 Please be seated mr. President this is the Regularly scheduled unit commanders meeting at the military office of the White House said normally after major trips We have a discussion of the trip and a debriefing to see if their lessons learned and problems to be solved So I understand you wanted to critique it this morning. Is that correct? Well? Well, I'm pleased to have the opportunity here to say that first of all let me apologize for being late I got hung up in an anti-nuclear demonstration No, I'd I know or have some idea of what all goes into the planning and the preparations for Particularly things like the trips that we've been on and sometimes I wonder How it all gets worked out so perfectly, but then I know that there are people like you who are seeing that it does and You never cease to amaze me. I Wish also sometimes some of those same demonstrators I'm talking about could Could know how effective and how capable you are and I'm just deeply grateful to all of you and again as I say I'm in awe of How it how it all comes out so perfectly? particularly these Last few trips. I know that you didn't have much to work with on the one to Asia and It must have been kind of kind of like starting the world all over again again and a little more help at the other end and the and the one to Europe, but It's just I don't have words to express my thanks So I Welcome this opportunity to see you and mine could have a chance to say hello to everyone in All right the is I'd like to stand here and hope that I could think of something more eloquent to say about what you all do, but please know that I At times feel like I'm comfortably wrapped in cotton batting when I'm when I'm out there So, how do we how do we do the we just go around the road? All right Yes, sir, oh I thought it's something to say here that I've got to say about Communications have you all heard about my phone call the first few months I was in office here To the USS Pratt in the Mediterranean you haven't well One of our columnist James J. Kilpatrick invited Nancy and me down to his farm in Virginia for lunch And so we flew off in the helicopter off the south lawn here and when we land to just half hour later why Jack was telling me about How our fellas were there and setting putting in the phones Remember I was brand new and I said wait a minute I said you mean a half hour from the White House and there's a phone system has to put people in for me to Go out to lunch And he said oh, yes, and they tell told me that they could reach any place in the world almost instantly and He said I challenged them and they said well name someone well He said I have a son who's on embassy duty at a country in Africa And he said they got him and my wife got to talk to her son And then he said I challenged him again, and I said I've got a son as a quartermaster on the USS Pratt in the Mediterranean Well, he said can you get him and he said no He said well you can't get everyone it well They said the Mediterranean the fleets on maneuvers and when the fleets on maneuvers only the president can reach them So he told me this story on the way into the house and inside the house. I met the young man's wife very sweet charming young lady and I said excuse me, and I went back out and I said is this true right that you could reach in USS Pratt in the middle. Oh, yes, sir. They said I said get him I hadn't thought through very well I hadn't thought through that the last part of any conversation was going to be by radio with the entire fleet able to listen in So I went in got her she got to talk to her husband Hadn't seen each other for months Then I got a letter from him Some time later thanking me for this conversation, but he said I don't think you understand exactly what things are like When the fleet is on maneuvers He said the air is full of traffic Admirals are talking to admiral ships talking to ships and then he said a voice came on and said white house calling and Another voice came on and said what code is that? And a third voice is maybe it is no code Maybe it's the White House and then he said they came down to a lowly quarter master on On a destroyer and told him that he was wanted on the phone and he added this line He said it was as if God had called the Vatican and asked for an altar boy by Oh Well listen, I'm glad you reminded me of that Hello there nice to meet you. It's nice to see you Well, listen for I appreciate everything that you've all been doing Good to see you It's a good to see you Hello there, it's to see you John Maddler's aircraft for me See you Dr. Dan roogie Jack mills where does the action Has to see you Yes Military ceremonies, you know, that's an arrow from our office. Yes. Hi. How are you nice to see you? Sergeant Miller from our office. Hello there rich house. We can't date. Hi. It's to see you very thank you Yes There well again, thank you all very much Eddie there's the babysitter and I'm the baby You'll be back at it in just a few hours We leave for camp David, but again my heartfelt thanks to all of you and believe me a Heartful of admiration too and respect For what for your accomplishments? Thank you