466. Memorandum From Edward G. Lansdale to the President’s Special Assistant for National Security Affairs (Bundy)1
SUBJECT
- Vietnam
Have you considered that Dean Rusk’s press statement yesterday2 about the Vietnamese might be rather sound advice if applied to Americans, as well? I pass this notion along to you as a little Christmas remembrance.
Rusk said: “What is important is unity, the setting aside of personal rivalries or lesser issues in the interest of maintaining the strength and the unity of the country. Unity would be worth many, many divisions.”
Aside from my own case, since I don’t want to have anyone mistake national interest for self interest, isn’t it about time that some of the fine do-ers among the Americans were permitted to return to Vietnam and lend their skilled help to resolving a critical situation, waiving “personal rivalries and lesser issues”? A Lou Conein liaisoning with a Khanh at this moment would be worth at least one of the “many, many divisions.” There are others, known to you, such as Rufe Phillips and John Vann who have rare rapport with the Vietnamese and whose help has been denied by fellow Americans.
It would be a wonderful and appropriate gift to the nation this Christmas season if you could cause “good-will” among Americans making the decisions about Vietnam and open the way past personal feelings so that some of these priceless working Americans can go to work in Vietnam again, meaningfully.
- Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Vietnam Country File, Vol. XXIV, Memos. Personal. At this time, Lansdale was a Consultant to the White House on Food for Peace.↩
- See footnote 2, Document 463.↩