William Flynn Martin - National Security Council, The White House

National Security Council, The White House

Martin served as the Executive Secretary of the National Security Council in the Reagan White House . The Executive Secretary is the head of the NSC as defined by the National Security Act of 1947. In practice, it serves as the NSC’s chief of staff responsible for coordination, budget and management of the National Security Council. The Executive Secretary coordinates the National Security Council meetings and manages vital policy and information communication from the Cabinet and the NSC staff to the President. One of the duties of Mr. Martin as Executive Secretary was to oversee the White House Situation Room located in the basement of the West Wing of the White House which is in 24/7 communication with the Department of Defense, State Department, Intelligence Community and US embassies abroad.

As Executive Secretary, Martin also chaired an Executive Secretary group composed of officials from State, Defense, CIA and the NSC responsible for coordinating the President's national security priorities as identified in a book titled National Security Issues of the United States . Martin developed a system for briefing the President using a six month national security intelligence, policy and implementation calendar working closely with his inter-agency colleagues Colin Powell and Robert Gates.

Martin also initiated and coordinated the production of several videos prepared for the President describing Reagan's international visits, objectives and "scene-setters" including his visit to China in 1984, his visit to Europe to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of D-Day and a preview of the historic first meeting with Soviet leader Gorbachev in Geneva in 1985, a script of which can be seen here . These videos were presented to the President just before visits to supplement other written and oral presentations.

At the time of the Iran-Iraq war in 1984, Martin was responsible for the coordination of an NSC Special Situation Group headed by Vice-President Bush on building up the defensive capabilities of friendly Middle Eastern countries and developing a strategy to cope with potential oil market disruptions. Martin's role was detailed by Robert C. McFarlane in his book Special Trust, an excerpt of which can be seen here . The plan, approved by the President and Vice President, was an important step in building US military capability in the Gulf resulting in the successful defense of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in the 1991 Gulf War. The plan also stimulated the buildup of the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Martin's now declassified presentation to the President can be seen here .

In 1985, Martin chaired an NSC inter-agency group on Central American Economic Development. The conclusion of the working group, presented to and approved by the President, was threefold: encourage free market reforms; contribute $8 billion in economic assistance; and encourage continued security in the region. The actual Reagan National Security Study Directive (NSSD) describing these initiatives can be viewed here . The policy also called upon all US Cabinet officers to assist Central America in its quest for economic development (i.e. agriculture, energy, commerce and transportation). The theme of the presentation was that security assistance in Central America would be enhanced through economic growth and prosperity. Without economic progress, the security situation would continue to unravel. In addition, Martin coordinated a special program transfer Los Alamos National Laboratory "hot dry rock" energy technology to Costa Rica. The program laboratory program grew to include laser technology developed in Department of Energy (DOE) labs to evaluate air quality in Mexico City.

During the Christmas holiday season in 1985, Mr. Martin was traveling with President Reagan to California as the NSC aide. During this time, there was a terrorist attack on the Rome and Vienna airports, resulting in the deaths of many innocent men, women and children. Martin set up an NSC crisis management center on the site of the Annenberg Estate where the President was staying and kept the President updated with morning, noon and evening meetings. The terrorist was Abu Nidal and the New York Times reported that Martin was handling the terrorist attack for the President. It was learned that Abu Nidal had backing from Libya and a key question for the President was the appropriate response. The President responded that since the attacks were in Rome and Vienna, authorities in those countries should bring the criminals to justice. "This is not a time to spread violence in the region", the President told Martin and also told him to tell Israel not to attack Syrian missiles in the Beqaa Valley. Three months later when Americans were killed in the La Belle Discotheque bombing in Berlin, President Reagan responded with an attack on Gaddafi's compound codenamed Operation El Dorado Canyon.

William Martin was also involved in the conceptualization and implementation of the National Program Office. The National Program was established to ensure continuity of the United States government in the even of a nuclear attack. This deterrence system was later adapted following the 9/11 attacks to protect the US government in the event of a hostile terrorist attack.