Historic Whispers: An Uproar If U.S. Troops Go to the Middle East

While the flick Frost/Nixon didn't garner any of the five Oscars it was up for during Sunday's 81st Academy Awards presentation, we'll give President Nixon attention in this week's Historic Whispers. Forty years ago Nixon, like President Obama, was figuring out how to handle the reins of the presidency. The Whispers from that time focused on Nixon's inauguration and his first few weeks in the Oval Office:

• With only a few days until inauguration, Richard Nixon and his Cabinet have been working quietly but diligently to get acquainted with the problems they will face. The Nixon team is being cautious in expressing views to avoid giving hostile columnists and commentators a handle for attack. (Jan. 13, 1969)

• Key Senators are making it clear both to Lyndon Johnson and to Richard Nixon that an uproar will erupt in the U.S. Senate if American troops are sent into any developing war situations in the Middle East. (Jan. 13, 1969)

• The Nixon Cabinet is described by a Soviet official as "not ideological" and offering a chance to start with a clean slate on Soviet-U.S. relations. Henry Kissinger, Nixon adviser on foreign policy, is described by this official as a "sophisticated anti-Communist." William Rogers, who becomes the new Secretary of State, is a mystery to the Russians so far as his policy views go. (Jan. 13, 1969)

• U.S. only now is beginning to supply the armed forces of South Vietnam with modern weapons other than M-16 rifles. As military forces of South Vietnam are armed and trained, U.S. gradually is to be in a position to start pulling out a portion of its own troops. (Jan. 20 , 1969)

• Incoming Republicans, house-hunting, are being shunted away from some once-prime residential areas of the nation's capital owing to the reported prevalence of robbers who infest the city. (Jan. 27, 1969)

• Commented a Nixon aide on criticisms by the outgoing officials that the new Administration is slow to fill many major offices: "Mr. Nixon is in no great hurry to work a big change. Unlike John Kennedy or Lyndon Johnson, the new President does not feel that he has to launch exciting new programs designed to remake the country overnight." (Jan. 27, 1969)

• A senior diplomat close to Mr. Nixon and experienced in dealing with the Chinese Communists is curious but not optimistic about talks to be resumed with the Chinese. The U.S. attitude still is that the Communists should make the first move to unfreeze relations with U.S. (Jan. 27, 1969)

• Texas Republicans are getting set now to go all out for the seat of Senator Ralph Yarborough in the 1970 election. George Bush, Houston Congressman who was defeated by Mr. Yarborough in 1964, is expected to be in the race for that seat. (Jan. 27, 1969)

• A comment from a newsman who covers the White House: "There is a kind of cold curiosity about the new President. Nobody criticizes him too much, nobody particularly warms to him, nobody has a strong dislike. The atmosphere is somewhat like that of a den of animals getting ready to pounce." (Feb . 3, 1969)

• President Nixon, unlike President Johnson who was an avid follower of news and comments, is tending to insulate himself from details of news and will depend on a daily summary, prepared by his aides, in the style of former President Eisenhower. Mr. Nixon may be less sensitive to the type of criticism that bothered Mr. Johnson. (Feb . 3, 1969)

• President Nixon, by having an office of his own in the Executive Office Building across the street from the White House, is said to have three purposes: (1) to upgrade White House staff members who have to work there; (2) to start weaning newspapermen from the White House proper to larger quarters in the Executive Building in the vicinity of staff aides, and (3) to have a hideaway where he can hold off-the-record meetings with visitors and work occasionally in seclusion. (Feb . 3, 1969)

• President Nixon is reported to have commented that Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts at this time "is running, not jogging," for the Presidency in 1972. (Feb. 10, 1969)