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March 28, 1972

Introduction

This almanac page for Tuesday, March 28, 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: Monday, March 27, 1972

Next Date: Wednesday, March 29, 1972

Schedule and Public Documents

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)
      Tuesday, March 28th. Kissinger returned last night. Was in this morning to discuss the Russian trip and some of the plans for that, and...

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      DECLASSIFIED - E.O. 13526, Sect. 3.4: by MS, NARA, June 12, 2013
      Audio Cassette 20, Side A, Withdrawn Item Number 3 [AC-20(A) Sel 3]
      Duration: 1 minute 11 seconds

      …that led into the whole business of Israeli situation. He makes the point now that we should really clobber the Israelis, but we should wait until after the election to do it. Which is kind of funny, because that's the line he used all through 1970 to stall off any action and now he's doing the same thing again. The President has said all along that he knew that's what Henry would do. He does have some merit to his argument, however, because there's a problem in dropping the Israelis before the election in what we gain and we're better off to set it up and then move afterword. The President's feeling however is that he doesn't want to leave office without making the Israeli deal and he wants to make it at the Soviet summit, so that we get the Soviets out of the Middle East and out of the Mediterranean. I think Henry feels we can do that, but still not move overtly vis-à-vis Israel until right before or just after the election.
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      ITT was a big item. The President this morning felt that he probably should pull the plug on Kleindienst using the device that we've talked about, of having him issue a blast, an ultimatum that if they don't clear him by April 15, he's going to ask that his name be withdrawn. The President is convinced that he can't be confirmed now and that somehow we've got to cut our losses. We haven't been handling the case well all the way along and there's no point in struggling along with it any further. He had me talk to Ehrlichman about it, and then John felt it was probably the right thing to do. Our group decided to try to close the hearings tomorrow by a vote, but there's a problem there in that Mardian and Mitchell are against that and are pushing for some other tactic. Also Mansfield now issued an ultimatum that if they end the hearings he'll put a hold on the vote. The President feels we have to end the hearings, and since we can't get a vote to kill a filibuster, we are really basically stuck. MacGregor met with Eastland, and Eastland said he was reluctant to push tomorrow for a vote in the committee, because it would kill Kleindienst, but he would do it, if it's our decision. He made a commitment to MacGregor that he would do this. He said first though, he must hear from two witnesses, the lawyer who interrogated Dita Beard and the typist Lickman. Hruska and MacGregor are engineering the motion to terminate. They think it'll probably barely pass. There’ll be a huge scream from the Democrats, but we've got to do it anyway. Colson's afraid the Republicans will get antsy, and that they're afraid to do it, and that they won't get tough, and Eastland will back down. So we're trying to figure out how best we come out, whether try to, the best thing, of course, would be to confirm Kleindienst but not at the price of 30 days' more hearings. The other thing is to sacrifice Kleindienst in a blaze of glory if we have a confrontation against which we can do it with provocation.

      This afternoon the President had Connally into EOB for a two hour session. And the first hour was discussing international monetary policy and Connally's concern about taxes and the Democrats' phony push for tax reform, but then he got into the ITT thing. And he thinks our Kleindienst ultimatum ploy is very bad move, because it's, it’ll be seen through as what it is. He thinks instead that we should just take a flat Kleindienst to a draw if we accept the fact that he can't be confirmed.

      There was some discussion also today about the busing foul-up, the President feeling, and quite rightly, that we haven't gotten anything done on this. He wants Ehrlichman to get at it as soon as he gets back. There’s a lot of good stuff for the South, but we need to get it told, and it obviously hasn't been. They haven't called in the Southern Congressmen, for instance, to brief on busing and on how it affects them.

      End of March 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. 

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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. XXIV, Middle East Region and Arabian Peninsula, 1969-1972; Jordan, September 1970

    Indian Ocean

    Vol. XL, Germany and Berlin, 1969-1972

    Germany and Berlin, 1969-1972

    • 347. Memorandum From Helmut Sonnenfeldt of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger), Washington, March 28, 1972

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 686, Country Files, Europe, Germany (Bonn), Vol. XI. Secret. Sent for action. Another copy indicates that it was drafted by Hyland. (Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box CL 270, Memoranda of Conversations, 1968–77, Chronological File) According to an attached routing form, Kissinger noted the memorandum on March 29, i.e. after his meeting with Bahr. (National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 686, Country Files, Europe, Germany (Bonn), Vol. XI)

    • 348. Memorandum of Conversation, Washington, March 28, 1972, 1 p.m.

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, POL GER W–US. Secret; Exdis. Drafted by Hillenbrand; approved by Kissinger. (Memorandum from Davis to Eliot, April 5; ibid.) The meeting was held in Kissinger’s office at the White House. The memorandum is part 1 of 4. The remaining parts, on Currency Exchange Problems, European Community Relations, and Presidential Visit to the Soviet Union, are ibid. According to Kissinger’s Record of Schedule, the meeting lasted from 1:22 to 3:08 p.m. (Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 438, Miscellany, 1968–76) For Bahr’s memoranda on his meeting with Kissinger, see Akten zur Auswärtigen Politrik der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 1972, Vol. 1, pp. 347–351.

    Vol. E-1, Documents on Global Issues, 1969-1972

    U.S. Policy Towards International Production and Trafficking in Illegal Drugs

    • 221. Airgram A-3078 From the Department of State to All Diplomatic and Consular Posts, Washington, March 28, 1972

      The airgram transmitted Rogers’ statement on the adoption of amendments to the UN 1961 Single Conventionon Narcotic Drugs plus additional background information.

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970-73, SOC 11-5. Unclassified. Drafted by Wellman on March 27 and cleared by Gross. The press statement was attached but not published.

    International Cooperation in Space, 1969-1972

    • 278. Memorandum From the Executive Secretary of the Department of State (Eliot) to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger), Washington, March 28, 1972

      The Department informed Kissinger of its requirements for US-USSR technical discussions to ensure that a viable agreement on a joint space docking mission would be ready by the May 1972 summit.

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970-73, SP 1-1, US-USSR. Secret. Drafted by O. E. Anderson (NASA); concurred in by Jack Matlock, Director of the Office of Soviet Union Affairs and Richard T. Davies; and cleared in draft by Webber (SCI/SAM). Parker Borg signed for Eliot. A typewritten notation on the memorandum reads: “Memo from Gen. Haig to Mr. Eliot received 4/3/72.” A report of the NASA delegation to Moscow, April 4-6, is printed in Logsdon (ed.), Exploring the Universe, Vol. II, External Relations, Document I-46. Attached but not published were the draft principles. On April 3 Haig sent a memorandum to Eliot, approving Low’s statement in Moscow of draft principles for a possible U.S.-Soviet space docking mission, but with the understanding that it would not commit the United States to such a mission. (Ibid.)

    Vol. E-2, Documents on Arms Control and Nonproliferation, 1969-1972

    Chemical and Biological Warfare; Geneva Protocol; Biological Weapons Convention

    • 255. Draft Convention on Chemical Weapons, Geneva, March 28, 1972

      Text of Communist draft convention prohibiting production and stockpiling of chemical weapons.

      Source: Documents on Disarmament, 1972, pp. 120–124. No classification marking. For text of the U.S. Work Program regarding negotiations on the prohibition of chemical weapons, submitted to the CCD on March 20, and the statement of the U.S. Representative on chemical weapons, made March 21, see ibid., pp. 98—113.

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

    Algeria

    • 31. Telegram 540 From the Interests Section in Algeria to the Department of State, Algiers, March 28, 1972, 1333Z

      In a meeting with President Boumediene, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Newsom stressed U.S. initiatives in the international field as well as in U.S.-Algerian relations, and expressed the hope that diplomatic relations might soon be resumed.

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, ORG 7 AF. Secret; Priority. It was repeated to London, Paris, Rabat, Tripoli, and Tunis. In the septel, telegram 547 from Algiers, March 29, Newsom urged the Department that “We have opportunity in Algeria for major export gain and for strong economic relationship based on our need for gas. Our recent international initiatives have improved political atmosphere. Complications and delays in approving El Paso, however, still major impediment to our success and resumption relations here. Action requested: we need find urgently possible major economic actions which can demonstrate our interest and maintain our momentum here. I suggest meeting pertinent agencies following my return.” (Ibid.) According to telegram 118270 to Djakarta, June 30, the Federal Power Commission gave its general approval of the El Paso importation of Algerian LNG on June 28. (Ibid., ORG 7 S)

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

    Afghanistan, 1969-1972

    • 358. Telegram 52513 From the Department of State to the Embassy in Afghanistan, Washington, March 28, 1972, 1542Z

      The Department expressed concern that domestic pressures in Afghanistan and Pakistan might be pushing both countries toward another confrontation over the Pushtunistan issue. The Embassies in Kabul and Islamabad were instructed to counsel restraint.

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, POL AFG-PAK. Confidential. Drafted on March 27 by Flaten (NEA/PAF), cleared in NEA/PAF by Peter Constable and Laingen, and with EUR/SOV, and approved by Van Hollen. Also sent to Islamabad. Repeated to Moscow, New Delhi, Tehran, and London. The reference to a recent Moscow speech is to a speech made by Prime Minister Zahir in Moscow on March 14 in which he described the Pushtunistan issue as the only problem that existed between Afghanistan and Pakistan and called for a “solution based on Pushtunistan people’s right to determine own fate.” (Telegram 2307 from Moscow, March 15; ibid., POL 7 AFG.)

    Bangladesh, December 1971-December 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

Context (External Sources)