White House Diaries

Thursday, December 11, 1986

View the President's Schedule

At 9:30 this A.M. down to the Situation Rm. for a meeting re the request of the Dutch for mil. transport of about 700 of their Marines to Suriname to take over the govt. of the Brutal Dictator who is endangering & taking the lives of the people there including about 6,000 Dutch citizens. Cap W. & Admiral Crowe were hesitant about giving an OK to Geo. S. who is in Europe meeting with the Dutch N.A.T.O. rep’s. I felt there was no way we could just say no. We agreed there are very real problems in simply saying yes without knowing the tactical problems of a mil. operation. Do we just fly them in & land on the airstrip in Suriname which might be surrounded with hostile military? Well result is a mil. team of ours is on it’s way to Holland to meet with their top brass.

Lunch with the V.P. then some desk time & finally a photo with Bill Wall’s staff. Personnel time with Bob Tuttle. Admin. time—some departing S.S. agents, a photo with Frank Fahrenkopf for the Nat. Repub. bulletin. And the annual photo with the 7 new officers of the worlds largest youth org. the Future Farmers of America.

Then a budget review meeting—Ed Meese presenting arguments why Dept. of Justice cannot take the cuts recommended by O.M.B. He made some good points & I’m sure we can work out a compromise.

Then it was time to light (by remote control) the Nat. Xmas tree down on the Ellipse. Tonite again—some 500 hands to be shaken—the other half of the press corps. We did it in record time & finished by 9 P.M.