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April 3, 1969

Introduction

This almanac page for Thursday, April 3, 1969, pulls together various records created by the federal government and links to additional resources which can provide context about the events of the day.

Previous Date: Wednesday, April 2, 1969

Next Date: Friday, April 4, 1969

Schedule and Public Documents

  • The Daily Diary files represent a consolidated record of the President's activities. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    The President's day began at Key Biscayne, Florida

  • The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents made available transcripts of the President's news conferences; messages to Congress; public speeches, remarks, and statements; and other Presidential materials released by the White House.

    Appointments and Nominations

    Checklist of White House Press Releases

    The releases listed below, made public by the Office of the White House Press Secretary during the period covered by this issue, are not included in the issue.

    • Announcement of signing of H.J. Res. 584 and H.R. 8438.

    Digest of Other White House Announcements

    Following is a listing of items of general interest which were announced in the press but not made public as formal White House press releases during the period covered by this issue. Appointments requiring Senate approval are not included since they appear in the list of nominations submitted to the Senate, below.

    • The President has accepted the resignation of John H. Crimmins as Ambassador to the Dominican Republic.

  • Each Public Papers of the Presidents volume contains the papers and speeches of the President of the United States that were issued by the White House Office of the Press Secretary during the time period specified by the volume. The material is presented in chronological order, and the dates shown in the headings are the dates of the documents or events. In instances when the release date differs from the date of the document itself, that fact is shown in the text note.

    To ensure accuracy, remarks have been checked against audio recordings (when available) and signed documents have been checked against the original, unless otherwise noted. Editors have provided text notes and cross references for purposes of identification or clarity.

  • The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other Presidential documents.

  • The Congressional Record is the official daily record of the debates and proceedings of the U.S. Congress.

  • Argued

Archival Holdings

Any selection of archival documents will necessarily be partial. You should use the documents and folders identified below as a starting place, but consult the linked collection finding aids and folder title lists and the collections themselves for context. Many documents to be found this way do not lend themselves to association with specific dates, but are essential to a complete understanding of the material.

  • Selective document listing

    President's Office Files

    The President's Office Files consists of materials drawn together by the Special Files Unit from several administrative subdivisions within the White House Office. It is the handwriting and sensitive papers sent to the Staff Secretary that now comprise much of the President's Office Files. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    • Annotated News Summaries, Box 28, News Summaries - April 1969 [During this period, the Staff Secretary only removed pages from the News Summaries which contained President Nixon's handwriting, often leaving the document with no date. Although there are no specific documents dated April 3, 1969, you should also consult the full folder for the month.]

  • The H. R. Haldeman Diaries consists of seven handwritten diaries, 36 dictated diaries recorded as sound recordings, and two handwritten audio cassette tape subject logs. The diaries and logs reflect H. R. Haldeman’s candid personal record and reflections on events, issues, and people encountered during his service in the Nixon White House. As administrative assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, Haldeman attended and participated in public events and private meetings covering the entire scope of issues in which the Nixon White House engaged in during the years 1969-1973. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    • Transcript of diary entry (PDF)
      Wednesday through Sunday, April 2-6.

      Palm Springs and Key Biscayne. No contact with President for the entire period. Ehrlichman covered through Friday night, Harlow through the weekend. Good break. President had whole family down for the weekend. Big domestic policy meeting Friday - apparently quite successful.
    • Handwritten diary entry (JPG)

  • The National Archives Catalog is the online portal to the records held at the National Archives, and information about those records. It is the main way of describing our holdings and also provides access to electronic records and digitized versions of our holdings. 

    The Catalog searches across multiple National Archives resources at once, including archival descriptions, digitized and electronic records, authority records, and web pages from Archives.gov and the Presidential Libraries. The Catalog also allows users to contribute to digitized historical records through tagging and transcription.

    Nixon Library Holdings

    All National Archives Units

National Security Documents

  • The President's Daily Brief is the primary vehicle for summarizing the day-to-day sensitive intelligence and analysis, as well as late-breaking reports, for the White House on current and future national security issues. Read "The President's Daily Brief: Delivering Intelligence to Nixon and Ford" to learn more.

  • The Foreign Relations of the United States series presents the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity. Visit the State Department website for more information.

    Vol. III, Foreign Economic Policy; International Monetary Policy, 1969-1972

    Foreign Economic Policy

    Vol. IV, Foreign Assistance, International Development, Trade Policies, 1969-1972

    Foreign Assistance Policy, 1969-1972

    • 6. Memorandum by the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) , Washington, April 3, 1969

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, S/S Files: Lot 71 D 175, Box 129, 26 March NSC Meeting. Confidential; Eyes Only. On April 1 Kissinger sent the President a memorandum to which he attached the list of actions pursuant to the March 26 NSC meeting that had been “coordinated on an ÔEyes Only’ basis with the principals and has been agreed to by them.” Kissinger added that “your decisions to develop proposals for an outside study commission and continuation of our internal study of aid will be formalized by written follow-up Study Memoranda.” He concluded: “I do not believe an NSDM should be promulgated on these issues because the formal dissemination of such a memorandum could generate problems if it were leaked to legislators. Additionally, I believe you will wish to retain some flexibility on this issue as the FY 70 AID program crystallizes.” The President initialed his approval. (Ibid., Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Agency Files, Box 193, AID Volume I 1969)

    Vol. VI, Vietnam, January 1969-July 1970

    Vietnam, January 1969-July 1970

    Vol. XII, Soviet Union, January 1969-October 1970

    Initial Contacts, January-April 22, 1969

    Vol. XXIII, Arab-Israeli Dispute, 1969-1972

    The Rogers Plan

    • 18. Telegram From the Department of State to Certain Diplomatic Posts , Washington, April 3, 1969, 2353Z

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 653, Country Files, Middle East, Sisco Middle East Talks, April-June (1969). Secret; Priority; Nodis. Drafted and approved by Sisco. Sent to Moscow, London, Paris, Amman, Tel Aviv, USUN, and Cairo. All brackets are in the original except “[1967]”, “[to]”, and “[sic]”, added for clarity.

    Vol. XXVIII, Southern Africa

    Regional Issues

    Vol. E-4, Documents on Iran and Iraq, 1969-1972

    Iran 1969

    • 10. Record of National Security Council Interdepartmental Group for Near East and South Asia Meeting , Washington, April 3, 1969

      Reviewing Iran’s 1969 military credit sales program, the group agreed to recommend the sale of two F–4 squadrons for delivery by 1971, with payment of $80 million in 1969 and the balance the following year.

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 1236, Harold Saunders Files, Middle East Negotiations, Iran 1/20/69–9/30/69. NSCIG/NEA 69–11. Secret. Drafted by Sober.

    Iraq 1969-1971

    Vol. E-5, Part 2, Documents on North Africa, 1969-1972

    Tunisia

    • 139. Memorandum of Conversation , Washington, April 3, 1969, 11:30 a.m.

      In a meeting with Secretary of State Rogers, the Tunisian Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Habib Bourguiba, Jr., emphasized the importance of close relations with the United States during the upcoming transfer of power and given the unstable political situation facing one of its closest neighbors, Algeria. Bourguiba then requested greater American military assistance.

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1967–69, POL TUN-US. Confidential. Drafted by Root and approved on April 15 in S. The conversation took place in the Secretary’s Office.

    Vol. E-10, Documents on American Republics, 1969-1972

    Peru

    • 588. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon, Washington, April 3, 1969, 9:45 p.m. , Washington, April 3, 1969, 9:45 p.m.

      After reviewing Special Emissary Irwin’s discussions, President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs Kissinger concluded that the administration should defer application of Hickenlooper sanctions on Peru. In addition, he advocated that the United States continue to negotiate while maintaining other forms of pressure on the nation.

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 795, Country Files, Latin America, Peru–IPC–Hickenlooper Amendment, April 1, 1969. Secret; Sensitive. Sent for action. Neither recommendation was approved, nor disapproved. Tab A, Kissinger’s March 29 memorandum, is printed as Document 587. Attached but not published is Tab B, Administrative Process in the IPC Case, and Tab C, “Possible Economic Pressures US Could Apply to Peru While Hickenlooper Sanctions are Deferred.” In a telephone conversation on April 5 with Kissinger, Nixon agreed to the recommendations. See Document 589.

  • The Kissinger telephone conversation transcripts consist of approximately 20,000 pages of transcripts of Kissinger’s telephone conversations during his tenure as Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (1969-1974) and Secretary of State (1973-1974) during the administration of President Richard Nixon. Visit the finding aid for more information.

    Digitized versions can be found in the National Archives Catalog.

Context (External Sources)