Nixon, Haig & Haldeman on Foreign Policy and Vietnam War

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He told me, and I think he's absolutely right, that we should have, that you're discussing the fact that we shouldn't have something to announce.

And it occurred to me that you might get Pierce in the act to the extent to say, look, scratch your brain and see what is there, if anything, that you can think of we could give the Latin Americans in the whole field of economics.

I think it's basically economics that they're concerned about.

I don't know what we could do with the political people.

Maybe there's something we could do there.

Maybe we could announce some new, huh?

There's some consultations with our allies in the hemisphere here.

Well, I think that's important in and of itself.

And Bill, we ought to have something to come out of it.

We give him something.

I don't know.

What do you agree?

Do you agree?

Maybe we don't have that.

I agree some of the consultation is goddamn important.

It is.

These are historic times.

This is very important.

These are our closest neighbors, our closest friends.

We want to go over it, and I spend an hour with each one.

And what we should run is to run those conferences, and I run an hour.

Four in the morning, four in the afternoon, and then the dinner, that's four, that's two.

In three days, you can do it.

Three days of conferences.

And I think some explanation of our expropriation policy for these people in a formal sense.

That's right.

We're not victimized by the children's interpretation of it.

He also told me about Mrs. Nixon's trip.

Did he mention that to you?

Yes, he did.

I think it's good that she goes to some other countries and takes some women.

She's willing.

I mean, she is.

I wish she was.

If we could get the right people together, it would be a hell of a job.

It would be very, very good.

I think it's a very good concept.

I think she ought to leave.

She ought to go right after Christmas.

She ought to be back here.

If you know the date of this baby, you'll know when the Congress comes back.

It was early this year.

I don't know how to get that.

It's not too late.

It's early in January.

I know it's not too late.

It's not too late.

Well, she doesn't have to be here for that, except that

Well, I'm sorry, but it could be something like that.

It would have to be three or four stops.

Yeah.

What I was thinking was if she does make three or four stops, she ought to make one before the other.

You see, the other, that January 2nd is their day.

And that doesn't need to be the first stop.

She doesn't need to go there first.

Wait a minute, she's got Billy Graham hanging along.

That probably has to be the first stop.

Well, she could actually go to other countries before she goes to a library in the United States.

One or two before they break.

Or if they drop off and go to a library in another country.

That's right.

The hospitals, the children's homes, educational, cultural, and also health.

Health, education, welfare, volunteerism.

It's like the end of that last year.

I told her, I told her, I told her, I told her,

You know, it's very tight-knit, but we presented you with the options.

And we did work with him, and I did work with him, and only one other staff man here.

Yeah, we did.

Good.

I mean, I understand that there's some responsibility coming up with Peterson.

With Peterson, without regard to the trip, I would probably like to say, what the hell are you going to do to Latin America with this question?

I'm sure we have some things, and our problem's been that we've made, we've made a lot of policies, and we've made some things, but I don't know what else we're going to have to do.

We're going to have it on the secretary.

Yeah.

All right.

If you're going to have issues with it, I thought you would be best to use your business section to give in that broad picture on the summits of the fact that some expression of your gratitude for the solution to this problem

He's not going to come in here thinking that we're going to immediately resolve all the other trade problems.

All right, let's do the surcharge and everything else, and I thought we'd have to dismiss him.

And then, if the response is appropriate based on what he comes in with, that's the way we did it.

We might be able to get the answer across to him.

We don't have to comment on that thing.

No, we can't comment on it.

This is a little worse.

I know that Japanese are now expecting a major war.

A little warm up, like they warm up to us.

A little warm up socially.

But as far as what we do, we're going to be very dad-delivered.

And Conley's going to be over there.

I also intrigued this one, because I figured he was going to be over there, and I'll discuss this with him.

Either the parents discuss it with you, and that's the way it's going to be focused.

Thank you very much.

I'm personally aware of it.

I promise a solution if you've got to do this in time.

Because we do have to have a solution.

We just can't leave it hanging forever.

No, that's right.

It's a good idea.

It's going to be efficient for some people who aren't in the current day.

Now, I haven't talked to any of these men and women personally before.

Why don't I help you?

I think it is.

That's better.

I'll just call him right there and I'll sit down and let you know that I'll have a cognitive heart disorder and I'll give you that.

Anyway, that's good.

There's some very such things you can pass along.

That's good.

We'll work on the Voice of America thing.

We'll work on the reversion of land.

He tells me what you want.

You can tell Colin what you want.

I'll work that out.

I've got to throw that in there.

That thing is... That's good.

That's good.

What I meant is, maybe it's best for me, not to dangle with all that, but let me give them something right now.

They don't cheat when they're out there.

I don't want to be in that person anymore.

You love it.

I don't want to stay gone.

I don't want to be.

Well, then we can translate it.

I wouldn't have you as ambassadors there.

You should be there.

If not, I will not have you.

That's the thing I've worked on.

To get my, I think it's very important to ensure Henry knows that he's talking to the Chinese.

And this is also true of the Russians.

There must be an occasion where I talk to them head-to-head and alone.

for a while.

We all know this.

I'm saying this.

You see, because it's going to be extremely obvious that we have Henry in every bit of the time.

And also, all of a sudden, the president of the Russians.

It would be absolutely wrong.

Yeah.

And all of a sudden, the president of the Russians, too.

And also, it would look as if Henry is doing it, but he's not running.

But I've done it for me.

I've done it for us.

And I've done it for everybody else who will.

I must talk to them.

I'll translate it to them.

Not the whole plan.

Because Henry had the idea.

When I went through the book, I forgot to mention it.

He may not have been, but he should sit in on everything because he had said it in the other movie.

That must not be.

Also, Alan exacerbates the Russian problem, of course.

Now, I don't have no problem.

I'm not going to get him to stick it and put my foot in it.

We don't have any other stuff.

But the point is, the point is that Henry has got to do, he's got to get himself adjusted so that he does not sit in there.

I didn't expect that.

Well, I had a talk with him now that my memory is in the job.

And I had a talk with him and he said, well, maybe he should sit in on the meetings.

And he raised it, and I just let it pass, and I didn't think about it for a time.

So since he had met with my mother, he should say it over the years.

Because they would have somebody say it over the years.

Well, that is not wrong.

I think we should say they shouldn't, and he shouldn't.

You might want to interrupt, but that's the way I put the message.

If they do, if they do, then we've got a real problem for our national party.

The whole thing is...

Well, it's just one of those things where you'll cause a terrible amount of friction.

How did you cover the message?

the week that I wanted to have meetings with all of them, with both leaders.

But you expected there would be kind of a time for private sessions with you and no one else, but the interpreters.

And that's now showing on that.

Right.

Except in addition to the others.

Correct.

I think he knows that, too.

This is important.

I don't know about us, but if you're guys here at home meeting the leaders, it's your time.

Yeah.

I understand that everybody would like to be there, and this cannot be that.

And so, he would be there for a while, and just build a rock.

I've got to talk to him about it.

Without question.

I just got to do it.

Just to show you.

And, uh, it's R.K. in terms of... awful other men.

Well, he was justified on the basis that they would have some money, which the secretary can't do.

Huh?

The secretary has to do something.

That's... That's just the earth.

That's the world.

It wasn't.

and justify it.

Could you make the bill a deal for Christ's sakes?

Jesus Christ, that's what we're proceeding with.

This is going to Oscar on the gun.

He makes the wrong decision.

It's Oscar.

I don't think this is going to work.

Jesus Christ.

Isn't that the doubtiest thing you've ever heard?

The Nobel Prize.

For what?

You know for what?

Selling this country down the river.

You should never agree to this stuff.

Well, that's what it is.

They recognize us as television, but under the criteria that we're built, we're going to be on all... That's what it makes sense.

I don't know if I didn't sort of change it.

I don't know.

A lot of other people are too, except he did it publicly.

What's the...

You know, I mean, a very ironic thing to me that was so... That as it turned out, Q kicking everybody out of that election was a good thing.

You know, it caused us some problems here.

But the whole, I noticed in the summary this morning, the Keys people are totally discouraged.

And those people understand that, don't they?

It's a show of power, isn't it?

What do you think?

I didn't think so, but we are so concerned about being democratic and the rest of them being democratic sometimes means being weak.

When we stood up to the pressure and the people saw it and they respected it.

They voted too.

They came out and now it's them.

War has come winding down.

Because you know, I've noticed those casualties too.

very customary, makes the point there's still a hell of a war going on in the South.

There's a lot of people, true.

But their casualties this year are half what they were last year.

Have you noticed this?

One half.

No, that's because of Cambodian laws.

Even though I really feel that, don't you?

The Cambodian legislation is not really paying off.

I really had serious doubts about the administration.

as a viable concept until we had Cambodia in an alliance.

That's what made it all possible.

I think we ought to get across the, you know, this, you might tell Scali that he's around.

He ought to use the biocasual as a basis for getting a few columns and statements, maybe some stuff down to the Congress and so forth to success the nation's policy.

That this is a success in Cambodia and allows

I don't believe it.

I don't want anybody to find it.

That probably was quite a number.

No, that's good.

We'll have a few bad weeks.

I don't know where to go.

So we'll go this morning?

Huh?

So we have all this over here.

We understand that people get killed.

They get killed all the time.

There'll be something.

Something will blow up in the theater or something.

A damn war.

It's just

It's all different.

It's getting tougher and tougher.

They've done a great job up there along the border.

I think they did it before the election.

I thought he was doing fairly well.

They're doing very well.

I hope that group, group six, will do it.

He's having a little problem.

is essentially the result of the live-fatherhood that made them the state.

And it's kind of encouraged our friends to be comfortable and to survive as a result of that.

You know, a big thing is doing anti-reporting.

That's one of the most engaged discussions with the British in the United States.

Where?

British in Hanoi.

They are really interested in China.

China, then, in the United States.

Yes, I understand.

They don't settle now, Al.

There's no other choice but to... We'll never have anything better.

It'll never be better than this.

It's a record.

We've got to be able to run this boat, you know, just up to, if the goddamn Congress will leave us alone, they might sell it.

They might.

And we've got a package that's going to be important.

Another thing is, we get them something economically for the lemonade program.

You know, there's a lot of that there.

I mean, it's a very ideal work for the personnel.

I mean, there is a chance that they'll take it, given all of these pressures.

given this flood situation and the disaster.

They made a point last week of telling folks at South Bay to meet and our side.

They wanted to meet us really quick, so I'm very sure of it.

I'm sure of why he wasn't at the Paris meeting this morning.

They've never done this before.

But who did they look to?

They told us at the South Bay to meet, they'll meet in Paris and to our side.

I think we got the message here.

Well, this is for meeting in the hotel room.

This is for the regular meeting, but they also sent it to us through the walrus chamber, so we know it.

It's very clear it's consumed.

Better send it back to you.

Well, I see.

Okay, time.

Yeah.

Hi, Bob.

Yeah.

There you go.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah.

My third.

The State of the Union, or the 17th.

Yeah.

Well, of course, the 17th, I mean, I'm just thinking that, you know, I'm a pensioner.

Well, she doesn't have to do that.

I don't want to have to stay between those two.

Uh-huh.

But if we had a third, is that what day of the week?

I see.

All right, fine.

Okay.

Yeah, you might ask.

This makes it funny.

There is something to be said for doing Latin America, even though we don't have a big thing.

I mean, just consulting them, just saying, I'd like to consult with you, to let them all know where we stand with these things, and talk with them about bilateral problems, and how long a bilateral problem, if we come up with a solution of fishing lines or not.

There's a lot of things to talk about.

Now, I think getting through some pre-consultation is a matter of great prestige, and a few technical problems, and it's a threat.

And as you mentioned, that derogatory system, we didn't see that coming.

Well, I agree with what you said.

I wasn't very worried.

Something's too simple.

Yeah.

You know, I was just talking to Bill Rogers, and he's got a great idea, I think, if you could take three or four of the Trump women in government and all have to do with three or four more countries.

You see what I mean?

Now, the reason is that, now, for example, there is one black book, you know, that Ellicott's and later, quite outstanding, where you can take a top person from H.E.W., you know, and, yeah, I know.

You don't have to be cited.

Yeah, some, yeah, some, I know, some of them, but I know, I know, but the point is,

Yeah, I know.

The way I would do with them is that I would not have them with you.

I mean, I'd have them have separate stations.

See, you'd go in, you'd go in and each of them would go out, one of you would visit a hospital, another would go to a nursing home, another would go to a volunteer center, another would go to that.

And you'd go in and you'd go to, see, you'd only meet socially at night, which is the way I've gone, see, at times.

No, I think that the idea too, the idea of making the crib substantive is very important.

Because of the substantive thing.

Yeah.

All right, all right.

Okay.

I think there's lots of certain, you know, see what's coming out of it.

Yeah, French, you can't even talk there anymore.

Okay.

Nixon, Haig & Haldeman on Foreign Policy and Vietnam War

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Nixon Library Finding Aid

Also recorded on October 20, 1971

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