182. Memorandum From the Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (Sisco) to Secretary of State Rusk1
SUBJECT
- Your luncheon Meeting with the President on September 13, 19662
Chinese Representation—I assume you will wish to talk to the President on why you have concluded we should not make a change in our [Page 388] position on Chinese Representation in present circumstances, leaving open the possibility of a shift if the vote count weakens when we come closer to the time this matter is considered by the Assembly. My own judgment is that we should seek to have the matter considered after, and not before, the elections in this country. In doing so, you will no doubt want to inform the President that Ambassador Goldberg strongly believes we should shift to a two-China policy, and that we announce this change in the General Debate speech. You might indicate to the President that you will be talking to Ambassador Goldberg later in the week regarding this matter.
- Source: Department of State, Central Files, UN 6 CHICOM. Secret; Exdis. A handwritten notation on the source text indicates that Bundy concurred.↩
- Rusk, McNamara, Rostow, and Moyers met with the President for their regular Tuesday luncheon meeting at 2:15 p.m. on September 13. McNamara, Rostow, and Moyers left at 3:45 p.m., Rusk at 4:01 p.m. A note in the President’s Daily Diary states that according to Rostow, the agenda for the meeting was “of unusual importance—as well as rather long.” (Johnson Library) No record of the discussion has been found.↩