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February 3, 1972

Introduction

This almanac page for Thursday, February 3, 1972, 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, February 2, 1972

Next Date: Friday, February 4, 1972

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.

    Digitized versions can be found at HathiTrust.

  • 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.

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.

    President's Personal File

    The President's Personal File is essentially a President's secretary's file, kept by Rose Mary Woods, personal secretary to the President, for two purposes: (1) preserving for posterity a collection of documents particularly close to the President, whether because he dictated or annotated them, or because of the importance of the correspondent or the event concerned and (2) giving appropriate attention–letters of gratitude, invitations to White House social events, and the like–to members and important friends and supporters of the Nixon administration. This generalization does not describe all the varied materials of a file group which is essentially a miscellany, but it does identify the reason for the existence of the file group's core. 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)
      Thursday, February 3, 1972.

      Lot of discussion today on the Muskie counterattack. President had a 8:00 breakfast with Mansfield, but called me in the office just before he went in to say he wanted to get something worked out on strategy on what to do on Muskie today, and that he wants Rogers to go on it, making the point primarily that he's sabotaging the peace. He feels we need a real cutting edge in our material on this, he was pushing quite hard on it. After the breakfast we had a long discussion again with Kissinger on how to handle Muskie, and as a result I put the heat on Colson and Scali, had a strategy session with them, got number of things going. And-- Colson did a good job of getting-- well, Colson and Scali did a good job of getting Rogers programmed, and he got really cranked up, went beyond where I think even he intended to go, at noon today at his press conference, and really blasted Muskie for jeopardizing the peace, and so on. It was a very good, strong attack, and because it came from Rogers, it created quite a major stir.

      We did get into some Rogers problems. Kissinger came in to talk to me last night about the-- his conviction that Rogers is actually psychopathic. The thing that convinces him, at least at the moment, is a conversation he had a lunch yesterday with-- or I guess today, with-- no, had have been yesterday, with Ben Bradlee; he told him that Rogers had called Bradlee and Kate Graham in, and given them a long pitch about how he, Rogers, had solved all the of foreign policy problems one by one. Went on and on, and in the process convinced Bradlee that Rogers had, to a degree at least, flipped his lid. I reported this whole thing to the President today and we had quite a long talk about the whole Kissinger-Rogers problem, covering pretty much the same ground we always cover, that is, Kissinger's got the ego, but the counterbalancing positives to warrant putting up with the ego, whereas Rogers has just sheer unadulterated vanity, which doesn't have any compensating factor on the other side, and yet we've got to figure out a way to continue to live with both of them.

      We had a session at the President's request this afternoon, with Flanigan, Kissinger and Connally to discuss the whole Dave Kennedy problem. I had told the President that based on input from both Flanigan and Pete Peterson, that I was convinced the real problem with Connally might very well be based on Dave Kennedy's assumption of the role of chief economic spokesman for all of Europe, as an extension of his new post as NATO Ambassador. This, of course, Connally is not the least bit happy with and has let some people know it, including Flanigan, who talked to me about it. In any event, the three of us met with Connally, told him that there was no intention of giving Kennedy this kind of franchise, that it would be removed and we'd straighten it all out, and set the thing up on whatever basis he felt was right. I think this made some progress.

      Connally seemed to be in good spirits, kept Flanigan and me after the meeting to talk about several other things including his new political theory that the problem we're now having on the economy and in a number of other areas results from the basic uncertainly level in the country. He feels that contrary to his earlier views for the need for action, that we may have aggravated the uncertainty question by our various bold moves and sudden switches, and maybe what's needed now is for the President to go to the Congress and say that he doesn't want them to act on any of the 90 programs before them, but rather to pass the appropriations and then go home, and let the country settle down.

      The Vice-President called me this afternoon, wanted to get together to fill me in on legal services, because he's very upset: there's been a big public flap on this, as he's sort of engaged with a running brawl with the legal services people at the Office of Economic Opportunity. He says it's escalating rapidly as an attempt to drive a wedge with-- between him and the President, that it involves a fundamental problem throughout the government, and that it's obvious to him that the entire establishment in Washington DC has ground to a halt because of the wild-eyed kids in legal services. He thinks that the President, too, is pretty much disgusted with all this but doesn't realize how bad it is, and he's signed some bad messages and so forth. I told him that I thought he ought to talk with Ehrlichman about this rather than me, and he said that he wanted to talk to me, but that it was all right with him if Ehrlichman sat in. I then said I was going to be gone for the weekend, and he said maybe he would talk with Ehrlichman and we left it at that.

      President went on to Key Biscayne tonight after the reception for the drug abuse athletes. I'll go on down tomorrow, per his instructions, although I had hoped to be able to stay home for the weekend.

      End of February 3.
    • 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. VIII, Vietnam, January-October 1972

    Before the Easter Offensive, January 20-March 29, 1972

    Vol. XIV, Soviet Union, October 1971-May 1972

    Preparing for Moscow and Nixon's Trip to China, January 1-March 29, 1972

    • 44. Memorandum From President Nixon to Secretary of State Rogers, Washington, February 3, 1972

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, President’s Personal Files, Box 3, Memoranda from the President, 1969–1974, Memorandum to Secretary of State, 2/3/72. Top Secret; Sensitive. Other drafts of this memorandum are ibid., NSC Files, Box 493, President’s Trip Files, Dobrynin/Kissinger, 1972, Vol. 9 [Pt. 2] An alternate memorandum from the President, drafted by Kissinger and instructing Rogers to limit his discussion on several issues, was not used. (Ibid)

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

    Libya

    Vol. E-7, Documents on South Asia, 1969-1972

    U.S. Relations with India and Pakistan, 1972

    • 221. Memorandum for the President’s File, Washington, February 3, 1972

      In a conversation with Ambassador Keating, President Nixon told him to tell the Indian Government that “India has a friend in the White House.” The President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs Kissinger added: “But we must move at a measured pace.”

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, President’s Office Files, Box 87, Memoranda for the President, Beginning January 30, 1972. Top Secret; Sensitive; Exclusively Eyes Only. Prepared but not initialed by Kissinger.

    Vol. E-7, Documents on South Asia, 1969-1972

    Bangladesh, December 1971-December 1972

    Vol. E-16, Documents on 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

  • Visit the White House Tapes finding aid to learn about the taping system's operation and archival processing.

    Oval Office

    White House Telephone

  • The White House Photo Office collection consists of photographic coverage of President Richard Nixon meeting with prominent social, political, and cultural personalities; speaking engagements and news conferences of the President and various high-ranking members of the White House staff and Cabinet; Presidential domestic and foreign travel, including Presidential vacations; social events and entertainment involving the First Family, including entertainers present; official portraits of the President, First Family, and high-ranking members of the Nixon administration; the 1969 and 1973 Inaugurals; the President’s 1972 Presidential election campaign appearances (including speeches) and other official activities of the White House staff and the President’s Cabinet from January 20, 1969 until August 9, 1974 at the White House and the Old Executive Office Building; other locations in Washington, DC, such as The Mall; and the Presidential retreats in Camp David, Maryland, Key Biscayne, Florida, and San Clemente, California. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    Roll WHPO-8374 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8374-, President Nixon seated at his desk during a meeting with Henry Kissinger and Ambassador to India Kenneth Keating. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. White House, Oval Office. President Nixon, Kissinger, Kenneth Keating.

    Roll WHPO-8375 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8375-01A-02A, President Nixon seated at his desk during a meeting with the Ambassador to Vietnam Ellsworth Bunker. President Nixon standing (3A-4A) and seated (5A-8A) with Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Kissinger, and an interpreter. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. White House, Oval Office. President Nixon, Ellsworth Bunker.
    • Frame(s): WHPO-8375-03A-04A, President Nixon standing in the Oval office with Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. White House, Oval Office. President Nixon, Yevgeny Yevtushenko.
    • Frame(s): WHPO-8375-04, President Nixon standing in the Oval office with Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. White House, Oval Office. President Nixon, Yevgeny Yevtushenko.
    • Frame(s): WHPO-8375-05A-09A, President Nixon seated in the Oval office during a meeting with Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Henry Kissinger, and an interpreter. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. White House, Oval Office. President Nixon, Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Henry Kissinger, H.R. Haldeman, Demitri Zarechnak.

    Roll WHPO-8376 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8376-, President Nixon and then Ehrlichman addressing delegates to the 5th White House Conference on Drug Abuse. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. White House, East Room. President Nixon, Ehrlichman, delegates.

    Roll WHPO-8377 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8377-, Nixon and Pat Nixon shaking hands with delegates to the Drug Abuse conference. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. Blue Room, White House. President Nixon, Pat Nixon, delegates.

    Roll WHPO-8378 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8378-, Nixon and Pat Nixon shaking hands with delegates to the Drug Abuse conference. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. Blue Room, White House. President Nixon, Pat Nixon, delegates.

    Roll WHPO-8379 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8379-, Nixon and Pat Nixon shaking hands with delegates to the Drug Abuse conference. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. Blue Room, White House. President Nixon, Pat Nixon, delegates.

    Roll WHPO-8380 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8380-, Nixon and Pat Nixon shaking hands with delegates to the Drug Abuse conference. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. Blue Room, White House. President Nixon, Pat Nixon, delegates.

    Roll WHPO-8381 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8381-, Nixon and Pat Nixon shaking hands with delegates to the Drug Abuse Conference. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. Blue Room, White House. President Nixon, Pat Nixon, delegates.

    Roll WHPO-8382 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8382-, President Nixon standing with narcotics agents attending the Drug Abuse Conference. 2/3/1972, Washington, D.C. Green Room, White House. President Nixon, narcotics agents.

    Roll WHPO-8395 Photographer: Kightlinger, Jack | Color or B&W: B&W

    • Frame(s): WHPO-8395-, President Nixon and Pete Rozelle are met at the airport by Charles Bebe Rebozo and Col. David Rippetoe, Jr. 2/3/1972, Miami, Florida tarmac, Miami International Airport. President Nixon, Pete Rozelle, Charles Bebe Rebozo, David Rippetoe, Jr., Ron Ziegler.

  • 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.

    H - White House Staff Member Recordings

    • WHCA-SR-H-510
      Seminar on drugs with John D. Ehrlichman as master of ceremonies, Jerome Jaffe, John Ingersoll, and Myles Ambrose. (2/3/1972, East Room, White House)

      Runtime: 2:00:00

      Keywords: drugs, drug abuse, narcotics, heroin, marijuana, addicts, addiction, prevention, programs

      Production credits: Audio feed supplied by "Slye Electronics"; Recorded by RWF (initials of WHCA engineer)

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

    P - Formal Presidential Remarks

    • WHCA-SR-P-720202
      Remarks by President Nixon in a drug seminar. (2/3/1972)

      Runtime: 10:13

      Keywords: drugs, drug abuse, narcotics, heroin, marijuana, addicts, addiction, prevention, programs

      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-5028
      "Martin Agronsky: Evening Edition".
      Undetermined
      Runtime: 00:29:56
    • WHCA-5030
      Weekly News Summary, Tape II.
      ALL NETWORKS
      Runtime: 01:08:00

      20. Film report on Secretary of State Rogers attack on Senator Muskie in defense of President Nixon. Time Code Start: 40:19. Keywords: cabinet, advisors. Network: ABC.

      21. Report on Senator Muskie's statement re: Secretary of State Rogers' attack. Time Code Start: 42:52. Keywords: cabinet, advisors. Network: ABC.

      22. Report of Paris Peace Talks/ film of North Vietnam spokesman and Ambassador William J. Porter. Time Code Start: 43:07. Keywords: Paris Peace Talks, Vietnam War, treaty, treaties, negotiations, government, officials. Network: ABC.

      23. Film report on Senator Hubert H. Humphrey's campaign in West Virginia. Time Code Start: 45:21. Keywords: Presidential elections, campaigns, campaigning, primaries, candidates, voting, speeches. Network: ABC.

      24. Film report of Senator Hartke campaigning in New Hampshire. Time Code Start: 47:20. Keywords: Presidential elections, campaigns, campaigning, candidates, costs, finances, funding. Network: ABC.

      25. Report on Federal Communication Commisssion (FCC) rules for cable television. Time Code Start: 49:27. Keywords: media,TV, broadcastings, telecommunication, organizations, agencies, regulations. Network: ABC.

      26. Harry Reasoner: Commentary on Consumer Activist Ralph Nader and Congressional commercial report. Time Code Start: 50:58. Keywords: activists, consumer advocates, environmentalists, investigations, reports, statements, House of Representatives. Network: ABC.

      27. Report on dock strike and suspension of appeal to Senate hearing/ film of Harrison Williams and Secretary of Transportation John Volpe. Time Code Start: 52:49. Keywords: harbors, Stevedores, dock workers, longshoremen, strikes, recession, inflation, wages, unemployment, trade, negotiations, trade, negotiations. Network: NBC.

      28. Report on Senator Muskie's criticism of President Nixon's Peace Proposal and film of Secretary of State Rogers' response to Muskie. Time Code Start: 55:02. Keywords: cabinet, advisors, Paris Peace Talks, Vietnam War, treaty, treaties, negotiations. Network: NBC.

      29. Report on Hanoi's rejection of President Nixon's Peace Proposal. Time Code Start: 55:39. Keywords: Presidents, Paris Peace Talks, Vietnam War, treaty, treaties, negotiations. Network: NBC.

      30. Report on Secretary of State Rogers' attack on Senator Muskie and film of Muskie's criticism of Rogers. Time Code Start: 57:04. Keywords: cabinet, advisors. Network: CBS.

      31. Film report on Senator Muskie's Peace Proposal. Time Code Start: 59:00. Keywords: Senators, Presidential elections, campaigns, campaigning, candidates. Network: CBS.

      32. Film report on Shirley Chisholm's candidacy for President and her speech/ on camera comments by Julian Bond (Georgia legislator). Time Code Start: 59:53. Keywords: Presidential elections, campaigns, campaigning, candidates, nominees, debates, speeches, women, African Americans, Feminism, Feminist movement, women's rights, Womens Liberation, equality, equal rights, gender, civil rights, activists, women. Network: CBS.

      33. Sevareid: commentary on the prospects of U.S. Involvement in Northern Ireland. Time Code Start: 65:17. Keywords: United Kingdom, Irish Republican Army, terrorism, explosions, riots, violence. Network: CBS.

Context (External Sources)