65. Memorandum of Telephone Conversation Between the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Hilsman) and the President1
SUBJECT
- Viet-Nam
The President telephoned and asked what the news was.
Mr. Hilsman said we did not have a telegram in yet.
The President mentioned the newspaper stories attributed to one of our wonderful sources there. Mr. Hilsman said that we had gotten the ticker last night and had sent a blast to Saigon.2 The President said this strips us kind of bare. Mr. Hilsman said this makes him so damned mad. He had warned them about talking. The President said you can’t stop people from doing that. We have the same problem here.
The President said we now should have some sort of economic program-things we could do that would not have material effect immediately but which would give them the word. Mr. Hilsman said he had started looking into the various possibilities a week ago. In reply to the President’s question, Mr. Hilsman said there was not too much. The President asked what about tying aid to U.S. purchases. Mr. Hilsman said this was an idea; that we tie some in anyway. The President asked what the dollar loss was to Viet-Nam. He said we ought to do that anyway.
The President asked if Mr. Hilsman had Janow or someone working on it. Mr. Hilsman said Janow and Bob Barnett and the economic people here were working on it already. The President said he would like to have some ideas this morning.