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December 28, 1970

Introduction

This almanac page for Monday, December 28, 1970, 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: Sunday, December 27, 1970

Next Date: Tuesday, December 29, 1970

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 The White House - Washington, D. C.

  • 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

    • United States Ambassador to Western Samoa (7 Weekly Comp. Pres. Doc. 4, December 28, 1970)
      Announcement of Intention To Nominate Ambassador Kenneth Franzheim II To Serve Concurrently as Ambassador to Western Samoa.

    Statements by the President

    Acts Approved by the President

    • H.R. 8298 -- Public Law 91-590
      An Act to amend section 303(b) of the Interstate Commerce Act to modernize certain restrictions upon the application and scope of the exemption provided therein, and for other purposes.
    • H.R. 16498 -- Private Law 91-221
      An Act to permit the sale of the passenger vessel "Atlantic" to an alien, and for other purposes.
    • H.R. 19402 -- Public Law 91-591
      An Act to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to receive gifts for the benefit of the National Agricultural Library.
    • S.J. Res. 74 -- Public Law 91-593
      Joint Resolution to provide for the designation of the first full calendar week in May, 1971, as "National Employ the Older Worker Week".
    • S.J. Res. 172 -- Public Law 91-594
      Joint Resolution to authorize the President to issue a proclamation designating the first full calendar week in May of 1971 as "Clean Waters for America Week".
    • S.J. Res. 187 -- Public Law 91-595
      Joint Resolution to authorize the President to designate the third Sunday in June, 1971, as "Father's Day".
    • S.J. Res. 226 -- Public Law 91-592
      Joint Resolution to authorize the President to proclaim the period from May 9, 1971, Mother's Day, through June 20, 1971, Father's Day, as the "National Multiple Sclerosis Society Annual Hope Chest Appeal Weeks".

    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 today announced the appointment of Gen. A. C. Wedemeyer, USA (ret.), and D. Whitney Halladay, president, East Texas State University, as members of the Board of Visitors to the United States Military Academy for terms expiring December 30, 1973.

    Nominations Submitted to the Senate

    Does not include promotions of members of the Uniformed Services, nominations to the Service Academies, or nominations of Foreign Service Officers.

    • KENNETH FIRANZHEIM II, of Texas, now Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to New Zealand, to serve concurrently and without additional compensation as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Western Samoa.
    • JOHN H. REED, of Maine, to be a Member of the National Transportation Safety Board for the term expiring December 31, 1975(reappointment).
    • RENE DESLOGE TEGTMEYER, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Commissioner of Patents, vice John Henry Schneider.

  • 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.

    No Federal Register published on this date

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

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.

  • 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)
      Monday, December 28th. The President had no schedule today, as is the case for the rest of the week, except a few minor functions at midday on a couple of the other days.

      He had me in for about an hour in the morning, interrupting my session with Roger Ailes, at which time I was telling him we were getting a new TV consultant. The purpose of the discussion at that time was just to review some of his schedule plans for the week. He's going to meet, as he did this afternoon, with Ehrlichman and Shultz. That turned into a three hour meeting, occupying most of the afternoon over at the EOB. Tomorrow afternoon, he's meeting with John Connally for another long session on plans for '71. He may have to spend some time with some of the Senate and Congressional people on the strategy for finishing out this week.

      He wanted to be sure I got Chotiner, Klein, and Ailes wrapped up this week. I finally broke out of this morning meeting to finish up with Ailes. And I got started on Chotiner this afternoon, but will have to follow up because he's not satisfied with the law firm we've suggested he move into.

      He got back on the PR, as usual. This time wanting Safire to do a composite memo outlining the objectives, what we've done, and what didn't come through. And, he tried to develop three or four key objectives for the coming year.

      Then he asked me to have a talk with Haig, because he's concerned, as a result of his conversation with Rogers yesterday, that Rogers is aware of what Haig is doing with the Russians. That's—correction—is, Rogers is aware of what Henry's doing with the Russians. And, while Henry thinks he's operating secretly, he's not really.

      ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      DECLASSIFIED - E.O. 13526, Sect. 3.4: by MS, NARA, June 12, 2013
      Audio Cassette 2, Side B, Withdrawn Item Number 6 [AC-2(B) Sel 2]
      Duration: 13 seconds
      The President feels that both the Israeli and Russian embassies are bugged by the State Department and therefore Rogers knows everything Kissinger says on the phone or in the embassy. So, he has to assume that all that he says is known except, of course, the things that are covered in his meetings in the map room.
      -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      The President feels that Henry's got to open up the fact of his secret channel, so that Rogers knows about it that we have some more candor in this whole thing, because the problem now of playing it two ways poses a very bad situation for the President. For example, on the Paris trips, Tony Lake, who's now working for Muskie, was with Henry, so he knows all about them, yet Rogers doesn't know about it. There's a good chance that this will come out, which would be a very embarrassing thing. Also on the Ivanov problem, it was hard to explain to Rogers that Henry had been making an independent deal with Dobrynin. The President feels Henry's got to realize he's not a secret type person, that the things he does do come out; and so, we'll either have to get along with each other, or we'll have to change one of the people involved. He summed it up by saying the whole situation now poses a major problem for the President, because Rogers knows that Kissinger's meeting with Dobrynin. Maybe the thing to do is tell Rogers that both he and Henry have to meet with Dobrynin independently, and both of them should understand this. To do this we have to get Kissinger and Rogers together, especially as we approach the possibility of a meeting with the Russians.

      I got out for about an hour to finish up the Ailes discussion and some other odds and ends and then he buzzed me back in at noon and kept me in for another two and a half hours, this time with Colson there. He got into sort of a long, rambling discussion on follow-up items: the whole need for an attack on the Democrats; the need to develop our contact program concentrating on the top hundred people in the country spread across contributors, press, political, labor, religious, educational, etcetera; then he got back onto his story of having never called a reporter or complained about a story, etcetera, the fact that we haven't gotten that across; then the need for a spokesman that we can trust, who can get on TV and talk about what the President is like.

      End of December 28th.
    • Original audio recording (MP3)

  • 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. V, United Nations, 1969-1972

    Committee of 24

    • 65. Telegram From the Department of State to the Mission to the United Nations, Washington, December 28, 1970, 1745Z

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, POL 19 UN. Confidential. Drafted by Samuel R. Peale; cleared by Morris Rothenberg, Daniel Goott, Margaret J. Tibbetts, Walker, Peter C, Assistant Secretary Newsom, Robert T. Curran, George N. Monsma, Louise McNutt, Heller (Interior), Assistant Secretary De Palma, and Alexander Haig; and approved by the Under Secretary. A December 24 memorandum from Winston Lord of the National Security Council Staff to Haig noted that “if our UN Mission and State both believe that withdrawing from the committee would have no serious adverse effect in the UN or elsewhere, it should not be an outlandishly hawkish action. Also, the cable has high level clearance—Irwin, De Palma, and Newsom—and we were prepared to take this step two years ago.” Lord expressed concern about whether withdrawing from a UN committee might set an unfavorable precedent should another nation, such as the Soviet Union, withdraw from a committee considered important by the United States. (Ibid., Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Agency Files, Box 299, USUN, Vol. V)

    Vol. VII, Vietnam, July 1970-January 1972

    Planning and Decisions for Operations in Cambodia and Laos, October 9, 1970-February 7, 1971

    Vol. XIX, Part 1, Korea, 1969-1972

    U.S. Troop Reductions and Related Defense Issues, November 1969-February 1971

    Vol. XXI, Chile, 1969-1973

    Cool and Correct: The U.S. Response to the Allende Administration, November 5, 1970-December 31, 1972

  • 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.

Audiovisual Holdings

  • The White House Communications Agency Sound Recordings Collection contains public statements that took place between 1969 and 1974. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    E - Secretary of Defense Briefings

    • WHCA-SR-E-022
      Press conference by Sec. Def. Melvin Laird. (12/28/1970, Pentagon)

      Runtime: 47:00:00

      Production credits: Audio feed supplied by OPI; Recorded by BAC (initials of WHCA engineer)

      Original Format: 1/4-inch reel-to-reel audiotape. Original source type: Original.

  • The White House Communications Agency Videotape Collection contains “off-the-air” recordings of televised programs produced between 1968 and 1974. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    • WHCA-4055
      "The Correspondents' Report", Pt. I. Former Vietnam Prisoners of War, POWs.
      NBC, CBS
      Runtime: 1:00
    • WHCA-4057
      "Science 1970--A Year End Report: 'Human Behavior - Science Looks at Us' ".
      CBS
      Runtime: 1:00
    • WHCA-4058
      "Book Beat". FTN: James Farmer, Former Assistant Secretary of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare; "MTP": Senator Eugene McCarthy.
      CBS, NBC
      Runtime: 1:00
    • WHCA-4059
      "The American Adventure - A Portrait of America" Tape I.
      Undetermined
      Runtime: 1:00
    • WHCA-4060
      "The American Adventure - A Portrait of America", Tape II. Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson ("Lady Bird").
      Undetermined
      Runtime: 1:00
    • WHCA-4072
      Weekly News Summary, Tape I.
      ALL NETWORKS
      Runtime: 1:00

      1. Smith/Donaldson: 91st Congress. Time Code Start: 00:00. Keywords: House of Representatives. Network: ABC.

      2. Smith/Lawrence: L. Mendel Rivers [funeral]. Time Code Start: 01:56. Keywords: death memorials, burials, internments, religious services, funerals. Network: ABC.

      3. Smith/Milligan: POWs. Time Code Start: 04:38. Keywords: Vietnam War, Vietnam Prisoner of War. Network: ABC.

      4. Smith: White House statement on POW film. Time Code Start: 06:49. Keywords: Vietnam War, Vietnam Prisoner of War. Network: ABC.

      5. Utley/Slatter/Duke: House Armed Services Committee Chairman L. Mendel Rivers dies after heart surgery; Representative F. Edward HEBERT, Brock Adams on Congress seniority system. Time Code Start: 08:19. Keywords: Congressmen, military, leaders, House of Representatives, Committees. Network: NBC.

      6. Utley: Senate kills welfare and trade reform bills; acting only on Social Security. Time Code Start: 12:28. Keywords: bills, laws, Senators, voting, defeats. Network: NBC.

      7. Utley: Poverty Law; California Governor Ronald Reagan vetoes $2 million federal grant for legal aid to poor. Time Code Start: --. Keywords: bills, laws, lawsuits, financial aid, anti-poverty. Network: NBC.

      8. Utely: Secretary of Defense Laird on POW film. Time Code Start: 14:57. Keywords: cabinet, advisors, Vietnam War, Vietnam Prisoner of War. Network: NBC.

      9. Collingwood/Morton: L. Mendel Rivers [funeral]. Time Code Start: 16:37. Keywords: death memorials, burials, internments, religious services, funerals. Network: CBS.

      10. Collingwood: Secretary of Defense Laird on POW film and Young comment. Time Code Start: 20:00. Keywords: movies, Vietnam War, Vietnam Prisoner of War. Network: CBS.

      11. Collingwood/Dean: War and medical help. Time Code Start: 23:05. Keywords: wars, hospitals, medicine, doctors, nurses, aid. Network: CBS.

Context (External Sources)