What the White House tapes really show.

• Author: Cottle, Michael
• Position: White House Communications Agency and tapes of White House coffees with supporters - Includes related article on President's knowledge of goings-on within White House

Once upon a time there was a tiny organization within the United States War Department known as the White House Signal Detachment. Created in December 1941 by President Franklin Roosevelt, the White House Signal Detachment wasn't even a real agency for the first three months of its life. Rather, it was an unofficial collection of 32 members of the U.S. Army whose low-profile mission was to provide secure lines of communication for the president during World War II. Officially activated in March 1942, WHSD has since undergone two name changes and a couple of shifts in oversight. Today, the White House Communications Agency (WHCA), as it has been known since 1962, is a "joint service agency" staffed by all branches of the armed forces, as well as a handful of civilians.

As is the case with the entire executive branch over the past five decades, the White House Communications Agency -- dubbed "Wocka" by White House aides and the press corps -- has grown in both mission and size. By 1978, WHCA's stated duty had become "to provide telecommunications and other related support to the president of the United States and to other elements related to the president." Sounds relatively straightforward. Upon closer examination, however, one learns that those "related" elements include services for "the vice president, the National Security Council, the president's staff, the First Family, the Secret Service, and others as directed." Today, this mandate entails, among other things: toting the presidential seal, American flags, and bulletproof podium around the country for the president's public appearances; manning the switchboards at the White House; developing and printing photos of the president and first lady; providing stenographic services for the White House press secretary; videotaping key events of the presidency for the National Archives; and, of course, ensuring that, wherever he goes and whenever he gets there, the leader of the United States of America has "dependable means by which to communicate instantly with individuals anywhere in the world at any moment"

As one might expect, such an increase in responsibilities has required a comparable increase in staff. During the Bush years, the agency hit a personnel peak of 1,017 Since 1991, this number has gradually declined, and today WHCA employs a mere 854 personnel. In 1996, its budget topped $120 million, all of which came out of the Defense Department's coffers.

Although staffed and funded through the Pentagon's Defense Information Systems Agency, WHCA takes its marching orders from the White House, under the auspices of the White House Military Office. (Stay with me here, these layers of command will be important later on) Downsizing notwithstanding, WHCA remains the single largest agency overseen by the Executive Office of the President. The Office of Management and Budget, commonly thought to be the largest, runs a pale second with 520 employees.

Despite WHCA's considerable bulk, however, this 800-pound gorilla has operated with little attention from either its Defense Department or White House masters. (Which helps explain why no one really knows when the White House assigned WHCA all those "other related" duties mentioned in the agency's 1978 mission statement.) The agency's basic tasks have been reviewed only three times since its inception, and it escaped formal audit until a defense department review two years ago. The November 1995 report on phase one of the audit cited "no evidence of significant theft or significant waste" in WHCA, but noted several areas in need of "management attention" Among these: WHCA was annually performing $7.8 million worth of tasks beyond the scope of its mission; it was unable to account for more than half a million dollars worth of agency property; and it was paying close to $800,000 to lease superfluous equipment. The April 1996 phase-two report concluded that WHCA was receiving "little or no oversight of budgeting, acquisition planning, and organizational effectiveness," recommended that the DoD's oversight role be strengthened. The following...