FIRST PRESIDENT WITH "EXTRA GLANDS"
The belief in Johnson's entourage that he may turn out to be a "great president," perhaps "one of the greatest," has led those so inclined to preserve for posterity careful notes about his personality. Much of this is already appearing in print so that the present generation can enjoy the singular opportunity of not only living at the same time as "LBJ" but of sharing with the future the. secret impressions of those in best position to know what he is really like.
A good example is the report by Michael Davie written for the London Observer. From the installment in the July 18 issue, the following items will undoubtedly fascinate students of history for generations to come:
"He is one of the most extraordinary human beings ever to become President of the United States....To meet him is to be awed and exciteder..
"He dominates the nation. He could dismiss the most celebrated of his subordinates tomorrow -- Secretary McNamara, Secretary Rusk, Special Assistant Bundy -- and scarcely a Congressman would squeak, Every day that he is in office a new layer is revealed of his mysterious and formidable character. No, journalistic formula can contain him. Washington gossip is obsessed by him, and as his
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troubles over Vietnam develop, so the obsession develops, too, . No one even now is sure what kind of animal they are dealing with,. ‘but among. the: anxieties a Peeling persists that he may yet be a ereat President.
"Inside the White House, the atmosphere at first seems more normal than it does outside....
"Before long, however, the peculiarities of the man in the centre begin to ripple outwards.
"There is the uncouthness, along with the dazzling ability, ‘revealed in the minor personal traits, He picks his nose. He is liable, when: slumped down in a chair, to reach casually and unashamedly into his groin to ease his pants. His phrasing is of a kind not usually associated with the Presidency of the United States.
"To a reporter who began an interview with a trivial question, he said, 'Why do you come and ask me, the leader of the Western world, a chickenshit question like that?' When the handsome and dignified Italian Secretary of Nato, Signor Manlio Brosio, came on a visit to the Strategic Air Command in Nebraska, the President invited the accompanying reporters in the plane to come and talk with Mr Brosio, As they settled down to question the distinguished guest, the President stood up. '‘'Itm going to have a piss,! he explained, Soe -
"Then there are the stories of how he treats his subordinates. ‘He builds up this tremendous energy inside himself,' a mem= -ber of the White House staff explained, 'and something has to go,! Whoever is nearest, male or female, gets the blast. ‘'Hetll bawl the ass off anyone ~- I mean, anyone.!
"Some staff members comfort themselves with the notion that a Presidential lashing proves he trusts them. At least one White House man makes it a rule to keep out of the President's peripheral vision. Another said: 'You know, I believe the President would be. just as pleased if all of us were known ey numbers.
"Tt is typical of Johnson that no one is quite sure whether the rages are uncontrolled or not. Some people claim to have seen him become enraged, then break off to have a calm telephone call, and then resume the bawling-out. They compare him with a man who has to write furious letters for the waste-basket....
; "Connected with Johnson's feelings of inferiority in the inbred society of Washington is his unconcealed desire to be loved, He.wants everyone to vote for him all the time, and he is abnormally sensitive to criticism....
"His pride is as open as a wound, One of his personal henehmen, Jack Valenti, the other day delivered a speech referring to the
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President as 'a cultivated man, ' giving examples of his 'extraordinarily sophisticated diplomacy,'! and saying that 'the President, thank the good Lord, has extra glands.! Washington writhed in embarrassment, but the President thought the tone was about right, "
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