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    "ocrText": "ADMINISTRATIVE\nMEMO\n10\nMarch 10, 1970\nMemorandum of conversation\n¥\nBill Gill of ABC called from Washington. He said, \"Off\nthe record and very privately, Tom, I want you to know that\nI plan to carry a storymon tonight's show which is indirectly\ntied to the publication today of a book by Phil Goulding.\nGoulding paints McNamara as the hero of the bombing\npause, then goes on to tell how Clifford championed the\nbattle for the President's mind during March after\nMcNamara left. My story is very simple, and came\nfrom sources here in shington not from any conversations\nwith President Johnson or his people in Texas. That story\nis that Secretary Rusk, in a meeting on Feb. 27, in\nthe presence of Rustow, Bundy, Califano and others\nfirst suggested the bombing halt. I am not asking you\nfor any comment or any denial. My purpose in calling\nis only to say: 1. this is planned for this evening\nand 2. how's the boss? I'm sorry I could not get back\ndown there, but duties in Washington prevented it. I\nhope you will tell him that Mitzie and I are thinking\nof him.\"\nTJohnson\nNY\nDEC 1969\nPUBLIC ACTIVITIES\nCourtesy Letters\nDear Bob:\nLady Bird and I so much enjoyed seeing you in\nNew York. The party at the Krim's and the\nfun afterward with our friends gave us a heart\nfull of memories. We're delighted you were\na part of them.\nWe send warmest regards.\nSincerely,\nlly lly is\nHonorable Robert S. McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place, N.W.\nWashington, D. C.\nDecember 15, 1969\nLBJ:BT\nMonday, July 14, 1969\nMr. President:\nYou will be interested in the attached note from\nBob McNamara to Walt Rostow.\n+\nTom Johnson\npd\nINTERNATIONAL BANK FOR\nWORLD BANK\nRECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT\n7\nWASHINGTON, D.C. 20433, U.S.A.\nAND\nOFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT\nJuly 9, 1969\nDear Walt:\nI was shocked to read of some of the dis-\nclosures made by members of the Administration\nto Teddy White and reported by him in his book.\nI thoughtyyou might like to see the kind of\nquestions he referred to me and the answer\nI gave.\nYou may wish to show this note to the\nPresident. Don't hesitate to do so.\nBest wishes.\nSincerely,\nBol\nRobert S. McNamara\nI\nDr. Walt W. Rostow\nDepartment of Economics\nUniversity of Texas\nAustin, Texas 78712\nOctober 10, 1968\nMEMORANDUM FOR RECORD\nIn response to the questions Theodore White\nraised in the attached latter, I told him\nI could not discuss any of my recommenda-\ntions to the President or his decisions in\nrespect to them.\nRobert S. McNamara\nTHEODORE H. WHITE\n168 EAST 64 STREET\nNEW YORK 21. N. Y.\nOctober 3, 1968\nMr. Robert S. McNamara,\nThe World Bank,\n1818 H Street, NWrg\nWashington, D.C.\nDear Bob:\nI spoke briefly to your office this morning\nand told your secretary I would be in Washington next week and\nwas hoping to drop by and see you. Which, they said, was best\narranged by my telephoning for a fixed appointment when I came\nin to Washington on Monday.\nBut since I want to talk to you on a matter\nof some sensitivity and great complexity, I think I cught to\nprecede my visit with a quick note to let you reflect a bit\nbefore I come.\nI am now planning to begin the next\nMaking of the Rresident, with a rather brief passage of ten or\ntwelve pages on our involvement in VietNam. VietNam, after all,\nis the overriding theme of the politics of 1968, I shall leave\nit to other historians in years to come to write the true and\nfull story of that involvement and how it came to pass. But I\nwant my brief account to be as accurate and fair as I can achieve.\nWe talked about this, of course, last November\nwhen I visited in your office. And, since then, I've spoken to\na good half-dozen of the key figures involved in the decisions\nof 1965. As always, accounts blur and contradict; each man\nrefracts each episode through the prism of his own memory.\nTwo episodes will make the core of this\nopening section:\nFirst, of course, the decision of February\n6th/7th 1965 to bomb; and, on that episode most accounts are,\nstrangely enough, in agreement.\nThe Second episode is the sequence of\ndecisions between July 21st-July 28th on committing our ground\ntroops to active combat, announced by Johnson on the 28th.\nI am thoroughly confused by what I I've been\ntold about this second episode. Your name figures largely\nTHEODORE H. WHITE\n168 EAST 64 STREET\nNEW YORK 21, N. Y.\n2)\nin all accounts. Generally, ( to summarize brutally a great\nmany conversations), I am told the following:\na) That McNamara wanted to call up the\nreserves, put the matter before Congress in a full foreign\npolicy debate that would carry the public, politically, along\nwith the policy. On this matter, I'm told you were overruled\nby the President, who did not want to disturb Congress with a\nheated summer debate while the architecture of the Great Society\nwas being unveiled in Congress.\nb) That McNamara felt then that the costs\nof the war should be brought out into the open and that taxes\nshould be raised to pay for it. Johnson, I'm told, felt that\nthe operation was manageable without raising taxes and told\nMcMamara to \"bury\" the costs in the general Pentagon budget,\nhoping that the war would be over quickly enough to make it only\na passing episode.\nYou see how sensitive these matters are.\nBut I feel, as a professional journalist, that it would be most\nunwise to take someone else's account of the McNamara position.\nMore than that-- I feel it would be a major breach of our\nfriendship if I did not call Bob McNamara to have him explain\nSecretary McNamara's decision and thinking to me.\nNaturally, I anticipate that our\nconversation will be on a background, not-for-quotation-nor-\nattribution basis. The book will appear in July of 1969, and\nthus not contribute to the political polemics of the current\nelection year. And, as always, it will be SO great a pleasure\nto see you again.\nI'll telephone when I get into town on\nMonday and see if we can fix a date convenient to you.\nAll best,\nTeddy Vhite\nPUBLIC ACTIVITIES\nfile\naam, memo\nMary Rather\nMay 10, 1971\nMr. President:\n*\nBob McNamara called. He has been struggling,\ntrying to get out of a visit to Ghana so that he could be\nhere on the 22nd He simply cannot do that; but he\nplans to fly straight through and make it to Arthur Krim's\nparty.\nW. W. Rostow\nWWRostow:rln\nX\ncopy to: Mary Rather\nMESSAGES\nRECD. - HEALTH\nDear Bob:\nI appreciate so much your thoughtful letter. The\nconcern and prayers of old friends are the best\ntonic a sick man can have -- and your spoonful\nbrightened my day.\nPlease give our love to Marg.\nSincerely,\n*\nMagro\nHonorable Robert S. McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place, N.W.\nWashington, D. C. 20008\nApril 27, 1972\nV\nLBJ:RLH:jw\nMESSAGES\nRECD. - HEALTH\nDear Margy:\nThey keep telling me to be patient, but I have not\nyet learned how. I'm anxious to be home, and\nI'm doing my best to recover quickly. I believe I\nam succeeding... want you to know how much\nyour love and your message helped.\nWith thanks and affection,\nSincerely,\nMg-ro\n&\nMrs. Robert s, McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place N.W.\nWashington, D. C.\nApril 14, 1972\nP.S. Lady Bird has hidden my cigars.\nLBJ:BT\nINTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS\npd\nMay 27, 1972\nADMINISTRATION\nADMINISTRATIVE\nMr. President:\nMEMO\n6\nOnly a few of us know how much yesterday's SALT agreement\nowes to you. From my first day with you in the White House to the\nlast, I never lost my admiration for the way you managed to drive\nforward stubbornly in normalizing relations with the Soviet Union\n(and in other constructive aspects of foreign policy) while carrying\nthe burdens of Vietnam, the burning cities, the anti-war opposition,\netc. I hope and believe the grandeur of that performance comes\nthrough in The Diffusion of Power. But if it doesn't, or the book isn't\nread, it will come through in history.\nAs Spurgeon Keeny (who worked with me on arms control) said\nyesterday, when he called from ACDA to tell me the agreement was\nreached: \"I wish it had come in President Johnson's time. \" It was\na technical not a sentimental statement. The relative strategic\nbalance has deteriorated against us over these years. But, still,\nit's a great agreement, if our people don't come to believe it permits\nus to gut our military budgets and go isolationist. Within the frame-\nwork of the SALT agreement, Moscow can still move forward and put\nour interests in danger, as it did by grub-staking so lavishly Hanoi's\nspring offensive, in the Middle East, and elsewhere.\nI had a word with Bob McNamara last night. He gave a great\ndeal to build the foundations for the SALT agreement. He asked me\nto send you his warmest regards.\nWalk\nON\nRostow\nPUBLICATIONS\nBook by\nVANTAGE POINT\n(GIFT - sent as\nDear Margy and Bob\nHere we are into 1972 and, at one of\nTime's new beginnings, it is especially\nexhilarating to have your warm words and\nwishes this morning.\nWe know, Margy, that you needed no help\nfrom that 9,000 feet to bring your Christ-\nmas dinner up to your usual high standards,\nand we were interested to hear to what\ncorners of the universe fate has scat-\ntered your family.\nYou please me, too, Margy, with the kind\nthings you say about the book and Bob's\nreaction to it and you impress me with\nyour wonderful success with RIF.\nYou are a very talented twosome and one\nwe will always be wishing much gladness\nand good fortune.\nSincerely,\nHonorable and Mrs. Robert McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place, N.W.\nWashington, D.C. 20008\nJanuary 10, 1972\nLBJ:JK:mh\nBob H ade\nPUBLIC ACTIVITIES\nINVITATION-TO DECLINED\n71y 71y 71y 171y\nADMINISTRATION\nDecember 8, 1971\nADMINISTRATIVE\nMEMO\nMEMORANDUM FOR PRESIDENT JOHNSON\n9\nFROM BOB HARDESTY Bit\nMr. President:\nBob Cox (former assistant to John Macy) called about this\ninvitation from T. D. Copeland to speak at the UN symposium\nin New York on May 4.\nCox wanted you to know three things.\nFirst, the dinner is a much more prestigious affair than Mr.\nCopeland's letter indicates. It will be attended by such business\nleaders as David Rockefeller, plus most of the UN Ambassadors,\nplus World Bank officials including Bob McNamara. Cox said,\n\"This is a very substantial forum, in the event that President\nJohnson wants such a forum at that time. 11\nSecond, they are not asking for a definite acceptance. \"If\nPresident Johnson thinks he might be interested in coming, but\ndoesn't want to commit himself, we'll have another speaker in\nthe wings in case he decides not to come at the last minute.\nThird, you would be free to talk about anything you chose. There\nwould be no constraints on subject matter.\nAre you interested in keeping this invitation open?\nYes\nNo\nINTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS\nVielnam\nFebruary 7. 1972\nDear Mrs. Crisler:\nRobert\nW ith respect to your letter edidated, we have\nno record that Secretary McNamara promised\nan end to the war within six weeks, or any\nother precise period.\nSincerely,\n(Miss) Mary Rather\nSecretary\nA\nMrs. Edith E. Crisler\n3033 Evans Mill Road\nLithonia, Georgia 30058\nWWR:rln\nPUBLIC ACTIVITIES\nGIFT SENT\nJune 4, 1969\nDear Mr. Secretary,\nPresident Johnson asked that I send\nthe enclosed inscribed copy of \"THE\nJOHNSON YEARS,\" to which you con-\ntributed so much.\nHe is deeply grateful to you for the\npart you played in writing the record\nof these years.\nwith best personal wishes, I am.\nSincerely,\nW. Thomas Johnson\nExecutive Assistant\nHonorable Robert S. & McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place, N.W.\nWashington, D.C. 20008\n6\nPUBL CATION\nFile\nTuesday, March 18, 1969\nMr. President:\nP.\nI was chatting with Bob McNamara about something\nelse and he volunteered the following:\n-- History is being written by \"self-serving parties\";\n-- The President should get his story of March 31st\nout soon, before the \"public image of history\ncrystallizes. 11\nRostow\ncc: Tom Johnson\nMarch 17, 1969\nper\nIF 24\nMEMORANDUM TO PRESIDENT JOHNSON\nMarch 17, 1969\n12:10 PM\nFrom: Harry Middleton the ADMINISTRATION Memo\nPRESIDENT, OFFICE OF by Telephone (RE: ABM)\nMr. President:\nNATIONAL DEFENSE\non for the following\nI spoke to Secretary Clifford again\n6\nthis morning to determine the extent of\nhis approval of President Nixon's ABM\ndecision. Clifford said he does approve\n:onditions that would\nthe Nixon decision. Attached are the\nnotes of my telephone conversation with\nrogram.\nhim.\ner concept was be-\nSecretary McNamara called to give\nme his thoughts on the differences be-\nS wise to temper and\ntween the Johnson Administration plan\nand the Nixon Administration plan.\nng our chances of\nAttached are my notes of the McNamara\nconversation.\ned.\nwould be if the Congress\nto build any kind of de-\nt an enormous disadvan-\nts. So we take less\nif we modify the ABM\npassage.\nct of our defensive missile\nplan on our talks with the Soviets than I am with the actual merit of the\nplan itself.\n\"The opposition has built up to the point where the wise course\nis to modify the plan. I believe we now have a good chance to get the\nmodified plan through.\nADMINISTRATION\nADMIN MEMO,\nFILE\nTuesday, March 18, 1969\nMr. President:\n&\nI was chatting with Bob McNamara about something\nelse and he volunteered the following:\n6\n-- History is being written by \"self-serving parties\";\n-- The President should get his story of March 31st\nout soon, before the \"public image of history\ncrystallizes.\"\nW. W. Rostow\ncc: Tom Johnson\nWWRostow:rln\nPUBLIC ACTIVITIES\nCourtesy Letters\nJanuary 28, 1969\nDear Bob:\nI have had many occasions to be grateful not only\nfor your brilliant assistance, but also for the gen-\nerosity of your support. Now, as so often in the\npast, I have difficulty finding the words to thank\nyou.\nThe tribute that you wrote for the New York\ndinner two weeks ago touched me deeply. But\nI must say, it belongs to you as well. What we\nmay have accomplished, we accomplished to-\ngether -- and not only I, but the entire nation\nis in your debt.\nSincerely,\nMy\nHenorable Robert S. McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place, N.W.\nWashington, D. C. 20008\nS\nLBJ:RLH:fd\nx\nNEW YORK DINNER\nI IER NOT\nV IN FILES\nPUBLICATIONS\nBOOK\n1970\n*Brady\nDear Mac:\nAs you gather, I've been in the hospital these past few days,\nbut it hasn't kept me from reading my mail and giving thought\nto the tasks ahead.\nI was glad to receive your candid letter of February 23 and 1\nunderstand that the pressures on you in New York precluded\na longer analysis of the chapters and more detailed comments.\nObviously, more time and a more exhaustive study of the\ndocuments could produce a different and, perhaps, a better --\nbook. But I am convinced that the wise course, taking all things\ninto account, is for me to plow on and publish in the reasonably\nnear future an account of the major crises and accomplishments\nof those five years.\nYou may not be aware that most of these chapters have gone\nthrough many drafts one of them, 16. Before we finish, they\nwill go through several further drafts. As I have worked over\nthem with my staff examining all the records that we have --\nI became convinced that they are coming to reflect quite fairly\nthe documentary ma terials as a whole; and, perhaps more\nimportant, they do reflect the balance of considerations which\nled me to make the decisions I did make.\nNevertheless, I am sure that the book can be substantially im-\nproved. There are very few people whose judgment I want in this\nfinal stage. On foreign affairs, Dean Rusk, Cy Vance, and Bob\nMcNamara are among them. And they have proved immensely\nhelpful and constructive on large and small matters, after a\nline-by-line reading. You are, of course, one of those to whom\nI should like to turn in an effort to make this book as good as it\ncan be. 2\nF\n3\nMarch 2, 1970\n10:32 a. m.\nMR. PRESIDENT:\n*\nShould Bill Jorden go to Washington to keep his appointment\nwith Secretary McNamara as already scheduled?\nYES\nNO\nT\nTom Johnson\nLYNDON BAINES JOHNSON\nPleness\nPUBLICATIONS\nBOOK\n7:45 p.m.\nADMINISTRATIVE\nMarch 5, 1970\nMEMO\nSecretary Mc N amara called for Mrs. Johnson while\n10\nPresident Johnson was sleeping. I went into the President's\nroom for a message, but noticing him asleep I decided not\nto awaken him since the call for for Mrs. Johnson/\nSecretary McNamara completed his call to Mrs. Johnson\nand then talked to me briefly.\nHe said:\nX\nI spent seven good hours with Bill Jorden. I hope we got something\na ccomplished.\nSo many self-serving books are being written without thorough\ndocumentation that it will be extraordinarily good for President\nJohnson's book to come out. It will give history the proper\nperspective. I think the book is highly desireable.\nI told Bill Jorden of some changes which need to be made.\nThese are primarily in the Six Day War chapter, which\nhas a section concerning the Hot Line with Kosygin which is\nexcessively dramatic.\nI notive that you have done a very fine job on documentation.\nTom, everything just must be documented throughly. It makes\nit so much more strong as a book. You have done it, and\ndone it well. I noted a few places to Bill where you may be able to\ndo add some documents.\nTom, my own memory has really gone to pot. It also looks like\nthe memory of many people writing books around Washington\nhave gone to pot.\nFor this reason, and because I think all can make a valuable\ncontribution, I hope you check the book with Dean Rusk, Nick\nKatzenbach, Cy Vance, Mc Bundy, and Bob McNamara.\nTell \"the boss\" that he is in our hearts and in our minds.\nTomJ.\nI\nPUBLIC INFORMATION\nREQUEST FOR\nJuly 1, 1971\nDear Mr. St. John:\nThe only letter in President Johnson's files\nreceived from you was that of November 1,\n1968, to which a reply was sent by\nMr. Whitney Shoemaker on November 6.\nAs for Secretary McNamara's resignation\nin 1967, he had served almost seven long,\nhard years in one of the most demanding\nposts in the government. He was going\nforward to lead the International Bank for\nReconstruction and Development, one of\nthe most important posts in the international\ncommunity where he has served with high\ndistinction for three and one-half years.\nYou may find this and other of your concerns\nclarified in President Johnson's forthcoming\nbook, The Vantage Point.\nSincerely,\n(Miss) Mary Rather\n*\nSecretary\nMr. Anthony St. John\n1715 North 16 Avenue\nExecutive Apartment 203\nHollywood, Florida 33020\nWWR:rln\nLYNDON BAINES JOHNSON LIBRARY\nDed Cère\nJuly 30, 1971\nDear Mr. Secretary:\nPresident and Mrs. Johnson thought\nyou might like to have this picture\nas a memento of your recent visit\nto Texas for the dedication of the\nPUBLIC ACTIVITIES\nLyndon Johnson Library. This\nGIFT SENT\ncomes to you with their warm\npersonal regards.\nPres sig\nSincerely,\n(Mrs.) Willie Day Taylor\nAssistant\nHonorable Robert McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place, N. W\nWashington, D. C. 20008\nMary\nADMINISTRATION\nJune 18, 1971\nADMINISTRATI\nE\nMEMO\nMr. President:\nMy thoughts have been much with you these days. Through more\nthan two years of critical meetings at which the nation's policies\nwere shaped, I sat in the room as your aide.\nAt each I saw a big, big man pour over every map, study\ncarefully every document, question and re-question every\npolicy adviser, listen to every viewpoint.\nRobert\nclack\nwalt\nEach\nThe maps changed. The views changed. Even the personalities\nchanged: McNamara and Clifford, Bundy and Rostow, Wheeler\nand Helms, Rusk and Katzenbach. Some held firm. Some\nfluttered. Some ran.\nBut one aspect did not change:\nThe man who presided over those meetings always retired\nfrom those meetings to his oval office or to his bedroom\nwhere h e call upon the best judgment of the best minds\navailable to our country, where he called upon the best\nthat was within himself---and where often he called\nupon his God.\nI saw the pain inflicted on you when an American plane\nand American men were lost in Vietnam. I knew the\nunusual precautions you ordered to prevent needless\nloss of civilian life, both in the South and in the North.\nI also saw the senseless ruthless attacks upon you by\nthose in our own country who wouldoften make the\nroad toward peace more difficult to travel.\nAt every stage that I was privileged to witness--and there\nwere more than 100 of those meetings during 1967 and 1968--\none fact was clear:\nonly the President had all the facts, all the views,\nall the suggestions, all the alternatives, and all the potential\nconsequences.\nYou made the decisions based not on what was right for you,\nbut on the basis on what was right for others---in this case\nthose people of Southeast Asia who wanted their right to be\nfree.\nAn honest history of this period cannot be based on fragments\nwritten by men whose narrow perspective produced such an\nincomplete account as that published this week.\nORIGINAL SENT TO\nTom ty\nTom Johnson\nADMINISTRATION\nADMINISTRATIVE\nMEMO\nJune 21, 1971\nPUBLIC INFORMATION\nMr. President:\nPRESS -Reaction\nI have had two very long telephone conversations: one last\nn.4.2ine\nwith Francis Bator; the other this morning with Averell Harriman.\nEach initiated the call to me.\n1.\nFrancis and Averell report an interesting and possibly\nimportant split within the Eastern anti-Vietnam forces: Averell,\nGeorge Ball, Francis Bator, Carl Kaysen have turned against the\nNew York Times; they believe that the credibility of government is at\nstake; they are trying to do anything helpful to assert the integrity of\nPresident Johnson and his administration and the bad faith of the\nNew York Times exercise.\n2.\nBoth Francis and Averell asked me: Is there anything I\ncan do? I told them that if they understood the truth -- namely, that\nPresident Johnson concealed no essential of his Vietnam policy from\nthe American people and the New York Times is corrupt -- they should\nsay so loud and clear.\n3.\nFrancis urged that at some stage President Johnson speak\nout; he indicated that he was aware of the legal issues and the complexity\nof some of the problems to which a statement by President Johnson might\nhave to address itself; and he volunteered to go over any statement in\nadvance, knowing the attitudes of the people in the East who have to be\nconvinced.\n4.\nAverell's attitude towards a statement was somewhat different.\nHe said that what had come out in TIME from President Johnson was\nhelpful. What was needed now was a short, powerful statement by\nPresident Johnson to stop the \"locking into concrete\" of the conclusion\nthat President Johnson had deceived the American people in 1964-65.\nHe thought what had come out in TIME magazine and had been on the\nair last night was helpful. On the other hand, he was extremely careful\nto say that he did not know all the considerations bearing on a statement\nby President Johnson; he would not advise him; but he merely wanted\nPresident Johnson to know that from\\where he was, it would be useful\nto do something soon to prevent the New York Times view from\ncrystallizing.\n5.\nFrancis Bator, mildly, and Averell, strongly, urged that\nthere be a statement which denied that it was President Johnson's view\nthat Bob McNamara had started the study at the behest of Robert Kennedy\nand to strengthen Robert Kennedy's political position. Averell said that\nBob is in \"a terrible state. \" He feels miserable about the study, its\nleakage, and the New York Times use of it. He is deeply disturbed that\nW. W. Rostow\nel\nADMINISTRATION\nADMINISTRATIVE\nMEMO\nMay 28, 1970\n8\nP\nTO: TOM JOHNSON\nLYNDON BAINES JOHNSON LIBRARY\nFROM: Dorothy Territo\nMuseum if to\nMr Middleton asked me to develop a list of dates for meeting\nwith the remaining exhibit committees -- after June 15. I am\nattaching three suggested schedules, which have been checked\nagainst the calendar of deadlines. It is our feeling, because\nof the time factor, the meetings should be held in June, if\npossible.\nI planned every schedule showing the International Affairs group\nhere on Friday, in the event the President and Mrs Johnson\nwould wish to entertain the Rusks McNamaras and Bundys over\nthe weekend.\nAlso, experience seems to show that busy people travel easier\nover weekends, so I scheduled the American City on Monday for\nMr. Kaiser's convenience.\nTom\ncall me\nJ\nORIGINAL SENT TO TERRITO\nPUBLIC ACTIVITIES\nAPPT.\nDear Margyt\nAfter receiving your sweet letter of May\nfourth, we've learned that you and Bob may\nbe able to join us late Saturday afternoon.\nWe're hoping all goes well.\nSincerely,\nlly is\n*\nMrs. Robert S. McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place, N.W.\nWashington, D. C. 20008\nMay 17, 1971\nLBJ:BT\n2412 Tracy Place, N.W.\nWashington, D. C. 20008\nP\nfree\nJune 7, 1971\nDear Mr. President and Lady Bird,\nBob and I want to tell you that, no matter how\nsleepy we looked, we loved being with you, even if\nlate. It was good to see you both looking so well.\nJudging from the East Coast, it was one of the\nhappier times we have had in a long time. It is\nall a point of view, but the hope seems to be out\nof Washington. I'm particularly thinking of the\npoverty program which gave so much hope to many.\nOur Book Program is about to really take off and\nbe a truly national program.\nThe Library is handsome and beautifully done.\nAll went to smoothly, and everyone who was there\nwas there because they wanted to be and not because\nthey thought they should be. I saw Liz Carpenter\nat the Caters last week and she said, \"Never again\nwithout a White House switchboard.\"\nAll our good wishes.\nLove, may NBM\nThe Honorable\nminamura\nand Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson\nLBJ Ranch\nLady Bud - -caltwait\nJan Stonewall, soriyajng Texas 78671\nto read The Prose out\nPHI SIDENT, OFFICE OF\nJohnson Admin.\n13\nINTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS\nVictnom\nMEMORANDUM FOR:\nDr. Newland\nDorothy Territo\nADMINISTRATION\nLois Nivens\nV\nMary(Rather\nADMINISTRATIVE\nMildred Stegall]\nMEMO\nBill Jorden\nJuanita Roberts\nFROM TOM JOHNSON\nPresident Johnson has repeatedly asked for us to locate a memorandum\nwhich was sent to him by Secretary McNamara urging the initiation of\nbombing in North Vietnam. At this stage, Lois Nivens, BillJorden and\nI have not been able to locate it.\nI\nPresident Johnson remembers that the memo was placed in the middle\ndrawer of his small office in Washington (the one ajoining the oval office\nadjacent to Jimi Jones.)\nWould each of you search your memories and any files you may be familiar\nwith to see if it could have been placed in them. It is possible that this\nmemorandum was taken from the desk and put with other memorandums which\nhave not yet been sorted. In any case, this has first priority and we should\nboard it from every angle possible.\nIn particular, President Johnson wants Lois Nivens to call Bromley Smith\nand Dorothy Territo to search everything that was taken from the office\nprior to leaving on January 20.\nAugust 6, 1969\n/\nPUBLICATIONS\narticle about\nBob\nDear Mr. McNamara:\nPresident Johnson thought you might like to see\nthe attached article by John Roche, \"The\nOutsider's Insider.\"\nMay I take this opportunity to wish you a most\nhappy and good 1970.\nSincerely,\nW. Thomas Johnson\nExecutive Assistant\nHonorable Robert S. McNamara\nPresident, International Bank\nfor Reconstruction and Development\n1818 H Street, N.W.\nWashington, D. C. 20433\n6\nDecember 30, 1969\nWTJ:rln\nADMINISTRATIVE\nMEMO\nNovember 20, 1970\nMr. President:\nBob McNamara just called and spoke to me at considerable\nlength to the following effect.\n1. Two major studies are under way on Vietnam: one by\nHalberstam, the other by the Institute for Policy Studies. The latter\nis an extreme left wing operation including Marcus G. Raskin who,\nbriefly, Mac let into the White House in 1961, quickly to repent.\n2. Halberstam is about to publish in Harper's a hatchet job\non Bob McNamara parallel to the very ugly piece he wrote on Mac\nBundy. These pieces are, in fact, portions of his book on Vietnam,\ndesigned to demonstrate that President Johnson, Rusk, McNamara,\nBundy, and Rostow are personally responsible for Vietnam.\n3. What worries McNamara is that, from the information\nflowing to him, both the Raskin group and Halberstam have available\na number of classified documents from the Government. They plan\nto use these in a selective, damaging way against their targets.\nMcNamara reports that certain members or former members of the\nGovernment feel they have the right and duty to \"punish\" those whom\nthey regard as individually responsible for Vietnam policy.\n4. Bob's main operational point was to express his hope that:\n-- President Johnson's book would come out as soon as\npossible; and\n-- That on Vietnam the book would contain as much hard\ndocumentary evidence as possible.\nIn general, he thinks the only way these attacks can be dealt with is by\nthe fullest statement possible of the truth.\nI asked him if he thought that any of the people connected with\nthe compilation of the Defense Department history of Vietnam might be\ninvolved in the passing of documents to characters of this kind. He said\nit was wholly possible. He had asked John McNaughton to organize the\ndocuments. He said he did not know who McNaughton had put on the job.\nTheir instruction was to collect documents and not write historical\nanalyses. They apparently did write history, some of which he believes\nis biased. He said he has never been able to bring himself to look at\nthe Defense Departmen t history of Vietnam.\nWalt Rostow\nJohnson\nPUBLICATIONS\nBOOK by\nNovember 3, 1970\nADMINISTRATION\nMEMORANDUM TO PRESIDENT JOHNSON\nADMINISTRATIVE\nMEMO\n*\nFROM\nBILL JORDAN\nBOB HARDESTY\n33\nMr. President:\nAs per your instructions, we are proceeding with arrangements to\nget the appropriate chapters to the people you approved. This will\nprobably entail:\n1. A trip by Jordan to Atlanta, Washington, and New York;\n2. A trip by Hardesty to Washington and New York.\nWe are now in the process of contacting all of the individuals so it\nwill be possible to see them all in one trip.\nWe are both tentatively making arrangements to travel next week.\nThe following is a breakdown of the people we plan to see:\nJORDAN\nHARDESTY\nSecretary Rusk\nGovernor Connally (here)\nClark Clifford\nWalter Jenkins (here)\nAmbassador Bunker (here)\nWilbur Cohen\nCy Vance\nPhil Landrum\nJack Hood Vaughn\nLarry O'Brien\nTom Mann\nMaryin Watson\nOrville Freeman\nLee White\nSecretary Fowler\nNick Katzenbach\nEd Fried\nRamsey Clark\nBob McNamara\nDoug Cater\nEugene Black\nJim Webb\nEd Welsh\nBarefoot Sanders (here)\nArt Okun\nCharlie Schultze\nCharlie Zwick\nAbe Fortas\nCharlie Murphy\nWalt has taken the three chapters that you designated for Eugene Rostow\nto London with him.\nLYNDON BAINES JOHNSON\nDear Margy:\nI seem to be the only 'stay-at-home'. Lady\nBird left early this morning for a week's visit\nback East and then your post card arrived. I'll\nsay thank you for both of us and be sure to save\nit for her return.\nAll best wishes,\nSincerely,\nthey in\nMm Robert McNamara\n2412 October Washington, Taacy 27, Place S 1970 D. C.\n20008\nLBJ:BT\nPUBLIC ACTIVITIES\nfavor denied\nOctober 13, 1970\nDear Miss Berger:\nPresident Johnson asked me to thank you\nfor thinking of him again and sending\nhim the clippings about the *Holiday Inns\nto be build in Mexico.\nRobert\nAlthough we do not feel that it would\nbe appropriate for him to intervene in\nyour behalf with Mr. McNamara, you do\nhave his very best wishes 6 for continuing\nsuccess with your work.\nSincerely,\n(Mrs.) Willie Day Taylor\nAssistant\nMiss Mary M. Berger\n2503 McCue, #11\nHouston, Texas 77027\nWDT:JK:kab\nMESSAGES\nCHRISTMAS RECEIVED 69\nDear Bob and Marg:\nThank you for your warm note and\ncard and the many memories that\ncame with them.\nSincerely,\nLBJ\nA\nHonorable and Mrs. Robert McNamara\n2412 Tracy Place, N. ₩.\nWashington, D.C. 20008\nDecember 30, 1969\nM\nLBJ:JK:egl\nMESSAGES\nRECEIVED\nCHRISTMAS\n1970\nDear Nargy and Bob:\nFrom the sound of that interesting\nnote you wrote with your Christmas\ncard, you'll be in West Africa when\nthis letter arrives at your house.\nBut it will wait and will let you\nknow how much wa appreciate your\nthoughtfulness at Christmas and your\nfriendship in all seasons.\nSincerely,\nNb is\nHonorable and Mrs.\nRobert S. McNamara\n2412\nN.\nN.\nWashington, January LBJ:JK:erb Tracy 6, Place, 1971 D. C. 20008\nINTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS\nVietnam\nDear Mr. Martini:\nY ith respect to your letter of January 10, I\ncan assure you that Secretary Robert McNamara's\nvarious fact-finding missions to Vietnam during\nmy administration were a His valuable service to the\nPresident and to the country.\nSincerely,\nthy\nLU\n*\nMr. Renato Martini\n120 East Cleveland Street\nStockten, California 95204\nJanuary 17, 1972\nLBJ: W WR:rln\nPUBLIC INFORMATION\nPN-2D\nADMINISTRATION\nAD-3\nAugust 29, 1972\n10\nMr. President:\nYou may wish to see this brief reply I have m le to Halberstam's\nattached piece in the Septemb. r 1972 Esquire.\nI know, of course, the reasons for continuing to ignore writing\nof this type. But I finally concluded that one among those who have\nbeen brutally caricatured by Halberstam (President Johnson, Secretary\nRusk, Bob McNamara, Mac Bundy, Max Taylor, etc. ), should record\nwith dignity the fact that his use of evidence has been quite corrupt.\nI talked with Mad Bundy before sendi ig this in. He did not encourage\nme to answer but he confirmed that there were 6 or 7 major\ninaccuraci in Halberstam's portrait of him in Harper's. In any\ncase, I though you might wish to read this piece, which will probably\nbe published in the November 1972 issue of Esquire.\nRostow\nINTER APIONE AFFAIRS\nIN-1\nOctober 4, 1972\nADMINISTRATION\nAD.3 (12\nMr. President:\nDr. S. R. Spencer, President of Davidson College, North Carolina,\ncalled on me this afternoon. He wishes to generate the resources (about\n$500, 000) to create a professorship in international affairs in the name\nof Dean Rusk; and he would like to do this in Mr. Rusk's time.\nHis first question to me was whether I thought it likely that\nPresident Johnson would be in a position to take the leadership in\nraising the money. I told Dr. Spencer two things:\n-- I thought there was no one you would rather honor than\nDean Rusk;\n-- It was my impression that you were heavily committed\nto strengthening certain institutions here in Texas.\nNevertheless, I urged Dr. Spencer to get in touch with you directly about\nhis plan.\nWe then talked of others who might lead or contribute to the\neffort. I suggested, for example, that it might be useful for Dr. Spencer\nto talk with George McGhee, Robert McNamara, Douglas Dillon,\nMcGeorge Bundy.\nDr. Spencer told me that he had already approached The Rockefeller\nFoundation; but, for institutional reasons, they were reluctant to take the\nleadership. Dr. Spencer has a feeling that they might in the end make a\ncontribution if the leadership were elsewhere.\nDr. Spencer has not approached members of the Rockefeller family.\nIt occurred to me that you might wish to have a word about the project\nwith Laurance Rockefeller over the weekend.\nWalt\nRostow\nmemos to JB8\nADMINISTRATION\nad memo\nID\nFebruary 10, 1970\nMEMORANDUM:\nTO:\nThe President\nFROM:\nMildred Stegall\nI have made a thorough search and the two\ncalls in question were definitely made on August 7, 1964.\nI checked the Diary, the outside of the envelope that holds\nthe tapes, and the transcript itself.\n$ Richard\nOn August 4th, Senator Russell met with\nyou upstairs in the Mansion from 3:35 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.\nTe.\nThere were no calls to Senator Fulbright from\nthe 4th through the 10th. Senator Fulbright was in the meeting\nin the Cabinet Room on August 4 from 6:45 polit, to 8:15 p.m\nyear\nOthers in attendance were: President, McNamara, Rusk\nSubject\nMcGeorge Thomas Bundy. McCone Bourke Mc Cormack Mansfield, yes & Humphrey,\nRussell, care Kuchel Hickenlooper Saltonstall, Aiken, Albert,\nVinson, Morgan Halleck, Arends and Bolton.\nYou left for Texas at 6:16 p.m. on August 7 and\nreturned at 8:00 p.m. on the 9th.\nPresident, bffice of\nJohnson asmon\nAccording to PARADE magazine for June 15, 1969 (cont.)\nCohen\nWilbur Choen\nis still wrestling with education problems at the University of\nMichigan where he is the Dean of Education\nRobert McNamara\nwent to the World Bank. Recently he has spoken on the urgency of\nthe world population crisis\nNicholas deB. Katzenbach\nalso moved into the computer business. has been named vice presi\nand general counsel of International Business Machines Corp.,\nwhich controls about 70 percent of the computer business in Ameri\nWillard Wirtz\nis reported to be still on vacation as of late May. He was, howe\nelected to the Board of Directors of EDP Technology\nC.R. Smith\nis a partner in Lazard Freres & Co. an investment company\nMarvin Watson,\nis in the oil business now. Last March 20 it was announced that\nWatson would become president of Occidental International Corp.\nThis subsidary of Occidental Petroleum was formed on that day.\nplaye 2"
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