Key Question
Cidu Bill on Jan 20th 2009
It is being said, metaphorically, that George Bush turns over the keys to the White House to Barack Obama today. Which got me to wondering… Does anybody know offhand whether the White House door actually has a key? I have this mental image of Bill Clinton slipping out some night to hit McDonald’s, locking the door behind him.
I’m sure there’s always Secret Service agents standing guard at every entrance, but can the front door be locked if necessary?
Filed in Barack Obama, Bill Bickel, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, White House | 22 responses so far
Paul Jan 20th 2009 at 02:56 am 1
I imagine it makes it easier to guard a door when you can lock it. I mean, someone could just run in fast through an unlocked door, but a locked door stops them long enough for someone to get right in their face.
Brent Jan 20th 2009 at 04:09 am 2
A little searching revealed this article:
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/08/jennalynn-a-12-.html
Mark Jan 20th 2009 at 04:23 am 3
I know that Number 10, Downing Street (the UK’s equivalent) doesn’t have a key, it doesn’t even have a door handle on the outside.
Someone is always inside, and opens the door just as someone reaches it.
If that was my job, I’d probably be fired within minutes for opening it too late, and watching Gordon Brown face-plant into it, like those old Star Trek outtakes…
Mark
Suzii Jan 20th 2009 at 05:12 am 4
I think it was Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me where I heard a story of some president (Ford?) taking the dog out for a late-night walk, having the housekeeper lock up while they were out, and having to find a guard to get himself back in.
Ooten Aboot Jan 20th 2009 at 07:47 am 5
Mark, wouldn’t Buckingham palace be the UK’s equivalent of the White House? It’s the official residence of the head of state. Number 10 Downing Street shelters a mere prime minister, and he only gets a house because he’s also First Lord of the Treasury.
According to this:
http://flickr.com/photos/ajturner/815256487/
the palace has a lock on the gate that doesn’t look too difficult to pick.
Powers Jan 20th 2009 at 08:00 am 6
The White House is also the official residence of the head of government, Ooten, so one would still expect similar security levels.
Miss Appropriate Jan 20th 2009 at 09:21 am 7
Of course the White House doors have locks, which may or may not be keyed. It’s a better question as to whether the President is actually given a set of keys.
Matthew Jan 20th 2009 at 09:33 am 8
Speculating about whether the president carries any keys is like speculating about what Queen Elizabeth II carries in her purse. Bette Midler thought that it might simply contain a card that said, “I AM THE QUEEN!!!”
The White House doors do, indeed, lock, but I suspect that being president means no longer carrying any keys. Someone else does the driving. Someone else locks & unlocks the doors. After all, if the Senate can retain its elevator operator although the elevator has, for a long time, been an automatic push-button one, then why would the president carry any keys?
I recall a story—at least twenty years old—about how Henry Kissinger (no longer in government, but still a very well-paid player) didn’t know his address. When his limousine stopped, he got out & walked inside. He never needed to know the house number.
Morris Keesan Jan 20th 2009 at 10:06 am 9
… and is it true that the main L.L.Bean store in Freeport has no locks on the doors? It’s open 24 hours a day, every day; rumor has it that the last time the store closed was in 1967, for L.L.’s funeral.
Morris Keesan Jan 20th 2009 at 10:23 am 10
Brent, that article doesn’t address the question of whether the exterior doors to the White House have keys. It just says that Medeco locks are used “at the White House”. Besides being a residence, the White House is also a large workplace, with lots of employees with (I assume) different levels of security clearances, some of whom would be authorized to access areas that others aren’t. Once you’re past the guards and inside the building, it’s a lot more economical to have locks on some doors than to have guards all over the place.
Mark in Boston Jan 20th 2009 at 12:11 pm 11
Is it true that there’s a big sign on the White House door that says “This door to remain unlocked during business hours”?
Frank Jan 20th 2009 at 03:37 pm 12
The Clintonistas took the “W”s from the keyboards,. Did the Bushies take the keys?
mrkenneth Jan 20th 2009 at 04:42 pm 13
Secret Service boys are ARMED. You don’t need no stinking keys,if you are approaching any door unannounced, you have bigger problems than not having a key. Remember Monica had to stop at the guard gates.
Larry Jan 20th 2009 at 06:55 pm 14
I remember the Denny’s restaurant chain decided to close on Christmas Day in 1983 for the first time ever. It was soon discovered that a huge percentage of the restaurants did not have a lockable front door, so many had to remain open as the cost to refurbish the doors was high $$ and not enough time to do it.
Brent Jan 20th 2009 at 07:59 pm 15
mrkenneth, It doesn’t matter if they’re armed… having armed guards didn’t stop the British from ransacking the White House during the War of 1812. For security you really need to be able to lock down the building… it buys more time[*] to assess and deal with threats.
[*] All locks and cryptology can really do is buy you time. Anything that can be opened can be circumvented with enough time and effort.
Try this link for evidence for a White House key:
http://www.mrlincolnswhitehouse.org/inside.asp?ID=14&subjectID=2
(scroll down to the story of Edward Moran, the front door man, giving Lincoln his key)
David N Jan 20th 2009 at 11:49 pm 16
C’mon, everyone knows the key to the front door is under the 3rd planter to the right side of the WH main entrance. It’s a secret passed down from President to President.
Whether there’s an actual doorbell, that’s what I wonder.
CIDU Bill Jan 20th 2009 at 11:53 pm 17
Okay, now I have this mental image of Osama bin Laden ringing the doorbell and calling out “Candygram!”
Jack Jan 21st 2009 at 09:36 am 18
My guess is that an intruder would be so tore to pieces and have so many bullets in him by the time he got to the front door that he wouldn’t have the strength left to open it.
Jeff S. Jan 21st 2009 at 11:17 am 19
Of course there’s a key. It’s attached to a log, like at the local Stuckey’s.
The Ploughman Jan 21st 2009 at 02:55 pm 20
The keys to the Whitehouse strike me as similar to the President’s salary. It’s relatively high, though certainly not as high as richest executives in America. But does he ever use it during his time in office? I can’t imagine he pays for meals. He doesn’t drive himself anywhere. Maybe while he’s on vacation?
I guess if he (or someday she) puts his (her) pants (pants) on one leg at a time, it isn’t inconceivable for the president to have a checking account.
Matthew Jan 21st 2009 at 07:24 pm 21
Actually, Ploughman, the president of the U.S. must pay for many things. G.W. Bush, for example, continued to pay for his Crawford ranch. Travel while there was also on his dime. Personal entertaining—as opposed to state or official functions—come out of his pocket. He had children attend college while he was president. He paid their tuition. Barack & Michelle Obama will pay for their girls’ school. Although the taxpayer covers much, there are still many personal expenses for which the president, like anyone else with a job, must pay, and I think that the pants to which you refer would also be part of that category.
Alan Hamilton Jan 23rd 2009 at 11:45 am 22
Just to correct, the story about the stolen Ws is in fact not true. http://archive.salon.com/politics/feature/2001/05/23/vandals/print.html