By Eli Stokols, Lauren Egan and Lawrence Ukenye

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Within the most storied of all American addresses are a handful of storied rooms named for presidents and first families past: the Lincoln bedroom, the JACKIE KENNEDY garden and the Roosevelt Room.

And now, in the passage that leads from the West Wing reception area toward the Cabinet Room, is what might come to be known as the JIMMY CARTER hallway.

Earlier this year, five little-known prints by five modern American masters — ANDY WARHOL, ROBERT RAUSCHENBERG, JACOB LAWRENCE, ROY LICHTENSTEIN and JAMIE WYETH — were hung on the hallway walls.

A untitled silkscreen by Roy Lichtenstein | Shannon's Fine Art Auctioneers

The collection dates back nearly five decades to the winter of 1976, after Carter had won the election. A young aide named TOM BEARD was tasked with raising money for the inaugural celebration. A fundraiser who’d organized several benefit concerts for Carter during the campaign, Beard leaned on a friend, FRANK FOWLER, who had lots of connections in the art world and was the dealer for painter ANDREW WYETH.

Beard commissioned the five artists to each do a print inspired by Carter’s upcoming inauguration, paying them $10,000 apiece and inviting them to Washington for the ceremony (Warhol couldn’t come, alas).

There were few guidelines for the artists. Warhol doodled a portrait of Carter. Rauschenberg produced a photo montage inscribed with his own words about American renewal. Lawrence rendered a striking scene in vivid color: bundled up Inauguration Day crowds watching from trees.

The five prints were sold as a set for $2,500 with only 100 portfolios reproduced, raising $250,000 for Carter’s inaugural committee. They then largely disappeared into private collections until, not long ago, a full set came up for auction.

White House art curators went to the Committee for the Preservation of the White House, which advises the president and first lady on what is appropriate or fitting, and suggested they attempt to acquire the set. Then they went to the White House Historical Association for the money — about $35,000 for the acquisition and framing, according to STEWART MCLAURIN, the association’s president.

Left: A print of "Jimmy Carter" by Andy Warhol. Middle: A print of "Jimmy Carter Inaugural" by Jamie Wyeth. Right: A print of "Presidential Inauguration, 1977" by Robert Rauschenberg. Bottom: A silkscreen of "The Swearing Inn" by Jacob Lawrence. | Shannon's Fine Art Auctioneers

“They are artists the White House has been interested in having as part of the collection for a long time,” McLaurin told West Wing Playbook. The pieces, he added, “are probably more iconic today than they even were at that time, because they, like Carter, have had the brush of history reflect on their work. These are five household names in terms of significant American artists of the 20th century.”

Now in his 70s and living in Georgia, Beard wasn’t aware the print set he commissioned found a permanent home in the White House until we contacted him by phone last week.

“I’ll be damned. That’s very cool,” he said, musing mostly about his memories running around with Rauschenberg and the other artists during inauguration week.

But he did address one lingering regret about the print collection: that all five were done by male artists.

“We called about five or six of the great women artists of the day,” said Beard, who recalled pitching the project to LEE KRASNER and HELEN FRANKENTHALER, among others. “They just couldn’t do it, but we really did try.”

The new placement of the five prints within the West Wing offers something of an homage to an ailing former president. They also might be one of the most exclusive collections of contemporary American art in a capital known for its art museums — accessible only to those with a blue badge granted to those who work on the White House campus.

In a building furnished mostly with traditional oil paintings from earlier eras, these prints certainly stand out. And yet, it’s not clear those inside the White House every day have the time to appreciate them, even in such a highly trafficked hallway.

We asked McLaurin if he’s heard of any reactions to the new collection, which includes a small placard explaining its origin. “No, not really,” he said. “But that’s a hallway most people rush through in a blur. We’ve had a number of former White House staff from various presidencies and they’ve said, ‘When I was there, we were on the hamster wheel, you’re going so fast, you rush by these amazing things without any appreciation of them.’”

Still, he was unbothered. “It's all part of that continuum of history that's part of the place, as presidents and staff come and go.”

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Which former president had a helipad on the roof of his presidential library and used it often?

(Answer at bottom.)

MAKING IT TO MAUI: After being criticized for staying quiet on the devastating Hawaii wildfires that have claimed nearly 100 lives, Biden spent the first few minutes of his speech Tuesday at a manufacturing facility in Milwaukee addressing the disaster. The president said that he and the first lady would visit the island “as soon as we can,” but only when he wouldn’t “get in the way” of recovery efforts.

Not that the White House pool could hear any of Biden’s comments, according to Bloomberg’s JUSTIN SINK, who was traveling with the president Tuesday. He tweeted that “the white house didn’t bother with speakers in the press section so he sounds like one of the teachers in charlie brown, but i gather he announced he’s going to hawaii and probably said some stuff about midwestern manufacturing.”

PLAYING ON THEIR TURF: The White House is challenging GOP leaders over who’s doing more to cut the deficit, championing Biden proposals like raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations and allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices. “The White House’s eagerness to go on offense over deficit reduction represents a rare case of Democrats trying to best Republicans at their game,” our JENNIFER HABERKORN writes. “Recent GOP presidents have seen the nation’s debt balloon under their watch.” Biden’s eagerness to draw a contrast with Republicans comes ahead of a looming Sept. 30 deadline to continue funding the government.

I WANT MY IRA-TV: Biden advocacy group Building Back Together has announced a new six-figure radio and digital ad buy aimed at touting the Inflation Reduction Act as the president’s signature law turns one. The campaign will include ads in both Spanish and English targeting Black and Latino audiences in markets including Las Vegas, Milwaukee, Philadelphia and Phoenix. The DNC used large ad buys to strengthen its outreach to Latino voters ahead of the midterms and plans to continue doing so in anticipation for 2024, as West Wing Playbook noted Monday.

Activist group Climate Power also launched its IRA-themed campaign, which includes a television ad promoting new “good quality, high-paying jobs” the group believes resulted from the law, NBC News’ BEN KAMISAR reports. Digital ads will also run in the battleground states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania.

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: This op-ed by the Washington Post’s JENNIFER RUBIN about how Vice President KAMALA HARRIS has emerged as a counterweight to former President DONALD TRUMP and the MAGA movement over Florida’s school curricula on the history of slavery and other highly-charged topics. “No one has been more articulate and effective in advancing the pro-choice position, in slamming the right-wing anti-woke movement or, most recently, in making the case that democracy is at risk,” Rubin writes. Harris spokesperson KIRSTEN ALLEN tweeted the piece and the Biden campaign shared it with reporters in an “ICYMI” email.

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN’T WANT YOU TO READ: This story by our own ANDREW ZHANG about HUNTER BIDEN’s lawyer CHRISTOPHER CLARK opting to step down because he may be called to testify on behalf of the president’s son. A rift emerged between Clark and the Justice Department over a deal that would’ve allowed Biden to plead guilty to misdemeanor tax charges. The deal ultimately crumbled before a judge and now special counsel status has been granted to DOJ prosecutor DAVID WEISS, giving him more authority over the investigation. Weiss’ appointment rattled people in the White House who felt the probe resulted from GOP efforts to distract from Trump’s legal issues.

PERSONNEL MOVES: BARDIA VASEGHI is now an associate staff secretary at the White House. He previously was a law clerk for U.S. District Judge JED S. RAKOFF of the Southern District of New York.

YELLEN’S CHINA TRIP: During her visit to China last month, Treasury Secretary JANET YELLEN stopped at a Yunnan restaurant where she was served jian shou qing, a type of mushroom that has hallucinogenic properties. A diner sitting nearby Yellen posted about her meal to Weibo, a popular Chinese social media platform. She quickly started trending on Chinese social media and the restaurant said that their wild mushroom dishes started selling out at their locations throughout China.

But Yellen confirmed Monday in an interview with CNN’s ERIN BURNETT that she didn’t get high off the shrooms. “I read that if the mushrooms are cooked properly, which I’m sure they were at this very good restaurant, that they have no impact,” Yellen said. “But all of us enjoyed the mushrooms, the restaurant, and none of us felt any ill effects from having eaten them.”

May we recommend, Madam Secretary, that next time you ask for them to be cooked slightly less properly?

RUNNING LOW: The IRA may be accelerating the country’s critical mineral shortage, our KELSEY TAMBORRINO reports for Pro subscribers. The bill’s domestic sourcing requirements are likely to substantially raise demand for minerals such as lithium, cobalt, copper and nickel by 2035. Chile currently supplies 60 percent of U.S. refined imports and administration officials are increasingly concerned about growing global competition from higher mineral demand.

Why the White House Went to Wall Street to Revive the U.S. Chips Industry (WSJ's Yuka Hayashi)

What recession? This summer’s economy is defying the odds. (WaPo's Abha Bhattarai)

Deputy Biden campaign manager ROB FLAHERTY caught his now-wife CARLA FRANK stalking his Instagram account when she accidentally liked a picture after hanging out with him the night prior at a D.C. bar. “I knew it went well because she accidentally liked an Instagram photo of mine from like, seven years before,” Flaherty told the New York Times. “I was like, ‘aha!"

The two got married last November at Union Station (readers may recall our report on the father of the bride’s memorable toast and gift) when Frank was still serving as a deputy political director at the White House (before departing in February).

During his post-presidency, LYNDON B. JOHNSON routinely flew in a helicopter from his Texas ranch to the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, landing on the helipad on top. The helipad is no longer in service.

Thanks to the LBJ Presidential Library for this question!

A CALL OUT! Do you think you have a harder trivia question? Send us your best one about the presidents, with a citation or sourcing, and we may feature it!

Edited by Eun Kyung Kim and Sam Stein.

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