Tu e s. Jan. 23, l973 WHITE HOUSE PARIS The big stor y - the story we' v e all been w aiting for is perhaps soon to come. As you know doubt have lreard b y no, - Henr Kissinger was meeth,g in Paris toda y with Hanoi's Le Due Tho; followi,rg which - he quickly boarded a flight back to Washington. While here at ltome - the White House suddenly called a press briefing. Press Secretary Ron Ziegler an,rouncheg tl,at President Nixon will address tl,e nation - at ten tonigl,t Eastern Time. Addh1g that tl,e President i,ate,ads to ret,ort on, quote - "the status of the Vietnam negotiations." Ziegler also saying the Preside,at's address 1uill follow consultations with his cabinet aJtd coJtgressio,ral leaders. All the sig,as clearly t,ointiJtg toward a cease-fire - to take effect - we are told - t,erhaps as early as tomorro w . The nation's longest war - at last drawing to a close. AUSTIN You of course all know by ,iow abo11t the death of Lyndon B. Johnson. His body tonight is lying in state - in the gr ea t ma r b le ha l l of the L B J l i bra r y at A II s tin , Texas , ,uhile tributes continue to pour in from u s and world leaders; first and foremost tltat of Presfde11t Nixon; wlto sent a s"ecial message to Congress today proclaimi,cg Thursday a day of national mourning. The whole story of tlte Johnson years remains to be told - said the President - "and history has yet to make its judgement. Bllt millions of Americans will always remember" he co, tinued - "a bitter day i,r Nineteen-Sixty-Three; whe,a so many of our people do11bted the very future of tltis Republic - when so many were sti,n,aed that an America11 Chief of State coi,ld be assassinated - wlre,r so many abroad were fearful about the future course of America11 democracy - and Lyndon Johnson rose above the doubt and the fear to hold Iris nation on course. AUSTIN - 2 The President adding that "Lyndon Johnson's ift/luence on our times - which often seems so much larger titan life can,iot be stolen from 11s by death. " "Not only tlte tltings lte did"- satd tire President - "b11t also tlte s"irlt witlt wlticll he did them - will be remembered lo,.g after time lteals o•r sorrow at ltis leaving." PRAISE FOLLOW AUSTIN Others f,rais ing the former Pres ldent include ranking me m be rs of b o th fJ o l i tic al par tic.? s ; s om e of tu Ito m - were often his lo11dest critics. Also - Roy WilkiJts of tire N do u bl e A C P ; w h o s a id th at L B J It ad made "t la e gr ea t es t contribution of any 1>resideJtt since Lincoll, in the field of ci il rights." PRAISE FOLLOW A U STIN - 2 President George M e an y of lite A F L - c I o observin g /Ital L B J .,as "a true patriot ; a man who "was a firm b e li ev er in . and protector of freedom and democracy for all men e v ery•here." While U N Secretary I ••••••••• a General KNrl Waldltelm "44. saying tlae former Preside,it had dedicated Ills life a j,ut a11d great society." ~ ~ ~ Vietflam ••''}!' '••• L B J /\•as "to the creation of President Thieu of "the man .,1,0 turfled the tide ifl favor of freedom." PerltaJ,s tl,e most laeartfelt tru,.,te of all - that of Bess Truma,i, .,1,0 lost her o•n lt11sba,id less than a mo,i/h ago. "I am estremely upset" - said Mrs • .,,,. Truman. Adding: "I slaare .,ith /1,e •leole nalion J,rofound grief in the loss of oxe of our great President and my J,ersonal friend." PRESIDENT FOLLOW PRAISE L, tido,i Baines Johnson and Harry s Tr · · . uman in some 1t ays alike. They both sprang from states closely bordering lhe deep south - they were boll, thrttst into the Presidt?ncy 11here both compiled impressive records - only to fall ictim to controversial wars. Indeed, LBJ once saying, , hen pressed: "I don't have the guts of Harry Tr11man - but I do have guts." And he had proved it early and ofte11. The son of a man who lost or sold practically everything he owned d11ring the depression - LyNdon Jollnson worked his way through college; later joinlffg R lclaard K •berg of the King Rancll family - whe• Kleberg successfully ra11 for congress. In Waslti,egto11 serving as Kleberg's legislative assistant. Quickly gai11i11g the favor of FDR - in part, through Sam Rayburn. an old friend of his father. Finally marrying a Texas heiress - lite former Lady Bird Taylor, he was on his way. With ten thousand dollars borrowed from his father- PRESIDENT FOLLOW PRAISE - 2 in-law - lie 1tcce s/ttlly ran for Congress. A11d then - the Sen . ate; winning elections lo that body by a narroru eighty- seven votes - the closest electio,i in Texas history. That .,as in Nineteen Fifty One. Barely six years later - he was elected Senate majority leader; at age forty-six - the youngest in US history. The secret of L BJ's success - was Iris theory tlaat "Politics is the science of the possible;" a theory tlaat was further expressed in Iris favorite Biblical q11otatlo11 - "come let us reaso,e together." His acltieveme11ts ;,. tlae Se11ate a11d later on as President - are almost too 11•merous to mentio11. Then - Viet11am witll L B J a11nounci11g o,a March Thirty-One, Nine teen-Sixty-Eight tllat he would 1101 be a candidate for re - e l e c t ion . w h i c h h e la t e r s fJ o k e of as a "des Pe r a t e " a ttempt to end the war. But it Jailed - North Viet,ea,n simfJly refusing to engage in "substantive" talks. As he left office, L BJ admitting sadly: "Peace has eluded me." EPITAPH FOLLOW RETIREMENT As for an epitaph - the best of all might be found on the black marble fJ lon - before which his body now lies. It's an i,isc1 ' i/Jtion drawn from the former President's own words - stating: "I am a free man, and American, a public ser ant and a member of my party - in tlrat order, always and only. " And below that - a further inscription saying: "TIie great society asks now not llow m11ch - but how good; not o ,r l y h o iv to c re a t e '" e al h - bu t ho"' to us e lt ; not on l y h o w fast we are going - but where we are headed. It proposes as the first test for a nation - the quality of its peot,le." Lyndon Baines Johnson - only sixty four - Bill; soon to return to tlle banks of his beloved Pedernales River - Iris home now for all eter•ity. HOPE As you k,rou, the c,cstom here call for a closing stor y - Preferably something light. ANd so this Next perlrat,s appropriate. During the early war years - Bob Hope paying one of Iris Christmas v isits to Viet,ram. TelliNg tl,e troops: "Tlte Wlrite House is differeNt Now - Lynda Bird and Lucy Bird lrave flown tire coop - aNd tlaere 's Nobody left but Lady Bird a,ad Coello-doodle-do." A fu11ny liNe - well received; b11I Bob Rope later cutliNg it from Ills T V shotD - fearircg t••t L BJ miglrt fi11d it offer,sive. Be ,aeed,a 'I laave botleered tleougltt. Tlte Preside11t leea.,-d about it afld Ire loved it. Be tDtlB soort ret,ealiNg it - to all Iris friends.