CONVERSATION WITH WILLIAM WOODRUFF SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE STAFF RE AGENCY PROGRAM IN LAOS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP74B00415R000200020102-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 31, 2006
• Sequence Number: 102
• Publication Date: September 20, 1971
• Content Type: MFR

Approved For Release 20068C - 5R000200020102-1 25X1
OLC 71-0989
20 September 1971
SUBJECT: Conversation with William Woodruff, Senate Appropriations
Committee Staff, Re Agency Program in Laos
1. This afternoon Ed Braswell, Senate Armed Services Committee
staff, said he had not sent a copy of Stennis' letter to the President on the
above subject to Bill Woodruff but planned to do so and he said we were
free to discuss the general problem with Woodruff.
2. Woodruff was familiar with the tenor of the letter, which had
been discussed with him in draft, and when I raised the matter with him
he made the following points:
a. While he appreciates Senator Stennis' problem in
handling the funding of Laos operations in the Agency budget,
he's not convinced we can find a viable alternative.
b. Personally, he feels strongly that the United States
simply can't afford to let Laos go down the drain, but this
is what will happen if the responsibility for running the war
there is turned over to Defense or the Laotians.
c. If the cost of supporting the Laotian irregulars is
to be aased to CIA
as the executive agency, special accounting procedures will
D
have to be worked out,I
CRC, 10/07/2003
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e. The way to really get CIA out of financing the
operations in Laos, or get us out of Laos entirely, if
that's what we want, would be the way it was done in the
case of the RDC--to have the chairmen of our appropria-
tions committees specifically state in their budget letters
that none of these funds are to be used for financing the
irregulars F77 I in Laos.
3. In response to my question Woodruff said he was not reflecting
the views of Senator Ellender but was speaking only for himself and that
he thought Senator Ellender would do whatever the Director wanted him to
do. He added that we didn't know how lucky we were having Ellender
completely in our corner.
4. In concluding Woodruff concurred in my suggestion that as a
next step we might set up a meeting at Headquarters where Woodruff and
Preston c me out and chew the problem over with Colonel White,
Ex. Dir. , John Warner, OGC, and me. I said I'd
pass this on to Colone White.
MAURY-
JOHN M.
~egislative Counsel
Distribution:
Original - Subject
1 - Ex/Dir
I - Chief, FE
1-OGC
1-- OPPB
Chrono
SECRET/SENSITIVE
Approved For Release 2006/08/01 : CIA-RDP74B00415R000200020102-1