The Supreme Court heard arguments in the case involving the New York Times and Washington Post publication of a classified Pentagon report. Solicitor General Erwin Griswold argued that freedom of the press is subject to the President's power to protect national security; he said that the publication of four of the 47 volumes of the report could hamper negotiations to end the Vietnam war; New York Times attorney Alexander Bickel argued that the President doesn't have the power to censor newspapers. A decision may be rendered on Monday.The Justice Department has issued a warrant for the arrest of Daniel Ellsberg for illegal possession of the Pentagon Papers. Ellsberg's lawyers requested that Ellsberg be allowed to turn himself in on Monday. The Justice Department rejected that request, and the search for Ellsberg continues.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the Johnson administration didn't realize the importance of the decision to send Marine combat troops to Da Nang in March, 1965. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that the CIA told President Nixon in 1969 that the U.S. could withdraw from South Vietnam and, except for Laos, southeast Asia would remain as it was for another generation. The Baltimore Sun reported that Vice President Hubert Humphrey urged President Johnson in February, 1965, not to escalate the Vietnam war.
A U.S. district court issued a temporary injunction against the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's publication of the Pentagon report.
