October 19, 1973

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

• Original typewritten diary (PDF)

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.

• Special Message to the Congress Requesting Emergency Security Assistance Funding for Israel and Cambodia
• Statement on Signing the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Amendments of 1973.
• Statement Announcing Procedures for Providing Information From Presidential Tape Recordings

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.

• Federal Register of Friday, October 19, 1973

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.

• News Summaries, Unmarked News Summaries, Box 62, News Summaries - October 1973 [12 of 20] [Note: Due to the way News Summary products were compiled, you should also consult nearby days for potentially relevant materials.]
  • News Summary, October 19, 1973, (Thursday nets, wires. Comment separate)
  • Digest of Recent Comment, October 19, 1973

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.

• President's Speech File
  • Box 88, October 19 and 20, 1973, Letters to Elliot Richardson

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

• Text search for October 19, 1973
• Date search for October 19, 1973

All National Archives Units

• Text search for October 19, 1973
• Date search for October 19, 1973

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.

• President's Daily Brief of 19 October 1973

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. XXV, Arab-Israeli Crisis and War, 1973

Arab-Israeli Crisis and War, 1973

• 207. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in Jordan, Washington, October 19, 1973, 0211Z

  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 618, Country Files, Middle East, Jordan, IX, January–October 1973. Secret; Flash; Nodis; Cherokee. Drafted and approved by Kissinger.

• 208. Minutes of Washington Special Actions Group Meeting, Washington, October 19, 1973, 10:04-10:57 a.m.

  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H–Files), Box H–117, WSAG Meetings Minutes, Originals, 1973. Top Secret; Sensitive; Codeword. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room.

• 209. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between Secretary of State Kissinger and the Soviet Ambassador (Dobrynin), Washington, October 19, 1973, 11:04 a.m.

  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, Kissinger Telephone Conversations, Transcripts (Telcons), Chronological File, Box 23. No classification marking.

• 210. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between Secretary of State Kissinger and the Soviet Ambassador (Dobrynin), Washington, October 19, 1973, 11:38 a.m.

  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, Kissinger Telephone Conversations, Transcripts (Telcons), Anatoli[y] Dobrynin File, Box 28. No classification marking.

• 211. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between Secretary of State Kissinger and the Soviet Ambassador (Dobrynin), Washington, October 19, 1973, 1:35 p.m.

  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, Kissinger Telephone Conversations, Transcripts (Telcons), Chronological File, Box 23. No classification marking.

• 212. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between Secretary of State Kissinger and the Israeli Ambassador (Dinitz), Washington, October 19, 1973, 7:09 p.m.

  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, Kissinger Telephone Conversations, Transcripts (Telcons), Chronological File, Box 23. No classification marking. The blank underscore indicates an omission in the original.

• 213. Memorandum of Conversation, Washington, October 19, 1973, 7:17-7:28 p.m.

  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 1027, Presidential/HAK Memcons, Memcons, HAK & Presidential, April–Nov. 1973 [2 of 5]. Secret. The meeting took place in the Secretary’s office at the State Department. Brackets are in the original.

Vol. XXXVI, Energy Crisis, 1969-1974

October 6, 1973-March 22, 1974

• 221. Minutes of Washington Special Actions Group Meeting, Washington, October 19, 1973, 10:04-10:57 a.m.

  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–117, Washington Special Action Group, WSAG Minutes (Originals), 10/2/73–7/22/74. Top Secret; Sensitive; Codeword. The meeting occurred in the White House Situation Room. The minutes are printed in full in Foreign Relations, 1969–1976, volume XXV, Arab-Israeli Crisis and War, 1973, Document 208.

• 222. Minutes of the Secretary of State’s Staff Meeting, Washington, October 19, 1973, 12:35 p.m.

  Source: National Archives, RG 59, Transcripts of Secretary of State Kissinger’s Staff Meetings, 1973–1977, Box 720, Secretary’s Staff Meetings 9/73–10/73. Secret. According to an attached list, the following people attended the meeting: Kissinger, Rush, Porter, Tarr, Bowdler, Casey, Sisco, Hummel, Newsom, Springsteen, Pickering, and Lord.

• 223. Memorandum Prepared in the Office of Economic Research, Central Intelligence Agency, Washington, October 19, 1973

  Source: Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Economic Research, Job 80–T01315A, Box 36. Secret. An October 19 covering memorandum for the record states that the memorandum was prepared October 19 for the WSAG meeting that evening and that Kissinger had requested it for a briefing of the President. An updated itemization of developments, resulting from memoranda of conversation between oil executives and representatives of the Departments of State, Treasury, Interior, Justice, and Defense, the Energy Policy Office, the NSC, and the CIA, is in an October 22 memorandum of conversation. (National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, PET 17–1 US)

Vol. E-6, Documents on Africa, 1973-1976

Africa Region

• 14. Memorandum From the Acting Administrator of the Agency for International Development (Williams) to Secretary of State Kissinger, Washington, October 19, 1973

  Williams summarized discussions with the ministers of the six drought stricken countries who accompanied President Lamizana to Washington.
  
  Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 747, Country Files, Africa, General, March 1970-. No classification marking.

Horn of Africa

• 96. Minutes of the Secretary of State’s Staff Meeting, Washington, October 19, 1973, 12:35 p.m.

  Secretary of State Kissinger and his staff discussed the planned visit of Haile Selassie to Moscow and options for a U.S. response.
  
  Source: National Archives, RG 59, Transcripts of Secretary of State Henry Kissinger’s Staff Meetings, 1973–1977, Entry 5177, Box 10, Secretary’s Staff Meetings. Secret. Newsom’s Briefing Memorandum to Kissinger, October 19, included INR’s assessment of Ethiopia and Somalia. (Ibid., Central Files, 1970–73, POL ETH-US)

Vol. E-15, Part 1, Documents on Eastern Europe, 1973-1976

Yugoslavia

• 66. Memorandum of Conversation, Belgrade, October 19, 1973, 9-9:45 a.m., Belgrade, October 19, 1973, 9-9:45 a.m.

  Ambassador TOON met with Deputy Federal Secretary Petric to discuss recent tensions in U.S.-Yugoslavian relations over the Middle East crisis.
  
  Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970-73, POL 17 US-YUGO. Confidential; EXDIS. Drafted on November 5 by Swihart; and approved by Tice. The memorandum of conversation was enclosure 1 to Airgram A-623 from Belgrade, November 5. The Department's instructions for TOON's conversation with Petric in telegram 205524 to Belgrade, October 17, are not published. (Ibid., Central Foreign Policy Files) The meeting took place in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. For Stoessel's October 9 meeting with Granfil see Document 64.

Vol. E-15, Part 2, Documents on Western Europe, 1973-1976, Second, Revised Edition

Portugal, 1973-1976

• 127. Letter From Portuguese Prime Minister Caetano to President Nixon, Lisbon, October 19, 1973

  Summary: Caetano replied to Nixon’s October 13 message on the use of the Lajes Base for Middle East resupply.
  
  Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–1973, POL 1 PORT–US. No classification marking. According to telegram 220957 to Lisbon, November 8, Themido delivered the letter to the Department on November 2. (Ibid., Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 701, Country Files, Europe, Portugal, Vol. II (1972–1974) (1 of 2)) The memorandum of conversation recording the meeting with Porter during which Themido delivered the letter is ibid., (2 of 2).

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.

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-E1677 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: B&W

• Frame(s): WHPO-E1677-01A-26A, Closeup portrait study of Fred Buzhardt. 10/19/1973, unknown unknown. Fred Buzhardt.
• Frame(s): WHPO-E1677-24A, Head and shoulders portrait of Fred Buzhardt. 10/19/1973, unknown unknown. Fred Buzhardt.

Roll WHPO-E1678 Photographer: | Color or B&W: B&W

• Frame(s): WHPO-E1678-, Formal portrait of Pat Nixon seated wearing a white dress, used for campaign. See also E0306, E0308, E0309 in color. 10/19/1973, unknown unknown. Pat Nixon.
• Frame(s): WHPO-E1678-00, Formal portrait of Pat Nixon seated wearing a white dress, which was used for campaigning. See also E0306, E0308, E0309 in color. 10/19/1973, unknown unknown. Pat Nixon.

Roll WHPO-E1679 Photographer: | Color or B&W: B&W

• Frame(s): WHPO-E1679-01-02, Copy of an unidentified staff member's portrait print. 10/19/1973, unknown unknown. unidentified male staff member.
• Frame(s): WHPO-E1679-02, Copy of an unidentified staff member's portrait print. 10/19/1973, unknown unknown. unidentified male staff member.

Roll WHPO-E1680 Photographer: Knudsen, Robert L. | Color or B&W: B&W

• Frame(s): WHPO-E1680-, President Nixon meets with Taft Schreiber and Robert Finch. 10/19/1973, Washington DC White House, Oval Office.

Roll WHPO-E1681 Photographer: Schumacher, Karl | Color or B&W: Color

• Frame(s): WHPO-E1681-, Pat Nixon greets guests at Salvation Army Reception. 10/19/1973, Washington DC White House, Blue Room.

Roll WHPO-E1682 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: Color

• Frame(s): WHPO-E1682-, President Nixon walks with Alexander Haig, Chief of Staff prior to the dismissal of Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox. 10/19/1973, Washington D.C. White House, South Grounds.

Roll WHPO-E1683 Photographer: Atkins, Oliver | Color or B&W: Color

• Frame(s): WHPO-E1683-01-19, President Nixon walking the White House South Grounds area with his Chief of Staff Alexander Haig prior to the dismissal of Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox. 10/19/1973, Washington DC White House, South Grounds. President Nixon, Alexander Haig.

Roll WHPO-E1684 Photographer: Schumacher, Karl | Color or B&W: B&W

• Frame(s): WHPO-E1684-, President Nixon seated in the Oval Office with Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities Senator Sam Ervin, Jr. (D-North Carolina), Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities Senator Howard H. Baker, Jr. (R-Tennessee), Consultant Charles A. Wright, and staff member Gen. Alexander Haig. 10/19/1973, Washington D.C. White House, Oval Office. President Nixon, Sam J. Ervin, Jr., Howard H. Baker, Jr., Charles A. Wright, General Alexander Haig.
• Frame(s): WHPO-E1684-05, President Nixon seated in the Oval Office with Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities Senator Sam Ervin, Jr. (D-North Carolina), Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities Senator Howard H. Baker, Jr. (R-Tennessee), Consultant Charles A. Wright, and staff member Gen. Alexander Haig. 10/19/1973, Washington D.C. White House, Oval Office. President Nixon, Sam J. Ervin, Jr., Howard H. Baker, Jr., Charles A. Wright, General Alexander Haig.

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.

S - White House Press Office Briefings (continuation of the L-series)

• WHCA-SR-S-340
  Press briefing by Gerald Warren. (10/19/1973, White House Press Lobby)
  
  Runtime: 28:37:00
  
  Keywords: Press conferences, news conferences, interviews, media
  
  Production credits: Audio feed supplied by WHCA; Recorded by __ (initials of WHCA engineer)
  
  Original Format: 1/4-inch reel-to-reel audiotape. Original source type: Original.
• WHCA-SR-S-341
  Press briefing by Gerald Warren. (10/19/1973, White House Press Lobby)
  
  Runtime: 23:10
  
  Keywords: Press conferences, news conferences, interviews, media
  
  Production credits: Audio feed supplied by WHCA; Recorded by __ (initials of WHCA engineer)
  
  Original Format: 1/4-inch reel-to-reel audiotape. Original source type: Original.
• WHCA-SR-S-342
  Statement by Gerald Warren concerning the Watergate Tapes. (10/19/1973, White House Press Lobby)
  
  Runtime: 0:04:08
  
  Keywords: Press conference, news conference, media, statements, Presidential statement, speeches, Watergate, Senate committee hearings, investigations, testimony, testify, cover-ups, break-in, burglary, theft, plumbers, scandals, bugging, bugs, wiretapping, wiretap
  
  Production credits: Audio feed supplied by WHCA; Recorded by LSB (initials of WHCA engineer)
  
  Original Format: 1/4-inch reel-to-reel audiotape. Original source type: Original. Technical notes: 1 hour, 32 minutes and 58 seconds of silence at end of recording removed from access copies.

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-6610
  Weekly News Summary, Tape III.
  ALL NETWORKS
  Runtime: 01:05:12
  
  8. Smith/Kaplow: Kosygin mission to Egypt. Time Code Start: 19:10. Keywords: Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War, October War, 1973 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Middle East, Mideast, Russia, USSR, Soviet Union, Ambassadors, travel, trips. Network: ABC.
  
  9. Smith/Jarriel: President Nixon asks Congress for Israel aid. Time Code Start: 20:40. Keywords: Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War, October War, 1973 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Middle East, Mideast, weapons, aid, exports, American. Network: ABC.
  
  10. Smith/Donaldson/Schoumacher: White House tapes case and John Dean's testimony. Time Code Start: 22:07. Keywords: bugging, bugs, wiretapping, wire taps, surveillance, spying, recordings, Watergate, Senate committee hearings, investigations, testimony, testify, cover-ups, scandals. Network: ABC.
  
  11. Smith: Commentary on Middle East war. Time Code Start: 25:45. Keywords: Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War, October War, 1973 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Middle East, Mideast. Network: ABC.
  
  12. Chancellor/Burrington/Hartz: Middle East and Israel's Minister of Defense Moshe Dayan on. Time Code Start: 27:31. Keywords: Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War, October War, 1973 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Middle East, Mideast, military, leaders. Network: NBC.
  
  13. Chancellor/Brokaw: Emergency Israeli aid from U.S.. Time Code Start: 34:15. Keywords: Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War, October War, 1973 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Middle East, Mideast, weapons, aid, exports, American. Network: NBC.
  
  14. Chancellor: Analysis of Middle East situation. Time Code Start: 35:40. Keywords: Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War, October War, 1973 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Middle East, Mideast. Network: NBC.
  
  15. Chancellor/Stern: White House tapes case. Time Code Start: 36:17. Keywords: bugging, bugs, wiretapping, wire taps, surveillance, spying, recordings, Watergate, Senate committee hearings, investigations, testimony, testify, cover-ups, scandals. Network: NBC.
  
  16. Chancellor: Vice President Gerald Ford; Archibald Cox; and Watergate report from Graham. Time Code Start: 37:29. Keywords: bugging, bugs, wiretapping, wire taps, surveillance, spying, recordings, Watergate, Senate committee hearings, investigations, testimony, testify, cover-ups, break-in, burglary, theft, plumbers, scandals, impeachment, resignations. Network: NBC.
  
  17. Chancellor/Levine: Price and wage increases. Time Code Start: 40:05. Keywords: wage and price controls, freezes, prices, costs, increases, decreases, economy, economics, budgets, finances, recession, inflation, money. Network: NBC.
  
  18. Mudd/Schieffer: Middle East battle reports. Time Code Start: 42:05. Keywords: Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War, October War, 1973 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Middle East, Mideast. Network: CBS.
  
  19. Mudd/Rather/Schorr: White House tapes deadline; Graham discusses John Dean's testimony. Time Code Start: 43:50. Keywords: law officials, attorneys, lawyers, bugging, bugs, wiretapping, wire taps, surveillance, spying, recordings, Watergate, Senate committee hearings, investigations, testimony, testify, cover-ups, scandals. Network: CBS.
  
  20. Mudd/Webster: Arab terrorists in Beirut, Lebanon. Time Code Start: 47:35. Keywords: Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War, October War, 1973 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Middle East, Mideast, Lebanese, Lebanon, miliitants, terrorism, terrorists. Network: CBS.
  
  21. Mudd/Wagner: Illegal corporate contributions and connections with President Nixon. Time Code Start: 49:44. Keywords: Presidential elections, campaigns, campaigning, candidates, gifts, donations, money, funding, fundraising, finances. Network: CBS.

• New York Times of October 19, 1973

• AP Images photos from October 19, 1973
• Getty Images photos from October 19, 1973

The Vanderbilt Television News Archive is the world's most extensive and complete archive of television news. They have been recording, preserving and providing access to television news broadcasts of the national networks since August 5, 1968.

• October 1973 Broadcast Index

Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

• October 19, 1973