June 23, 1964
8:50 p.m.
To Robert Goodman
Johnson continued his phone calling for another two hours, speaking to members of Congress, to Lee White, Allen Dulles, and, finally, to Secretary of State Dean Rusk (about the resignation of Henry Cabot Lodge as ambassador to South Vietnam).
Brief, unclear office conversation precedes the call.
President Johnson: . . . threw their hats at each other.
Robert Kennedy: God . . . When did I come on? [Unclear.]
President Johnson: [Unclear] came on after [unclear].
Yolanda Boozer then announces Robert Goodman.
Robert Goodman: Hello, Mr. President.
President Johnson: The FBI got in the car.
Goodman: Yes.
President Johnson: And think that there’s reasons to believe that no people were in the car because they’ve been unable to find any evidence of that, and there are indications that there were tracks leading from the car back to the highway.
Goodman: That’s wonderful news, Mr. . . .
President Johnson: And we don’t know where we’ll go from there, but I thought you should have that information as soon as we had it.
Goodman: [emotionally] Thank you so much.
President Johnson: We’ve talked to the governor, and he’s agreed to make available all the facilities at his command to search that entire area, and he and the FBI together are working up a plan to go through the area and see if they can find any further information and give it to us. So we’re making arrangements to send additional people in tonight and tomorrow.
Goodman: [emotionally] Mr. President, I can’t express my words to thank you for what you’re doing: for these boys and for us. Thank you so much.
President Johnson: Thank you, sir.
Goodman: [emotionally] Thank you.
President Johnson: Good-bye.
