Conversation 156-018

Transcript (AI-Generated)

This transcript was generated automatically by AI and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite this transcript as authoritative. Consult the Finding Aid above for verified information.

Hello, Mr. President.

I read your talking points and I'm prepared on them.

I am not going to go into quite as much detail as these points would indicate because I think that it'll get across more coldly and toughly if they

You know what I mean?

If you make eight points, you might get through one.

And I'm going to pick the points that I think are important, and we'll get it across.

But I'm going to make a very tough statement, Tom.

Mr. President, I may make a suggestion.

There are two things that – well, there are three things that are very important.

One is that you explicitly say

I've got that.

I intend to do that.

They're trying to play that game.

That's right.

I'll say that.

No, I intend to cover that with brutality.

Don't worry.

A second that you make clear to them that there's absolutely no give in the schedule anymore.

That's right.

Good.

I'll do that.

And the third is on the opposite side that you give them those three assurances at the end of the talking point.

That we will make a statement that we recognize only the TBN

as the government that will react violently to violations and that you'll be prepared to meet with Q. Christ, I've covered that.

I know, but they would like to hear that from you.

Because we don't want them to leave your office as broken men.

Yeah.

We need them to yield, but we need them to want to maintain themselves when the agreement is signed.

Yes, sir.

All right, I can.

I'll make it again.

I don't know how many times it has to be done, but I intended to say that.

But, uh, okay.

Okay.

One other thing, Mr President.

They could be asking for a meeting between you and two.

Yeah.

My recommendation is the following one.

I can't do it between us.

Well, actually, it would be better for him if he met you after the agreement so that you could put yourself behind him as a chief staff president.

That's right.

If it's absolutely got to be as a condition of the agreement, if you were willing to do that, then it would have to be, though, only in the context of a prior assurance that he'll agree.

That's right.

You cannot go to a meeting.

I wonder what you shouldn't give on that point.

That you will meet him.

No, no.

I said I wonder if...

We just shouldn't not give on that point.

So I said, not give.

If you open that door, Christ will slip the schedule and a hell of a lot of other things.

The only time, I don't know whether your schedule was committed, it would have to be towards the end of next week.

Well, I can do it any time.

This comes before anything else.

But I just don't think... You can do it over next weekend, say.

We can still meet the schedule.

But I don't think, Mr. President, that you can afford to meet him and fail.

Well, that's the point.

I don't think I'm going to afford to meet him at all because I think he's too unpredictable.

But if he gives us an assurance that he needs this for his own public opinion, that he will agree to that final formula, I think you could agree to it.

Yeah, yeah.

Well, don't worry.

They're going to have to press a hell of a lot harder on that than I think they will to get that.

But it wouldn't be in their

I've got the points there, well done, and I'll work them out.

Right.

And as far as his letter is concerned and so forth, it's...

This is an intercept.

They, of course, don't know that we have it.

Yeah.

They will hand you a letter, and you have to read it.

Yeah.

But above all, it's important that we are brutal about the schedule.

If they detect any crack, we've had it.

They won't detect any crack, and the only problem is whether they do leave broken men, because they may.

Because there isn't going to be, we may have to do that.

Well, if they get the assurances indicated, they won't leave it broken.

Well, but let me say, I'm going to tilt much stronger to the tough line than even your memorandum indicates.

Much stronger.

It has to be.

I know these people.

And at this point, I just got to say that there's no nonsense and that I'm really shocked that it's gone this way.

They haven't paid any attention to my letters and so forth.

And now let's come right down to it.

This is all, it's all finished.

Let's get going.

Well, I think it's better to lean on the tough side because we can always be soft afterwards.

Yeah, I know.

We can't recoup anything that's excessively soft.

Yeah, yeah.

All right.

Well, that's what we'll do.

We'll meet at 3 o'clock.

Now, when do you come to Florida?

You wanted me Saturday morning.

Yeah.

You better come down Friday night, don't you think?

I'll do, yes.

Yeah.

I'll come Friday night or very first thing Saturday.

Yeah.

I think we should make that.

So, Zegrick, an announcement.

Say we had a...

four-hour meeting or something like that you know in other words but i have a long meeting and what doesn't make any difference how long we do meet but we met the four hours and this so that when you get back they know it's all over exactly so just plan that you're here for a period of at least four so i'll plan to be there all day yeah good and you can just and we'll put you i've told all of them to put you in the three in the house so that you're not caught on the beat

Oh, in that house?

You know, the big house.

Oh, yeah.

Isn't that all right?

That's fine.

Any place is good.

You see, if you're there, then you're in a position that the press doesn't know where you are and so forth, and they'll figure you're over in the compound, and you like that house.

It's got the swimming pool and everything else.

So we can do that, and there's plenty of room there.

But we will meet at whatever length is required.

But let's, I want for your information.

It'll take a hell of a lot of time.

Frankly, I expect maybe an hour at most.

But then we'll say that, I'll have Ziegler put out, the president met with Bart Kishinsky for four hours this morning.

Because we have met for four hours in the fall.

Oh, please.

Okay, anything else new?

No, that's all.

Nothing new from the North or anything?

Any usual silence?

So forth and so on.

Well, that's all right.

But just move relentlessly on.

That's what we have to do now.

Right.

And make the deal.