight swimming pool, bowling alley, and skeet shooting range. There are now 11 residence cabins, including the main guest cabin, which is presently called "Laurel." The President utilizes a three-room cottage, named "Birch," as an office.   

Aspen Lodge Bedroom

Aspen Lodge Living Room   
        
                              Aspen Lodge (1970)                                   President Nixon with Russian                                                                                             Premier Brezhnev

Camp David Mess Hall (1965)

Originally a barracks and mess hall Hickory was renovated in the early 60’s, it is now the center of activities while staying at Camp David. Hickory now contains a lounge and bar, a movie theater, as well as a two lane bowling alley and a game room with two pool tables. 

Hickory Lodge (1956)

As one of the permanent staff assigned to Camp David, we were allowed to use any of the recreational facilities as long as the President or any VIP's would be visiting.

The most popular facility used by the staff and their families was the swimming pool and bath house which was located near the Mess old mess hall and barracks. The pool also had a built-in trampoline where the kids loved to play.


Camp David swimming pool (1966)

The pool bath house (1965) 

Staff Swimming Pool (2014)

LBJ was the last President to use this pool, because when President Nixon took office he made numerous improvements to Camp David including a new pool behind Aspen lodge. The old pool remained for the use by the staff.

Aspen Lodge with new swimming pool (1969)

Navy Operations

Camp David is a U.S. Navy installation, commanded by a Naval Commander. Sailors are mostly Seabees and most officers are in the civil engineering field. The Navy Seabee Detachment performs maintenance and beautification. Some of the sailors include: grounds and maintenance personnel, electricians, carpenters, corpsmen, and the President's cooks (culinary specialists). 

The Marine Guard provided all of the physical security including the perimeter security for all arrivals or departures either by motorcade or helicopter and would continue as long as the President or visiting VIP remained at Camp David!

Camp David was as dry as a Navy ship during my first years there. (Not that beer sometimes didn't occasionally find its way in). The bar in Hickory was instituted in '59 or '60 

The lounge in Hickory Lodge with dance floor 

Fully equipped bar in Hickory Lodge

The WHCA element at Camp David has always been a "Tennant Activity" at the Naval Support Facility (NSF), Thurmont, MD which is the official name of the Command. back in my era, there as often jealously concerning the WHCA troops always being in civilian attire, casual during non-visits, and business attire during visits.

The daily interface with NSF was frequent, they ran the Senior Petty Officer Mess (S.P.O.M.) which was the bar in Hickory, and also were in charge of the Medical Unit. There was a long-time icon, MCPO Adams who was in charge of the Medical Unit, and his "other assigned duties were to administer the rules and running of the bar in Hickory. They had a fully stocked bar, typical bags of chips, and a supply of Stewarts Infrared sandwiches that could be purchased. Draft beer was probably as cheap as $.25 a glass, and mixed drinks might have been $.45 each, a typical sandwich another $1.25. 

This was established as a NO CASH bar. Long before our Smartphone payment system was even dreamed . Each visit you would check out and initial a "Chit" which would be put in the register. Now remember, there were about 50 WHCA people, and Marine Security Detachment of 35, and another 50 NSF troops that all had access to the bar in Hickory. When you would be walking your rounds making Communications checks, it was not uncommon to meet MCPO Adams, (a.k.a. Doc Adams) on one of the trails. You would have the traditional courtesy of greeting and then he would repeat your name (no name tags) and tell you $14.85! That would be your current balance to date for the month. At the end of each month, you were required to go to the S.P.O.M. or his office and make payment.

I want to say, I think the only accepted method of payment was CASH! He knew to the penny what every person on the entire complex owed on their accounts. Of course, this was just one of his "other" assigned duties. I don't think I ever saw him in the Medical Unit building, he did have a very good staff that took care of regular "sick call" at 0800 each morning. (This was in the 1967-time frame) "Doc" was a legend. Total class act and bartender supreme. there was another obscure rule. You could not buy a round in the S.P.O.M. for your coworkers unless it was a published "Promotion Party". I always wondered if this was a way to monitor "drinking habits"

The White House Communications Agency (WHCA) provided all of the necessary voice and data communications and maintains the electronic fence surrounding the facility. 

Marine One landing at Camp David

Army One (1967)

 Camp David Communications Detachment
   
Gov’t housing at Camp David (2009)

Type Of Activity
 Experiences while at Camp David
Location
Location
 Thurmont MD
Date of Activity
 Nov 1965 to Jun 1970
Coordinates
 33°49′26″N 116°31′49″W

November 1965 to March 1967 the Camp David Communications Detachment (Cactus)

It was November of 1965 when my experiences with WHCA began, I was assigned to Cactus which was the codename for the microwave installation at Camp David, and I would also work at another microwave location near Mercersburg Pa.  This site was known as Cannonball and was a microwave relay station.  I would travel to Cannonball for a week at a time and spent a total of eleven weeks there over a year’s period of time.  This worked out very well because in March of 1967 I was transferred permanently to Cannonball.

We rented an apartment in Blue Ridge Summit Pa for a short Period of time until Government Housing became available.


The Homestead Apartments Blue Ridge Summit PA.

Don at the kids Christmas party at Camp David 

I remember back in 1966, when the permanent assignment in WHCA was rescinded and most of the old timers were either transferred or retired, Col Albright the new WHCA CO tried to make it a military organization again. Someone decided that everyone needed to qualify with the M-14.  Now some of these guys had not been on a true military base for years, and I am sure that some were issued brown boots and Eisenhower jackets.  Anyway we were scheduled to qualify at the Fort Meade rifle range.  I have never seen any group of people look so funny in uniform. If you ever wanted to have a good laugh, you should have seen some of the old timers qualifying with the M-14.  Jim Hammond from Copper/Cowpuncher (a great guy) couldn't find all of his uniform, so he wore what he could find.  They wore whatever they could find of their uniforms, if they couldn't find a web belt they wore a leather civilian belt, no chevrons, name tags or proper hat, no problem they wore what they could find! 

This was the only time we were ever taken to an army post to qualify with any type of fire arm.  It was the only time that I had the privilege to salute Mr. Fontaine because he was in uniform.  Two things I can remember happening, first we never qualified with a rifle again, and WHCA returned to a permanent assignment for those who chose to stay.

There was a pistol range at the back of Camp David; we qualified with 38 cal. pistols at that range.  When I took over at Cannonball I became the Site Crypto Custodian, which meant that I had to qualify with the 38.   Over the years we had loads of fun with the air transport crews and sky marshals all because we were carrying concealed weapons against air travel regulations.  With every other flight being hijacked to Cuba, I can understand why they were so touchy.

Shortly after we moved into housing at Camp David, our son Robert was born in Waynesboro, PA on April 28, 1966.  

We lived in the off-site Quarters at Camp David for over a year in 66/67.  We referred to these quarters as the wagon wheel, WHCA personnel consisted of four enlisted guys living there, as well as the CO of DCSU who was Maj. DuGay the rest were all U.S. Navy personnel.  They were pretty nice for Government Quarters and fairly new at the time, we lived in unit 6A and at the time there were ten units built in a circle.  Only E-5 and above were eligible and you waited for openings based on rank.  Foxville Gardens is only about 2 miles from the front gate at Camp David.  Just up Manhattan Rd. from the Wagon Wheel used to be a trailer park that was also maintained by the Navy and available to anyone on a space available basis.

Christmas (1966) Joanne and Don

 Don and Bob, Christmas (1966)

While we were living at Foxville Gardens we had legendary poker games with the single guy's on just about every Saturday night that there were no visitors up at the Camp David. Joanne was the only female that was allowed to play, as she supplied all the eats, and I think she adopted Chuck Duval and Dale Anderson, but the guys would bring the beer and we would play into the wee hours of the morning. Funny thing the more we drank the more Joanne (a Pepsi drinker) would win, Go figure! I am sure that everyone thought we were alcoholics by the cases of empty beer cans that were in the trash on Monday morning. The games tailed off when we moved to Le Masters and the guys either got married or were discharged, but the poker games continued in San Clemente and Key Biscayne with the guys and pinochle when we socialized with the families. Cards passed a lot of time for us and it was a very enjoyable way to get to know people that you worked with. They did like to party.

Experiences at Cannonball

Our House near LeMasters PA (2009)

Type Of Activity
 Experiences while at Cannonball
Location
Location
 Mercersburg Pa
Date of Activity
 Mar 1967 to Jun 1970
Coordinates
 +39.648333N  -77.466667 W

17 March 1967 to Cannonball a Remote Communications Facility

I spent many days and nights at Cannonball in the mid 60's. Two Microwave repairmen stationed at Camp David went TDY for a week at a time to Cannonball a microwave repeater tower which was located on a 2600 ft peak (Cross Mountain) near Mercersburg Pa. On Monday morning they would leave Camp David with enough groceries for a week’s stay in a concrete silo. There were no windows in the nine-floor structure so unless you went down to the entrance and went outdoors you had no idea of what the weather was like outside. There were two people permanently assigned to the facility (Terry Fields and Al Jensen) and when they went home in the evening, they were left without transportation at night, so keeping yourself occupied was a real challenge. Nobody knew what went on during nights and weekend when the guys were left alone and to this day almost nobody has incremented themselves.

I remember a Radio Tech at Det 3 that volunteered to go up there a couple times so he could go hunting "after hours"? He always had venison in his freezer. l knew many people did hunt during deer season! We wore bright colored clothing and made lots of noise when we went outside!! A hunt club presently owns the property including the access road.
 
In March of 1967 I was permanently assigned to a microwave relay site named Cannonball. It was ironic because, it was located on Cross Mountain, near Mercersburg Pennsylvania.  Joanne and I initially rented an old farmhouse in LeMasters, Pa .we lived their approximately six months and then moved down the road about mile. Nothing could have prepared my wife, Joanne for the isolation she would have to experience when I was given this assignment.  The town we lived near, LeMasters had a population of 26 people, the downtown consisted of a bank, general store and a grain elevator and our next door neighbors were Mennonite.  Every Sunday there would be quite a bit of horse and buggy traffic as they went to church. Joanne was a city girl, born and raised in Chicago and never went more than 100 miles in any direction before we were married, she didn't drive because she never needed transportation and you talk about living in the boonies. LeMasters had a population of 26 people and we were four of those people.

LeMasters Pa (1967)


7 Sep 67 to Lemoyne PA to AT&T 1A1 Key Telephone Training

The telephone system utilized at Cannonball tower was a 1A1 Key System since I knew nothing about the 1A1, and I was responsible for the installation and repair of new and existing equipment I attended training at the AT&T Training Center in Lemoyne PA. 

The three week course covered the Key Service Unit (KSU), power supply, and various telephone sets used in the system.  This training would turn out to be very valuable as I would re-cable or rewire the system several times before we closed the tower in 1970 and the system was removed.

Typical Six Button Rotary Dial Telephone Set

1A1 KSU Key Service Unit

Chuck Duval a friend of ours married a girl that he met at that secretarial school in Hagerstown, he and his wife Barbra lived in Blue Ridge Summit right next to the US Post Office. This is where we rented an apartment for a couple of months while we were waiting for housing at Camp David to open up.

The old Post Office in Blue Ridge Summit PA

We were living in LeMasters Pa. at this time. Chuck and Barb had a party at their apartment shortly after they were married and of course Dale Anderson and all of the guy's from Camp David attended, well around midnight we decided to leave the wives who were playing cards and go down to get a drink at the Monterey Tea House.  We had to cross in front of the post office in order to get to where our cars were parked, well one thing led to another and the next thing that I knew Chuck had been attached to the flag pole and Dale with some help had raised him to the Top and tied him off.  We all had a good laugh and slowly lowered him to the ground. As we were walking to the cars to leave, two cars of men drove in and blocked our retreat. They all belonged to the Blue Ridge Summit Auxiliary Police Department and told us that someone had reported that we were trying to break in to the Post Office.  After some fast talking and that Chuck lived next door, they told us to keep the noise down and left. No wonder Mr. Horst felt like he was running a loony bin!


1968 Election Support Trips with all Presidential Candidates

This is an unprecedented period of time. The United States presidential election of 1968 was a wrenching national experience, conducted against a backdrop that included the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. and subsequent race riots across the nation, the assassination of presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, widespread demonstrations against the Vietnam War across American university and college campuses, and violent confrontations between police and anti-war protesters at the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

On November 5, 1968, the Republican nominee, former Vice President Richard Nixon won the election over the Democratic nominee, Vice President Hubert Humphrey. Nixon ran on a campaign that promised to restore "law and order". Some consider the election of 1968 a realigning election that permanently disrupted the New Deal Coalition that had dominated presidential politics for 36 years. It was also the last election in which two opposing candidates were vice-presidents.

The election also featured a strong third party effort by former Alabama Governor George Wallace. Because Wallace's campaign promoted segregation, he proved to be a formidable candidate in the South; no third-party candidate has won an entire state's electoral votes since.

The U.S. Secret Service came into existence nearly 150 years ago, but the agency as its known today was essentially created June 5, 1968 — the night Sen. Robert F. Kennedy was shot at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.

That policy changed after Kennedy's assassination. In 1968 with the assassination of a major presidential candidate, the Secret Service began to protect all of the major presidential candidates.

After Kennedy's death on June 6, the Secret Service was hurriedly called upon to protect the men who were still running for president in 1968. And then, of course the White House Communications Agency (WHCA) would be called upon to support the Secret Service details assigned to all of the candidates. The situation was exacerbated because there was no criterion for choosing who else would receive Secret Service protection. WHCA was then assigned to provide communications for the Secret Service Protection Details!

WHCA’s role in the support of the Secret Service

WHCA immediately assembled multiple equipment packages that could be immediately deployed anywhere in the US. Utilizing one or two men teams the candidates schedules were confirmed and teams of people were dispatched to meet up with the Secret Service advance agents.

Each equipment package contained an FM base station usually on Baker and Charlie frequencies for the Secret Service Command Post (CP) and hand held units to be used for the motorcade and speech site. Many times the CP was located in the same hotel that the candidate was staying. Telephone lines were ordered and installed in the CP for routine communication. There would also be an EOD (Bomb Squad) member assigned from a local military installation to sweep the hotel, motorcade route and speech sites for any explosive devices. There were many threats called in but nothing was ever found.

The communications teams would take down the FM radios when the event concluded, collected all of the equipment and would be assigned a new location and the next event. Nobody was assigned to a particular candidate but would work with all of them.

On August 5 1968 the Republican National Convention took place in Miami Beach FL, and even though there were demonstrators, there were no violent incidents. I was at Fort Bliss Texas on a WHCA recruiting trip when Richard Nixon surprised everyone by choosing Maryland Governor Spiro Agnew as his running mate.

WHCA would provide communications support to the USSS assigned to the various protection details working with the major candidates and their staff.

1968 Republican convention in Miami

1968 Democrat Convention in Chicago

We were all involved with the insanity of the 1968 Presidential election, the Vietnam War protests at the Democrat National Convention in Chicago which was by far the craziest time during the whole election. The convention opened on August 28th at the old Amphitheater which has since been demolished. All support people stayed at the Conrad Hilton on Michigan Ave. overlooking Grant Park, this is where all of the Chicago riots of 1968 took place, but what was it like setting up Communications for this event? I understand that the unions were on strike and employees of C&P Telephone accompanied WHCA to help install the POTUS board and interface with AT&T. We had to assume that President Johnson would make an appearance at the end of the convention, but he never attended. After several days of political turmoil, Hubert Humphrey and Edmond Muskie were nominated by the Democrats. The WHCA communications team then packed up everything and left Chicago without any incidents involving the demonstrators or police.
 
The Chicago Police prepare for demonstrations

Police clash with anti war protesters in Grant Park

21 Sep 68 Atlanta Ga. - George Wallace

And finally the stage was set for the 1968 Presidential election itself. My involvement began on Sep. 21, 1968 when I was sent to Atlanta, GA to support George Wallace at a campaign rally. This was a pretty standard stop. I installed an FM radio base in the Secret Service CP at the hotel where we were staying and provided some mobile radios for the motorcade. After several hours of activity and upon conclusion of his speech, I collected all of my equipment, and headed for the airport to return home.

04 Oct 68 Newark NJ - George Wallace

After a couple of weeks at home on October 4, I was sent first to Newark NJ to another rally supporting George Wallace. This turned out to be an in and out visit with an arrival at the airport and a short motorcade to the rally site. After the rally we returned to the airport but before the Governor departed, he personally thanked every police officer that was involved with the motorcade.

Gov. George Wallace at a rally in Atlanta GA

Gov. George Wallace at a rally in Newark NJ (1968) 

07 Oct 68 Raleigh NC - Spiro Agnew

I left shortly after Gov. Wallace departed and headed to Raleigh NC where I was assigned to support Spiro Agnew at a rally scheduled on the 8th of October. Upon arrival in Raleigh I met with the SS advance agent. I then surveyed the rally site for FM radio coverage, the rally site was only two blocks from my hotel and where the CP would be installed. Governor Agnew would motorcade from the airport to the speech site, then after his speech, the motorcade returned to the airport for his departure.

Spiro Agnew speaks at a campaign rally in Raleigh NC.

Spiro Agnew speaks at a campaign rally in Raleigh NC.

24 Oct 68 San Jose CA - VP Hubert Humphrey
27 Oct 68 Los Angeles CA - VP Hubert Humphrey

I found myself in northern California with two weeks left before election night. I was sent to California on Oct 24th to support VP Humphrey who was making campaign speeches in San Francisco and San Jose. Both of these stops were uneventful I would set up and tear down the rally sites and after I was finished there, I was sent to Los Angeles to set up communications to cover another speech by the VP at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. It was now Oct. 27th and things were starting to heat up now that the election was only ten days away. I set up the CP in the Beverly Hilton Hotel where the event was to be held and where I was staying.

VP Hubert Humphrey campaigns  in Los Angeles CA 

VP Hubert Humphrey campaigns in San Francisco and San Jose, CA

30 Oct 68 Long Beach CA - Richard Nixon
31 Oct 68 Burbank CA – Richard Nixon


In the meantime Richard Nixon was scheduled for a campaign stop in Long Beach CA for a rally on Oct. 30th. The Long Beach site was out of range for FM radio coverage so radio base stations were installed at the Long Beach airport and installed remote circuits back to the CP that was installed in the Century Plaza Hotel. After the speech Nixon would spend the night at the Century Plaza. The next day Nixon made a trip to the NBC Studios in Burbank to appear on Laugh In and utter those immortal words “Sock it to me!” Since Nixon resided in southern California he was coming home to vote.

Richard Nixon at a campaign rally in Long Beach CA

Richard Nixon on Laugh In with Dan Rowan and Dick Martin

03 Nov 68 Anaheim CA - Curtis Le May

I received a call from the USSS agent in charge of the protection detail assigned to Gen LeMay to let me know that there was a speech on Nov 3rd in Anaheim. I met with the advance agent at Gen Le May’s residence in Bel Air to discuss the details of the arrival, the subsequent speech and the motorcade to Bel Air. The CP would be set up in the Holiday Inn in Anaheim, just a short distance from the speech site and within walking distance to Disneyland.

Gov. Wallace and Gen. Le May in California

Gen. Le May’s home in Bel Air

05 Nov 68 Los Angeles CA – Nixon/VP Humphrey

On election eve both Democrat and Republican parties had rallies, Nixon’s was at the Century Plaza Hotel and Humphrey was, down the street at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. I had equipment scattered everywhere and it wasn’t until two days later before I had collected it and could head for home.

The election on November 5, 1968 proved to be extremely close, and it was not until the following morning that the television news networks were able to call Nixon the winner. The key states proved to be California, Ohio, and Illinois, all of which Nixon won by three percentage points or less. Had Humphrey carried all three of these states, he would have won the election. Had Humphrey carried any two of them (or just California), George Wallace would have succeeded in his aim of preventing an electoral college majority for any candidate, and the decision would have been given to the House of Representatives. Nixon won the popular vote with a plurality of 512,000 votes, or a victory margin of about one percentage point. In the Electoral College Nixon's victory was larger, as he carried 32 states with 301 electoral votes, to Humphrey's 13 states and 191 electoral votes and Wallace's five states and 46 electoral votes.

Richard Nixon at a campaign rally in Philadelphia just prior to the election

Besides supporting the Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates it was also a huge task to support President Johnson and his staff for the rest of 1968 he loved to call the Military Aide into the Oval Office about 2pm and say something like, “Let’s go spend the weekend in Puerto Rico”. The Military Aide would give us a heads up, team scrambled to AAFB, load and go! Teams alternated and I drove around with a packed suitcase in the trunk of my car until the inauguration.

For five months members of WHCA leaped frogged across all fifty states supporting the candidates and it finally came to an end shortly after the November election. Besides supporting the Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates it was also a huge task to support President Johnson and his staff for the rest of 1968.

With Richard Nixon the new president, WHCA had new challenges at San Clemente and Key Biscayne where he purchased residences and permanent communications had to be installed for the security personnel assigned at these locations.

At home in LeMasters PA

Our neighbors knew that I worked for the Government but never asked where. The people that lived around Mercersburg and Greencastle thought that Cannonball was a water tower. Our families knew that I was with the White House and did visit us but never knew any details of what went on at Cannonball or Camp David. All they ever knew was that I had something to do with communications and that I traveled a lot with the President and VP. Our friendships were pretty much with the Seabees (Al Jensen and Bud Evans) both assigned to Cannonball and some of the WHCA people that I worked with from Camp David

 The Crosses (1968) 

Bob with proud Papa holding Kathie (1969)

Our daughter, Kathie was born in Chambersburg Pa. on Jan, 8, 1969, and because of a flu outbreak the hospital would not allow visitors. I was only able to take the kids as far as the parking lot to see Joanne and wave to her at her room window. We first saw Kathie when we brought her and Joanne home from the hospital!

18 May 69 to Norfolk VA for technical training of an HF Radio System

I was sent to the Naval Training Center in Norfolk VA for training on the URT-23, which was a single sideband HF radio transceiver. WHCA was in the Process of adding this system to all overseas packages and needed qualified technicians. I was there for ten days and for the first time since I was assigned to WHCA I was required to wear uniforms. WHCA would widely use these whenever long range communications were required and would be included in the CCT’s standard equipment package!

 URT 23-A with R390-A receiver
In the spring of 1969 we decided to move into an apartment in Greencastle, PA., the house that we were living in had only two bedrooms and with the arrival of Kathie we needed more room.

Antrim Apartments in Greencastle PA.

Don, Bob with Kathie (1970)

We learned that Al Jensen our Navy Seabee was being transferred, Bud Evans would replace Al in July of 1969. Bud and his family would end up renting the apartment directly above ours in Greencastle.

We were in the middle of several major construction projects at the Tower that kept us busy the remainder of the year. First Project was to resurface the access road on Cross Mountain leading to Cannonball. There were also plans to add guard rail in multiple locations along the access road. This was really appreciated by all of who had to plow snow in the winter time as there had been several close calls in the past.

We also completed construction on an 80 ft tubular tower with a new Log Periodic HF antenna to increase our capabilities as the Remote Transmitter site For Cactus. We also installed a 4 port Multi-coupler that would allow us to use several transmitters to simultaneously use this new antenna.

The final and largest project was the shock mounting of the entire tower! Several things took place, steel reinforced walls were added to the elevator shaft on all floors and the Air Handling (AC) units were all remounted on an angle iron platform and hung on springs from the ceiling on all floors. The final step we needed to do was to temporarily move all of our operational equipment so a platform could be built and suspended by very large springs on every floor. Once the new suspended floor was completed we then reinstalled all of the equipment on the platform. All this was completed while the traffic on our microwave routes was uninterrupted.
 
Agnew Fund raiser in Phoenix AZ

When the projects were completed I started to travel again, this time supporting the Vice President. It was early 1970, when we found out that four of the microwave towers, including Cannonball were going to be closed. All of the people were to be assigned to Camp David, San Clemente CA., or Key Biscayne FL. I was assigned to San Clemente.


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