3d. A Day in the Life [Beyond Books

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Abe Lincoln's son Tad was a wily practical joker who linked all the White House bells — a few hundred! — to ring at the same time whenever a person tried to ring just one.

Harry Truman began each day with a brisk walk and a shot of bourbon.

"It was an 'ill-kept and dirty rickety concern." What was? Your room? Uncle Mel's tool shed? Nope. That's what presidential secretary John G. Nicolay called Abraham Lincoln's White House!

3d. A Day in the Life

The White House serves as both office and home to the President. Here, Richard Nixon and his family enjoy an evening meal.

The United States — a nation of workaholics. The notion of the "work ethic" is part of the American consciousness. From the Puritans, to Horatio Alger, to the immigrants streaming past the statue of Liberty, one message is a clear one: Through luck, pluck, and hard work every American can be successful.

This notion extends to the office of the President. Bill Clinton works long days. His schedule is metahectic. Take for example, a recent afternoon spent in Wilmington, North Carolina:

11:30am	Arrives at the Wilmington airport aboard Air Force One, general aviation terminal. Boards Marine One for trip to Whiteville.
12:20pm	Arrives Columbus County Airport, Whiteville. Leaves by motorcade for town of Brunswick.
12:45	Tours Remote Data Systems Inc., Brunswick. Views a demonstration of broadband communications technology. Closed to public.
1:05	Participates in a roundtable on technology access with business leaders and state and local officials. Closed to public.
2:30	Makes public remarks at the Whiteville depot, Main Street between Madison and Franklin Streets. Open to the public.
4:35	Arrives at the Wilmington airport aboard Marine One. Boards Air Force One for trip to Little Rock, Ark.

Now, that was after putting in a full morning of work at the White House, and still having to prepare for an evening's worth of meetings and parties.

Pity Joe Lockhart, the White House Press Secretary. His job is to report to the press and to the world everything the President does. Here are just some of the conferences Lockhart held in July 2000.

Briefing on Camp David Peace Summit Watch

Briefing on President Clinton's trip to Japan with Jim Steinberg, Nat'l Security Council

Briefing with the Deputy National Economic Council Advisor

Department of Defense Daily Briefing Watch with Rear Admiral Craig Quigley, Pentagon Spokesman.

Briefing with President Clinton on the Middle East Peace Summit Watch

Briefing on White House Economic Watch; Speakers include: John Podesta, White House Chief of Staff; Larry Summers, Treasury Secretary; Jack Lew, White House Budget Dir.; Gene Sperling, National Economic Advisor.

The President has to be brought up to speed, and in some case participate in these wide-ranging issues.

As White House Press Secretary, Joe Lockhart is responsible for giving timely briefings on the activities of the Executive Branch. Depending on how busy the President is, a Press Secretary may give more than one briefing a day.
In April 1999 alone 276 press briefings were released covering from such topics as Older Americans month, gun control, Columbine, Albania, the announcement of a new Ambassador to Ecuador, an award to the teacher of the year, and the annual White House Easter egg hunt.

President Clinton generally gets up early and puts in 12-16 hour workdays and may well end up talking about the day's events to the First Lady well into the wee hours.

Have Presidents always been this busy? For the most part, yes. Typically modern Presidents do far more traveling than the early chief executives. Regardless, President Lincoln, for example, was at work by 6 a.m. reading correspondence and sending dispatches. Depending upon the exigencies of the time, Lincoln spent much of his day in meetings. At noon he opened the White House to the public. In the evening he often ate with family and guests.

At 11pm, Lincoln was often found at the telegraph room sending wires to his officers in the field. His visited the telegraph room so frequently that he sometimes called it his 'office."

The strain of long days and towering responsibilities takes its toll on Presidents. Many age markedly during their term of office. The pressure of the position is inestimable. Regarding the office Martin van Buren observed: "As to the Presidency, the two happiest days of my life were those of my entrance upon the office and my surrender of it."

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