Conversation 700-012

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And between the meetings, just because the memo specifically said that we were to meet with Janine together, I'll dig it out.

My impression is that you had some contact with him.

No, never did.

Well, I don't know.

Well, I can remember.

Yeah.

I can remember.

I mean, I don't let these people talk to me about these things, you know, about their own... Yeah.

Well, I'll dig it out, because it's, as I recall, it's either from Butterfield or from the staff secretary, or from Bob, one or the other, but the inference of it is that you had a contact, or that... What probably is more likely is that Janine was at one of those finance and business things,

and raise this issue with somebody.

Could be.

That's my guess, because I keep less of those, but we never had to name it.

He was at the White House, but he was never in a small group.

And he couldn't have been in any group where I had just talked to him.

And I never sent him off.

Let me think about it.

I don't recall.

And I don't see it hard.

Oh, I'm just curious.

Nothing wrong with that.

Well, Peter...

I had a feeling myself.

My recollection was that you were catching on from somebody in the staff line.

That's why you brought it up.

Well, that was Peter.

Oh, absolutely.

And then remember, we had a meeting with Mitch.

I know.

The next day, Mitchell, to his credit, was dragging his feet on it.

Did you realize this involves the biggest complicated case that involves, you might get a resignation all the way out there.

I suppose, John, you could see what you needed to handle.

That was the way we went.

That's correct.

But here's the place where Mitchell and, well, Serge Mitchell and Serge Klein, these are being a bad rap.

Oh, no question.

The record was from here.

And also, the record from here, however, was on policy.

There's nobody, you didn't know anybody in contribution, did you?

Absolutely not.

A contribution?

Never.

Never did.

But I can't believe that he did.

I doubt it.

Because I don't think any of us...

The whole thing had to do with the basic policy thing of making a business.

And whether we were kicking business around.

And at that time, having another Penn Central in our hands.

That's right.

Remember, that was the thing you brought up.

Well, and Janine, you see, was arguing that these offshore companies were affecting our balance of trade.

That's right.

I know about all that.

I would like to see that.

Alright, let me take it out.

So, I've got all the ITT stuff under lock and key.

Yeah.

Oh, it's alright.

So, right, the whole story is okay.

And the story is very good, but the only thing that Bob says, the problem is that both Mitchell and Kleinbees, from the very beginning, said, sure, we talked to them.

That's what they should have said.

Yeah.

That was the problem.

Yeah.

And I think what happened is that neither of you remember me.

I'm sure Mitchell was probably sophisticated and didn't have a goddamn thought, you know what I mean?

Well, I think Mitchell comes out pretty well on this.

I think Plain's been caught on that O'Brien letter, which is too bad.

The letter to O'Brien?

Yeah.

Where he very categorically denied any connection with it.

That's what he would.

All right.

Yes, sir.

Whoa, whoa.

But you did get a little time off, but you sure did.

What I was trying to say, I told Bob what I wanted to say.

You did something about it.

You, Colson, about that Bob and Kissinger.

The others, I mean, they all work hard, but you've got to watch your numbers to see if any indispensable man came away.

But the four of you have got to stay in reasonably good shape.

So I was urging you to use the three- or four-day weekend as often as possible.

And I would urge you also with Camp David to use it, because you see around Camp David,

You never need to be concerned that I am there because of the balance of the facility.

I mean, you've got your catascarbs, and you've got bale swimming pool, and you've got flora.

And by the first of June, you'll have the new capacity.

And I had to do it.

So, well, I thought this was a good time to do it on the three or four days of the shut-off.

Okay, so do I just call this our off work?

Right, another place to send out all those new drugs.

You always take your medications, don't you?

And maybe I'll rethink it on the basis that I'll have him go along and then come back up to the Greenland.

But I'll just kind of say, all right, well, I see what you're saying.

It seems to me that we won't make no decision on whatever, but I've got to cancel something very soon.

We'll make no damn decision on whatever.

Until that day, we've got to see what it is.

Well, in this case, I would go Thursday.

You know what I mean?

How long am I going to hold it down there for?

One day?

Oh, I see.

Yeah.

No, I would go Thursday.

I would finish off that thing up there in Philadelphia and get the hell to Florida.

Just go from there?

Sure.

That's not an idea.

You see, if I go to Philadelphia, I would just go up there.

Yeah.

I mean, finish Philadelphia and go to Florida.

Yeah.

But the basis would be that I would leave the way.

Yeah.

we would take, but I would take Henry along so that, uh, we're sort of not at war together.

Yeah, we'll have to take a hard look at it, though.

We've got to see what the attitudes are and so forth and so on.

Uh, I feel that, uh, that, uh, we can't ever just, uh, if we

If we get into a box, just almost, time and time again, I've been pretty, I mean, pretty much asleep this night, but if we get into a box of not going,