Nixon, Adair & Wright on Ethiopia and Haile Selassie

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Well, I guess we'd better get you a formal picture or something.

We'd like one.

Oh, yes, we'd like one.

You've been there before.

Yes, we have.

And you're happy.

Oh, many times.

Yeah, many times.

Well, hey, uh... You're, uh...

We are tremendously excited about going there and are deeply appreciative, Mr. President, of the appointment.

And I'm trying to give you the kind of representation .

You ought to have the experience.

You've got the interest.

We do have the interest.

You know, it's a terribly perfect country.

Yes.

Very sensitive people.

And there isn't...

I couldn't see the change fast, but it's a fascinating part of it.

And there will be change.

As you say, it will be slow.

You may be there at a time, I suppose.

The older girl will pass on this.

He can't live forever.

I hope not.

He may not.

I hope not, too.

Because then it could all come apart at the seams.

That'll be one of the main things if you want to watch those.

Who's up next?

That brings up a point.

I don't know whether you've been advised or not, but the Crown Prince has been, has let it be known that he'd like an invitation to visit this mansion.

And our friends over at the State Department find some problems there.

The emperor apparently would like to have him come, but not to have

too much of a reception.

He would like to have it received by you, of course, for something but not a major, perhaps a luncheon, but not a state dinner or anything of that sort.

So I'm sure that this question will arise in the next year or two.

The Crown Prince has let it be known through several sources that he's anxious to come to this.

Did you run into that in our show when you were there?

When we were there, the emperor didn't mention it.

Bill Hall did mention that this had been broken.

We'll have a very great difficulty for us this next year, being the last year that we're having any visitors.

I'm sure it'll end on us there in arms and hearts.

So you may have to finesse it.

for real time.

Well, to point out that it's a little bit busy here, that, I mean, you can imagine there's quite a stack of people who come.

I'm sure that they, you take a little effort to catch them.

Most of them shouldn't be coming here.

But this is, I quite agree with you.

They're 25,000.

They're totally not capable of anything.

I sometimes find out that some of those countries have the population equivalent to Allen County, Indiana.

Allen County is your Fort Wayne's location.

Sure.

Well, they're lucky they're that big.

Well, they may have that population, but in terms of people that can run in them, they've probably got 100 of the population in Allen County.

You just can't imagine how many.

Ethiopia, of course, is tiny.

some of those black Africans.

It's unbelievable.

Well, guess I'd eat the best of them when they come here, and I must say, like children, they have almost 350,000 people in the home.

There you are.

And we're the most attractive capitals now.

Yeah.

350,000 people with the Army, Navy, Air Force, ambassadors of the United States.

and a mission to the United Nations.

Now, how ridiculous can we get?

We used to talk about the banana republics, you know?

Heck, most of those are bigger than most of those African countries.

Bigger rival, you know?

And more, well, financially, financially, well, they're still not too stable, but at least they have built up some sort of an educational system.

There are a lot of educated people.

and so forth.

This is no reflection on Africa.

It's just a fact.

It's a historical fact that we move much too fast.

Fortunately, you're going to a country that wasn't a country for many years, had a tradition, and just the rest of us.

I remember it didn't do it.

They threw out this colonialism as bad.

So therefore, making freedom and everything is going to be fine.

I mean, fine at all.

I mean, people have to be prepared for

taking over the responsibility.

Look at what a mess we've made the whole case.

We took 50 years to prepare him, so less.

Mr. President, that's exactly what I found.

It took about a month off and one through the last month.

And among all of the most militant of the African states, the one common ingredient that we really went and talked with the President was that very obviously he

he was caught on the dilemma of wanting, he recognized the necessity of focusing on his internal problems, and yet he was caught up in the necessity of being a country and engaging in a lot of international activity.

And this seemed to be the dilemma that they were all sort of hung up on.

uh and there there there clearly is a very considerable recognition on their back that it's 10 years now more or less after independence and you can't blame it any longer on the old vets on your power the lack of progress comes directly to the local boom of the white house

It's up to them to determine.

That's a frightening thought to listen to.

Yes, sir.

It certainly is.

It's like the old, I think, Alexa, I don't know, the first game in the park.

We played that game on the Dutch.

And actually there, it's 15 meters.

So it was all kids.

So then he's out.

Mr. President, if I may digress a moment.

I want to say, and Mary joins me in this, that we thought your wedding, which we viewed with great pleasure on television,

was in the finest taste imaginable.

And that is the reaction that everybody has had today.

It was sweet as in excellent taste.

I've not heard the first thing otherwise.

We had a particular interest because when our daughter Carolyn was married, Dr. Lash, all out to Fort Wayne and joined our local ministry there.

We think he's just a great guy.

Of course, that gave us some special interest.

But I didn't want to interrupt your line of thought, but neither did I want to fail to talk more about him.

But this was the reaction.

We haven't found the first person.

Democrat, Republican, Socialist, whatever.

They said that it was in great taste, and they thought it was a credit for it.

They had to bring it with them.

Is that true?

It was very impressive, and the television did a good job of covering it.

They did do a good job.

Well, I just wish you the best.

I suppose the residents are the same.

It's not bad.

No, not like that.

But I stayed there when I was there with Corey.

I stayed there overnight.

That looks perfectly good.

I think it is.

Well, of course, the vice president will be there.

Is he coming?

Yes.

I didn't know whether he worked that in or not.

He is coming.

On the 10th of July.

We had expected him to do a big show then.

Oh, well, that's great.

The Ethiopians will do a good job.

Oh, they'll be wonderful.

Is he coming?

The 10th.

And stay until the 12th, which is over a week.

Right.

Oh, very likely.

Well, that's good.

We're arriving on the 6th.

We will arrive on the 6th.

But you'll just be answered.

We'll try to blank all Ethiopian hands.

May I convey their greetings to the Emperor?

You can recall our many meetings in the past, there and here, twice there and of course here.

Occasions I remember too.

He was the honored guest, actually, the most honored one on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the UN General Assembly, and he responded for all of us.

We remember his absence.

And I'll mention that we've gone to the senior states of the world, and the main thing is that we're really concerned about is not only his continuing leadership in Africa, but that, and if you've got this as a sensitive subject, I've said the same thing to Franco, it's very important to deal with these transitions.

And he's a little reluctant, apparently, to do that.

He doesn't think any of the young people around him know anything.

But if he doesn't, the worst legacy he could leave is that after years and years of relative stability, that he leaves a revolution.

He must not do that.

I will find an opportunity.

It's just on a basis that it isn't a question.

We hope he lives.

I hope he lives 15, 20 years long.

But the main thing is that he has a responsibility in the future.

Believe me, I will give him that.

We're ready to get that across to Franco.

All right.

Well, Franco is beginning to see it.

The one in size is the best of the ones that I have run across with people.

He's very deliberately planning for a succession.

Well, let's help those areas.

We have been, Marion and I, in Yugoslavia several times.

And we like the Yugoslav people, I'm sure.

Strong, warm, independent-minded.

They've been killing each other for years.

They'll kill each other again.

That's the problem.

That's, you know, you've got those people out there starting to fight and watch each other smoking.

and all the rest.

Clothes and relations.

Relations, I guess, they all know, really, are deferred.

But who knows?

They'll probably shoot him on the floor.

Well, anyway, we thank you again for, well, for all of us, for all of us, for doing this.

Here's another pair of gloves.

Oh, my God!

Oh, man, thank you so much.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Oh, good, good.

That's for your paper.

You have one of these, don't you?

You've got one now.

Oh, God.

Thank you.

I appreciate you there.

Thank you.

I appreciate the American woman.

They have all sorts of things.

I think that's what we'll get.

Oh, sure.

I know you've done so much work with, you know, church groups and the rest of the religious.

That's good, too.

And you just go around.

Just love them.

Believe that one.

Believe it.

All right.

Goodbye.

Nixon, Adair & Wright on Ethiopia and Haile Selassie

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Nixon Library Finding Aid

Also recorded on June 16, 1971

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