 The Attorney General asking for you on 9-0. Just one second. You'll be on the phone. Thank you. Hi Bobby. How are you? Fine. I was just talking, Mr. President, to Mack Bundy on the phone. I heard of this incident of last night. And I asked him if the congressional people had been informed about it. And he didn't think that they probably had. And you know, it's going to come out from the Chinese and it's going to come out in other ways. And I thought it was rather a matter that would be well if it was handled. Yeah. And I think so. Some of them have been. But it hasn't been done as a group. And I don't know whether the Republicans would bring it out and leak it or not. That's a great question. But of course the Chinese will talk about it. And the Russians will talk about it. And it's going to be, you know, it's going to... I would think you can expect that it's going to be... Within 24 hours, it'll be worldwide. And if we had done it without telling anybody in the United States, they're all going to wonder, you know, I would think that that's going to be a problem. The second thing is, it seems to me that somebody should be working on how it will be handled with the public. Because the Chinese, obviously, will say something about it. What are we going to say and whether we repeat it? I raised that question with them. And I've got another meeting at one o'clock where I'll raise it again. They, the boy in the State Department and McNamara, both, have had that question put to them by me. What's the man over there that runs the publicity... Where? In the snow and state. Manning? Manning. And I think he's been one of the best. His feeling was that we shouldn't do anything about it. My feeling was that we ought to go ahead and say something. McNamara agreed with him. I'm seeing you. I'm seeing them at one o'clock again. And we took the ball the other day and said that we had taken this action and announced it ourselves. And I thought it got by pretty well with the other two flights. It doesn't look like they got much results last night. What they did. Have you analyzed it? I haven't. I just, you know, just heard about it on the telephone. Are you going to meet with them any time today or tomorrow? I haven't heard of it yet. I told Mack Bundy, get you because we've got to see where we go from here. What they have no real plans. McNamara and Rusk both were rather insistent on going through with this one although the ambassador raised some grave questions which concerned me. A, the reaction in the world and B, Savannah's reaction. But they felt that unless we showed some strength and made some kind of reply that it would be very bad for us. And we went ahead but they were confident they could knock this battery out. They didn't. And I think it shows us that we can't rely too much on air power on some of these things. No, I think that's a real lesson. The other, I had, you know, about four or five days ago we went through the plan for Vietnam and I had some serious questions about it that perhaps they're going to have some other discussions with you. But I mean, for instance, the congressional part of it and getting their congressional resolution I think it poses all kinds of problems. Well, you can't do anything about that until you get rid of this problem we've got up there now and the question is whether you ought to cry as a difficult one and I don't know how you can conduct much offensive without some authority. We had the United Nations behind us but we had a very divided country and a lot of hell and we finally really lost the Democrats did on the Korea thing. I'm fearful that if we move without any authority of the Congress that the resentment would be pretty widespread and would involve a lot of people who would normally be with us if we asked for the authority. On the other hand, I would shudder to think if they debated it for a long period of time and they're likely to do that. So neither choice is very good. I think that they'll start asking, it seems likely, that they'll start asking somebody to spell out exactly what's going to happen and if we drop bombs there and then they retaliate, will we eventually bomb Hanoi and all that kind of business and what the answers to that to those questions are so difficult to give, particularly if they're giving it to a lot of people they hadn't agonistic. All right, now if you don't, that's all true. And you can't go into the details of your plans and you just have to tell them that. But if you take the other route, then they ask you by what authority, what executive order do you declare war? Yeah, the other, well I guess you really don't need from their explanation at least and I haven't looked into it but it's not essential that it's not necessary constitutionally. But the alternative to that, especially if that's going to be very harmful, the alternative of course is for you and Secretary McNamara and Secretary Russ at the appropriate time to start bringing in the labor leaders and the business leaders and the congressional leaders and talk with them on, you know, sort of as if it was a national security council meeting and that you were briefing them and this is what we have to do at this time and that if you have to take any further steps that you'll form them and that you'll keep them advised and rally and bring in some of the newspapers and bring in some of the television people. And I think probably talk to the country about why we're there and how we're there and what we confronted there and what we may do before you submit a resolution because I don't, I have doubts about what happened to it right now. Well that's what I think. I think you're just talking to develop a big divide attack here at home. That's what I think and then we can be, some people will say we're not doing enough to be others and say it's too much to be some people saying, you know, all you need is 15 of them up there that are doing that and I think it's just, unless the ground's laid it's really going to be unfair. Is this a jury amendment by the end of this morning? No, I think it makes it much more difficult to tell we can live with it. Is he happy any on cloture? Yes. You think cloture is decided now, don't you? It looks that way. Certainly it is that way. It'd be just a miracle getting this bill. Who could have thought a year ago that we get this bill? That would be a wonderful thing. Now you're going to, you're making your plans on who we ought to call in to follow through on it. Yes we are. Now should we do that between the time it goes from the Senate to the House and the time we sign it? Or should we wait until we sign it? I think probably, at least the feeling has been to wait until after we sign it. All right, now you may give thought to that because we could move when the Senate message is over at the House because it's a pretty foregone conclusion then. I assume though that rules committee will hold hearings for a while and try to delay it won't they? I guess so. The Republicans are committed enough though they'll give you a rule. That's right. That's right. Okay now, Stennis wants to see me about politics in Mississippi. I assume it's about this Marshall. Have you already gone in? Yes. Then I think we ought to go in to him with him all this stuff you told me. You know what you think? That'd be fine. The other problem he wants is about the judge, Mr. President. What's the fifth circuit? Yes. They're going to have a judge from Mississippi and we're still looking into it. It's awfully tough to get somebody down there would be acceptable. If they don't find somebody acceptable they won't confirm him. No. The only thing is that you've taken him from another state. What I did was that old fifth circuit, I remember that Roosevelt appointed Allred who had been a federal judge and resigned to the circuit court several years after he resigned in several months and there's been a Louisiana vacancy and Ellender took the position that is really Louisiana's place and stood behind him and overrode to Roosevelt. Now you may have another situation like that in Mississippi unless we got the race thing in it unless we just said well of course civil rights we got to go outside the state. You might get to northern people to support you and not recognize this individual lawyer to the state. He said that Stennis said to me that he'd take Coleman. Well Coleman won't have it though. I'd be for Coleman. Of course that would be, I mean if Coleman at least you could get Coleman to do it for a few years anyway you know get us all beyond that. Do you think we all tried to do that? Well he'd be fine you know he'd be acceptable and that would be, I think it's going to be awful tough to take everybody else. Would Eastland take Coleman? Well Stennis said he'd take Coleman. He said he would. Both of them would. Well the way he talked was that Coleman would be fine he said it's my appointment and the first person I wanted was Coleman. All right okay if it's his appointment. That would just be fine with me. I think he's a good person. I heard the president offering the secretary of the army and he just said he couldn't do it because he hadn't been in the army and he wouldn't do it. I thought it was very noble. Okay I sure want you to get with these dollars. I tell them every day and I want you and if they're having any meetings this afternoon after or in the morning Mike Bundy told me this morning that they were going to have executive meetings until Thursday and come in with some recommendations on Thursday. I'll get back in touch with him. Can I give you one another? Oh yeah FBI I talked to them and they said they'd get a report in by the first and I followed the line in your memo. Yeah well that's terrific. The other person Mr. President who's got some sense on these matters is again none of us are always right but who's got some sense and has had a good deal of experience as Douglas Dillon. Yes I told him that. I told him that every day. Okay fine.