Office of the Historian

363. Memorandum From the Representative to the United Nations (Goldberg) to President Johnson1

New York, August 5, 1965.

SUBJECT

  • Legislative Reaction to U.S. Position on Article 19

Under date of July 6, 1965 the Secretary of State handed you a Memorandum reviewing the Article 19 issue and recommending the course of action described in detail in the memorandum.2 The recommended course of action had the concurrence of Governor Stevenson. After review, you approved the recommended course of action and requested the Secretary and me to discuss it with key members of Congress. We have done so and herein report their reactions.

1.

The Secretary arranged a breakfast meeting with the Chairman and ranking Democratic and Republican members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a similar special breakfast meeting with the Chairman and the ranking Democratic and Republican members of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House. I attended both meetings as did Under Secretary Ball and Ambassador MacArthur of the State Department. Chairman Fulbright and Senators Gore, Church and Hickenlooper participated in the breakfast meeting for the leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Chairman Morgan and Congressmen Zablocki, Fascell, Bolton, and Adair attended the breakfast for the leaders of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

At both breakfast meetings the Secretary, the Under Secretary and I reviewed the proposed U.S. position on Article 19 in detail. In general the response of the members of the Senate Committee was favorable. While Senator Hickenlooper was somewhat more reserved than the Democratic members he nevertheless acquiesced in the proposed course of action.

At the House breakfast reaction was likewise favorable although Congressmen Adair and Fascell seemed harder to persuade. My conclusion, however, is that they will go along.

2.

I personally met with the leaders, both Republican and Democratic, of the Senate and House. On the Senate side I met with Senators Mansfield, Aiken and Dirksen. On the House side I met with the Speaker, Mr. Albert and Mr. Ford.

Save for Mr. Ford, who while cordial was noncommittal, the leaders both of the House and Senate will support the U.S. position. Ford said that he would consult with Senator Dirksen and his other leadership colleagues as well as the leading members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee about formulating a joint position on our recommendation. His general personal reaction was not unfriendly and assuming that the reaction of his colleagues will continue to be favorable, as I believe it will be, my conclusion is that he will go along.

Our next step is to discuss our position with our allies. This I shall do next week in New York.

Our position will be made public when the Committee of 33 reconvenes on August 16.

  1. Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Agency File, United Nations, Goldberg Correspondence. No classification marking. President Johnson appointed Arthur Goldberg as Permanent Representative to the United Nations on July 26 and Goldberg presented his credentials on July 28. Goldberg’s nomination took place against the background of a further escalation of U.S. involvement in Vietnam. Documentation relating to the escalation and Goldberg’s initial efforts to seek a solution through the United Nations is in Foreign Relations, 1964–1968, vol. III, Documents 82, 99, 106, 114, 116, 119, and 129.↩
  2. Document 357.↩