– News Of The World – NBC Radio – September 25, 1967 – Gordon Skene Sound Collection –
September 25, 1967 – A normal day by all accounts. We had a GOP majority Congress working on trimming budgets and increasing irritation that the Vietnam War was getting us further and further down the rabbit hole with no end in sight. 52 members of the house (mostly Republicans) demanded Congress take a closer look at the Vietnam War and urging them to take more of an initiative in asserting its own powers concerning declarations of war and the money used to fight war. With the recent elections held in South Vietnam, many felt this return to a stable, popularly elected government in Saigon might possibly lead the North to see the futility of continuing the fight. General Westmoreland made his most optimistic statement on the war, when he said, in Saigon “the picture of ultimate military success against the North may now be viewed with increasing clarity”.
Meanwhile, the issue of Red China joining the United Nations sprang up again when a panel of 26 American businessmen proposed that the United States drop opposition to Red China in the United Nations. The group however did not explain how accepting Red China while keeping Taiwan in the UN would happen, since Peking made it clear Red China would not participate with Taiwan in the same room.
And the budget was taking over life on Capitol Hill, with House Republicans planning a “squeeze play” to try and force the Administration to substantially reduce Federal Spending. They served notice they were trying to attach a rider to an appropriations bill which would impose a ceiling on the amount of money the Administration can spend. It was the latest in a struggle over the proposed tax increase and concerns over “pork barrel” spending.
Some things never change – and that was just a sample of what happened, this September 25, 1967 as broadcast by NBC’s News Of The World.
