Scope and Content Note

The National Security Council (NSC) was established by the National Security Act of 1947 (61 Stat. 496; 50 USC 402) and amended by the National Security Act Amendments of 1949 (63 Stat. 579; 50 U.S.C. 401 et seq.) The function of the National Security Council is to advise the President on the integration of domestic, foreign and military policies relating to national security.

Frequent correspondents in these files include: President Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger and Gen. Alexander Haig of the NSC, Peter Flanigan, H.R. Haldeman, Arthur Burns, John Ehrlichman, Dwight Chapin, Stephen Bull, Kenneth Cole, David Parker, Ronald Ziegler, Dr. Edward David, Lee DuBridge, Clay Whitehead, Martin Anderson, Robert Mayo, Frank Shakespeare, Deane Hinton and Jonathan Rose. Among the many NSC staff members found in these files are: Richard Allen, C. Fred Bergsten, Jeanne Davis, Dolf Droge, Morton Halperin, John Holdridge, Robert Houdek, Col. Richard Kennedy, Anthony Lake, John Lehman, Donald Lesh, Winston Lord, Lawrence Lynn, Jr., Richard Moose, Arnold Nachmanoff, Robert Osgood and Gen. Brent Scowcroft.

The Executive File category within this subject category includes the correspondence of the President, White House Staff and Administration officials with heads of state, members of Congress, business, research, patriotic and special interest organizations, students, academicians, media representatives and the general public concerning foreign policy, interview and meeting requests, national security and international trade. The General file category contains many of the same subjects and correspondents; however, the more substantial information concerning the President and NSC staff comments are concentrated in the Executive file category. The last file is subdivided (/A), indicating job appointments.

Related materials may be found in the following categories:

FG 6-6 NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL

This category contains original, carbon and electrostatic copies of memoranda, correspondence, lists, forms and notes relating to the National Security Council's advisory role. The files include comments and inquiries by President Nixon about foreign policy and NSC staff advice concerning the President's speeches, appointments with American and foreign diplomats, messages to heads of state and Mrs. Nixon's meetings with diplomatic delegations. The correspondence of Henry Kissinger and other NSC staff members concerns the Administration's foreign policy, the functions of the NSC, speaking and interview requests, and Vietnam speeches given by NSC staff member Dolf M. Droge. While there is information about the scheduling of NSC meetings with the President, the meeting topics are frequently not mentioned. Notable topics in the files include the Vietnam War, prisoners of war, an interagency study on the draft, draft deferments, the lottery system, the All-Volunteer Army, draft reform, and the national strategic stockpile. Additional NSC responsibilities documented include clearances of foreign travel and meetings with Soviet-bloc diplomats by Administration officials and certain job appointments deemed sensitive to national security; policy coordination with the Council on International Economic Policy, the Council of Economic Advisors and the Domestic Council; and advice concerning international organizations, including the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Economic Community; and joint projects in telecommunications and space research, such as the International Telecommunication Satellite Organization (INTELSAT) and the Post-Apollo Space Program.

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