Conversation No. 525‑1

Date:  June 17, 1971
Time:  5:15 pm - 6:10 pm
Location:  Oval Office

The President met with Rose Mary Woods.

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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
[Personal Returnable]
[Duration:  2m 17s  ]

HENRY A. KISSINGER ENTERED AT 5:16 PM

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1

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Woods left and John D. Ehrlichman and H.R. (ABob@) Haldeman entered at 5:17 pm.

Pentagon Papers
‑Administration response
‑John N. Mitchell=s court efforts
‑William P. Rogers= statement
‑Need to win court case and public relations case
‑John B. Connally
‑Rogers= statement
‑Quality
‑Lyndon B. Johnson comments
‑Possible press conference
‑Bryce N. Harlow's role
‑Kissinger's previous call to Lyndon B. Johnson
‑Effect on administration
‑Personnel
‑Connally
‑Spiro T. Agnew
‑Gen. George A. Lincoln

‑General view of President's position
‑Connally
‑Attack on Presidency
‑Attack on Nixon and Johnson
‑Rebuttal by administration
‑Media coverage
‑Criteria for New York Times coverage
‑Desirability of comment by President
-Possible space
‑Rogers= statement
‑Letters to Senators
‑Legality of comments
‑Court case
‑Kissinger's statement
‑Quality
‑Content
‑Need for comment by President
‑Proper scope
‑Outline
‑Scope
‑Preparation
‑Coverage by "Northeastern press"
‑New York Times
‑President's comments on security
‑Follow up
‑Debriefing of employees
‑Enforcement of security laws
‑Responsibility of office heads for security
‑Timing of administration counter
‑Connally's action
‑Meeting with staff
‑Treasury Department relations with the press
‑Consequences of leaks

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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 7
[Privacy]
[Duration:  35s  ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 7

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‑President's remarks
‑Issuance of memorandum
‑Content
‑Ehrlichman=s role
‑Times use of press cards
‑Mitchell
‑Reprinting problem
‑Times action
‑Haldeman=s follow up to Congress
‑Daniel Ellsberg's story
-Washington Star
‑Kissinger=s remembrance of Ellsberg
‑Vietnam service
‑General demeanor
‑International Security Affairs [ISA] background at the Department of Defense
‑John J. McNaughton
‑Intellect
‑Change of political opinion
‑Contact during transition

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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[Privacy]
[Duration:  17s  ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2

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‑Contact with Henry A. Kissinger
‑Massachusetts Institute of Technology [MIT] speech by Kissinger
‑Ellsberg heckling
‑"Murder in Laos" article
‑Obtaining documents
‑Research and Development Corporation [RAND] copies of Vietnam story
‑Ellsberg action compared to Alger Hiss and Whitaker Chambers action
‑Reason for Ellsberg action
‑Reason for Times action
-Opposition to President=s Vietnam policy

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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 3
[Privacy]
[Duration:  15s  ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 3

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‑Administration response
‑President's comments
‑Ehrlichman's role
‑Haldeman's role
‑Remarks
-Patrick J. Buchanan
‑Kissinger's comments at North Atlantic Treaty Organization [NATO] lunch
‑Response

‑Remarks by President
‑Content of papers
-Principle of secrecy
‑Times determination of national interest
-Embarrassment of Johnson and John F. Kennedy
‑Defense of principle
‑Reaction to loss of security
‑President's legal obligations
‑Reasons for the law
-Congressional mandate
‑Kissinger memo
‑Declassification procedures
‑Case before Supreme Court
-Possible action by the President
‑Need for remarks by President
‑Impact
‑Rogers= statement
‑Impact
‑Content
‑Political predispositions of authors, et al.
‑Conviction of Johnson
‑Relation to Joseph McCarthy era
‑Prosecution for advice
-Times= previous view
‑Lack of content
‑Stewart J.O. Alsop editorial
‑Times previous stance on security of communication
‑Adlai E. Stevenson, III and Kennedy
‑Use by administration
‑Timing
‑Need for running battle
‑Ronald L. Ziegler and Herbert G. Klein view
‑Restriction of Times reporters
‑Attacks from other papers
‑McCarthy era analogy
‑Richard M. Helms comments
‑Times interpretation of morality
‑Stevenson
‑Johnson
‑Selective embarrassment
‑Times interpretation of First Amendment rights
‑Times wrongdoing
‑Times responsibility

‑Johnson's action
‑Robert S. McNamara
‑Rebuttal
‑Position as president of the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development [World Bank]
‑Loyalty to Johnson
‑McGeorge Bundy comment
‑Attack on Johnson
‑Kennedy
‑Ngo Dinh Diem death
‑Henry Cabot Lodge and Kennedy's role
‑William Moyers
‑Diem death
‑President's revelation
‑Constraints of lawsuit
‑Diem death
‑President's knowledge

Ziegler entered at an unknown time after 5:17 pm.

Legislation
-Defeat of anti‑war bills
‑Margin

Ziegler left at an unknown time before 6:13 pm.

Pentagon Papers
-Bombing halt file
‑Relation to Lyndon B. Johnson=s statement
-Attempts to obtain it
‑Tom Charles Huston recollections
‑Brookings role
‑Implementation of Huston plan
‑Johnson's concern
‑Timing of bombing
‑Content
-W. Averell Harriman
‑Effects of release
‑Johnson=s reaction
‑Harlow contact with Johnson

Upcoming Vice Presidential trip
‑Harlow's attendance
‑Harlow's role
‑Agnew
‑Korea

Pentagon Papers
‑Agnew's role
‑Recent performances
‑Ehrlichman contact with Agnew
‑Future Agnew role
‑Robert J. Dole
‑Agnew attacks on Times
‑Nelson A. Rockefeller attacks on Times
‑Role of advertisers
‑Bonwit Teller
‑Administration attack
‑Role of sources
‑Treasury Department role
‑Council Economic Advisers [CEA]
‑George P. Shultz
‑Connally
‑Maurice H. Stans
‑Elliot L. Richardson
‑George W. Romney
‑John A. Volpe
‑Rogers C.B. Morton
‑John N. Mitchell
‑Ken Martin (AKen@) Worthy [?]
‑Morton contacts
‑Morton
‑Melvin R. Laird
‑Rogers
‑Willingness to join attack
‑Ending backgrounders
‑"Good" reporters
‑Max Frankel
‑Mitchell
‑Stans
‑Connally
‑Dole
‑Republican National Committee contact with Times
‑Franklyn C. Nofziger

‑Effect on Stewart Lurie
‑Effect on columnists
‑Other contacts with Times
‑Ziegler's tactics
‑Return of calls
‑Kissinger action
-National Security Council [NSC] staff
‑Media fallout
‑Need for perseverance
‑James B. (AScotty@) Reston
‑Position
‑Barry M. Goldwater
‑Contact with Times competition
‑Daily News
‑Jerry Greene action
‑Chicago Tribune reaction to Times story
‑Bill Mullen (?) reaction
‑James S. Copley, Richard Wilson, William Randolph Hearst, Jr. reaction
‑Contact with Hearst
‑Los Angeles Times reaction
‑Policing of press
‑Times and White House relationship
‑Future relations
‑Access to Oval Office
‑Upcoming trips
‑Times travel courtesies
‑Eastern liberal press
‑White House contact with Clark M. Clifford
‑Extent of information from
‑Congressional statements
‑Effect on Hubert H. Humphrey
‑Humphrey comments
‑Effect of Vietnam study on behavior
‑Effect on Edward M. (ATed@) Kennedy
‑Support for McNamara
‑Times material on Kennedy administration activities
‑Use by President
‑Henry Cabot Lodge's role
‑Ngo Dinh Diem file
‑Kennedy activity
‑Lodge evidence
‑Lodge position on release of evidence
‑Kennedy=s communication with Lodge

‑Consequences of coup
‑Action against the Times
‑Severity of Times transgression
‑Press double standard
‑Expected Times actions
‑White House files
‑Kissinger staff checks
‑Set up of files
‑Helmut (AHal@) Sonnenfeldt 
-Access to Kissinger conversations with Anatoliy F. Dobrynin
‑Sonnenfeldt duties
‑William A.K. (ATony@) Lake access
‑Edmund S. Muskie reaction to Times story
‑Humphrey reaction
‑Johnson's position
‑Support for Ted Kennedy
‑Support for Humphrey
‑McNamara's statement
‑Humphrey knowledge of Vietnam activities
‑Johnson
‑Agnew exposure to White House tactics
‑Humphrey statement
‑"Need to known" doctrine
‑Johnson's Vietnam judgement
‑US actions
-Rogers and Laird
‑World War II
‑Korea
‑Vietnam
‑President=s questions
-Tactics
‑Kissinger=s recollection
‑"Purpose" of U.S. action
-Methods
‑Goals

Drug policy statement
‑Play in media

Rochester trip
‑Kenneth B. Keating invitation
‑Congressional contacts during trip
-Keating
-Performance

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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 6
[National Security]
[Duration:  49s  ]

INDIA

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 6

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Pakistan
-Life magazine issue

US and Federal Republic of Germany relations
-Willy Brandt
‑Kissinger=s conversation with Egon Bahr
‑Purchase of aircraft

Pentagon Papers
‑Effect on White House enemies
‑Haldeman
‑Need for White House attack
‑Reduction of ambassadorial access to Times
‑D. Kenneth Rush
‑Ellsworth F. Bunker
‑Arthur K. Watson

Kissinger left at 6:05 pm.

Haldeman and Ehrlichman left at 6:07 pm.

Alexander P. Butterfield entered at 6:07 pm.

[Signing of documents]

President's schedule
‑Rochester schedule
‑Action folders

Marjorie P. Acker entered at 6:09 pm.

Rose Mary Woods= schedule
‑Executive Office Building [EOB] meeting with President

The President, et al. left at 6:10 pm.

Conversation No. 525‑2

Date:  Unknown between June 17 and June 18, 1971
Time:  Unknown between 6:13 pm, June 17 and 8:40 am, June 18, 1971
Location:  Oval Office

Unknown people [Secret Service agents ?] met.

President=s location
-Executive Office Building [EOB]

Unknown people [Secret Service?] left at an unknown time before 8:40 am, June 18, 1971.