January 6, 1972

NYS grand jury rept on abuses of Medicaid funds through NYC adm of program cites frauds involving podiatrists

Abitibi Paper Co rolls back $8‐a‐ton newsprint increase to $5.25 a ton in northern US

US Pres Nixon orders Fed Govt to proceed ‘at once’ to develop reusable space shuttle craft; makes decision after meeting with NASA Admr Fletcher; system expected to take 6 yrs to develop; Fletcher hopes 1st manned flight will take place in ‘78 and that 5 shuttle craft will be built; White House estimates designing and building 2 test flight vehicles over 6 yr‐period will cost $5.5‐billion; says there will also be additional ‘contingency’ fund of about $1‐billion because of highly complex tech nature of project; ground facilities for launching, recovery and maintenance will cost about $300‐million and each additional vehicle same amt; decision seen giving new life to space program; Fletcher estimates shuttle program will create 50,000 jobs, about half of them on West Coast; preliminary plans envision DC‐9‐like craft, with over‐all length of 120 ft and wing span of 75 ft; craft will be launched like rocket, fly in orbit like spaceship and land like airplane; will be able to remain in orbit up to 30 days and will carry 2‐man crew; NASA officials estimate each flight will cost $10‐million, reducing cost per lb of putting payload into space by $500 to $600; 3 indus teams, N Amer Rockwell Corp‐Gen Dynamics Corp, McDonnell Douglas Corp and Grumman Aerospace Corp‐Boeing Co, are competing for shuttle contract; fact sheet accompanying Nixon statement says Manned Spacecraft Center will be given over‐all mgt responsibility for program and Marshall Space Flight Center responsibility for design of launching and recovery facilities; renderings of 2 proposed models for shuttle craft; Nixon and Fletcher illus

US Amb to India K B Keating's secret cablegram published by J Anderson complains that Nixon Adm's justification of pro‐Pakistan policy detracted from US credibility and was inconsistent with Keating's knowledge of events; Anderson asserts he is irked by comment by Kissinger disputing accuracy of his columns and releases Defense Dept record of Dec 3, 4, 6 meetings; documents provide unusual look into thinking and actions of Nixon and his advisors on natl security affairs at start of India‐Pakistan crisis; documents do not clash with Adm's publicly stated pro‐Pakistan policy but Keating cable underscores fact that policy was not unanimously recd within Adm; Keating argues for more positive policy towards India in light of refugees India had been forced to take care of; US Consul in Dacca A K Blood's repts that genocide was occurring in area coincide with Keating's views, but consulate's repts were not fully supported by US Amb to Pakistan J S Farland in Islamabad; Keating cable, which was in response to Kissinger Dec 7 background briefing to press defending US policy, repts conversation with Indian Min S Singh, who held India to be reluctant to see relief program started in E Pakistan before pol solution was reached on grounds that such program might serve to bail out Yahya Khan; repts he informed Washington on Nov 12 that war was imminent; record of meetings indicates intelligence information on situation in S Asia was quite thin in early stages; shows CIA Dir Helms often read rival Indian and Pakistan claims without making judgments as to their accuracy; other US moves in crisis revd

Jan 6: US plane escorting B‐52s on raid over Ho Chi Minh Trail in Laos reptdly darts over N Vietnam for a ‘protective reaction’ strike on an AA site, first US attack on North since 5 days of raids there; US command repts attack apparently destroyed the AA site, 10 mi N of Bankarai Pass; repts N Vietnamese jets patrol N Vietnam‐Laos border area, but that none has challenged US planes in area; map