White House Situation Room

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The White House Situation Room, run by the National Security Council staff, is in the basement of the West Wing of the White House. The President of the United States and his advisors use it to monitor and deal with crises at home and abroad. The Situation Room is equipped with secure, advanced communications equipment for the President to maintain command and control of U.S. forces around the world. It should not be confused with the Presidential Emergency Operations Center which is situated under the East Wing.

The Situation Room was created in 1962 by President Kennedy after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion was attributed to a lack of real-time information. The room has secure communications systems built into it and the walls contain wood panels that hide different audio, video and other systems. The room also has three different digital clocks that display the time in Washington, D.C. and two other geographic locations, often the sites of sensitive current political or other types of events.

The Situation Room is staffed by a number of senior officers from various agencies in the Intelligence Community and senior military officers. These individuals stand watch on a 24-hour basis, constantly monitoring world events and keeping senior White House staff apprised of significant events.

In fiction, a larger and much more high-tech White House Situation Room figures prominently; most notably on the television show The West Wing.