# Continuity of Government → [[Continuity of Government Structure]] — the ASCII structural map of the whole enterprise: the policy directives, the four branch-specific problems, the sites and airborne platforms, the devolution chain, and the classified layer. **Continuity of Government (COG)** encompasses the classified and semi-classified plans, facilities, and legal frameworks designed to ensure that federal executive authority survives a catastrophic attack on Washington. Originally developed during the [[Cold War]] in response to the nuclear threat, COG planning includes presidential succession protocols extending well beyond the statutory line, secure relocation facilities (Mount Weather, Raven Rock), and emergency communications systems. COG programs expanded dramatically after September 11, 2001, when Vice President Cheney activated COG protocols and operated from an undisclosed location. The post-9/11 expansion raised constitutional concerns: COG plans are largely classified, Congress has limited oversight, and the emergency authorities they invoke — including martial law provisions, communications shutdowns, and mass detention frameworks — exist in a legal gray zone. Critics argue that COG planning has become a vehicle for expanding executive power under the cover of emergency preparedness, with the [[Department of Homeland Security]] serving as the primary institutional custodian of domestic continuity operations.