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4525869
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Republican Women's Federation Dinner (telephone text), September 21, 1965
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4525869
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Republican Women's Federation Dinner (telephone text), September 21, 1965
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Gerald R. Ford Congressional Papers
Speeches
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Vietnam War, 1961-1975
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1965-09-30
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1965
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1965-09-01
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1965
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The original documents are located in Box D18, folder "Republican Women's Federation
Dinner (telephone text), September 21, 1965" of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press
Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Digitized from Box D18 of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
Telephone text
By telephone
fine hms
Republican Women's Federation
give-b
dinner Sept. 21 (Tuesday)
@ 9:00p.m
Please accept my apológies for not attending your dinner this
evening.
The press of legistaäve business in the House this week and
particularly today--- is the reason I am unable to be with you
in Lansing.
home-stretch
Congress is on the for this session. However, it is
difficult to predict the date of adjournment.
With a 2 to 1 majority in the House and Senate, President Johnson
has said he intends to keep Congress in session late this autumn.
Actually, it would be best for the American people if Congress
had adjourned before the President was able to push through so much
quantitative but not qualitative legislation.
The way the President controls the Demoerat=powered Congress, I
understand he writes his diary six weeks in advance.
*
*
*
Before discussing U.S. foreign policy with you for a few minutes,
you might like to know about a cartoon published a few days ago in
the Washington Star.
It portrayed a large elephant sitting in a chair with crocodile tears
flowing. I was shown with my hands on hips looking down at the elephant
GERALD LIBRAGA GERALAR. FORD
and saying: "quit blubbering and try acting like a Democrat."
GOP women
-2-
I don't know where the cartoonist got the idea I am in favor of
Republicans acting like Democrats, but he was right in quoting
me
as telling many in our party to quit blubbering, to stop bemoaning
our fate. Instead of wringing our hands, let's set to work building
a record as a unified party.
Let's forget 1964. Let's not make the same mistakes. Let's profit
from our defeat. Let' become once again ONE Republican Party.
I have complete confidence in you and your ab ility to help solidify
a massive Republican team effort.
And, now let us consider the Viet Nam war and U.S. foreign policy.
It should be remembered that the
involvement of the United
States in Viet Nam after World War II began with a Democrat in the
White House.
It began with a decision of the Truman Administration to provide
economic and military aid.
In 1954 a fragile peace was achieved by the Geneva agreements.
miracle
thanks
During the Eisenhower Administration a near occurred thanks to
intelligent, statesman-like actions by the United States.
The Democratic Administration taking office in 1961 faced acute
difficulties in the neighboring nation of Laos. While there were sporadic
guerilla attacks in Viet NaM Communist forces had launched a
/
full-scale offensive in Laos threatening the government.
-more-
GERALD
GOP WORSEN
-3-
After months of fighting, high-level diplomatic foot-shuffling
and a lot of double-talk from the State Department, a declaration
of neutrality in Laos was signed. It is a workless document.
Laos today is ripe for picking by the Communists whenever they
chose.
The resoluteness of the United States was tested in Laos. It was found the
weak.
The Administration said it would not permåt aggression against
Laos
to succeed..... it did permit aggression.
The Administration said it would refuse to negotiate until a
cease-fire was in effect...it did negotiate.
The weakness of a Democrat Administration in dealing with the
problem of Communist aggression against Laos is strongly reflected
in the Viet Nam situation today.
As the military efforts of the United States in Viet Nam have
broadened, the pronouncements of President Johnson defining the
objective of our Nation have been progressively
watered down.
The past July 28, the President seemed to disregard the independence
of South Viet Nam as an objective.
GERALD R.FORD VIBRARY
Declaring that the purposes of the 1954 Geneva agreements are still our
own, he asserted that the people of South Viet Nam shall have the right
to shape their own destiny in free elections--in the south or throughout
GOP women
-4-
all Viet Nam under international supervision.
This statement raises the disquieting possibility of accepting
now in Viet Nam the type of election which the United States
rejected a decade ago....am election which would be stacked and
in
subvertedi advance.
The President now tells the Nation
'this is really war."
To what degree miscalculation on the part of the enemy has brought
about this state of affairs, no one can be sure.
Miscalculation was the natural result of the withdrawal of American
backing for the Diem government. For the U.S. had pledged its
support of Diem all the way...
a phrase used by Lyndon Johnson in 1961.
Miscalculation was encouraged by President Johnson's 1964
campaign oratory. Making his opponent to appear reckless and
trigger happy, the President in several public statements set limits
to America's rolein Viet Nam military conflict yet these were
exceeded after the election.
Miscalculation is encouraged and the American people are confused--
when the Administration glosses over a messy EMT situation with
optimistic pronouncements and predictions.
-more-
GERALD
GOP women
-5-
Recall Secretary Rusk reporting in his words "steady improvement"
of the situation when he visited Viet Nam in the spring of last year.
Now once again, the public is told by the White House there is
reason for cautious optimism.
Neither the Congress nor the public is being accurately and fully
informed about the Nation's involvement in Viet Nam.
This summer the President said that the staloning of 125,000
American troops in Viet Nam did not imply any change in our policy.
The fact is---there has been a radical change in policy
Instead of providing advice, equipment and dollars as did the Eisenhower
Administration...or participating in air warfare as during the Kennedy
Administration--- the United States today is engaged in large-scale
combat.
I was one of several Republcians questioning committment of large
numbers of American ground troops before making fuller use of air
and sea power and we asked Mear we didn't get more
help from friendly nations directly threatened by Communists.
These questions have not been answered by the White House.
-more-
FORD & LIBRARY GERALD
GOP womenx
The objective of the Nation's policy in South Viet Nam must be
the establishment of conditions under which the people of that
country can live in peace and freedom. This means a government
of their own choosing. This means an end to aggression--from
within and from without.
We should always be ready to negotiate.
to
Negotiation end the fighting and assuring the freedom and
independence of South Viet Nam would be welcome.
However, the United States cannot acquiesce in a settlement which
would end the fighting but sacrifice the freedom and indpendence
of South Viet Name Such a settlement would be only a prelude to
a larger war in other parts of Asia---in places like Thailand,
Malaysia, or the Philippines.
It would be disastrous to end the war in South Viet Nam with a
which like the Geneva agreement of 1962 relating to Laos,
contition
installed a colition government with Communist participation in the
nation which has suffered aggression.
It would be a grave mistake to accept a settlement which would be
policed by an international committion with veto power in the hands
of a Communist member.
-more-
GOP women
-7-
There are in the Democratic Party some who would abandon the free
people of South Viet Nam. The President must not yield to them.
In doing our best to see to it that the President does not yield
to such critics, Republicans are carrying on in the finest
tradition of bi-partimanship in foreign policy.
Bipartisanship does not mean that the opposition party may not
offer proposals to the Administration; not that the opposition
may not criticise Administration actions.
Guided by the single standard of the security and well-being of the
Nation, Republicans will continue to offer suggestions and
to criticize.
Criticism, when well-founded, helps the Nation to steer a
surer and steadier course and to attain its objectives without
unnecessary loss or delay.
Thank you for listening.
# # #
FORD & LIBRAR GERALD