Statement by the Press Secretary on 50th Anniversary of the White House Situation Room

To mark the 50th anniversary of the opening of the White House Situation Room, today the President delivered remarks to the Situation Room staff to thank them for their around-the-clock work to keep the President informed and the country safe.
 
“We could not meet the national security challenges that we face without the capabilities of this room and the people who work here,” the President said. “It’s the President’s eyes and ears.  Providing the latest information and alerts, it’s the nerve center for the U.S. government, the place where we come together to make policy and respond to crises from wars abroad to floods at home.”
 
The President also presided over a ceremony to name a secure conference room after the father of the Situation Room, President John F. Kennedy.
 
In attendance at the ceremony were:
 
President Obama
Caroline Kennedy
John "Jack" Schlossberg
National Security Advisor Tom Donilon
Deputy National Security Advisor Denis McDonough
Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism John Brennan
Former National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger
Former National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft
Former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski
Former National Security Advisor Richard Allen
Former National Security Advisor Robert McFarlane
Former National Security Advisor John Poindexter
Former National Security Advisor Sandy Berger
Former National Security Advisor James Jones
Former Homeland Security Advisor Fran Townsend
Former Homeland Security Advisor Kenneth Wainstein