# You're the President tomorrow- what's the first secret thing you ask about? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 27, 2009, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679 "2009-12-27T05:38:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/21 "2009-12-27T17:33:00Z")
I’d want to know about the Aurora spyplane. ---
**Author:** ![clarkstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@clarkstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clarkstar)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/22 "2009-12-27T17:58:03Z")
i want to know about dubya’s pretzel choking. i bet it was a fight with cheney ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/23 "2009-12-27T18:14:20Z")
I’d want to know what all the **“Need To Know”** files are, and have complete access to the lot of them. I’m the Prez - I’LL decide whether I needed to know or not! ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/24 "2009-12-27T19:06:26Z")
> [@Acid\_Lamp](#): > > snip > > Since the President is the highest link in the military chain of command I don’t think you CAN keep anything from him. Bingo! They can stongly advise the President that he doesn’t need to know that. They can do their best to convinve him of all the reasons why it’s a bad idea for him to know the details, but if he presses them they’d have to give him whatever information he asked for. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/25 "2009-12-27T19:29:00Z")
Which fridge has the _good_ beer in it? And here is a treat for the rest of you: Area 51 is a secret airbase. Used for testing secret aircraft. No aliens, but a pretty good cafeteria. A truly outstanding selection of dessert items for being in the middle of nowhere, so-to-speak. Unconfirmed rumors hint that they are Vegas buffet left-overs, but specific Casino information is almost non-existant. Owsald shot Kennedy. But he used time-warping technology to pull it off. Ruby came from the future to recover the “evidence”, but found himself stranded in that time and had to settle things “old-school”. Your grandkids will view him as a “True American Hero” for his sacrifices. A weather balloon crashed outside Roswell. The military cooked up all the alien stuff to divert attention from its shoddy construction and have regretted it ever since. This set in motion policy changes that eventually led us to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/26 "2009-12-27T19:33:23Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > Bingo! They can stongly advise the President that he doesn’t need to know that. They can do their best to convinve him of all the reasons why it’s a bad idea for him to know the details, but if he presses them they’d have to give him whatever information he asked for. in John Lecarre’s novels, he writes very realistically about the bureacracy of espionage departments–and they appear to be no different than any other government bureacracy. Just like you ,I, and Dilbert often hide stuff from our bosses at work— CIA and MI6 agents seem to do the same to their boss. There’s a reason why Margaret Thatcher tried to prevent the publication of _Spycatcher_. ---
**Author:** ![sleeping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@sleeping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeping)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/27 "2009-12-27T19:45:21Z")
The full extent (in both scope and severity) of the torture program. Then, the secret KFC recipe. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/28 "2009-12-27T19:50:33Z")
> [@sleeping](#): > > Then, the secret KFC recipe. Oh, my. “Find out how Fu Lin makes hot and sour soup.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![sleeping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@sleeping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeping)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/29 "2009-12-27T20:24:28Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Oh, my. > “Find out how Fu Lin makes hot and sour soup.” > 🙂 I wouldn’t. You might piss off General Tso. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/30 "2009-12-27T20:50:04Z")
I agree about aliens. I’d like to know how many citizens I’d actually be responsible to. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/31 "2009-12-27T21:36:31Z")
The problem with most of the secrets here is that they’re not secret. Everybody’s heard of Area 51, Roswell, JFK, black ops teams, etc. The real secrets are going to be the ones that are still secret. So I guess I’d have to go with something like. “OK, I’m in charge until they find my “extra” code in the vote-counting machines. What would I want to know that I don’t know to ask about?” ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/32 "2009-12-27T21:42:51Z")
Whether torture has been an instrumental weapon in the prevention of terrorist attacks. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2009, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/33 "2009-12-27T21:48:38Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > The title pretty much says it all. > > Personally, I’d probably ask about > > aliens > > If it isn’t clear: I’m operating under the assumption here that there are certain government secrets kept from us common folk for our own good. I know the first thing I’d want to know about, what about you? This is a very good question-because it points out how little immediate influence any one person in Gov’t has. My answer-I can’t think of anything I would ask about except to satisfy my curiosity. After all, the Pres should be relying on his advisers and cabinet picks to dig into the details of whether that plane is better than this ship or that land is better for a national park or an industrial park. So if he insists on knowing the specs on Aurora, it isn’t going to make his decision on funding any better-unless he asks Stranger or someone who understands such things. I have to say, I can’t think of anything that is truly job-related. One thing he could do is track a few covert jobs closely just to get a feel about who is doing a good job and who isn’t. But it isn’t one file or anything. Related question-you just drew the short straw and got the job as CIA director. What do you dig in to first? ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2009, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/34 "2009-12-28T17:01:43Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > If it isn’t clear: I’m operating under the assumption here that there are certain government secrets kept from us common folk for our own good. I know the first thing I’d want to know about, what about you? I personally believe this was illustrated by Reagan’s 1980 campaign promise to restart the B-1 Bomber program. Although I’m murky on the details at this remove, as I recall, Reagan insisted that America needed a large, long-range bomber. The B-52 was aging, and Carter had canceled the B-1 in 1977. When Reagan got into office, the program was restarted as the B-1B, but in a minimal way. B1s have never figured prominently in any of our wars or military actions, for whatever reason. Later we learned that Carter had authorized the Advanced Technology Bomber program, which became the B-2 (Stealth) Bomber, in 1978. But he could hardly use that to refute Reagan in the campaign. ---
**Author:** ![snowmaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e99b99/32.png) [@snowmaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowmaster)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2009, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/35 "2009-12-28T17:04:02Z")
I’d want a tour of the Ft. Knox Vault. Unannounced. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2009, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/36 "2009-12-29T00:02:46Z")
“How long have we been irreversibly broke?” ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2009, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/37 "2009-12-29T00:21:57Z")
[ol][li]Show me all the secret passages and hiding places in the White House[/li][li]When is ice cream day in the White House cafeteria[/li][li]Give me a full list of things that I can do without needing anyone else to approve my decision[/li][li]In what countries is the CIA currently working to help get rid of a democratically elected government[/li][li]What secret weapon plans is the US military currently working on[/li][li]What does the White House chef put into the secret sauce used on the Presidential Burger[/li][/ol] ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2009, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/38 "2009-12-29T00:30:03Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > [ol][li]What does the White House chef put into the secret sauce used on the Presidential Burger[/li][/ol] Garlic salt ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2009, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/39 "2009-12-29T00:40:12Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > If it isn’t clear: I’m operating under the assumption here that there are certain government secrets kept from us common folk for our own good. I know the first thing I’d want to know about, what about you? What was the USA told about regarding Rudolf Hess would probably start, it should be nothing earth shattering after all this time. Any advanced technologies that have not gone public, be it domestically produced or otherwise. Declan ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2009, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679/40 "2009-12-29T01:43:53Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > Give me a full list of things that I can do without needing anyone else to approve my decision Good idea. That’s coming right after finding out about Fu Lin’s Hot and Sour soup. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-the-president-tomorrow-whats-the-first-secret-thing-you-ask-about/522679.md?page=3)