(1.3.2002) In Executive Order 12656, signed Nov. 18, 1988, Reagan ordered every Cabinet department to define in detail the „defense and civilian needs“ that would be „essential to our national survival“ in case of a nuclear attack on Washington. Included among them were legal instruments for „succession to office and emergency delegation of authority.“

The military services put these directives in place long before their civilian counterparts. The Air Force, for example, relies on Air Force Instruction 10-208, revised most recently in September 2000.