Friday, June 29, 1962

June 29, 1962

JFK’s day in the White House centered on foreign affairs.

He approved the final draft of a letter to be sent to President Diem in Saigon pledging support for enlarging the South Vietnamese Army from 170,000 to 200,000 men.

He also presided over a secret meeting at the White House with his National Security Council, Senator William Fulbright and Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield to review a hawkish 33 page memorandum prepared by former Secretary of State Dean Acheson on possible strategies to deal with the looming Berlin crisis.