Ask the Scholar

Sunday, April 7, 1968, was a national day of mourning for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and President Johnson continued to monitor the riots which had broken out in a number of major cities after the assassination of Dr. King. In the morning he made several calls to Chicago Mayor Richard Daley before attending Mass at St. Dominic's Catholic Church. During the day the President met several times with General William Westmoreland. In the afternoon Johnson signed a letter for Westmoreland to deliver to President Nguyen Van Thieu of Vietnam, and he met with Westmoreland and his foreign policy advisors on Vietnam. When Westmoreland left the White House grounds by helicopter for Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, Johnson boarded the helicopter and accompanied him. As the helicopter returned to the White House, the President viewed the riot-related burnings in Washington, D. C. In the evening President Johnson signed an executive order to send federal troops to quell riots in Baltimore.