The Situation Room: The Inside Story of Presidents in Crisis

Throughout The Situation Room, Stephanopoulos examines many of the crises that the 12 most recent US presidents have faced and how the Situation Room was utilized to manage them. The Situation Room was created as a management tool “by providing intelligence, communications, briefing, display and monitoring functions” to the president (19). Through exploring key moments in The Situation Room, Stephanopoulos also examines the nature of presidential decision-making.

Each of the 12 US Presidents who have held office since the Sit Room was constructed has made difficult decisions concerning domestic policy or national security. Stephanopoulos discusses one such decision in Chapter 5, which examines President Carter’s response to the Iran Hostage Crisis. When months of diplomatic efforts failed to get the hostages returned, Carter decided to act on a rescue mission. A Joint Task Force honed the details, identified commanders, and trained in a secret location, but “the president preferred not to put it into action if there was any chance of ending the crisis diplomatically” (97). On April 11th, 1980, Carter informed the NSC that he was considering the rescue mission known as Desert One and asked for the members’ opinions. However, the rescue mission failed due to inadequate preparation, and the decision cost Carter a second presidential term.