The United States Secret Service uses code names for U.S. presidents, first ladies, and other prominent persons and locations.[1] The use of such names was originally for security purposes and dates to a time when sensitive electronic communications were not routinely encrypted; today, the names simply serve for purposes of brevity, clarity, and tradition.[2][3] The Secret Service does not choose these names, however. The White House Communications Agency assigns these names.[4] WHCA was originally created as the White House Signal Detachment under Franklin Roosevelt.
The WHCA, an agency of the White House Military Office, is headquartered at Anacostia Navy Yard and consists of six staff elements and seven organizational units. WHCA also has supporting detachments in Washington, D.C. and various locations throughout the United States of America.
According to established protocol, 'good' codewords are unambiguous words that can be easily pronounced and readily understood by those who transmit and receive voice messages by radio or telephone regardless of their native language. Traditionally, all family members' code names start with the same letter.[5]
The codenames change over time for security purposes, but are often publicly known. For security, codenames are generally picked from a list of such 'good' words, but avoiding the use of common words which could likely be intended to mean their normal definitions.
General codenames
- POTUS - President of the United States
- FLOTUS - First Lady of the United States
- VPOTUS - Vice President of the United States
Presidents of the United States and their families
- Harry S. Truman - General[4]
- Dwight Eisenhower - Scorecard[1] or Providence[6]
- Mamie Eisenhower - Springtime[6]
- John F. Kennedy - Lancer[6]
- Jacqueline Kennedy - Lace[6][7]
- Caroline Kennedy - Lyric[6]
- John F. Kennedy, Jr. - Lark[8]
- Rose Kennedy - Coppertone[9]
- Lyndon Johnson - Volunteer[6]
- Lady Bird Johnson - Victoria[6]
- Lynda Bird Johnson - Velvet[6]
- Luci Baines Johnson - Venus[6]
- Richard Nixon - Searchlight[6]
- Gerald Ford - Pass Key[6]
- Betty Ford - Pinafore[6]
- Susan Ford - Panda[6]
- Michael Ford - Professor[6]
- Jack Ford - Packman[6]
- Jimmy Carter - Deacon[6]
- Rosalynn Carter - Dancer[6]
- Amy Carter - Dynamo[6]
- Chip Carter - Diamond[9]
- Jack Carter - Derby[9]
- Jeff Carter - Deckhand[9]
- Ronald Reagan - Rawhide[6][10]
- Nancy Reagan - Rainbow[6]
- Maureen Reagan - Rhyme, Rosebud[11]
- Michael Reagan - Riddler[11]
- Patti Davis - Ribbon[6]
- Ron Reagan - Reliant[6]
- Doria Reagan - Radiant[6]
- George H. W. Bush - Timberwolf[6]
- Barbara Bush - Snowbank[12] or Tranquility[6]
- Marvin Bush - Tuner[9]
- Neil Bush - Trapline[9]
- Jeb Bush - Tripper[9]
- Bill Clinton - Eagle[6]
- Hillary Rodham Clinton - Evergreen[6]
- Chelsea Clinton - Energy[6]
- George W. Bush - Tumbler[13] or Trailblazer[6][10]
- Laura Bush - Tempo[6][10]
- Barbara Bush - Turquoise[14]
- Jenna Bush - Twinkle[9]
- Barack Obama - Renegade[10][15]
- Michelle Obama - Renaissance[10][16]
- Malia Obama - Radiance[4][10]
- Sasha Obama - Rosebud[4][10]
Vice Presidents of the United States and their families
- Nelson Rockefeller - Sandstorm[9][17]
- Happy Rockefeller - Shooting Star or Stardust[17]
- Walter Mondale - Cavalier or Dragon[9]
- Joan Mondale - Cameo[9]
- Eleanor Mondale - Calico[9]
- Ted Mondale - Centurion[9]
- Dan Quayle - Scorecard or Supervisor[9]
- Marilyn Quayle - Sunshine[9]
- Al Gore - Sundance[9][15]
- Karenna Gore - Smurfette[10][18]
- Dick Cheney - Angler[9]
- Lynne Cheney - Author[19]
- Joe Biden - Celtic[20]
- Jill Biden - Capri[21]
Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates and their spouses
- Eugene McCarthy - Instructor[9]
- John B. Anderson - Miracle, Starburst or Stardust[9]
- Keke Anderson — Scarlet [9]
- Phil Crane - Swordfish[9]
- Ted Kennedy - Sunburn[9][22]
- Gary Hart - Redwood[9]
- Jesse Jackson - Pontiac or Thunder[9]
- John Kerry - Minuteman[15][23]
- Teresa Heinz Kerry- Mahogany[23]
- Hillary Rodham Clinton - Evergreen[6]
- Bill Clinton - Eagle [6]
- John McCain - Phoenix[24]
- Cindy McCain - Parasol[24]
- Sarah Palin - Denali[25]
- Todd Palin - Driller[25]
Government officials
- Henry Kissinger - Woodcutter[26]
- James Baker - Fencing Master or Foxtail[9]
- Zbigniew Brzeziński - Hawkeye[9]
- John Ehrlichman - Wisdom[9]
- Ron Ziegler - Whale Boat[9]
- H. R. Haldeman - Welcome[9]
- Ron Nessen - Clam Chowder[9]
- Rose Mary Woods - Strawberry[9]
- Scott McClellan - Matrix (generic name for White House Press Secretary)[27]
- Andy Card - Patriot [28]
- Josh Bolten - Fatboy [28]
- Rahm Emanuel - Black Hawk[29]
Congressional officials
- Strom Thurmond - Footprint[9]
- Howard Baker - Snapshot[9]
Other individuals
- Queen Elizabeth II - Kittyhawk[17]
- Prince Charles - Unicorn[17]
- Frank Sinatra - Napoleon[30]
- Pope John Paul II - Halo[10]
Locations and others
- Andrews Air Force Base - Acrobat or Andy [31]
- The Presidential Motorcade - Bamboo[31]
- The Harry S Truman Building (Department of State headquarters) - Birds-eye[31]
- Camp David - Cactus[31] or Buckeye
- The Vice President's office - Cobweb[31]
- The Vice President's staff - Pacemaker[31]
- The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York City - Roadhouse[31]
- Air Force One - Angel or Cowpuncher[31]
- The President's Limo - Stagecoach[17]
- Follow-up car - Halfback[17]
- The White House - Castle (Crown referring to the Executive Mansion, the central representative and office spaces of the White House) [32]
- The Capitol - Punchbowl[citation needed]
- The White House Situation Room - Cement Mixer[citation needed]
- Old Executive Office Building (part of the White House Complex) - Central[33]
- Washington Dulles International Airport - Curbside[citation needed]
- The temporary residence of the President - Charcoal or Base [33]
- The Pentagon - Calico [33]
- White House garage - Carpet [33]
- J. Edgar Hoover Building (FBI Headquarters) - Cork [33]
- Lyndon Baines Johnson's ranch - Volcano [33]
Fictional
The practice of assigning codenames has often been extended into fictional works about the President or other high-ranking figures.
- "24"
- Wayne Palmer – Citadel
- The American President
- Andrew Shepherd - Liberty[34]
- Chasing Liberty
- First Daughter Anna Foster - Liberty.[35]
- First Daughter
- Samantha Mackenzie - Lucky Charm[36]
- First Kid
- In the Line of Fire
- The President - Traveler[38]
- Jericho
- President Jon Tomarchio - Condor[39]
- The Sentinel (2006 film)
- Tom Clancy's novels
- President Roger Durling - Jumper - Debt of Honor
- Unnamed President in Clear and Present Danger - Wrangler[41]
- President in Tom Clancy's Endwar - American Eagle
- Jack Ryan - Swordsman - Debt of Honor, Executive Orders[42]
- Dr. Caroline "Cathy" Ryan - Surgeon - Executive Orders[43]
- Olivia "Sally" Ryan - Shadow Executive Orders[43]
- Jack Ryan, Jr - Shortstop - Executive Orders[43]
- Katie Ryan - Sandbox - Executive Orders[43]
- George Winston, Secretary of the Treasury - Trader - Executive Orders[44]
- Arnold Van Dam (White House Chief of Staff) - Carpenter - Executive Orders, The Bear and the Dragon[45]
- Callie Weston (Chief Speechwriter) - Calliope - Executive Orders, The Bear and the Dragon[45]
- Scott Adler (Secretary of State) - Eagle - Executive Orders, The Bear and the Dragon[46]
- Benjamin Goodley (National Security Advisor) - Cardsharp - Executive Orders[47]
- The West Wing
- President Jed Bartlet - Eagle[48] or Liberty[49]
- Zoey Bartlet - Bookbag[50]
- C. J. Cregg - Flamingo[51]
- Sam Seaborn - Princeton[51]
- The Prodigal Daughter
- President Florentyna Kane - Baroness[52]
- Vantage Point
- Henry Ashton - Eagle
References
- ^ a b "Junior Secret Service Program: Assignment 7. Code Names". National Park Service. http://www.nps.gov/archive/eise/secret16.htm. Retrieved 2007-08-18.
- ^ "[http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/16/earlyshow/main4452073.shtml?source=RSSattr=Politics_4452073 Candidate Code Names Secret Service Monikers Used On The Campaign Trail]". CBS. 2008-09-16. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/16/earlyshow/main4452073.shtml?source=RSSattr=Politics_4452073.
- ^ "OBAMA'S SECRET SERVICE CODE NAME REVEALED". Eurweb. 2008-09-16. http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur48530.cfm.
- ^ a b c d "'Renegade' joins 'Twinkle,' 'Rawhide,' 'Lancer' on list of Secret Service code names". Chicago Tribune. 2008-11-10. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-secret-service-code-names-obama,0,2687400.story.
- ^ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1085316/Obama-chooses-Renegade-Secret-Service-code-Bush-gets-Trailblazer.html
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag Walsh, Kenneth T. (2003). "Appendix". Air Force One: A History of the Presidents and Their Planes. Hyperion. pp. 227. ISBN 1401300049.
- ^ Taraborrelli, Randy J. (2000). Jackie, Ethel, Joan: The Women of Camelot. Warner Books. pp. 15. ISBN 0446524263. http://books.google.com/books?id=hs-cRaEA2xkC. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
- ^ "JFK Jr.: As Child and Man, America's Crown Prince". Washington Post. 1999-07-18. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/jfkjr/stories/icon071899.htm.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag "NNDB List of Secret Service Codenames" (HTML language=English). http://www.nndb.com/lists/050/000140627/. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "'Secret' Obama code name revealed". BBC. Thursday, 13 November 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/us_elections_2008/7726453.stm.
- ^ a b Reagan, Maureen. First Father, First Daughter. Little, Brown and Company. pp. 329. ISBN 0316736368.
- ^ Sawler, Harvey. Saving Mrs. Kennedy. General Store Publishing House. pp. 73. ISBN 1897113102.
- ^ "Obama becomes ‘Renegade’ on U.S. secret service list". Moscow News №45 2008 (Moscow News). http://mnweekly.ru/world/20081114/55356806.html. Retrieved 2008-11-14.
- ^ Woodward, Bob (2002). Bush at War: Inside the Bush White House. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9780743204736.
- ^ a b c "'Renegade' Joins Race For White House: Obama Is Given Code Name by Secret Service". Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/16/AR2007061601079.html?hpid=topnews. Retrieved 2007-06-16.
- ^ "Bloomberg Politics". http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601070&sid=ajoVQoPnNSq0&refer=home. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
- ^ a b c d e f Petro, Joseph; Jeffrey Robinson (2005). Standing Next to History: An Agent's Life Inside the Secret Service. Macmillan. pp. 52. ISBN 0312332211.
- ^ "Part 3 - By Karenna Gore". Slate. 1997-01-21. http://www.slate.com/id/3803/entry/24342/. Retrieved 11 November 2008.
- ^ "Al Gore's Secret Service code name is ... shhh!". Chicago Tribune. 13 November 2008. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/sns-ap-renegade-and-renaissance-jokes,0,6555267.story. Retrieved 15 November 2008.
- ^ "- guardian.co.uk". http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/deadlineusa/2008/sep/12/sarahpalin.uselections2008. Retrieved 2008-09-14.
- ^ Candidate Code Names: Secret Service Monikers Used On The Campaign Trail
- ^ Top 10 Secret Service Code Names
- ^ a b "CNN Transcript, Aired July 29, 2004 - 14:33 ET". http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0407/29/lol.02.html. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
- ^ a b "- washingtonpost.com". http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/10/AR2008051002721.html. Retrieved 2008-05-22.
- ^ a b "- washingtonpost.com". http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/09/10/palin_code_name_denali.html. Retrieved 2008-09-14.
- ^ Isaacson, Walter (1992). Kissinger: A Biography. Simon and Schuster. pp. 314. ISBN 0743286979.
- ^ McClellan, Scott (2008). What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception. Public Affairs. ISBN 978-1586485566.
- ^ a b [1]
- ^ The Atlantic - Revealed: Rahm Emanuel's Secret Service Code Name
- ^ Loizeau, Pierre-Marie (2004). Nancy Reagan: The Woman Behind the Man. Nova Publishers,. pp. 91. ISBN 159033759X.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Williams, Stephen P. (2004). How to be President. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN 0-8118-4316-5.
- ^ William Manchester, The Death of a President, 1967 - 'vocabulary' pages
- ^ a b c d e f Manchester, William (1967). The Death of a President.
- ^ The American President script
- ^ Andy Cadiff (director). (2004). Chasing Liberty. [Film/DVD]. Los Angeles, USA: Warner Brothers.
- ^ First Daughter - Memorable Quotes
- ^ a b First Kid review
- ^ In the Line of Fire script
- ^ List_of_jericho_episodes#Season_2
- ^ a b Gillespie, Eleanor Ringel. "The Sentinel". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, Georgia: Cox Newspapers). http://www.accessatlanta.com/movies/content/shared/movies/reviews/S/thesentinel/ajc.html. Retrieved 2008-07-04.
- ^ Clancy, Thomas (1990) [1989]. "12. The Curtain on SHOWBOAT". Clear and Present Danger (Large Print ed.). Thorndike, Maine: Thorndike Press. pp. multiple, incl. p. 391. ISBN 0-89621-930-5.
- ^ Clancy, Thomas (1996). Executive Orders. Putnam. pp. multiple. ISBN 0-399-14218-5.
- ^ a b c d Clancy, Thomas (1996). Executive Orders. Putnam. pp. 212. ISBN 0-399-14218-5.
- ^ Clancy, Thomas (1996). Executive Orders. Putnam. pp. 557. ISBN 0-399-14218-5.
- ^ a b Clancy, Thomas (1996). Executive Orders. Putnam. pp. 482. ISBN 0-399-14218-5.
- ^ Clancy, Thomas (1996). Executive Orders. Putnam. pp. 131. ISBN 0-399-14218-5.
- ^ Clancy, Thomas (1996). Executive Orders. Putnam. pp. 527. ISBN 0-399-14218-5.
- ^ "The West Wing Transcripts - Episode 102". http://www.westwingtranscripts.com/search.php?flag=getTranscript&id=2. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
- ^ ""The West Wing Transcripts - Episode 112". http://www.westwingtranscripts.com/search.php?flag=getTranscript&id=12. Retrieved 2008-11-09.
- ^ "The West Wing Transcripts - Episode 509". http://www.westwingtranscripts.com/search.php?flag=getTranscript&id=99. Retrieved 2007-05-15.
- ^ a b "The West Wing Transcripts - Episode 110". http://www.westwingtranscripts.com/search.php?flag=getTranscript&id=10. Retrieved 2009-01-21.
- ^ Archer, Jeffrey (1982). The Prodigal Daughter. St. Martin's Paperbacks. pp. 496. ISBN 978-0312997144.
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