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Remarks Announcing Changes in the Cabinet and White House Staff.

May 16, 1972

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS ON GOVERNOR

WALLACE' S CONDITION

I have an announcement today, but before making the announcement, I would like to refer briefly to the reports I have received in regard to Governor Wallace. I have been keeping in close touch with the hospital through Dr. Lukash, as you know, who is the specialist in this area.1 I talked to him last night around 11:30, and then around 8 o'clock this morning again.

1 Dr. William M. Lukash, Assistant Physician to the President, was head of the Gastroenterology Clinic and Research Branch, Internal Medicine Service, Naval Hospital, National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md.

I have nothing to add to the bulletins that have been publicly made in this respect. I know that all of us certainly wish that Governor Wallace, in this very difficult time, will have not only the very best medical care, but that he can recover from the wounds that he has received. I can assure you the best medical care is being provided.

One point that has been raised is where the Governor would like to go for his recuperation period. At the present time he has told Dr. Tkach, the chief White House doctor, that either he would like to go to Alabama or to possibly Walter Reed here in Washington. I have instructed Dr. Tkach to inform Mrs. Wallace that if he does want to go to Walter Reed that, of course, he would be most welcome there and have all the facilities of the hospital available there, and, of course, the Presidential suite would be made available for him at Walter Reed Hospital.

If the decision is for him to go to Alabama, a decision which he, of course, and his family must make, we will provide an Air Force plane, hospital plane, which will, of course, provide the necessary facilities to transport an individual who is under medical care. That is all I have to report on Governor Wallace's situation as far as the condition is concerned.

One point I should make is that the Secret Service agent [Nicholas J. Zarvos] who was injured, I have learned from Secretary Connally today, and also from talking directly to the head of the Secret Service, as well as the doctor, his condition has substantially improved. The major concern we have is whether there is damage to his larynx, which might affect what is called the voice box.

At the present time, they think there is a better than even chance, the doctors say, that he has not suffered such damage. The wound that he received, the wound also that the officer from the State of Alabama [Capt. Eldred C. Dothard of the Alabama State Police] received, reminds us all that the security men who guard the Presidential candidates and, of course, who guard the President and other officials, and those in law enforcement generally, take very great risks and deserve our support and our sympathy at this time.

With that, ladies and gentlemen, I do have an announcement to make. It involves three people, and I will ask all of them to step up here on this rather narrow platform for the announcement.

We are sorry, we don't have room for the ladies on this occasion, but there will be another occasion when we will have all the ladies on the platform with us.

SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY

Ladies and gentlemen, you will remember the time in this room that I made the announcement with regard to my nomination of Secretary Connally, Secretary of the Treasury. It is hard to realize it was 18 months ago, on December 14. At that time, Secretary Connally had agreed to come to Washington to take this very arduous assignment, arduous for him, particularly, because he was not one who had had that kind of background, although he had enormous capability, as he later demonstrated in handling the position.

But he agreed to take that assignment for one year. When the year ended, we had a discussion. It was December 14, and the time was right in the middle of the very, very. sensitive monetary negotiations that were taking place. Through, shall we say, some persuasion, I was able to get the Secretary to stay on through those negotiations, and after that time I discussed the matter again with him when we were in San Clemente for the meeting with Mr. Sato,2 and he agreed that he would extend his 12 months to 18 months.

2 Eisaku Sato, Prime Minister of Japan, met with the President at the Western White House on January 6 and 7, 1972. See Items 4 and 5.

The 18 months now has been reached. This is now May 16 and Secretary Connally has asked that we send a new nomination for Secretary of the Treasury, which I am prepared to do.

Before doing so, and before presenting the man that I have selected for that position, I would like to say a word with regard to Secretary. Connally, a word now, and I will elaborate later when he finally does leave the position, when his successor is confirmed, because, of course, he will stay on as Secretary during the transition period and until his successor is confirmed.

I know that when he was appointed, there were those who wondered how a man who had had a great background as Secretary of the Navy, in government, a Governor, a lawyer could handle this position. I think even the most skeptical critics agree that perhaps no Secretary of the Treasury, as a matter of fact, no member of the Cabinet, in an IS-month period has contributed more to this country than has Secretary Connally.

Then I look back and think of the new economic policy of August 15--he was the architect of that policy. As Chairman of the Cost of Living Council he has led the fight against inflation, a fight which we are now winning. He has also led the Administration in the direction of our economic policy for expansion of the economy. And when we look at the first quarter results we can see there, too, our policy is proving to be successful.

The activities he has undertaken in the international field have not been as well understood by people in this country, but they are certainly understood abroad. I remember a conversation I had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Barber, of Great Britain, when we met in Bermuda. This was right after the Smithsonian agreement had been reached. That was a pretty rugged session for all concerned. I must say that there are people abroad who may have objections to the Secretary because he stands up so strongly for America, but they respect him. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said to me that without any question, without Secretary, Connally's leadership, his forceful, dynamic, and skilled leadership, there would have been no agreement with regard to the realignment of currencies in the Smithsonian Institute on that occasion.

These are activities of the Secretary that are well known. There are others that are not as well known in which he has been a tower of strength for the President. I refer to his service in the National Security Council. I refer to the fact that whenever I have had a very difficult decision, and I have had one or two in recent weeks that have been perhaps quite difficult, I have found that when the going is the hardest, when the going is the toughest, that Secretary Connally is at his best.

Needless to say, his loss, from a personal standpoint, in terms of his counsel and advice, apart from his official responsibilities as Secretary of the Treasury, will be a very great one for me and for this country and for this Administration. Naturally, we very much regret losing Mrs. Connally, who has been such a bright star in our Cabinet family in the time she has been in Washington.

However, there are some compensations. The Secretary has agreed that after I return from Moscow he will undertake some temporary assignments. One of those will be announced after I return from Moscow. His service in any capacity is something which we most deeply appreciate.

I will only say finally that the Nation is very fortunate to have had his dedicated service over these past 18 months, and I look forward to a continued close association and for his service in any capacities that we may, on a temporary basis, work out in the future with him.

Now, for his successor. The Secretary and I had a long discussion about this several weeks ago. There was only one candidate that we thought really measured up to what was needed at this time as Secretary of the Treasury. He is superbly qualified, having been in the Cabinet, having been the Director of the Office of Budget and Management, an economist, of course, but also one who has shown great skill in management, one who has a keen understanding of the problems of taxation, one who has shown a rare ability to understand the intricacies of international finance and international economic policy.

George Shultz will return to the Cabinet--I say "return" to it in the sense that he now, after having his salary reduced when he was Secretary of Labor and went up to the Office of Management and Budget, now gets back the Cadillac and the salary.

DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT

AND BUDGET

Cap Weinberger, of course, is the natural successor as the Director of the Office of Budget and Management. I had hoped that it meant an increase in salary-it doesn't, not very much. He already has a car, so there really is not much reason for him to take the new position. The office he receives as Director of the Office of Budget and Management, I find, is not nearly as nice and not nearly as commodious as the office that he presently has where he is Director of the Budget. But he is making the sacrifice and is willing to take the position of Director of the OMB.

Neither George Shultz nor Cap Weinberger will, of course, make any statement now or will be open to questions, because they have to be confirmed.3 When I say "have to be confirmed," I hope they are confirmed, and soon, and I believe they will be, sooner than some others that have been nominated. Otherwise, Secretary Connally will have another 6 months. [Laughter]

3 The position of Director of the Office of Management and Budget is appointive and does not require Senate confirmation.

But in any event, while they will leave with me, Secretary Connally, now that he is leaving government, will be able to stay to make a brief statement and to take two or three questions, I understand, before some of you may want to file a bulletin.

Note: The President spoke at 11:38 a.m. in the Briefing Room at the White House. He spoke without referring to notes.

Following the President's remarks, Secretary Connally answered reporters' questions about his resignation. A transcript of the question-and-answer session was released by the White House.

Later, the President went with Secretary Connally and Director Shultz to the Department of the Treasury where he spoke informally to key Department staff members about the personnel changes.

Richard Nixon, Remarks Announcing Changes in the Cabinet and White House Staff. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/254777

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