ABSTRACT
As the president's personal staff, members of the White House Office (WHO) provide the president with the advice and information needed to make decisions and try to ensure that presidential decisions are carried out. Within the government, the WHO is the president's only exclusive domain. Successive presidents have sought with little success to reduce the power and size of the White House, but today the White House bureaucracy has become a permanent fixture of American politics. Perhaps the major reason is the public's tendency, in an era of ongoing crises, to expect the president to solve every problem. The growth of the WHO also parallels the growth of the congressional staff. Since most of the contact between the president and Congress takes place at the staff level, an increase in congressional staff almost inevitably leads to a corresponding increase in presidential staff. WHO growth has also been prompted by the inclusion of special-interest representation within the White House. A final factor in the growth of the WHO is its increased concern with the president's public image. With this in mind, the entry begins by describing and explaining the various facets of the WHO, starting with an exploration of the origins of the WHO. Then, the development and evolution of this office over time (through the contemporary era) is examined. Finally, the key structures of the WHO are presented together with their primary functions.
