photo by PBS
Flashback to 8th grade: On a field trip to Washington D.C., I was lucky enough to step foot inside our country’s most iconic residence. It was a 45 minute tour. When all was said and done, I remember thinking, “Wait, that was it?” The tours for the public aren’t that impressive. In fact, you can only see a few rooms! Luckily for all you politics nerds like me, there’s a new PBS doc that takes you on a Miss Frizzle-approved political science field trip very few get to see. So, if you can’t make it to D.C. or are hoping to get a look beyond the stale public tour to learn what really happens inside those historic white walls, you’ll want to check out The White House: Inside Story.
Let’s begin in the West Wing. This is where the magic happens, and by magic I mean foreign and domestic policy discussions. Alakazam! The West Wing has your classic oval office with the good ol’ resolute desk that Nic Cage and the National Treasure movies convinced us led to an epic treasure. Nothing in the West Wing is included in the public tours, so if you’re desperate to pop into the Oval Office, you might have to pull a fast one past mountains of secret service officers. Or you could watch this documentary for the full inside scoop.
There is no formal in-law suite at the White House, but there is a press briefing room. They’re basically the same thing, right? The press and politics have always had a complicated relationship. Some presidents like JFK and LBJ welcomed the press with open arms, often blurring the line between their private and public lives. Not every president, however, was a fan of the cameras and the spotlight: Richard Nixon was known to exile the press as much as possible…wonder why?
Whether the sitting president likes the press or not, each day the press secretary addresses reporters and TV cameras so they can roll out 24 hour news letting the public know what is happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
One place I wish I could have seen on my tour is the East Wing—that’s the first lady’s domain or now potentially the first…man…gentleman…dude maybe? The First Lady used to be more of a symbol for traditional domesticity than someone with a political agenda. When Eleanor Roosevelt made her way to the White House, however, she set the bar so high the ceiling cracked, creating a path for all future spouses to the president to focus on issues they care about and create change in their own ways…like Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No” initiative.
Or in this case, say “yes” to this special TV field trip that takes you all over the White House, letting you bypass secret service, taking you straight to the president himself…and his chef.
Watch The White House: Inside Story Tuesday, July 12th at 7 p.m. on TPT 2, your local PBS station or on the PBS app the next day.
© Twin Cities Public Television - 2016. All rights reserved.
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