Conversation 008-031

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Hello.

Yes, sir.

John, I wanted you to know, I didn't tell them this morning because we hadn't yet cleared it with the speaker, because the astronauts were going to speak at the Congress at Thursday, but we've cleared them away, and I am going forward at 12.30 Thursday.

Oh, 12.30 Thursday.

With the speech to the Congress.

Right.

I thought we ought to hit them right after they got back.

I think that's great.

And I worked all weekend on the speech, and I'm going to work on it all day today and so forth.

I haven't a hell of a lot new to say, except that we're going to have stage two.

But I think it's all right.

What do you think?

I mean, I think it's all right.

I really do.

And I assume they've mentioned to you this other possibility.

I don't know what your reaction to it is.

You really become prime minister for an hour.

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

My reaction is extremely favorable to it.

You mean to answer questions?

Yeah, yeah.

And the problem is that doing it there, I'll tell you what I think I'm going to do is to...

is to try doing it by inviting them down, inviting 300 down into the East Room.

I don't mean not on this, but a later time, and do the Q&A.

I think it's a damn good idea.

Let me tell you the problem with doing it there.

The problem with doing it there is that having done it there once, you see, in a sense, as you know, there's a very technical problem here about, as you may recall,

when there was a question whether Washington should even go to the Congress, and then Wilson was the first president after Washington ever to address them in person and so forth.

Once it is done, and I've been checking this whole thing out, once it is done, the question is whether or not then your demagogues can say, well, the president came down when he wanted to, now we demand that he come down when we want him to.

On the other hand, if I invite him up here,

say a couple, 250 or so.

I can do them in the East Room, just like I do a press conference.

And say, now gentlemen, I'll start off, for example, when I, let's suppose I return from the Chinese thing.

Gentlemen, instead of making a report to the nation, I'd just like to tell you briefly and then take your questions.

but the questions come our i think that's probably why the president the price i'd love to do it the other way because it would just be the smash out of the age yeah it really would but it would be precedent setting i'm afraid well it's it isn't as i said i wouldn't mind doing it if it were the very last day of the last session but i think that we have the problem that

They then could have, you know, you've got executive privilege, you've got all these other things that are sort of tied into it.

But, boy, it appeals to me, and I'm going to use the key in any form as much as possible.

For example, I'm going to do the Detroit Economic Club, things like that, to get this across.

But I think doing it with the Congress is just a superb idea.

I did some of that at the time of Cambodia.

I called in the committee, both the foreign relations and foreign,

and Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Appropriations, so for about 150, and answered questions, but it was not on television.

But I think answering questions for the Congress on television, as distinguished from the press, is a change of pace that would have high dramatic quality.

I do, too.

Don't you think so?

I sure do.

and i'd like to do it in that hall but i i just i can i can understand your reluctance and i must say i i basically agree with it i just don't think you can set a precedent because that uh they would bind you or any successor that i'm not just perhaps so concerned myself except that you you say all right i've gone down and then then let's suppose you have a hell of a crisis right or like cambodia or the riot in the streets

And they say, we demand, or they have a joint resolution asking the president to come down and answer questions.

That's right.

It's not a good idea, you see.

He just maybe times he shouldn't answer questions.

That's right.

But if I have him down here, that's a very different thing than I've invited him.

Right.

But I think the speech has to be made, and I think we can charge him up again with a little on the, I'm going to continue to hit this productivity and hard work and keep our

keep our trading options and so forth and so on.

Well, I think I don't know what is, of course, I don't know what the material you have for your speech, but we've gotten it from everybody.

But Pete had a lot of good stuff there this morning.

Yes, he did.

In terms of figures and what's what's happened to us.

That's right.

That might be of use.

Right.

But I personally think on this that the reason I asked you to talk briefly this morning... Oh, let me tell you what we've decided in the cabinet thing, because I think you'd be interested.

I've been looking at plans that we have for various things, you know, to get this stuff across.

And the one weakness I have seen is...

We aren't making enough use of the enormous support among women for this program.

You know, the women, by golly, they're for wage and prostitution.

So on occasion, about three, I have had meetings of our cabinet with their wives.

So what I'm going to do Friday morning, and you'll get a notice either today or tomorrow as soon as they get the time,

They're going to announce it tomorrow morning.

I'm going to invite the cabinet and their wives in for a briefing on economic policy.

Now, the purpose of this is twofold.

One, so that the wives know what the hell's going on.

But second, some of these wives, you know, they go out, they talk, and so forth and so on.

And I think it'll be great symbolism, the idea of the... Don't you think so?

I sure do.

And so we're going to try that Friday as a format for...

just sort of a general cabinet meeting.

Well, some of the cabinets are going to be in the spot now.

We've got the Japanese here.

In the morning?

Yes, sir.

Our meeting, as I understand it, is 9.30.

We won't have a meeting with the Japanese.

Well, we may.

We may move it to Monday then.

Yeah, we can move it to Monday.

Yeah, no problem.

We'll check out.

That's why I say we're just checking the time.

Okay, sir.