President’s and Crisis: Developing a Crisis Management System in the Executive Branch

In the past, presidents have tended to deal with a crisis in an ad hoc, "I'll cross that bridge when I come to it" manner. In a nuclear age, the US can no longer afford such a luxury. As recent crises suggest, a more self conscious, formal mechanism for crisis management is necessary. This paper* presents a crisis management system for the executive branch consisting of five components: (1) precrisis training seminars; (2) crisis control centers; (3) crisis communication; (4) crisis norms and procedures; and (5) institutionalizing a devil's advocate.