September 17, 1970

Nixon delivers annual A Landon Lecture to 15,000 faculty members and students; illus; is well recd by most, despite some hecklers

new IRC negotiator Boissier leaves Geneva for Amman in attempt to gain release of hostages in action seen victory for W Ger and GB, who want to revive talks, Popular Front reptdly has agreed to resume talks; GB, at meeting of 5 countries, Berne, reptdly backed W Ger demand that immediate reply be sent to new demands of guerrillas; countries are seen asking Boissier to ask guerrillas for list of prisoners held by Israel; US and Switzerland continue to insist that all hostages be released as part of over-all settlement; W Ger initially said it would begin separate talks with guerrillas unless IRC achieved over-all settlement promptly but IRC renewal of talks reptdly satisfied W Ger; Israel reptdly is ready to release Jalul and Belaziz; passengers and crew of TWA plane illus in desert

Controller Beame, halting payment on $250,000 housing consultant contract with McKinsey & Co, says that he is stopping payment on all new management consultant contracts because Lindsay adm continues to award these contracts without Estimate Bd approval; details

Woodcock tours picket lines in Detroit; he, Bluestone and other union officials to tour nation to meet local leaders and strikers; will seek to get bargaining moving on plant-level disputes; Bramblett says co will send officials to key plants to help in local talks; notes local issues can be more time-consuming than conclusion of natl pact; effects of strike continue to spread; GM lays off 8,800 of 74,000 workers union exempted from strike; says they are not needed

Nixon Adm, concerned with situation, prepares contingency plans; Washington Special Action Group, composed of Joint Cs/S chmn Moorer, Deputy Sec Packard, Pres adviser Kissinger and Asst Sec Sisco, meets; reptdly discusses contingencies ranging from evacuation of US citizens to question of intervention to back Hussein; intervention reptdly is not likely because it could be politically embarrassing for Hussein and jeopardize US hostages held by guerrillas; '58 intervention by US in Lebanon and GB in Jordan recalled; US reptdly does not foresee need to provide Jordan with additional mil aid; theories regarding Hussein's next moves discussed; US views danger in dispersion of guerrillas throughout urban centers, which could make campaign to suppress them bloody and prolonged; continues to view survival of Hussein regime vital to any hopes for long-term settlement; views alternative as more chaos