(2016-0738-F) U.S.S. George Washington

2 folders, approximately 8 pages

This collection contains records concerning an incident on U.S.S. George Washington during President Clinton’s June 5, 1994 visit to Normandy. The incident involved the disappearance of several towels and bathrobes from the ship. The collection contains email, talking points, notes, and newspaper articles which summarize the incident.

The materials in FOIA 2016-0738-F are a selective body of documents responsive to the topic of the FOIA. Researchers should consult the archivist about related material. This collection contains records concerning an incident on USS George Washington during President Clinton’s June 5, 1994 visit to Normandy. It was reported that several towels and bathrobes were found missing from the ship. Associate press writer Alan Fram from The Washington AP reported on this incident. This collection contains a memorandum from the White House that claims the incident was not malicious and that the total amount for the missing items had been reimbursed. Chief of Staff files contain talking points, notes, and newspaper articles which summarize the incident. This collection also contains email correspondence containing the Fram article and talking points addressing the incident.

Textual

Records that are responsive to this FOIA request were found in these collection areas— Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files and Clinton Presidential Records: ARMS Emails. Staff and Office files were maintained at the folder level by staff members within their individual offices and document all levels of administration activity. Staff and Office files are processed at the folder level, that is, individual documents are not selected and removed from a folder for processing. While this method maintains folder integrity, it frequently results in the incidental processing of documents that are not wholly responsive to the subject area. The Automated Records Management System (ARMS) is a database that contains email records of the Executive Office of the President. This system maintained unclassified Presidential email. The ARMS database is comprised of six sub-series of email records called "buckets." The buckets generally represent a specific White House office. The buckets are titled: NPR for National Performance Review, OPD for Office of Policy Development, POTUS for President of the United States, WHO for White House Office, CEA for Council of Economic Advisers, and Default for emails not associated with an office. The WHO bucket contains email created or received by individual with an Executive Office of the President White House user account not identified as CEA, NPR, or OPD. ARMS emails are arranged by topic, there-under by bucket, and there-under chronologically by creation date.

Collection is open to all researchers. Access to Clinton Presidential Records is governed by the Presidential Records Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. Chapter 22, as amended) and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552, as amended) and therefore records may be restricted in whole or in part in accordance with legal exemptions.

Official records of William Jefferson Clinton’s presidency are housed at the Clinton Presidential Library and administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) under the provisions of the Presidential Records Act (PRA).

Staff Archivist, 2016. Previously restricted materials are added as they are released.

The following is a list of documents and folders processed in response to FOIA 2016-0738-F:
Box 1
Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files
Chief of Staff
Toback, Paul
Towel Gate: Towel Gate [OA/ID 3806]
Clinton Presidential Records: Automated Records Management System [Email]
WHO [OA/ID 500000]
[Missing Towels]
[06/16/1994]