Travels with W.
Published 12:00 am Friday, November 9, 2001
When President George W.
Friday, November 09, 2001
When President George W. Bush steps up to the microphone, the chances are good that an Albert Lea native was the one who set up that microphone.
Bill Daly Jr. works as an audio technician for the president, vice president and first lady through the White House Communications Agency. There, he sets up sound systems for speeches, press conferences and the president’s radio addresses. He also announces the president at press conferences.
&uot;He travels with the president or ahead to get things set up,&uot; said his father, Bill Daly Sr. of Albert Lea.
While the younger Daly hasn’t traveled outside the country in his position, he has gone all over the United States, especially with former President Bill Clinton while on the campaign circuit for Al Gore.
Through setting up fund-raisers, he’s met such celebrities as Christian Slater, Dennis Quaid, Sugar Ray Leonard, Drew Carey and more.
And because of Daly’s connections, his parents, Bill and Mary, have gotten some special treatment as well. This past summer, while vacationing in Washington, D.C., they were given a tour of the White House which included the West Wing, executive offices and press room -&160;places not included on regular public tours.
&uot;I got to stick my head into the Oval Office, and while we were there, we watched the president’s helicopter land on the south lawn of the White House. I got to shake his hand,&uot; Daly Sr. said.
Daly Jr. is actually a petty officer, second class in the Navy. He enlisted on July 10, 1995, and completed his basic training in Chicago. He was then stationed at Groton, Conn., for a year, where he was an electrical technician on a submarine. He then spent a year in San Diego, then three years in Hawaii before being transferred to the White House in May of 2000.
The position Bill Daly Jr. has now is one that a person cannot apply for, his father said. &uot;You have to be selected. There were interviews and security checks,&uot; he said.
The younger Daly is also prohibited from conducting media interviews.
It’s typically a four-year position, but it’s been extended one more year.
Daly Jr. enjoys the Navy, his father said, and because of it has seen parts of the world he otherwise would not have, including Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Bahrain and Guam. He also enjoys being a submariner, and hasn’t yet decided whether to pursue a long-term career in the Navy.
&uot;If he is to stay in the Navy -&160;for say, 20 years, he would have to go back and do some sea duty,&uot; his father said.
His wife, Roselyn, is also in the Navy, serving as a hospital corpsman. They have a 4-month-old daughter, Rylee.