Conversation No. 58-1

Date:  May 18, 1971
Time:  8:02 am - 9:33 am
Location:  Cabinet Room

The President met with Henry A. Kissinger, Melvin R. Laird, U. Alexis Johnson, Robert P. Griffin, Norris Cotton, Peter H. Dominick, Gerald R. Ford, Leslie C. Arends, John B. Anderson, Barber B. Conable, Jr., Richard H. Poff, Robert C. (ABob@) Wilson, John J. Rhodes, Robert T. Stafford, H. Allen Smith, Robert J. Dole, Peter G. Peterson, George P. Shultz, John D. Ehrlichman, Clark MacGregor, William E. Timmons, Harry S. Dent, Ronald L. Ziegler, Bryce N. Harlow, and Kenneth E. BeLieu

	[General conversation/Unintelligible]

	Europe

	Railroad strike
		-Shultz
		-Effects
			-Length
		-Administration=s proposal to Senate
		-Union=s position
		-Possible Congressional action
			-Previous Congressional action
				-Ford=s efforts
				-President=s previous proposal
		-Other unions= pending disputes
		-1973
		-Possible settlement
			-Length of strike
			-Emergency board
			-Proposals
		-Possible Congressional action
			-Congress= schedule
				-[Senate?] Labor Committee
			-Possible amendment
			-Possible court action
			-Michael J. (AMike@) Mansfield and Robert C. Byrd
				-Roll call vote of Senate
			-National Labor Relations Board [NLRB]
			-Congress= schedule
				-Possible roll call vote
				-Harley O. Staggers= statement
			-Delay
			-Possible vote
			-William J. Green
				-Philadelphia election
			-Possible vote on Rules Committee
			-Carl [B. Albert?]
			-Possible vote
				-Date
			-Administration=s legislative program regarding transportation
			-Congress= schedule
				-Election in Philadelphia
			-Effects of delay
				-Senate
				-Mansfield
				-Chrysler Corporation, automobile and steel industries, unemployment, Gross National Product [GNP]
			-Omnibus bill
			-Democrats
			-Senate

	Europe
		-Agenda
			-Laird

	Railroad strike
		-Possible Congressional action
			-Senate Labor Committee
			-Virginia delegation=s trip to Japan
			-Hugh Scott=s schedule
			-Responsibility
			-Effect of delay
			-Possible vote
			-Mansfield and Byrd
			-Possible vote
			-Effect of strike and delay in action
			-Ford=s conversation with Albert
			-Ford=s conversation with Joseph M. McDade, May 17, 1971
			-Responsibility

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	North Atlantic Treaty Organization [NATO]

[To listen to the segment (3m53s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-523.]

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	Extension of the military draft
		-Forthcoming vote in Congress
		-Timing of subsequent vote in 1972
		-Attitude of youth to military service
		-Vietnam

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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[Personal Returnable]
[Duration:  10s  ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2

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	Extension of the military draft
		-Possible effect of defeat of bill
			-Draft pool
			-Lottery system

	U. Alexis Johnson
		-Background and experience

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	Europe

[To listen to the segment (28m11s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-523.]

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	NATO
		-US military commitment
			-Pending amendments in Senate
				-Mansfield
					-Provisions
				-Charles McC. Mathias, Jr.
					-Jacob K. Javits, Hubert H. Humphrey and Ted Stevens
					-Provisions
					-Humphrey, Javits

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	Europe

[To listen to the segment (7m51s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-523.]

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		-Mathias and Mansfield amendments
			-Prospects
			-Humphrey, Edmund S. Muskie
			-Possible substitute

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	World situation

[To listen to the segment (4m48s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-523.]

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	NATO
		-US military commitment
			-Balance of payments
				-Peterson
			-Popular opinion
		-US goals
		-European wars
		-US military commitment
			-Mansfield, Mathias amendments
				-Popular opinion

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	US military

[To listen to the segment (3m32s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-524.]

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			-Possible Congressional action
			-Griffin=s appearance with Fred R. Harris on Columbia Broadcasting System [CBS], May 18, 1971
			-Need for Congressional committee work
			-Prospects
			-Provisions, possible substitute
				-An unknown man=s position

	Extension of the military draft
		-Samuel S. Stratton=s amendment
		-Humphrey amendment
		-Timing of subsequent vote

	Peterson

	President=s schedule
		-State legislators= briefing on revenue sharing

	Peterson
		-Forthcoming briefing on international trade for Business Council
			-Japan, Europe

	Balance of payments
		-Current account balance
			-Components
			-Military, Europe, Far East

The conversation was cut off at an unknown time before 9:33 am

Conversation No. 58-2

Date:  Unknown between May 18 and May 20, 1971
Time:  Unknown between 9:33 am, May 18 and 9:02 am, May 20, 1971
Location:  Cabinet Room

Unknown people met

	Cabinet Room
		-Furnishings
			-[Thomas] Woodrow Wilson, Theodore (ATeddy@) Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower
			-Chair
			-President

	President=s speeches
		-Preparation

	President=s press conferences
		-Preparation

The unknown people left at an unknown time before 9:02 am, May 20, 1971

Conversation No. 58-3

Date:  Unknown between May 18 and May 20, 1971
Time:  Unknown between 9:33 am, May 18 and 9:02 am, May 20, 1971
Location:  Cabinet Room

Unknown men met

	Cabinet Room
		-Furnishings
			-President=s chair

	Microphones

The unknown men left at an unknown time before 9:02 am, May 20, 1971

Conversation No. 58-4

Date:  May 20, 1971
Time:  9:02 am - 9:48 am
Location:  Cabinet Room

The President met with Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, William P. Rogers, John B. Connally, Melvin R. Laird, John N. Mitchell, Winton M. (ARed@) Blount, William T. Pecora, Clifford M. Hardin, James T. Lynn, Laurence H. Silberman, Elliot L. Richardson, George W. Romney, James M. Beggs, George P. Shultz, Robert H. Finch, Donald H. Rumsfeld, George H. W. Bush, H. R. (ABob@) Haldeman, John D. Ehrlichman, Henry A. Kissinger, Clark MacGregor, Peter M. Flanigan, Herbert G. Klein, Dr. Edward E. David, Jr., Raymond K. Price, Jr., Alexander P. Butterfield, Ronald L. Ziegler, William E. Timmons, Charles W. Colson, John A. Scali, Richard A. Moore, Harry S. Dent, Leonard Garment, John W. Dean, III, Frederic V. Malek, Robert J. Brown, Robert J. Dole, Admiral Thomas H. Moorer, Gerard C. Smith, Arthur J. Sohmer, Caspar W. (ACap@) Weinberger, Virginia H. Knauer, and Arnold R. Weber
[Recording begins while the conversation is in progress] 

	US-Soviet relations
		-Briefings

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	Strategic arms limitation

[To listen to the segment (6m59s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-524.]

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			-US-Soviet statement, May 20, 1971
				-Content and phraseology
				-Meaning
			-Forthcoming negotiations
				-Vienna, Helsinki
				-Smith, Vladimir S. Semenov

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	Strategic arms limitation

[To listen to the segment (23m11s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-524.]

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		-May 20, 1971 announcement
			-Content

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	Negotiations

[To listen to the segment (9m15s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-524.]

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	Smith

	[General conversation/Unintelligible]

The President, et al. left at 9:48 am

Conversation No. 58-5

Date:  May 20, 1971
Time:  10:15 am - 11:05 am
Location:  Cabinet Room

The President met with Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, William P. Rogers, Melvin R. Laird, Admiral Thomas H. Moorer, Gerard C. Smith, Henry A. Kissinger, Clark MacGregor, William E. Timmons, Ronald L. Ziegler, Herbert G. Klein, John A. Scali, Hugh Scott, Allen J. Ellender, J. William Fulbright, John C. Stennis, Margaret Chase Smith, George D. Aiken, Robert P. Griffin, Milton R. Young, Robert C. Byrd, Michael J. (AMike@) Mansfield, [Thomas] Hale Boggs, Leslie C. Arends, William S. Mailliard, Frank T. Bow, F. Edward Hébert, Gerald R. Ford, Dr. Thomas E. (ADoc@) Morgan, Thomas P. (ATip@) O=Neill, Jr., and George H. Mahon

	[General conversation/Unintelligible]

	Ellender, Hébert, and Boggs

	US-Soviet relations
		-Strategic arms limitation
			-May 20,1971 announcement
				-Senate=s schedule
					-Mansfield

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	Negotiations

[To listen to the segment (1m10s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-525.]

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			-May 20, 1971 announcement
				-Content and phraseology

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	Forthcoming negotiations

[To listen to the segment (13m23s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-525.]

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			-May 20, 1971 announcement
				-Handling
				-Content and phraseology

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	Significance

[To listen to the segment (53s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-525.]

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			-Possible public statements

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	Negotiations

[To listen to the segment (23m43s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-525.]

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			-US defense spending
				-Public opinion
				-Domestic problems
				-North Atlantic Treaty Organization [NATO]

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	Negotiations

[To listen to the segment (3m) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-525, E-526.]

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	[General conversation/Unintelligible]

	Rogers, MacGregor

	President=s call to John W. Byrnes

	Ellender, Rogers, Ford

The President, et al. left at 11:05 am