635–9

Conversation No. 635-9

Date: December 10, 1971
Time: 11:13 am - 12:00 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with W. Allen Wallis, Frederick Mosteller and George P. Shultz.

Introductions

Doodles

Report

W. Braddock Hickman’s death

The President
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 635-9 (cont.)


-Federal government
-Schedule
-People's Republic of China [PRC]
-India
-Pollution
-Congress

Committee
-Richard M. Scammon

Commission on Federal Statistics
-Commissioner
-Federal statistical system
-World admiration
-Compared to other statistical systems
-Infant mortality rate
-Consumer Price Index [CPI]
-Gross National Product [GNP]
-Statistical agencies
-Bureau of Labor Statistics [BLS]
-Census Bureau
-Non-statistical agency
-Credibility
-Examples
-Interstate Commerce Commission [ICC]

Statistical organizations outside the federal government
-Census Bureau
-Survey Research Center
-University of Michigan
-National Opinion Research Center
-University of Chicago
-Pollsters
-Albert E. Sindlinger
-Louis P. Harris
-George H. Gallup
-Study after 1948 election
 26

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 635-9 (cont.)


Commission on Federal Statistics
-Census Bureau
-Function
-Reorganization of federal agencies
-Federal statistical system
-Statistical Policy Division
-Julius Shiskin
-Improvement
-Enlargement of the Statistical Policy Division Staff
-Surveys
-Controlled field studies
-Welfare programs
-Daniel Patrick Moynihan
-Opinion
-Poverty programs
-Headstart
-Office of Management and Budget [OMB]
-Shiskin
-Pollsters
-Statistical organizations outside the federal government
-Universities
-Census Bureau
-Department of Commerce
-BLS
-Individual agencies
-Central point
-New agencies
-Strengthening the system
-OMB
-Statistical Policy Division Staff
-Factors involved
-Staffing
-Production and use of statistics
-OMB
-Remedial education
-Moynihan
-Instant credibility
-Statistics
-Prove statements made
-Minority groups
-Must know the facts
 27

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 635-9 (cont.)


-Examples
-British-Irish
-Blacks
-Asians
-Value of statistics
-National Academy of Sciences
-Outside review
-Operating agencies
-Shiskin
-Statistical Policy Division
-Census Bureau
-Confidentiality and privacy
-Statistical Advisory Board
-Compared to President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board [PFIAB]
-Civil Rights Commission
-Workability
-PFIAB
-Richard M. Helms
-Henry A. Kissinger
-State Department
-Department of Defense [DOD]
-Public statements
-American public
-Attitude toward statistics gathering
-Census Bureau
-Internal Revenue Service [IRS]
-Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI]
-Credit agencies
-Army surveillance
-Recommendation of guidelines
-Shiskin
-Advisory board
-Confidentiality
-Duties and responsibilities
-Regulation
-Freedom of Information [FOI] Act
-Protections offered
-Census
-Confidentiality
-FOI
-Proposal to improve the laws
 28

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 635-9 (cont.)


-Confidentiality
-IRS
-Improvements
-Census Bureau
-Quinquennial [five-year] census
-Cost benefit study
-Recommendations
-Cost of census
-Stabilization of US population
-Comparison of Brazil population
-Movement of blacks to cities
-Congressional district changes
-Movement of blacks to suburbs
-Freedom of choice
-Schools and housing
-Strom Thurmond
-Comparisons and differences
-Economic statistics
-Accuracy and timeliness
-Research
-Federal Reserve Board
-OMB
-Bank deposits
-Indication of change
-Research
-GNP statistics
-Figures
-Accuracy
-Preliminary
-Adjusted
-Final
-Corrections
-Congress
-Shultz
-Business
-Wall Street Journal
-Pollsters
-Commerce Department
-Raw data
-Statistical Policy Division
-1959
 29

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 635-9 (cont.)


-Study of price statistics of the federal government
-CPI Wholesale Price Index
-George Ziegler [?]
-Study of employment statistics
-Commerce Department
-Elimination of preliminary estimate
-Retail sales
-Estimates
-Public outlook
-Business
-Inflation
-Comparison to politics
-Cab drivers
-Barbers
-Business
-Decision making

Outside commission
-Shultz

[General conversation]

Wallis, et al. left at 12:00 pm.