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Document identity
localId
16703030
label
Diary Entry
core
doc
dtoType
document
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
16703030
sourceUrl
contentType
document
title
Diary Entry
citationUrl
collections
James C. Hagerty Papers
Diary Entries and Notebooks Files
thumbnailUrl
largeImageUrl
imageCount
1
hasImages
yes
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import
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no
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naId
16703030
levelOfDescription
item
productionDates
day
31
logicalDate
1954-05-31
month
5
year
1954
recordType
description
ocrSource
nara-archive
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
document
mediaId
056467ea061682e5
ocrText
LIMITED
941
MONDAY, MAY 31, 1954
Date
In at 8:15.
President did not arrive at the office until 9:00 and we immediately
started to work on several changes in the speech. One minor, but
important, change was from "protect the nation's vital secrets" to
"protect the nation's obvious interests." The President changed that
because he said he did not want to limit it -- with the McCarthy business
going on -- to "vital secrets" but wanted as broad a definition as possible.
He also inserted two paragraphs attacking any individual who because they
differ with us classified other individuals or parties as "treasonous".
Likewise, the President decided to leave in his speech all remarks aimed
at McCarthy, particularly those dealing with "demagogues".
Gave speech out here at noon, and of course, the wire services immediately
wanted to get me to say that we were specifically talking about McCarthy. I
refused to interpret the President's speech and let it go at that.
The speech got wonderful reception at the dinner. Sat at the same table
with Gil Paley, head of CBS, and he said he was going back to his office
and give orders to all his newscasters on radio and television to plug the
speech. In the morning the President said he would not get much applause
on this speech since he was speaking before an academic audience. He was
pleasantly surprised when he was interrupted 25 times, particularly on
those passages dealing with McCarthy, although he was not named.
On the way out to the airport with Bill Robinson and later in Washington
the President expressed extreme satisfaction at reception of his speech.
Electrostatic reproduction made
by the Eisenhower Library for
preservation purposes.