"Mysteries at the Museum" The White House: Mysteries at the Museum

1 00:00:01,603 --> 00:00:03,736 Just about any kid in America could tell you 2 00:00:03,738 --> 00:00:06,339 that's where the president of the United States lives. 3 00:00:06,341 --> 00:00:09,408 But the real story of the White House is bigger, 4 00:00:09,410 --> 00:00:11,077 with secrets going deeper... 5 00:00:11,079 --> 00:00:12,411 That's cool. 6 00:00:12,413 --> 00:00:13,946 ...than we ever thought possible... 7 00:00:13,948 --> 00:00:15,747 This looks like a king lives here. 8 00:00:15,749 --> 00:00:17,216 from little-known facts... 9 00:00:17,218 --> 00:00:19,552 You can see what appears to be a tunnel 10 00:00:19,554 --> 00:00:22,355 being built deep beneath the White House. 11 00:00:22,357 --> 00:00:24,022 ...to long-held myths. 12 00:00:24,024 --> 00:00:26,958 And check it out -- no red phone. 13 00:00:26,960 --> 00:00:29,962 I'm chasing this incredible evolution... 14 00:00:29,964 --> 00:00:31,564 Shift. Go. 15 00:00:31,566 --> 00:00:33,231 ...from simple stone house... 16 00:00:33,233 --> 00:00:35,233 That just, like, sends rock everywhere. 17 00:00:35,235 --> 00:00:37,503 ...to the world's most important address -- 18 00:00:37,505 --> 00:00:41,573 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. 19 00:00:41,575 --> 00:00:43,108 I'm Don Wildman. 20 00:00:43,110 --> 00:00:46,311 I've explored the world's greatest mysteries, 21 00:00:46,313 --> 00:00:48,781 examined rare artifacts and epic monuments. 22 00:00:48,783 --> 00:00:50,249 That's amazing. 23 00:00:50,251 --> 00:00:51,651 Now, I'm digging deeper 24 00:00:51,653 --> 00:00:55,388 into some of the most perplexing and famous cases in history. 25 00:00:55,390 --> 00:00:58,858 My goal -- to get closer to the truth. 26 00:00:58,860 --> 00:01:01,327 It's a totally alien environment down there. 27 00:01:01,329 --> 00:01:06,465 This is "Mysteries at the Museum: The White House." 28 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:14,074 Do you want subtitles for any video? -=[ ai.OpenSubtitles.com ]=- 29 00:01:15,543 --> 00:01:18,544 I'm going through a familiar preflight ritual. 30 00:01:18,546 --> 00:01:20,613 Turn around, please. 31 00:01:20,615 --> 00:01:23,281 But this is no ordinary trip. 32 00:01:23,283 --> 00:01:24,617 We have a special agent from the Secret Service. 33 00:01:24,619 --> 00:01:26,151 He'll be flying with you today. 34 00:01:26,153 --> 00:01:27,486 -How are you doin'? -Good, Don. 35 00:01:27,488 --> 00:01:28,821 -How are you? -I'm good, thanks. 36 00:01:28,823 --> 00:01:31,324 All right. Following you. 37 00:01:34,495 --> 00:01:36,362 I'm flying over the White House. 38 00:01:40,034 --> 00:01:41,299 To book this flight, 39 00:01:41,301 --> 00:01:44,503 I needed clearance from three federal agencies 40 00:01:44,505 --> 00:01:46,639 and a background check. 41 00:01:46,641 --> 00:01:50,443 And, yes, the Secret Service is along for the ride. 42 00:01:50,445 --> 00:01:52,211 Whoo. Here we go. 43 00:01:54,181 --> 00:01:56,582 Washington, D.C., has been the capital 44 00:01:56,584 --> 00:01:59,452 of the United States since 1790. 45 00:01:59,454 --> 00:02:02,121 And for much of its history, the skies above the city 46 00:02:02,123 --> 00:02:06,125 buzzed with airplanes and helicopters. 47 00:02:06,127 --> 00:02:09,995 That all changed on September 11th, 2001, 48 00:02:09,997 --> 00:02:13,466 when Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four jetliners 49 00:02:13,468 --> 00:02:15,600 and hurled them at the Twin Towers 50 00:02:15,602 --> 00:02:17,470 and the Pentagon. 51 00:02:17,472 --> 00:02:22,208 The last plane might have been meant for the White House. 52 00:02:22,210 --> 00:02:23,376 In the aftermath, 53 00:02:23,378 --> 00:02:26,612 the government shut down the skies over Washington. 54 00:02:26,614 --> 00:02:30,549 Today, it's a no-fly zone 10 miles wide. 55 00:02:30,551 --> 00:02:34,553 Chopper flights like this come along once in a lifetime. 56 00:02:34,555 --> 00:02:37,089 And so does the chance to get a big-picture look 57 00:02:37,091 --> 00:02:39,692 at our nation's most famous front yard. 58 00:02:39,694 --> 00:02:44,230 Wow. You don't get this view every day, do you? 59 00:02:44,232 --> 00:02:47,099 We are in front of the most protected chunks 60 00:02:47,101 --> 00:02:51,103 of air space in the country, let alone the world. 61 00:02:51,105 --> 00:02:53,472 There she is, the White House. 62 00:02:58,913 --> 00:03:01,246 Just beautiful. This is amazing. 63 00:03:01,248 --> 00:03:03,115 What a privilege to get this close in 64 00:03:03,117 --> 00:03:07,119 and see the whole design of the Mall right before you. 65 00:03:07,121 --> 00:03:09,387 You can see all the monuments -- 66 00:03:09,389 --> 00:03:11,457 Washington, Lincoln Memorial. 67 00:03:11,459 --> 00:03:14,927 The Capitol to my left there. 68 00:03:14,929 --> 00:03:18,130 And there's nothing moving in the sky. 69 00:03:18,132 --> 00:03:20,599 I mean, in any other major metropolis -- 70 00:03:20,601 --> 00:03:23,602 New York, L.A. -- you'd see air traffic teeming, 71 00:03:23,604 --> 00:03:24,937 helicopters and so forth. 72 00:03:24,939 --> 00:03:29,875 This just points out how secure this city has to be. 73 00:03:29,877 --> 00:03:32,678 The Washington flight-restricted zone is surrounded 74 00:03:32,680 --> 00:03:35,414 by a sophisticated laser warning system. 75 00:03:35,416 --> 00:03:37,883 If a pilot ignores the warnings, 76 00:03:37,885 --> 00:03:42,021 a fighter jet will escort them to the nearest runway. 77 00:03:42,023 --> 00:03:44,156 And that's if everything goes well. 78 00:03:48,362 --> 00:03:50,629 I mean, that is what it's all about, 79 00:03:50,631 --> 00:03:53,232 protecting the White House, 80 00:03:53,234 --> 00:03:55,033 the executive branch of the government, 81 00:03:55,035 --> 00:03:57,169 the president. 82 00:03:57,171 --> 00:03:58,571 And it looks kind of vulnerable there. 83 00:03:58,573 --> 00:04:03,843 And that's why it needs to be so secure out here. 84 00:04:03,845 --> 00:04:07,246 It's really an amazing impact on me as an American 85 00:04:07,248 --> 00:04:09,882 to feel a part of this. 86 00:04:09,884 --> 00:04:14,052 Of course, the flight-restricted zone is a recent addition 87 00:04:14,054 --> 00:04:16,922 and just one of the ways the White House adapts 88 00:04:16,924 --> 00:04:20,126 to the ever-changing needs of the presidency. 89 00:04:20,128 --> 00:04:23,596 This constant evolution is what keeps the White House 90 00:04:23,598 --> 00:04:26,766 rooted at the center of our American story. 91 00:04:30,137 --> 00:04:33,071 It was here, in a great map-covered office, 92 00:04:33,073 --> 00:04:35,407 now used as the State Dining Room, 93 00:04:35,409 --> 00:04:37,009 that Thomas Jefferson planned 94 00:04:37,011 --> 00:04:40,012 the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1802. 95 00:04:42,082 --> 00:04:43,349 60 years later, 96 00:04:43,351 --> 00:04:46,218 the president's office was upstairs. 97 00:04:46,220 --> 00:04:48,220 Abraham Lincoln tracked army movements 98 00:04:48,222 --> 00:04:49,488 during the Civil War 99 00:04:49,490 --> 00:04:52,958 with telegraphed dispatches from the front. 100 00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:55,493 During the Great Depression, the Oval Office 101 00:04:55,495 --> 00:04:57,896 was connected to every living room in America 102 00:04:57,898 --> 00:05:00,232 as Franklin Roosevelt harnessed the air waves 103 00:05:00,234 --> 00:05:03,969 to reassure a troubled nation. 104 00:05:03,971 --> 00:05:06,171 And in the years after 9/11, 105 00:05:06,173 --> 00:05:09,441 the president was once again connected to the front lines, 106 00:05:09,443 --> 00:05:11,710 but this time from the state-of-the-art 107 00:05:11,712 --> 00:05:14,380 Situation Room under the West Wing. 108 00:05:14,382 --> 00:05:16,915 Here, Barack Obama watched over the raid 109 00:05:16,917 --> 00:05:19,251 to take down Osama bin Laden. 110 00:05:22,924 --> 00:05:25,123 But for every line of history written 111 00:05:25,125 --> 00:05:26,458 within these walls, 112 00:05:26,460 --> 00:05:30,596 there are nearly as many myths and misconceptions. 113 00:05:30,598 --> 00:05:35,267 For example, George Washington never lived at the White House 114 00:05:35,269 --> 00:05:39,271 because the new capital city was still under construction. 115 00:05:39,273 --> 00:05:42,607 Abraham Lincoln never slept in the Lincoln Bedroom. 116 00:05:42,609 --> 00:05:45,210 He used the room as his office. 117 00:05:45,212 --> 00:05:47,812 And Kennedy never spoke with Khrushchev 118 00:05:47,814 --> 00:05:50,415 on the famous Oval Office red phone 119 00:05:50,417 --> 00:05:53,952 because the red phone never existed. 120 00:05:53,954 --> 00:05:55,888 The White House has been the home 121 00:05:55,890 --> 00:05:58,423 of the president of the United States since 1800. 122 00:05:58,425 --> 00:06:01,760 But it's easy to forget just how old this building really is. 123 00:06:01,762 --> 00:06:03,429 When the first president moved in, 124 00:06:03,431 --> 00:06:06,231 the only bathroom was a wooden outhouse 125 00:06:06,233 --> 00:06:08,366 right there on the South Lawn. 126 00:06:08,368 --> 00:06:10,769 So how did a two-century-old building 127 00:06:10,771 --> 00:06:13,038 with no running water become the nerve center 128 00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:15,240 of the most powerful nation on Earth? 129 00:06:15,242 --> 00:06:18,344 To find out, I'm going all the way back to the beginning. 130 00:06:23,384 --> 00:06:26,918 My trip back in time has led me to an out-of-the-way corner 131 00:06:26,920 --> 00:06:28,654 of Stafford County, Virginia, 132 00:06:28,656 --> 00:06:31,256 40 miles downriver from Washington. 133 00:06:33,928 --> 00:06:36,729 This is Government Island on the Aquia Creek. 134 00:06:36,731 --> 00:06:37,996 If you're looking for the birthplace 135 00:06:37,998 --> 00:06:39,197 of the White House, 136 00:06:39,199 --> 00:06:41,133 this is as close as you're gonna get. 137 00:06:41,135 --> 00:06:45,804 In 1792, this whole island was a stone quarry. 138 00:06:45,806 --> 00:06:48,940 The government bought it and ran it for one reason. 139 00:06:48,942 --> 00:06:51,143 This is Aquia sandstone. 140 00:06:51,145 --> 00:06:54,547 This is the stone that built the White House. 141 00:06:54,549 --> 00:06:58,283 President Washington required that the new federal buildings 142 00:06:58,285 --> 00:07:00,619 in the capital be made out of stone. 143 00:07:00,621 --> 00:07:03,088 The White House was designed to last. 144 00:07:03,090 --> 00:07:04,690 Look at this. 145 00:07:04,692 --> 00:07:07,626 These are all quarriers' pick marks 146 00:07:07,628 --> 00:07:10,095 from 200 years ago, okay? 147 00:07:10,097 --> 00:07:13,832 The quarriers were the lowest skilled laborers on the island. 148 00:07:13,834 --> 00:07:15,367 Many of them were slaves. 149 00:07:15,369 --> 00:07:18,470 These slaves toiled away cutting stone 150 00:07:18,472 --> 00:07:21,506 that was used on the president's house. 151 00:07:21,508 --> 00:07:22,708 Hey, Rick. 152 00:07:22,710 --> 00:07:25,444 I've invited local historian Rick MacGregor 153 00:07:25,446 --> 00:07:29,114 to meet me here on the island to get a better understanding 154 00:07:29,116 --> 00:07:32,651 of what it was like to be an 18th-century quarrier. 155 00:07:32,653 --> 00:07:34,987 Are these real or replica? 156 00:07:34,989 --> 00:07:37,523 That's an original pick that was found here in this quarry. 157 00:07:37,525 --> 00:07:39,525 -Really? -Yes. It's about 200 years old, 158 00:07:39,527 --> 00:07:41,593 -handmade by a blacksmith. -Wow! 159 00:07:41,595 --> 00:07:44,195 And that's a wedge, handmade also. 160 00:07:44,197 --> 00:07:46,331 Basically, with these few tools, 161 00:07:46,333 --> 00:07:49,801 very simple tools, this stone was cut, yeah? 162 00:07:49,803 --> 00:07:51,069 Yes. Yeah. 163 00:07:51,071 --> 00:07:52,404 I'd love to get a feel for this. 164 00:07:52,406 --> 00:07:53,706 -Absolutely. -Cool. 165 00:07:56,077 --> 00:07:58,677 I want to be clear -- This is a practice stone 166 00:07:58,679 --> 00:08:00,145 that Rick brought for me 167 00:08:00,147 --> 00:08:03,415 because the whole island is a historic site. 168 00:08:03,417 --> 00:08:04,816 All right. 169 00:08:04,818 --> 00:08:06,285 Ooh, man. 170 00:08:06,287 --> 00:08:08,954 It just, like, sends rock everywhere. 171 00:08:08,956 --> 00:08:11,289 Can you imagine doing this day in, day out? 172 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:15,360 Sun up, sun down? 173 00:08:15,362 --> 00:08:18,163 And, you know, this place was, like, hopping 174 00:08:18,165 --> 00:08:20,332 because stone was in real demand. 175 00:08:20,334 --> 00:08:24,069 So you had all these guys working like crazy 176 00:08:24,071 --> 00:08:27,639 trying to get the rock to build the president's house. 177 00:08:27,641 --> 00:08:29,440 Okay. 178 00:08:29,442 --> 00:08:31,376 Okay. Well, I've had enough. 179 00:08:31,378 --> 00:08:34,046 Thank God for the Industrial Revolution, huh? 180 00:08:34,048 --> 00:08:35,981 -Thank you. -All right. 181 00:08:35,983 --> 00:08:40,285 WILDMAN: Quarrying the stone was only the first step. 182 00:08:40,287 --> 00:08:43,922 It took eight more years to build the White House. 183 00:08:43,924 --> 00:08:47,926 George Washington personally guided the process. 184 00:08:47,928 --> 00:08:50,729 But it was our second president, John Adams, 185 00:08:50,731 --> 00:08:53,998 who would finally move in in 1800. 186 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:57,402 Some rooms were still unfinished. 187 00:08:57,404 --> 00:09:02,741 And only a few years later, during the war of 1812, 188 00:09:02,743 --> 00:09:05,277 the British army invaded the capital 189 00:09:05,279 --> 00:09:08,080 and burned the White House down. 190 00:09:08,082 --> 00:09:10,616 But America rebuilt it. 191 00:09:10,618 --> 00:09:15,487 And the White House has been home to every president since. 192 00:09:15,489 --> 00:09:16,955 Abraham Lincoln's White House 193 00:09:16,957 --> 00:09:21,760 in 1865 looked a lot like Andrew Jackson's in 1835. 194 00:09:21,762 --> 00:09:24,362 The Civil War was in its fifth brutal year. 195 00:09:24,364 --> 00:09:27,966 But Lincoln continued his open-door policy at the house. 196 00:09:27,968 --> 00:09:31,169 In those days, anyone could walk right in off the street, 197 00:09:31,171 --> 00:09:32,570 enter that door right there 198 00:09:32,572 --> 00:09:34,839 and request a meeting with the President. 199 00:09:34,841 --> 00:09:38,644 Lincoln's advisors pleaded with him to limit his exposure. 200 00:09:38,646 --> 00:09:40,579 It was well known that there were Confederate spies 201 00:09:40,581 --> 00:09:41,980 right here in the capital. 202 00:09:41,982 --> 00:09:46,718 But Lincoln refused to cut himself off from the people. 203 00:09:46,720 --> 00:09:49,655 On April 14th, 1865, 204 00:09:49,657 --> 00:09:52,791 five days after the Confederacy surrendered, 205 00:09:52,793 --> 00:09:55,793 John Wilkes Booth snuck into the president's box 206 00:09:55,795 --> 00:09:58,329 at Ford's Theatre 207 00:09:58,331 --> 00:10:01,733 and shot Abraham Lincoln at point-blank range. 208 00:10:03,937 --> 00:10:08,006 Lincoln died at 7:22 the next morning. 209 00:10:08,008 --> 00:10:09,941 The nation was stunned. 210 00:10:09,943 --> 00:10:11,276 It was the first time 211 00:10:11,278 --> 00:10:15,280 an assassin had brought down an American president. 212 00:10:15,282 --> 00:10:17,950 The legislation creating the Secret Service 213 00:10:17,952 --> 00:10:21,887 was on Abraham Lincoln's desk the night he was assassinated. 214 00:10:21,889 --> 00:10:24,289 Then two more presidents were killed in office -- 215 00:10:24,291 --> 00:10:26,357 James Garfield and William McKinley. 216 00:10:26,359 --> 00:10:31,029 So in 1901, Congress finally charged the Secret Service 217 00:10:31,031 --> 00:10:34,566 with the duty of protecting the president. 218 00:10:34,568 --> 00:10:36,835 Today, the Secret Service has hardened 219 00:10:36,837 --> 00:10:39,237 the White House into a fortress. 220 00:10:39,239 --> 00:10:42,440 But a modern president is always on the move. 221 00:10:42,442 --> 00:10:44,710 So what happens when the president ventures 222 00:10:44,712 --> 00:10:46,178 beyond the Beltway? 223 00:10:46,180 --> 00:10:49,047 And more importantly, how does the Secret Service 224 00:10:49,049 --> 00:10:50,849 get him safely back home... 225 00:10:50,851 --> 00:10:56,588 Turn. 226 00:10:59,126 --> 00:11:01,660 WILDMAN: I'm tracking the ways the White House adapts 227 00:11:01,662 --> 00:11:03,795 to the president's needs. 228 00:11:03,797 --> 00:11:05,597 After the Lincoln assassination, 229 00:11:05,599 --> 00:11:08,800 the nation clamored for better security. 230 00:11:08,802 --> 00:11:10,935 Today, the president is surrounded 231 00:11:10,937 --> 00:11:13,205 by multiple layers of protection, 232 00:11:13,207 --> 00:11:16,341 courtesy of the United States Secret Service. 233 00:11:18,345 --> 00:11:20,812 But how exactly do they do it? 234 00:11:20,814 --> 00:11:23,748 I'm going deep inside their secure training grounds 235 00:11:23,750 --> 00:11:25,616 to find out. 236 00:11:25,618 --> 00:11:28,486 The Secret Service protects the president 24/7 237 00:11:28,488 --> 00:11:30,022 wherever he goes. 238 00:11:30,024 --> 00:11:31,756 Now, it's one thing when he stays inside 239 00:11:31,758 --> 00:11:33,025 the White House security bubble. 240 00:11:33,027 --> 00:11:34,760 But when he ventures outside, 241 00:11:34,762 --> 00:11:36,562 these guys gotta be ready for anything. 242 00:11:39,366 --> 00:11:42,167 The Secret Service compound features 243 00:11:42,169 --> 00:11:44,570 full-size mock-ups of Marine One 244 00:11:44,572 --> 00:11:47,906 and the forward fuselage of Air Force One. 245 00:11:47,908 --> 00:11:49,975 There's also an urban street 246 00:11:49,977 --> 00:11:52,177 for practicing presidential movements. 247 00:11:52,179 --> 00:11:53,979 It's the Secret Service's job 248 00:11:53,981 --> 00:11:56,581 to get the president wherever he needs to go 249 00:11:56,583 --> 00:11:59,718 and then bring him back to the White House safely. 250 00:11:59,720 --> 00:12:02,186 On top of everything else, these men and women 251 00:12:02,188 --> 00:12:04,323 have to be masters behind the wheel. 252 00:12:04,325 --> 00:12:07,726 Now I can't show you who these Secret Service agents are. 253 00:12:07,728 --> 00:12:08,994 But they've agreed to demonstrate 254 00:12:08,996 --> 00:12:10,996 a little of what they can do. 255 00:12:14,200 --> 00:12:15,400 Whoo, man. 256 00:12:15,402 --> 00:12:18,136 Rule number one for the presidential motorcade 257 00:12:18,138 --> 00:12:19,137 is to keep moving. 258 00:12:19,139 --> 00:12:20,138 Wow! 259 00:12:20,140 --> 00:12:21,740 That's how fast they're going. 260 00:12:21,742 --> 00:12:22,674 That's amazing. 261 00:12:22,676 --> 00:12:25,477 A sitting car is an easy target. 262 00:12:25,479 --> 00:12:28,680 Okay, so this is a critical situation they train for. 263 00:12:28,682 --> 00:12:31,083 Now, imagine they're on a tight, narrow passageway. 264 00:12:31,085 --> 00:12:32,617 They've just been blocked at the end of an alley. 265 00:12:32,619 --> 00:12:34,152 They got to get out there. 266 00:12:34,154 --> 00:12:36,754 And they reverse. 267 00:12:36,756 --> 00:12:39,157 And without stopping, whoo, there you go. 268 00:12:39,159 --> 00:12:41,292 Wow. That's called a J-turn. 269 00:12:41,294 --> 00:12:44,096 That is reversing in a tight alleyway without stopping. 270 00:12:44,098 --> 00:12:46,765 And they are gone! 271 00:12:46,767 --> 00:12:49,300 Wow. 272 00:12:49,302 --> 00:12:52,370 But how hard is it to master skills like that? 273 00:12:52,372 --> 00:12:54,106 I intend to find out. 274 00:12:54,108 --> 00:12:55,907 You have to be in the Secret Service 275 00:12:55,909 --> 00:12:58,443 to actually use their training facility. 276 00:12:58,445 --> 00:13:00,778 So I found the next-best thing. 277 00:13:00,780 --> 00:13:03,382 Summit Point Motorsports Park 278 00:13:03,384 --> 00:13:07,051 is home to the BSR Tactical Driving School. 279 00:13:07,053 --> 00:13:09,721 This is where federal officials and security professionals 280 00:13:09,723 --> 00:13:12,657 hone their chops behind the wheel. 281 00:13:12,659 --> 00:13:15,127 Today, I'm meeting instructor Guy Frank 282 00:13:15,129 --> 00:13:16,527 for some driver's ed... 283 00:13:16,529 --> 00:13:18,262 -How you doing? -Very well, Don. 284 00:13:18,264 --> 00:13:19,331 Good morning and welcome. 285 00:13:19,333 --> 00:13:20,999 ...Secret Service-style. 286 00:13:21,001 --> 00:13:24,802 So I saw the Secret Service demonstrate how to escape 287 00:13:24,804 --> 00:13:27,138 from an ambush situation, tactical driving, 288 00:13:27,140 --> 00:13:28,874 -the J-turn, right? -Yes. 289 00:13:28,876 --> 00:13:30,274 We know the J-turn very well here. 290 00:13:30,276 --> 00:13:32,143 It's the cornerstone of evasive driving. 291 00:13:32,145 --> 00:13:34,146 Can a guy like me learn how to do this? 292 00:13:34,148 --> 00:13:35,314 Absolutely. 293 00:13:36,683 --> 00:13:38,350 Show me how this works. 294 00:13:38,352 --> 00:13:39,751 -Give me a J-turn. -All right. 295 00:13:39,753 --> 00:13:42,287 So three things to remember -- lift, turn, and shift. 296 00:13:42,289 --> 00:13:43,822 Yikes. Man, he just went into it. 297 00:13:43,824 --> 00:13:45,757 -So here we go. -All right. 298 00:13:45,759 --> 00:13:47,292 Here's our lift... 299 00:13:47,294 --> 00:13:48,026 turn... 300 00:13:48,028 --> 00:13:51,229 Whoa! Whoo! 301 00:13:51,231 --> 00:13:52,898 Oh, boy! 302 00:13:52,900 --> 00:13:55,500 Man, that was intense. 303 00:13:55,502 --> 00:13:58,770 How do you keep that straight, literally? 304 00:13:58,772 --> 00:13:59,638 Practice. 305 00:13:59,640 --> 00:14:02,907 Man, that is wild. 306 00:14:02,909 --> 00:14:05,510 Guy pulls off a full-speed J-turn 307 00:14:05,512 --> 00:14:07,579 as smoothly as a stunt man. 308 00:14:09,917 --> 00:14:13,184 And it looks like a move straight out of Hollywood. 309 00:14:13,186 --> 00:14:15,320 These sort of maneuvers could be critical 310 00:14:15,322 --> 00:14:17,456 for getting the president out of danger 311 00:14:17,458 --> 00:14:19,391 and back to the safety of the White House. 312 00:14:19,393 --> 00:14:21,326 -Are you ready? -Can I give this a shot? 313 00:14:21,328 --> 00:14:22,561 Absolutely. 314 00:14:25,866 --> 00:14:27,799 I didn't think I'd be so nervous about this, 315 00:14:27,801 --> 00:14:29,067 but I am. 316 00:14:29,069 --> 00:14:31,469 Guy talks me through the three steps 317 00:14:31,471 --> 00:14:34,005 of a J-turn -- lift off the gas, 318 00:14:34,007 --> 00:14:36,475 turn the wheel hard, shift into drive. 319 00:14:36,477 --> 00:14:37,609 Here we go. 320 00:14:37,611 --> 00:14:39,878 So it's in reverse, attack, back away. 321 00:14:39,880 --> 00:14:41,613 All right, let's do this. You can do this. 322 00:14:41,615 --> 00:14:43,081 Let's go when you're ready, Don. 323 00:14:43,083 --> 00:14:44,549 WILDMAN: All right. 324 00:14:44,551 --> 00:14:46,017 Keep backing. Keep backing. 325 00:14:46,019 --> 00:14:47,419 Keep backing. Keep backing. 326 00:14:47,421 --> 00:14:48,887 Keep backing. Keep backing. 327 00:14:48,889 --> 00:14:49,754 Lift. 328 00:14:49,756 --> 00:14:53,024 Turn. 329 00:14:53,026 --> 00:14:55,494 Cut. 330 00:14:55,496 --> 00:14:56,762 Turn us around. Let's go back, try it again. 331 00:14:56,764 --> 00:14:59,297 Oh, boy. Failure. 332 00:15:02,035 --> 00:15:03,301 Okay. What happened? 333 00:15:03,303 --> 00:15:05,503 Okay, as soon as you become uncomfortable 334 00:15:05,505 --> 00:15:06,972 you went to the comfort pedal. 335 00:15:06,974 --> 00:15:07,973 Everybody comfort pedal's what? 336 00:15:07,975 --> 00:15:09,341 -The brake pedal. -The brake. 337 00:15:09,343 --> 00:15:11,976 You try to do what's normal, but it's not normal driving. 338 00:15:11,978 --> 00:15:13,044 I mean, that's the thing. 339 00:15:13,046 --> 00:15:14,045 You're just trying to do something 340 00:15:14,047 --> 00:15:15,947 completely counterintuitive. 341 00:15:18,651 --> 00:15:20,385 -Okay. -All right. 342 00:15:20,387 --> 00:15:21,752 -Back us up. -I'm ready. 343 00:15:21,754 --> 00:15:23,989 Here we go. Keep backing. 344 00:15:23,991 --> 00:15:25,723 Keep backing. Lift. 345 00:15:25,725 --> 00:15:26,992 Turn. 346 00:15:26,994 --> 00:15:28,860 Shift. 347 00:15:28,862 --> 00:15:31,730 Oh, I braked. I braked. 348 00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:36,568 I'll tell you, the scary part is going backwards as fast. 349 00:15:38,672 --> 00:15:40,739 All right, here we go again. Oh, boy. 350 00:15:40,741 --> 00:15:42,807 It's the most terrifying thing I've ever done. 351 00:15:42,809 --> 00:15:43,942 No brake this time. 352 00:15:43,944 --> 00:15:46,944 I'm going right to shift and gas. 353 00:15:46,946 --> 00:15:48,346 You got it. 354 00:15:48,348 --> 00:15:51,082 Whoo. Okay. 355 00:15:51,084 --> 00:15:52,951 All right, attack. Back away. 356 00:15:55,822 --> 00:15:58,289 Keep backing. Keep backing. 357 00:15:58,291 --> 00:16:00,358 Lift. Turn. 358 00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:01,159 Shift. 359 00:16:01,161 --> 00:16:02,360 Go. 360 00:16:02,362 --> 00:16:03,895 No bonus points for turning on the wipers, Don. 361 00:16:03,897 --> 00:16:05,630 -Nice job! -Whoo! 362 00:16:05,632 --> 00:16:07,365 Yeah! Oh, my God. 363 00:16:07,367 --> 00:16:10,235 It's a very successful feeling. Thank you so much. 364 00:16:10,237 --> 00:16:12,270 Secret Service, here I come. 365 00:16:17,244 --> 00:16:19,844 But before I celebrate too much, 366 00:16:19,846 --> 00:16:23,081 Guy has one more Secret Service technique for me to try. 367 00:16:23,083 --> 00:16:24,916 -What's next? -Barricade breaching. 368 00:16:24,918 --> 00:16:26,184 Barricade breaching. What's that? 369 00:16:26,186 --> 00:16:27,518 We're gonna ram our way 370 00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:29,654 through a vehicle blocking our space 371 00:16:29,656 --> 00:16:31,189 so that we can exit that attack. 372 00:16:31,191 --> 00:16:32,991 So I went in reverse at high speed. 373 00:16:32,993 --> 00:16:35,260 -Now, I'm going forward. -Correct. 374 00:16:35,262 --> 00:16:36,728 -All right. -Those are our vehicles. 375 00:16:36,730 --> 00:16:38,863 And here's our exercise, in front of us. 376 00:16:38,865 --> 00:16:40,665 They look lovely. 377 00:16:40,667 --> 00:16:42,000 Why don't you have a seat behind the wheel? 378 00:16:42,002 --> 00:16:43,134 Okay. 379 00:16:44,538 --> 00:16:47,539 WILDMAN: Guy tells me a successful barricade breach 380 00:16:47,541 --> 00:16:48,940 comes down to physics. 381 00:16:48,942 --> 00:16:51,409 The key is to align my car's frame 382 00:16:51,411 --> 00:16:53,745 with the blocking car's axle. 383 00:16:53,747 --> 00:16:55,814 And I want to hit it at just the right speed -- 384 00:16:55,816 --> 00:16:58,683 about 15 miles per hour. 385 00:16:58,685 --> 00:16:59,484 Let's go. 386 00:16:59,486 --> 00:17:00,786 Little faster. 387 00:17:02,823 --> 00:17:05,289 Ram. 388 00:17:05,291 --> 00:17:06,758 Oh, yeah! 389 00:17:06,760 --> 00:17:07,692 Nice, nice. 390 00:17:07,694 --> 00:17:09,761 Wow, right down the gullet. 391 00:17:11,698 --> 00:17:12,631 Ram. 392 00:17:15,235 --> 00:17:16,568 Phew. 393 00:17:16,570 --> 00:17:17,902 How to get out of an ambush. Thank you. 394 00:17:17,904 --> 00:17:19,704 -Well done, sir. -I'm well equipped. 395 00:17:20,641 --> 00:17:22,841 I'm getting out of this car now. 396 00:17:22,843 --> 00:17:25,576 My crash course in Secret Service training 397 00:17:25,578 --> 00:17:27,179 was exhilarating. 398 00:17:27,181 --> 00:17:29,714 But it's time to get back to the White House, 399 00:17:29,716 --> 00:17:33,384 to the years after Lincoln's assassination. 400 00:17:33,386 --> 00:17:35,854 It's hard to believe today that the White House 401 00:17:35,856 --> 00:17:38,523 was little loved in the late 19th century. 402 00:17:38,525 --> 00:17:40,058 The building was old and outdated 403 00:17:40,060 --> 00:17:41,592 by American standards. 404 00:17:41,594 --> 00:17:44,963 President Andrew Johnson wanted to build a new executive mansion 405 00:17:44,965 --> 00:17:46,131 north of the city 406 00:17:46,133 --> 00:17:48,733 in what is today Rock Creek Park. 407 00:17:48,735 --> 00:17:51,002 He was impeached before that could happen. 408 00:17:51,004 --> 00:17:54,805 But that wasn't the last attempt to reimagine the White House. 409 00:17:54,807 --> 00:17:56,007 The modern White House 410 00:17:56,009 --> 00:17:59,143 only came to be in the 20th century. 411 00:17:59,145 --> 00:18:01,946 In fact, its most famous room 412 00:18:01,948 --> 00:18:04,415 was just built in 1934. 413 00:18:04,417 --> 00:18:06,351 For its first 100 years, 414 00:18:06,353 --> 00:18:09,888 the White House was plagued by a fundamental design flaw, 415 00:18:09,890 --> 00:18:12,958 which nearly led to its ultimate demise. 416 00:18:21,568 --> 00:18:23,301 WILDMAN: I'm tracing the surprising ways 417 00:18:23,303 --> 00:18:25,369 that presidents have changed the White House 418 00:18:25,371 --> 00:18:28,239 to meet their needs. 419 00:18:28,241 --> 00:18:30,508 Take the Oval Office, for example. 420 00:18:30,510 --> 00:18:34,245 This famous room is an iconic emblem of the presidency. 421 00:18:34,247 --> 00:18:39,317 But the modern Oval Office was only added in 1934. 422 00:18:39,319 --> 00:18:41,586 So where did the President work 423 00:18:41,588 --> 00:18:44,055 before the Oval Office was built? 424 00:18:44,057 --> 00:18:47,191 The answer uncovers an inherent problem 425 00:18:47,193 --> 00:18:52,130 with the building's original 1792 design. 426 00:18:52,132 --> 00:18:53,931 For its first 100 years, 427 00:18:53,933 --> 00:18:58,336 the White House never had purpose-built offices. 428 00:18:58,338 --> 00:19:01,005 Each president had to choose a room to work in, 429 00:19:01,007 --> 00:19:04,409 usually a converted bedroom upstairs. 430 00:19:04,411 --> 00:19:05,810 That meant official visitors 431 00:19:05,812 --> 00:19:10,882 were just steps away from where the first family slept. 432 00:19:10,884 --> 00:19:14,885 By the late 1800s, the problem had come to a head. 433 00:19:14,887 --> 00:19:18,423 The White House was bursting at the seams. 434 00:19:18,425 --> 00:19:19,824 Peter? Hey. Don. 435 00:19:19,826 --> 00:19:22,027 -Hi. Nice to meet you. -You too. 436 00:19:22,029 --> 00:19:23,361 Peter Brower heads 437 00:19:23,363 --> 00:19:27,499 the Cartographic Reference Branch at the National Archives. 438 00:19:27,501 --> 00:19:30,101 Here, among priceless old maps, 439 00:19:30,103 --> 00:19:33,838 you can find original hand-drawn blueprints of the White House, 440 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:38,376 some as it is and some as it might have been. 441 00:19:38,378 --> 00:19:40,979 Look at that. That is so neat. 442 00:19:40,981 --> 00:19:42,180 Oh, I see. That's... 443 00:19:42,182 --> 00:19:44,115 Yeah, so these are the first two. 444 00:19:44,117 --> 00:19:47,786 Peter has proof of the extreme ways presidents tried 445 00:19:47,788 --> 00:19:50,989 to fix the White House in the late 1800s. 446 00:19:50,991 --> 00:19:54,525 President Chester Arthur tried to add room by building 447 00:19:54,527 --> 00:19:58,997 a whole new private residence off to the side. 448 00:19:58,999 --> 00:20:02,467 But it has nothing to do with what the house originally, 449 00:20:02,469 --> 00:20:03,802 and to this day, looks like... 450 00:20:03,804 --> 00:20:05,469 -Exactly. -...as a monument. 451 00:20:05,471 --> 00:20:08,540 It looks like the mansion of a rich guy, a robber baron. 452 00:20:08,542 --> 00:20:12,009 A decade later, President Benjamin Harrison proposed 453 00:20:12,011 --> 00:20:13,678 an even grander solution 454 00:20:13,680 --> 00:20:16,347 to the White House's space problem. 455 00:20:16,349 --> 00:20:18,750 This is a site plan. 456 00:20:18,752 --> 00:20:22,220 And you have the original 1792 mansion there. 457 00:20:22,222 --> 00:20:26,023 And then the idea was to build a completely enclosed court, 458 00:20:26,025 --> 00:20:28,226 very similar to a castle 459 00:20:28,228 --> 00:20:30,161 or other estate grounds, like a European setting. 460 00:20:30,163 --> 00:20:31,696 That's what I'm seeing here. 461 00:20:31,698 --> 00:20:33,498 This looks like a king lives here. 462 00:20:33,500 --> 00:20:36,901 The plan would quadruple the White House in size 463 00:20:36,903 --> 00:20:39,437 by adding new wings to house offices 464 00:20:39,439 --> 00:20:41,305 for the president's staff 465 00:20:41,307 --> 00:20:44,642 and an art gallery for visiting tourists. 466 00:20:44,644 --> 00:20:47,445 But Congress refused to pay for it. 467 00:20:47,447 --> 00:20:50,181 This drawing dates from 1905. 468 00:20:50,183 --> 00:20:52,650 This is from Theodore Roosevelt's administration. 469 00:20:52,652 --> 00:20:54,719 So this is TR's, 470 00:20:54,721 --> 00:20:57,922 his own reimagining of the whole complex, 471 00:20:57,924 --> 00:21:00,859 which is pared down to basics. 472 00:21:00,861 --> 00:21:04,062 He's getting back to the original idea. 473 00:21:04,064 --> 00:21:06,464 In 1902, Theodore Roosevelt 474 00:21:06,466 --> 00:21:10,268 finally did what a century's worth of presidents could not. 475 00:21:10,270 --> 00:21:13,671 He reorganized the White House to separate its public 476 00:21:13,673 --> 00:21:16,808 and private functions and returned the building 477 00:21:16,810 --> 00:21:19,276 to its clean, original appearance. 478 00:21:19,278 --> 00:21:20,545 Theodore Roosevelt was famous 479 00:21:20,547 --> 00:21:22,881 for loving the presidency, you know, 480 00:21:22,883 --> 00:21:24,682 and therefore loving the White House 481 00:21:24,684 --> 00:21:27,017 and what it represented, the history behind the office. 482 00:21:27,019 --> 00:21:28,953 But he has done the pragmatic thing 483 00:21:28,955 --> 00:21:30,688 of separating from the living space -- 484 00:21:30,690 --> 00:21:31,890 I mean, he has a huge family, 485 00:21:31,892 --> 00:21:33,357 so they have to have some place to live. 486 00:21:33,359 --> 00:21:36,294 So he's separated from the president's house 487 00:21:36,296 --> 00:21:39,097 the offices over here on the West Wing. 488 00:21:39,099 --> 00:21:42,233 Roosevelt's 1902 restoration claimed 489 00:21:42,235 --> 00:21:46,438 the entire second floor as private living space. 490 00:21:46,440 --> 00:21:50,508 He added new wings to separate the house's official functions. 491 00:21:50,510 --> 00:21:52,844 The public entrance moved to the east 492 00:21:52,846 --> 00:21:56,514 and the executive offices to the western wing. 493 00:21:56,516 --> 00:21:58,583 At last, there was plenty of space 494 00:21:58,585 --> 00:22:00,985 for the president's cabinet and staff, 495 00:22:00,987 --> 00:22:03,254 a new office for Roosevelt himself, 496 00:22:03,256 --> 00:22:06,991 though one with four walls and four corners. 497 00:22:06,993 --> 00:22:09,260 The Oval Office as we know it today 498 00:22:09,262 --> 00:22:11,930 would be built by another President Roosevelt 499 00:22:11,932 --> 00:22:13,798 30 years later. 500 00:22:13,800 --> 00:22:14,999 So interesting. 501 00:22:15,001 --> 00:22:17,601 I mean, you have right here the White Houses 502 00:22:17,603 --> 00:22:19,204 as they could have been 503 00:22:19,206 --> 00:22:21,872 and then the White House as it is today. 504 00:22:21,874 --> 00:22:23,341 So cool. Thanks, man. 505 00:22:23,343 --> 00:22:24,942 All right. Thank you. 506 00:22:24,944 --> 00:22:27,946 Theodore Roosevelt ended any plans of replacing 507 00:22:27,948 --> 00:22:29,613 or reconfiguring the White House. 508 00:22:29,615 --> 00:22:32,016 His restoration was hailed as a success 509 00:22:32,018 --> 00:22:34,552 and set the tone for the building's appearance 510 00:22:34,554 --> 00:22:36,621 as it is today. 511 00:22:36,623 --> 00:22:38,823 What Roosevelt didn't know is that the changes 512 00:22:38,825 --> 00:22:42,427 he made would also help doom the old house. 513 00:22:52,512 --> 00:22:55,446 WILDMAN: I'm chasing the incredible evolution 514 00:22:55,448 --> 00:22:56,781 of the White House, 515 00:22:56,783 --> 00:22:59,217 and I've arrived at a crossroads. 516 00:23:01,321 --> 00:23:03,588 In 1902, Theodore Roosevelt 517 00:23:03,590 --> 00:23:06,124 solved the White House's oldest problem 518 00:23:06,126 --> 00:23:09,060 and separated its public and private halves. 519 00:23:09,062 --> 00:23:11,463 But one of the changes he made would lead 520 00:23:11,465 --> 00:23:14,199 directly to the building's greatest crisis 521 00:23:14,201 --> 00:23:18,937 and indirectly to its deepest mystery. 522 00:23:18,939 --> 00:23:21,005 In the late 1940s, 523 00:23:21,007 --> 00:23:22,540 the United States was emerging 524 00:23:22,542 --> 00:23:25,743 from two decades of war and austerity. 525 00:23:25,745 --> 00:23:27,678 The economy was roaring. 526 00:23:27,680 --> 00:23:30,281 Millions of Americans were moving to the suburbs 527 00:23:30,283 --> 00:23:34,152 and buying brand-new homes. 528 00:23:34,154 --> 00:23:37,355 But at the White House, President Harry Truman 529 00:23:37,357 --> 00:23:41,425 was beginning to notice the building's age. 530 00:23:41,427 --> 00:23:45,297 In the summer of 1948, a piano leg suddenly burst 531 00:23:45,299 --> 00:23:48,033 through the ceiling into the family dining room. 532 00:23:48,035 --> 00:23:50,902 The upstairs floor had given way. 533 00:23:50,904 --> 00:23:53,170 Truman ordered a complete inspection. 534 00:23:53,172 --> 00:23:55,506 The results were dire. 535 00:23:55,508 --> 00:23:58,310 The White House was falling down. 536 00:24:00,380 --> 00:24:04,249 Sagging timbers and leaking pipes had been hastily patched 537 00:24:04,251 --> 00:24:08,453 and painted for a century and a half. 538 00:24:08,455 --> 00:24:09,921 But the real culprit 539 00:24:09,923 --> 00:24:13,525 was Theodore Roosevelt's 1902 renovation. 540 00:24:13,527 --> 00:24:15,927 Roosevelt expanded the State Dining Room 541 00:24:15,929 --> 00:24:17,128 to seat more guests, 542 00:24:17,130 --> 00:24:20,131 which required removing a load-bearing wall. 543 00:24:20,133 --> 00:24:23,134 The house's frame had been overstressed 544 00:24:23,136 --> 00:24:25,870 for nearly 50 years. 545 00:24:25,872 --> 00:24:27,805 The engineer's report warned 546 00:24:27,807 --> 00:24:30,475 that the White House was in danger of collapsing, 547 00:24:30,477 --> 00:24:34,145 claiming it was staying up by force of habit only. 548 00:24:34,147 --> 00:24:35,880 The easiest solution would be 549 00:24:35,882 --> 00:24:38,149 to knock down the old house and build a new one. 550 00:24:38,151 --> 00:24:41,152 Some even suggested moving to a new location 551 00:24:41,154 --> 00:24:42,820 outside the city. 552 00:24:42,822 --> 00:24:44,822 But Truman was having none of that. 553 00:24:44,824 --> 00:24:47,024 He insisted that the original White House 554 00:24:47,026 --> 00:24:50,094 be preserved in every possible way. 555 00:24:50,096 --> 00:24:53,364 The answer was an epic gut renovation. 556 00:24:53,366 --> 00:24:57,435 Doors, trim and paneling were carefully cataloged and removed. 557 00:24:57,437 --> 00:25:02,040 Then everything inside the stone walls was demolished. 558 00:25:02,042 --> 00:25:04,108 A new steel frame was built. 559 00:25:04,110 --> 00:25:06,177 And the old interior was re-created 560 00:25:06,179 --> 00:25:09,781 with a mix of original items and modern materials. 561 00:25:09,783 --> 00:25:12,450 But the renovation would also provide cover 562 00:25:12,452 --> 00:25:15,987 for a huge excavation project. 563 00:25:15,989 --> 00:25:18,423 So what's underneath the White House? 564 00:25:24,731 --> 00:25:27,332 This is the famous Off the Record Bar 565 00:25:27,334 --> 00:25:29,867 in the basement of the Hay-Adams Hotel. 566 00:25:29,869 --> 00:25:32,604 And on the other side of this wall, 567 00:25:32,606 --> 00:25:35,406 through about 1,000 feet of earth, 568 00:25:35,408 --> 00:25:37,242 is the White House subbasement. 569 00:25:41,481 --> 00:25:43,548 Truman took advantage of the renovation 570 00:25:43,550 --> 00:25:45,283 to add some square footage, 571 00:25:45,285 --> 00:25:48,019 mostly in a two-level subbasement 572 00:25:48,021 --> 00:25:50,288 beneath the original basement. 573 00:25:50,290 --> 00:25:52,990 These subbasements were mostly for utilities, 574 00:25:52,992 --> 00:25:54,292 service areas, and storage. 575 00:25:54,294 --> 00:25:56,927 But there might have been more to them than that. 576 00:25:56,929 --> 00:25:57,962 Check this out. 577 00:25:57,964 --> 00:26:00,431 This is a photo from the excavation 578 00:26:00,433 --> 00:26:02,300 inside the White House in 1950. 579 00:26:02,302 --> 00:26:05,970 And right away, you can see what a gut reno this really is. 580 00:26:05,972 --> 00:26:07,972 I mean, you could see the steel structure that's been 581 00:26:07,974 --> 00:26:09,841 added to support the floors. 582 00:26:09,843 --> 00:26:11,643 And you can also see, interestingly, 583 00:26:11,645 --> 00:26:14,111 the line of the original foundation 584 00:26:14,113 --> 00:26:15,780 that they are now digging beneath. 585 00:26:15,782 --> 00:26:17,115 Here, look at this. 586 00:26:17,117 --> 00:26:18,850 So this is the bulldozer, 587 00:26:18,852 --> 00:26:20,318 you can see, is digging deeper 588 00:26:20,320 --> 00:26:23,121 and deeper beneath that original foundation. 589 00:26:23,123 --> 00:26:24,388 So they are going down. 590 00:26:24,390 --> 00:26:27,125 So here's a shot from inside 591 00:26:27,127 --> 00:26:29,794 the new subbasement in late 1950. 592 00:26:29,796 --> 00:26:31,529 And you can see what appears to be 593 00:26:31,531 --> 00:26:33,464 a reinforced concrete tunnel 594 00:26:33,466 --> 00:26:36,267 being built deep beneath the house. 595 00:26:36,269 --> 00:26:39,804 And this is inside that tunnel in the construction process. 596 00:26:39,806 --> 00:26:41,339 And look at all the conduit 597 00:26:41,341 --> 00:26:43,341 that's run along the floor there. 598 00:26:43,343 --> 00:26:46,878 This last shot is inside the finished tunnel. 599 00:26:46,880 --> 00:26:48,947 I mean, this is heavy construction. 600 00:26:48,949 --> 00:26:50,948 Look at the thickness of this wall. 601 00:26:50,950 --> 00:26:53,284 I mean, this is all deep underground. 602 00:26:53,286 --> 00:26:55,820 So what's it for? 603 00:26:55,822 --> 00:26:57,088 Hard to say. 604 00:26:57,090 --> 00:26:58,756 What we do know is that 605 00:26:58,758 --> 00:27:01,960 FDR built a bomb shelter beneath the East Wing 606 00:27:01,962 --> 00:27:03,360 during World War II. 607 00:27:03,362 --> 00:27:04,562 It was never used. 608 00:27:04,564 --> 00:27:11,236 Our national policy is not directed toward war. 609 00:27:11,238 --> 00:27:14,839 WILDMAN: So could this hallway have been built by Truman 610 00:27:14,841 --> 00:27:16,974 to connect that shelter to the house? 611 00:27:16,976 --> 00:27:19,577 Or did he enlarge Roosevelt's shelter 612 00:27:19,579 --> 00:27:22,981 to create a larger bunker complex? 613 00:27:22,983 --> 00:27:24,916 Nobody knows for sure. 614 00:27:24,918 --> 00:27:30,187 These subbasements are not on the White House tour. 615 00:27:30,189 --> 00:27:31,522 We do know this. 616 00:27:31,524 --> 00:27:33,924 The Soviets detonated their first atom bomb 617 00:27:33,926 --> 00:27:36,027 while the White House was being rebuilt. 618 00:27:42,602 --> 00:27:44,068 If any of those underground spaces 619 00:27:44,070 --> 00:27:47,539 were meant to be bomb shelters, they were suddenly obsolete. 620 00:27:47,541 --> 00:27:49,874 To survive that kind of bomb, 621 00:27:49,876 --> 00:27:52,811 the President was gonna need a much bigger basement. 622 00:28:02,835 --> 00:28:05,568 WILDMAN: The White House at the dawn of the atomic age 623 00:28:05,570 --> 00:28:08,171 had come a long way from the open-door days 624 00:28:08,173 --> 00:28:09,973 of the Lincoln administration. 625 00:28:09,975 --> 00:28:12,375 Already, the house was evolving 626 00:28:12,377 --> 00:28:15,179 into the secure command center we know today. 627 00:28:15,181 --> 00:28:17,514 So how did the president prepare 628 00:28:17,516 --> 00:28:19,516 for the ultimate security threat... 629 00:28:22,520 --> 00:28:26,522 a nuclear attack on the White House? 630 00:28:26,524 --> 00:28:31,261 We know about FDR's World War II bomb shelter. 631 00:28:31,263 --> 00:28:33,263 And we have photos from 1950 632 00:28:33,265 --> 00:28:36,066 showing heavy underground construction. 633 00:28:36,068 --> 00:28:38,401 But it's unlikely that any of this could 634 00:28:38,403 --> 00:28:41,071 withstand a direct nuclear attack. 635 00:28:41,073 --> 00:28:44,474 So is it possible that there's another, secret bunker 636 00:28:44,476 --> 00:28:46,944 somewhere beneath the White House? 637 00:28:46,946 --> 00:28:50,546 In 2011, President Obama quietly kicked off 638 00:28:50,548 --> 00:28:53,750 a large excavation project under the West Wing. 639 00:28:53,752 --> 00:28:55,752 Officials claimed it was an update 640 00:28:55,754 --> 00:28:57,754 of the building's cooling system. 641 00:28:57,756 --> 00:29:01,090 Whatever it is, it's off-limits. 642 00:29:01,092 --> 00:29:05,428 But I know of a recently declassified top-secret location 643 00:29:05,430 --> 00:29:07,497 that can give us an insider's look 644 00:29:07,499 --> 00:29:11,367 at the ultimate Cold War contingency plan. 645 00:29:11,369 --> 00:29:13,703 I'm in White Sulfur Springs, West Virginia, 646 00:29:13,705 --> 00:29:16,439 about 200 miles southeast of Washington, 647 00:29:16,441 --> 00:29:19,643 heading to one of the grandest hotels in America. 648 00:29:19,645 --> 00:29:24,247 The Greenbrier is a sprawling 11,000-acre resort nestled 649 00:29:24,249 --> 00:29:27,517 in the Allegheny Mountains. 650 00:29:27,519 --> 00:29:30,787 The Greenbrier has a long connection to Washington. 651 00:29:30,789 --> 00:29:33,122 26 presidents have stayed here. 652 00:29:33,124 --> 00:29:34,391 And the army ran the place 653 00:29:34,393 --> 00:29:36,926 as a military hospital back in World War II. 654 00:29:36,928 --> 00:29:40,864 But I'm here for a whole different reason. 655 00:29:40,866 --> 00:29:45,202 In 1955, the Cold War was heating up. 656 00:29:45,204 --> 00:29:47,004 The United States and the Soviet Union 657 00:29:47,006 --> 00:29:50,207 had warheads aimed at each other's capitals. 658 00:29:50,209 --> 00:29:53,410 President Eisenhower issued an executive order 659 00:29:53,412 --> 00:29:55,545 outlining a plan for the federal government 660 00:29:55,547 --> 00:29:58,481 to survive a nuclear attack. 661 00:29:58,483 --> 00:30:01,885 The Greenbrier was an essential part of the plan. 662 00:30:01,887 --> 00:30:03,486 Beneath this hotel is one of the most 663 00:30:03,488 --> 00:30:06,356 top-secret locations of the Cold War, 664 00:30:06,358 --> 00:30:09,959 a giant fallout bunker hidden in plain sight. 665 00:30:09,961 --> 00:30:12,396 Check this out. 666 00:30:20,839 --> 00:30:24,508 The program was code named Project Greek Island. 667 00:30:24,510 --> 00:30:27,443 The government funded the construction of the bunker 668 00:30:27,445 --> 00:30:29,379 and built a new wing of the hotel 669 00:30:29,381 --> 00:30:31,581 on top to hide it. 670 00:30:31,583 --> 00:30:33,316 The whole complex was designed 671 00:30:33,318 --> 00:30:35,852 to blend seamlessly with the hotel. 672 00:30:35,854 --> 00:30:38,321 Guests were free to enter parts of the bunker 673 00:30:38,323 --> 00:30:42,793 completely unaware of its true purpose. 674 00:30:42,795 --> 00:30:45,796 The bunker had to be kept in a constant state of readiness. 675 00:30:45,798 --> 00:30:47,998 A group of government employees posed 676 00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:50,600 as TV repairmen for the hotel. 677 00:30:50,602 --> 00:30:52,469 And one of them has agreed to meet with me. 678 00:30:55,140 --> 00:30:56,606 Fritz? 679 00:30:56,608 --> 00:30:58,208 Fritz Bugas ran 680 00:30:58,210 --> 00:31:00,543 the undercover team here for 20 years. 681 00:31:00,545 --> 00:31:03,613 So this is the room that was really the center point 682 00:31:03,615 --> 00:31:06,282 of the whole cover story, yeah? 683 00:31:06,284 --> 00:31:07,550 In essence, yes. 684 00:31:07,552 --> 00:31:11,621 This was the Forsythe Television Repair Shop. 685 00:31:11,623 --> 00:31:15,292 But the repair shop was really a front, basically. 686 00:31:15,294 --> 00:31:20,230 That allowed us a reason to be here to start with 687 00:31:20,232 --> 00:31:23,366 so we could do our maintenance work 688 00:31:23,368 --> 00:31:24,567 in the back part of the bunker. 689 00:31:24,569 --> 00:31:26,169 Wow. So this is really 690 00:31:26,171 --> 00:31:30,974 the line between the overt and the covert, the bunker. 691 00:31:30,976 --> 00:31:32,041 That's correct. 692 00:31:32,043 --> 00:31:33,844 So how do you get to the covert? 693 00:31:33,846 --> 00:31:37,981 Don, if you'll turn around and go through this door here 694 00:31:37,983 --> 00:31:38,915 This one? 695 00:31:38,917 --> 00:31:40,984 That leads into a closet. 696 00:31:43,054 --> 00:31:47,390 Now, in this closet, we had electronic supplies, 697 00:31:47,392 --> 00:31:48,591 cable, et cetera, 698 00:31:48,593 --> 00:31:51,394 things necessary to repair the television. 699 00:31:51,396 --> 00:31:52,862 Okay. 700 00:31:52,864 --> 00:31:56,065 And if you turn around, there's a wall behind you. 701 00:31:56,067 --> 00:32:00,003 Now, if you lean or push against that wall... 702 00:32:00,005 --> 00:32:02,806 This is the entrance? 703 00:32:02,808 --> 00:32:04,808 Oh, that's so neat. 704 00:32:04,810 --> 00:32:06,743 That's cool. Wow. 705 00:32:06,745 --> 00:32:08,011 So this is the covert. 706 00:32:08,013 --> 00:32:10,947 This leads you further into the bunker, 707 00:32:10,949 --> 00:32:12,949 into the covert part 708 00:32:12,951 --> 00:32:14,551 Unbelievable. 709 00:32:14,553 --> 00:32:16,953 The Greenbrier bunker was built to house 710 00:32:16,955 --> 00:32:19,689 the entire legislative branch of government. 711 00:32:19,691 --> 00:32:21,324 That's 100 senators, 712 00:32:21,326 --> 00:32:25,562 435 members of the House, plus staff. 713 00:32:25,564 --> 00:32:29,365 The entire facility could sustain 1,100 people 714 00:32:29,367 --> 00:32:30,766 for up to 40 days. 715 00:32:30,768 --> 00:32:33,236 Look into the door on the right. You'll see the kitchen. 716 00:32:33,238 --> 00:32:35,572 The refrigeration was off to the left. 717 00:32:35,574 --> 00:32:36,640 And nobody knew this was here? 718 00:32:36,642 --> 00:32:38,041 And nobody knew that this was here. 719 00:32:38,043 --> 00:32:39,242 Crazy! 720 00:32:39,244 --> 00:32:40,844 The plan was for Congress 721 00:32:40,846 --> 00:32:43,647 to arrive by car, plane, and train. 722 00:32:43,649 --> 00:32:47,250 Three giant blast doors would seal them inside. 723 00:32:47,252 --> 00:32:51,455 Then the Greenbrier bunker would become the U.S. capital. 724 00:32:54,459 --> 00:32:58,328 There you go. 725 00:32:58,330 --> 00:33:00,597 So this is the Governor's Hall. 726 00:33:00,599 --> 00:33:03,132 I mean, it looks like a school auditorium. 727 00:33:03,134 --> 00:33:05,134 But there's enough seats in here 728 00:33:05,136 --> 00:33:09,872 for the whole House of Representatives, 435. 729 00:33:09,874 --> 00:33:13,476 Right next door is another meeting chamber for the Senate. 730 00:33:13,478 --> 00:33:16,079 The Greenbrier bunker was only intended 731 00:33:16,081 --> 00:33:18,814 for the legislative branch. 732 00:33:18,816 --> 00:33:21,818 So this is the bunker for the Congress, okay. 733 00:33:21,820 --> 00:33:23,487 There must be other bunkers as well, 734 00:33:23,489 --> 00:33:25,956 one for the president, I suppose. 735 00:33:25,958 --> 00:33:27,423 -I would assume so. -Okay. 736 00:33:27,425 --> 00:33:29,492 But it's part of a network of bunkers 737 00:33:29,494 --> 00:33:32,095 around the whole D.C. area. 738 00:33:32,097 --> 00:33:34,497 Well, you have the executive branch 739 00:33:34,499 --> 00:33:37,099 of government, I'm sure, has bunkers 740 00:33:37,101 --> 00:33:38,635 that are scattered around in D.C. 741 00:33:38,637 --> 00:33:40,704 Well, if anybody should know, it's you. 742 00:33:40,706 --> 00:33:42,772 I do know about the legislative branch, 743 00:33:42,774 --> 00:33:46,976 that it was designed and geared for their relocation. 744 00:33:46,978 --> 00:33:49,379 You're still keeping secrets, aren't you? 745 00:33:49,381 --> 00:33:51,047 No! No! 746 00:33:51,049 --> 00:33:52,382 Not really. 747 00:33:52,384 --> 00:33:53,649 But there's bunkers today 748 00:33:53,651 --> 00:33:57,053 equally prepared, because the threat is still there. 749 00:33:57,055 --> 00:33:58,855 -I would hope so. -Yeah. 750 00:33:58,857 --> 00:34:00,657 A vast complex. 751 00:34:00,659 --> 00:34:01,858 You mind if I take a look around? 752 00:34:01,860 --> 00:34:03,994 -Not at all. -Thank you, sir. 753 00:34:03,996 --> 00:34:05,928 Honor. 754 00:34:05,930 --> 00:34:07,197 It's easy to imagine 755 00:34:07,199 --> 00:34:08,531 that there are active bunkers 756 00:34:08,533 --> 00:34:10,800 for the president out there somewhere. 757 00:34:10,802 --> 00:34:14,671 The Greenbrier complex was declassified in 1992. 758 00:34:14,673 --> 00:34:17,406 But parts of it still seem ready for action. 759 00:34:17,408 --> 00:34:20,210 This would be the first stop for the lawmakers at the bunker, 760 00:34:20,212 --> 00:34:22,011 the decontamination showers. 761 00:34:22,013 --> 00:34:24,614 First, they had to strip off their clothes 762 00:34:24,616 --> 00:34:28,017 and toss them in here to be incinerated. 763 00:34:28,019 --> 00:34:30,886 Then they moved through this passageway. 764 00:34:30,888 --> 00:34:35,225 A series of high-pressure shower heads would wash off 765 00:34:35,227 --> 00:34:37,160 all the radioactive contaminants. 766 00:34:37,162 --> 00:34:40,896 They could process up to 120 people per hour 767 00:34:40,898 --> 00:34:42,231 in this place. 768 00:34:42,233 --> 00:34:45,635 Then they move through here 769 00:34:45,637 --> 00:34:48,972 and get their fresh clothes. 770 00:34:48,974 --> 00:34:50,373 And then they're free to move into 771 00:34:50,375 --> 00:34:52,308 the clean part of the facility. 772 00:34:52,310 --> 00:34:55,512 The bunker contains 153 rooms 773 00:34:55,514 --> 00:34:57,513 on two underground levels, 774 00:34:57,515 --> 00:35:01,317 112,000 square feet in all. 775 00:35:01,319 --> 00:35:03,853 It was designed to be a wholly contained, 776 00:35:03,855 --> 00:35:07,057 self-sufficient city. 777 00:35:07,059 --> 00:35:08,991 This was the TV studio, 778 00:35:08,993 --> 00:35:11,661 one of the most important rooms in the entire bunker. 779 00:35:11,663 --> 00:35:14,264 From here, officials could address the nation, 780 00:35:14,266 --> 00:35:16,132 two available backdrops -- 781 00:35:16,134 --> 00:35:18,935 the U.S. Capitol and, over here, 782 00:35:18,937 --> 00:35:22,338 the White House -- you know, to reassure Americans 783 00:35:22,340 --> 00:35:24,407 that everything's gonna be okay. 784 00:35:24,409 --> 00:35:26,743 See, this place was designed 785 00:35:26,745 --> 00:35:28,144 for the legislative branch. 786 00:35:28,146 --> 00:35:29,646 But the speaker of the House 787 00:35:29,648 --> 00:35:31,548 is the third in line for the presidency. 788 00:35:31,550 --> 00:35:34,817 So depending on what was going on out there, 789 00:35:34,819 --> 00:35:38,555 the Greenbrier could end up housing the president after all. 790 00:35:43,829 --> 00:35:46,496 The Greenbrier bunker was never used 791 00:35:46,498 --> 00:35:49,599 because nuclear doomsday never came. 792 00:35:54,573 --> 00:35:56,906 As the arms race heated up, 793 00:35:56,908 --> 00:36:00,176 cooler heads would have to talk us back from the brink. 794 00:36:02,647 --> 00:36:05,081 Easier said than done. 795 00:36:07,318 --> 00:36:08,351 Oh, that's neat. 796 00:36:17,746 --> 00:36:19,879 WILDMAN: I'm digging deep into the White House 797 00:36:19,881 --> 00:36:22,815 and have already uncovered some of the invisible walls 798 00:36:22,817 --> 00:36:25,351 that surround this fortress. 799 00:36:25,353 --> 00:36:26,885 But the modern-day White House 800 00:36:26,887 --> 00:36:29,155 must also be able to connect the president 801 00:36:29,157 --> 00:36:32,425 to any place on Earth at a minute's notice, 802 00:36:32,427 --> 00:36:34,494 a lesson we learned the hard way. 803 00:36:34,496 --> 00:36:37,764 In 1962, the Soviet Union and the United States 804 00:36:37,766 --> 00:36:39,832 were locked in a dangerous standoff. 805 00:36:39,834 --> 00:36:44,770 Both nations had stockpiled massive nuclear arsenals. 806 00:36:44,772 --> 00:36:46,973 If the enemy launched an attack, 807 00:36:46,975 --> 00:36:48,774 the hope was that enough warheads 808 00:36:48,776 --> 00:36:50,376 would survive the first wave 809 00:36:50,378 --> 00:36:52,912 that they could then launch an immediate counterattack. 810 00:36:52,914 --> 00:36:56,549 This strategy was called mutually assured destruction. 811 00:36:59,788 --> 00:37:03,189 In October 1962, American spy planes 812 00:37:03,191 --> 00:37:05,992 found Soviet ballistic missiles in Cuba, 813 00:37:05,994 --> 00:37:09,329 only 90 miles off Florida. 814 00:37:09,331 --> 00:37:11,931 President John F. Kennedy's advisors urged him 815 00:37:11,933 --> 00:37:13,933 to launch an air strike. 816 00:37:13,935 --> 00:37:15,335 He refused. 817 00:37:15,337 --> 00:37:18,604 Instead, Kennedy imposed a naval blockade 818 00:37:18,606 --> 00:37:21,006 while he tried to work out a peaceful solution 819 00:37:21,008 --> 00:37:24,210 with Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev. 820 00:37:24,212 --> 00:37:26,546 To halt this offensive buildup, 821 00:37:26,548 --> 00:37:28,814 a strict quarantine on all offensive 822 00:37:28,816 --> 00:37:31,550 military equipment under shipment to Cuba 823 00:37:31,552 --> 00:37:33,086 is being initiated. 824 00:37:33,088 --> 00:37:36,355 WILDMAN: Nobody knew how the Russians would respond. 825 00:37:36,357 --> 00:37:39,225 For 13 days, America held its breath 826 00:37:39,227 --> 00:37:42,028 at the brink of Armageddon. 827 00:37:42,030 --> 00:37:45,031 In the end, the Soviets removed the missiles. 828 00:37:45,033 --> 00:37:49,035 It's as close as we've ever come to full-scale nuclear war. 829 00:37:49,037 --> 00:37:51,704 The Cuban Missile Crisis was a wake-up call. 830 00:37:51,706 --> 00:37:54,040 Messages between Kennedy and Khrushchev 831 00:37:54,042 --> 00:37:55,842 would take more than six hours 832 00:37:55,844 --> 00:37:58,577 to deliver through regular diplomatic channels, 833 00:37:58,579 --> 00:38:00,713 way too long for the nuclear age. 834 00:38:00,715 --> 00:38:04,450 Kennedy knew that fast, direct communication was the key 835 00:38:04,452 --> 00:38:06,252 to avoiding a future crisis. 836 00:38:11,126 --> 00:38:12,724 The John F. Kennedy Library 837 00:38:12,726 --> 00:38:15,127 displays hundreds of real artifacts 838 00:38:15,129 --> 00:38:17,930 from JFK's presidency. 839 00:38:17,932 --> 00:38:22,334 But I'm more interested in something that isn't here. 840 00:38:22,336 --> 00:38:25,204 After the missile crisis, Kennedy and Khrushchev agreed 841 00:38:25,206 --> 00:38:28,407 to set up a Moscow-Washington hotline. 842 00:38:28,409 --> 00:38:30,877 The hotline enabled direct communication 843 00:38:30,879 --> 00:38:35,081 between the two superpowers for the first time. 844 00:38:35,083 --> 00:38:38,217 The red phone has become an icon of the Cold War, 845 00:38:38,219 --> 00:38:39,819 a symbol of the thin line 846 00:38:39,821 --> 00:38:43,423 between peace and mutually assured destruction. 847 00:38:43,425 --> 00:38:45,024 Only there's one problem -- 848 00:38:45,026 --> 00:38:48,494 The red phone never existed. 849 00:38:48,496 --> 00:38:51,897 This is a replica of the Oval Office desk 850 00:38:51,899 --> 00:38:54,367 during President Kennedy's time. 851 00:38:54,369 --> 00:38:57,136 And check it out -- no red phone. 852 00:39:00,641 --> 00:39:01,907 But come with me. 853 00:39:01,909 --> 00:39:06,779 See, the red phone is a total Hollywood creation, 854 00:39:06,781 --> 00:39:08,647 not the hotline itself. 855 00:39:08,649 --> 00:39:10,716 The hotline is real. 856 00:39:10,718 --> 00:39:13,252 I mean, right over here. 857 00:39:13,254 --> 00:39:17,657 That is the real Moscow-Washington hotline. 858 00:39:17,659 --> 00:39:20,726 And that is some serious stuff. 859 00:39:20,728 --> 00:39:22,661 The original hotline was a pair 860 00:39:22,663 --> 00:39:25,564 of electromechanical teletype machines 861 00:39:25,566 --> 00:39:29,067 connected by a 10,000-mile transatlantic cable. 862 00:39:29,069 --> 00:39:31,137 It became operational 10 months 863 00:39:31,139 --> 00:39:33,539 after the Cuban Missile Crisis ended. 864 00:39:35,876 --> 00:39:39,145 This was a major breakthrough in foreign relations. 865 00:39:39,147 --> 00:39:41,280 The hotline agreement marked the first time 866 00:39:41,282 --> 00:39:44,283 the U.S. and Soviet Union both took action 867 00:39:44,285 --> 00:39:46,552 to limit the risk of nuclear war. 868 00:39:46,554 --> 00:39:48,354 The hotline also strengthened 869 00:39:48,356 --> 00:39:51,357 the President's role in Cold War diplomacy. 870 00:39:51,359 --> 00:39:53,159 Now, thanks to technology, 871 00:39:53,161 --> 00:39:57,430 the White House could connect with the Kremlin directly. 872 00:39:57,432 --> 00:40:00,566 I want to learn a little more about the hotline. 873 00:40:00,568 --> 00:40:03,436 To find a teletype machine that still works, 874 00:40:03,438 --> 00:40:06,372 I'm heading to the Vintage Radio and Communications Museum 875 00:40:06,374 --> 00:40:07,273 of Connecticut. 876 00:40:09,777 --> 00:40:13,378 Oh, look at that. She's a beauty. 877 00:40:13,380 --> 00:40:14,780 That's the teletype machine. 878 00:40:14,782 --> 00:40:16,382 That is a teletype machine, yes. 879 00:40:16,384 --> 00:40:18,184 Founder John Ellsworth has offered 880 00:40:18,186 --> 00:40:21,520 to give me a quick lesson on Cold War communication. 881 00:40:21,522 --> 00:40:24,257 Explain to me the technology behind this -- teletype. 882 00:40:24,259 --> 00:40:25,591 -How does that work? -What it does 883 00:40:25,593 --> 00:40:27,527 is it sends typewritten information 884 00:40:27,529 --> 00:40:30,263 over a wire from point "A" to point "B." 885 00:40:30,265 --> 00:40:32,331 -So does this turn on? -Yes. 886 00:40:32,333 --> 00:40:34,266 A little switch down here. 887 00:40:34,268 --> 00:40:37,469 Oh, that's neat. How beautiful. 888 00:40:37,471 --> 00:40:39,338 I happen to know that the original message 889 00:40:39,340 --> 00:40:42,541 that was sent on that Moscow-Washington line was, 890 00:40:42,543 --> 00:40:46,879 "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog's back," 891 00:40:46,881 --> 00:40:49,414 a message that basically tests every single key. 892 00:40:49,416 --> 00:40:50,683 Every single key, yeah. 893 00:40:50,685 --> 00:40:52,017 -And then the numbers. -And then the numbers. 894 00:40:52,019 --> 00:40:53,419 So I'm gonna type that right now. 895 00:40:53,421 --> 00:40:55,288 So it's the early 1960s. 896 00:40:55,290 --> 00:40:58,357 And here goes the first one. 897 00:40:58,359 --> 00:40:59,691 There she goes. 898 00:40:59,693 --> 00:41:01,560 It's a nice feeling. It's got good action. 899 00:41:01,562 --> 00:41:05,030 Yeah. 900 00:41:05,032 --> 00:41:08,300 I feel like I'm in high school typing class. 901 00:41:08,302 --> 00:41:11,970 One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, zero. 902 00:41:11,972 --> 00:41:13,505 -Beautiful. -There it is. 903 00:41:13,507 --> 00:41:16,375 There's the text. I have typed in D.C. 904 00:41:19,046 --> 00:41:20,245 There she goes. 905 00:41:20,247 --> 00:41:22,782 Here comes the all-important top-secret message. 906 00:41:22,784 --> 00:41:24,316 Okay. 907 00:41:24,318 --> 00:41:26,852 The quick brown fox jumped over the... 908 00:41:26,854 --> 00:41:31,724 You know, that's very satisfying. 909 00:41:31,726 --> 00:41:32,791 Look at that. 910 00:41:32,793 --> 00:41:35,795 So this line of text I typed in D.C. 911 00:41:35,797 --> 00:41:39,799 gets transmitted and read in Moscow. 912 00:41:39,801 --> 00:41:43,402 This is nuclear war avoided. 913 00:41:43,404 --> 00:41:45,738 Cool. 914 00:41:45,740 --> 00:41:48,607 The White House has seen incredible changes 915 00:41:48,609 --> 00:41:50,942 in its 200-plus-year history, 916 00:41:50,944 --> 00:41:56,749 from simple stone house to state-of-the-art fortress, 917 00:41:56,751 --> 00:41:59,351 from Roosevelt's renovation 918 00:41:59,353 --> 00:42:02,554 to Kennedy's Cold War command center, 919 00:42:02,556 --> 00:42:06,358 and from analog to digital. 920 00:42:06,360 --> 00:42:09,095 The White House has been and will always be 921 00:42:09,097 --> 00:42:12,631 an enduring emblem of freedom and democracy 922 00:42:12,633 --> 00:42:16,002 and the most important home office in the world. 923 00:42:18,439 --> 00:42:19,372 I'm Don Wildman. 924 00:42:19,374 --> 00:42:20,506 Thanks for watching 925 00:42:20,508 --> 00:42:23,009 "Mysteries at the Museum: The White House." 925 00:42:24,305 --> 00:43:24,167