Why a mysterious black briefcase follows the US president everywhere?

Why a mysterious black briefcase follows the US president everywhere

Amanda Macias

Feb. 11, 2015, 4:42 PM
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nuclear footballJamie Chung/Smithsonian InstituteA retired "Football" displayed at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

The so-called nuclear "Football" is a black leather briefcase that contains top-secret items capable of allowing the US president to authorize a nuclear attack while away from fixed command centers such as the Situation Room in the White House.

Officially referred to as the "president's emergency satchel," the unsophisticated-looking portable Football is hand-carried by one of five military aides and is always within reach of the commander in chief, just in case.

According to Bill Gulley, a former director of the White House Military Office, the ubiquitous Football does not contain a doomsday red-button keypad but rather these four items:

a 75-page black book of retaliatory nuclear-strike options printed in black and red ink
another black book with a list of classified sites to shelter the president
a manila folder containing 10 pages of instructions on how to operate the Emergency Broadcast System
an index card with authentication codes

Sometimes an antenna can be seen poking out of the briefcase, which suggests that there may be communications equipment inside.

football with antennaGetty/Amanda Macias/Business Insider A member of the US military carries the Football, the case in his left hand, as he walks behind President George W. Bush toward Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House, August 2, 2005.

The nickname Football comes from "Dropkick," a code name given to a secret nuclear-war plan, according to former US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. Initiating a Dropkick would require one of these Footballs, Smithsonian Magazine explains.

The military aides selected to carry the briefcase are trained to administer the president for a nuclear attack in minutes.

"You're always kind of on edge," recalls then-Air Force Major Robert Patterson, who toted the Football for President Clinton.

"I opened it up constantly just to refresh myself, to always be aware of what was in it, all the potential decisions the president could possibly make," Patterson told the Associated Press.

nuclear footballCliff Owen/APA military aide carries the Football, a leather briefcase stocked with the classified nuclear-war plans, in his right hand as he walks up the stairs of Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, in Maryland on Wednesday, April 7, 2010.

The ubiquitous Football is always in the same airplane, helicopter, car, and elevator alongside the president. When the president is at home, the Football is stored in a secure location inside the White House, the AP reports.

According to Patterson, some aides chased after Clinton while he jogged around the White House compound — all the while lugging the 45-pound briefcase.

The lethal luggage first appeared during Kennedy's administration, shortly after the Cuban missile crisis in 1962. It became immediately clear to top national security officers that the president needed unlimited access to nuclear war plans after he reportedly posed the following questions during a National Security Council meeting:

kennedy nuclear footballA Constructed Peace: The Making of the European Settlement/Marc Trachtenberg

Fifty-three years later, the regularly updated Football represents the incredible military might and tremendous responsibility that