Conversation 336-007

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I've got to go to Camp David.

I was wondering about the progress of the speech.

I checked on it.

I can get it up about 6 to 5, 8 o'clock, 7 to 8 o'clock.

I've been working on my own notes anyway.

I had a good problem now, and particularly on a point that occurred to me.

You're seeing Larry today, aren't you?

Yes.

I'll be delayed 10 minutes, so don't go out there.

Just have the helicopter still coming in.

Anyway, I determined, Henry, that I don't think you want to break this on Larry today.

But there's got to be a command structure.

If we're going to go over all the marbles, we're not going to be able to have that command.

somebody in St. Patrick's was blockading somebody, the neighbors were doing something else, and even with this half-assed business of reporting and so forth and so on, I think Abrams has to be taken out.

And the way I think we should do it is to send, and I'll recommend this man, I think he loves me very highly, is to establish a new command that we should have had all the time.

particularly with the C part of the SPP, an allied commander for Southeast Asia.

That, in other words, changes the situation in such a way that you take it out from under St. Pat, the allied commander.

Then you could take Palmer, for example, and put Palmer in charge of Southeast Asia.

And then the admiral who was on that staff up there should be up for it.

I replaced Wyant with this tough little guy, the Army guy, under the Allied Command.

I sent him out to that, that lead boat that was in charge of air.

But I think we need to do a command structure.

Al says he's always been for it for six months.

He's doing his hand to it.

And I think he's just got to do it.

And Abrams, I'd offer him an ambassador to Spain if he wanted to come home anyway.

He doesn't want to come home.

The right to, that's fine.

I think we're going to .

All right, fine.

Now, with Blair, you've got a tremendously important job in listening, listening, and listening on the ground.

The state of the president needs him.

He's made the decision.

It's final now.

In any way, you've got to prepare your outfit.

All I need is the president's calendar, and he's reporting on this, and I need to do it.

Well, let me say, getting him out of there is the most important thing.

Don't argue about that at this point.

I'm not so sure that if you had Abrams and she was staffed with Al under it, it wouldn't work.

You know what I mean?

You've got to save the space.

So, you understand, most importantly, you like Paul, right?

Yeah.

Could he handle the job of Allied Commander for the area?

Yeah.

But the Puy was under it.

The Puy is under it.

As I told you, the one thing that concerns me about the police, I mean, he's a hell of a division commander.

You don't know whether he could be tied into the summit of the palm of his throat.

But also, the Admiral, I want the Admiral on that staff to be a really tough man.

He's got to be, I don't, you know what I mean, the best Admiral we've got, you know, that the Navy's got.

Because this is a hell of a big Naval operation on landings, as well as mining,

and all the rest, correct?

Well, that's that one.

You picked the great and the old, and it stops over.

Oh, yeah, that's the reason, you know, we both let it get to me, because there's... Well, it gets to us, doesn't it?

Well, it gets to us, doesn't it?

Because it doesn't keep us anywhere.

You know, it's like...

It's a nice answer.

Whatever you want.

That's what I told you.

something that was typical of Russia, old Russia, well, the historical cement, the president was a very, very, very student of Russian history, something that was historical cement.

I don't want, the one thing I don't want is something modern.

I don't like modern painting.

How's that?

Good, good.

Oh, we ask you, we ask you, we ask you, we ask you, we ask you, we ask you,

I guess that we understand, of course, that if you have to conduct the war from day after, you won't have any answer to that.

So I said, well, I'll just go back to the project.

You know how wars are.

It's a bad thing to do.

Now, with Larry, do you think you can't handle him?

Oh.

He's been told wrong, not asked.

Oh.

Roger, you know, I guess I am.

Well, why don't I, uh... What I could do is meet his plan and try to understand it.

This way.

This is it, though.

Cooperation.

I think that would mean something to me.

You see, I shouldn't be put through emotion, stress, and strain.

I'm happy and proud to have gotten that capital to do what I ought to.

But, you know, when Rodgers comes in, you'll want to piss him.

If you meet him, you'll piss all over him.

If you have Laird come in, I think it's something else again.

I would say that if you let Laird come over, you don't think about it.

Very good.

We'll all be up there.

Thank you.

I would like for Laird to do more, to work more.

before he comes in to see me.

Could you do that?

Sure.

Or do you think this is a good idea, or should I just call him and say, well, we'll come do this?

Well, I'll have to get Alex Johnson in on Sunday morning.

Okay, so he could have heard it, but the time is six years.

I don't think he'll find it.

I don't think he'll recognize it.

He's got a job.

I'm sure it wasn't in that video.

I talked to you about this command structure.

You realize that I hold that vision of the end of this country.

I'm throwing in all the chips now.

I said, I'm not going to throw in all the chips.

And then have a half-assed command structure.

So you've got to get there and stop it.

I've got to get out of it.

Isn't that your view?

Absolutely.

And I think Abrams, and frankly, I will pay the price.

I will pay the price.

Particularly with Al.

You understand?

So I just let him say it.

I tell him, Al, we want to get it back.

But I think we need a new man in overall command there.

And that's all we've got to go for.

Just tell him what I believe.

I want to order that Monday morning.

I'm interested in it.

Fair enough.

Well, no, no, no, that's something that should be announced by later, you know.

We should tell the town on mail.

That'll get him on something that says, Doctor, should we not be paying for the palm?

I've already been told we haven't been paying for the palm.

I've sent the...

at the table.

There's no question about that.

But secondly, I want Palmer to understand.

That's the thing I've got to have.

He's got to understand.

He puts the record in the present.

He can handle Palmer.

I'll put it around later.

Okay.

Let's see if there's too much on the line.

There's no rush.

I'm going up to New York.

I'll be back.

So they say that really it all sorts out.