ROSTOW DENIES REPORT ON SECURITY CLEARANCE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00149R000600040006-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: November 11, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 15, 1998
• Sequence Number: 6
• Publication Date: October 14, 1967
• Content Type: NSPR

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ie l i 1987.
-Approved For Re~'ease .fA-RDP75-
oL President Johnson, was, thre
times denied security clearanc
RS$T'senhower admin
istration reportedly is containe
in a brief filed in a Civil Servic
Rostow denied it.
"From 1951 onward," Rosto
told'a reporter, "I had continu
ous security clearance from var
ious agencies of the federal gov
ernment."
In 1951, Harry S. Truman wa
ternational Studies, , a private
agency.
The brief in question was filed
last month by attorney Roger
in against dismissal as the
State Department's chief secur-
ity evaluations officer. The step
was part of proceedings at a
closed hearing being held by
the department.
The brief has not been made
public, and Robb declined to
discuss it.
However, a source who has
seen it said that it does make
the statement with respect to
Rostow and the Eisenhower
administration.
This informant, who requested
anonymity, said it was his
understanding that in fact there
was no question of security
involved in the Eisenhower
administration's rejection of
Rostow for certain assignments
-that the reason simply was
that Rostow did not meet the
particular requirements.
Transferred to State
In general, the brief is said I
to contend that a "get-Otepka
drive" came after Otepka's re-
fusal to clear Rostow without a I
field investigation at the time
resident Kennedy's adminis-
ration was taking office.
Rostow, then a professor of
conomics at Massachusetts In-
titute of Technology, was
rought into the government by
Kennedy. His first post was as
cputy special assistant, No. 2
o McGeorge Bundy as White
.-louse foreign affairs adviser.
Sanitized - App
transferred to the State Depart-
ment as counselor and chair-
man of the Policy Planning
Council. He returned to the
White house when Bundy left
in 1966 and is now the top White
House foreign affairs adviser.
The brief.is understood to cite.
testimony Otepka gave at a;
closed hearing in June before
Edward A. Dragon, the hearing
officer for his appeal. The ac-
count as outlined was:
Otepka testified that in De-
cember 1960-the month before
President Kennedy took office
-he was called into a meeting
with Dean Rusk, then secretary
of state-designate in the new ad-
ministration, and Robert F.
to be attorney general.
He quoted Rusk and Kennedy
as saying Rostow would be ap-
pointed to a State Department
post and as asking that Rostow
be given an emergency clear-
ance without the usual field in-
vestigation.
Tells of CIA Data
CPYRGHT
Otepka said he also was asked
how he would apply the security
rules in the cases of presidential
appointees and in the case of
Rostow in particular.
The brief quoted Otepka as
having replied that in principle
he was against emergency
clearance authority and that, in
particular, he knew of certain
Central Intelligence Agency and
Air Force security=cuments
in Rostow's file which compelled
him to insist on a full field in-
vestigation.
The brief goes on to assert
that Rostow was rejected for Fred Mankiewicz,. press see-
security clearance in 1955 in retary to Kennedy, said "the
a decision by Herbert Hoover senator does not recall" such a
Jr., then undersecretary of ..conversation with Otepka , and_
state in the Eisenhower adtnin- 'Rusk. Robert J. McCloskey, State
istration, od Roderick O' rick O'CConnor, twice then later ad- by . '?Department press officer, said
R
ministrator of the State De- after. consulting with Rusk that
partment's Bureau of Security. ? "the secretary does not expect.
Requests were made for com-. 'to comment on any matter in-
ment from Rusk and Sen.' Ken- volving Mr. Otepka while his
nedy, D-N.Y., on Otepka's story case is pending in, the depart
t
.
f the December 1960 meeting. men
FOIAb3b
ved For Release : C.IA-RDP75-00149R000600040006-9