Yankee White

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For the NCIS episode, see Yankee White (NCIS).

Yankee White is a security clearance given in the United States for personnel working with the President. Obtaining such clearance requires, in part, a Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI) by the Department of Defense. Contrary to popular lore, the Yankee White clearance given to personnel who work directly with the President is not a classification, but rather a type of background check.

Individuals having Yankee White clearances undergo extensive background investigation. Yankee White cleared personnel are granted access to any information for which they have a need-to-know, regardless of which organization classified it or at what level. The Yankee White clearance includes a requirement for absolute absence of any foreign influence on the individual. This means they must be a natural-born citizen of the United States, not be or have been married to a person of foreign descent, or have traveled (save while in government employ and at the instructions of the United States) to countries that are considered to be unfriendly to the United States.^[1]

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Global Security The Nuclear Football follows the President wherever he goes and is never more than a few steps from his side. It is carried by a military officer who must undergo the nation's most rigorous security background check—the Yankee White. It contains a secure SATCOM radio and handset, the nuclear launch codes known as the "Gold Codes" and the President's Decision Book - the nuclear playbook that the President would rely on if he would ever have to decide to use nuclear weapons. Its real name is unknown but it is popularly known as the football"
Department of Defense - INSTRUCTION NUMBER 5210.87 - November 30, 1998 "E3.3.1. The administrative nickname “YANKEE WHITE” must be stamped or printed in the Remarks section of the DD Form 1879, “Request for Personnel Security Investigation,” for all Presidential support requests that are manually submitted. For those electronic submissions of the DD Form 1879, “YANKEE WHITE” will be typed in item 1 and the form will then be stamped by the Defense Security Service (DSS) upon completion of the investigation. All requests for investigation must indicate whether or not the individual is being processed for a security clearance by any other Department or Agency of the Federal Government."