(Testimony of Winston G. , Accompanied By Fred B. Smith, Lawson)
Mr. Lawson.
speculation before that perhaps the motorcade would go here and perhaps the motorcade would go there, but I believe that the one that was finally used was put in the paper on Tuesday morning, the 19th from my recollection. Let me make sure that Tuesday is the 19th.
Mr. Stern.
It is the 19th. Had there been a meeting on the 18th at which this was considered?
Mr. Lawson.
Yes, sir; there was a meeting late in the afternoon of the 18th, in a private club in Dallas that I arrived at late. The meeting was called primarily as I understand it because of the various political groups that wanted certain things, and what Washington wanted, and there were various problems to work out as to who got tickets, who sat at the head table, who rode in what cars and so forth. And the local host committee had designated a certain individual to be their representative there, and then these other groups also had people represented. Mr. Puterbaugh, for example, the liaison man that went with me from Washington, was there. And I had just come from going over the route with the police earlier that afternoon, and I told them as a point of information that this was the route as we had it now, unless it was changed later.
Representative Ford.
The following morning----
Mr. Lawson.
The following morning.
Representative Ford.
It was announced in the newspapers?
Mr. Lawson.
Yes, sir.
Mr. Dulles.
It was Tuesday morning, isn't it the 19th.
Mr. Lawson.
Yes, sir; Tuesday morning.
Mr. Stern.
Is this a normal amount of advance publicity for this kind of motorcade, regarding the actual route?
Mr. Lawson.
Well, it depends on how much notice you have that the President is going there. It was announced this morning that he is taking a trip tomorrow on Appalachian poverty, so we sent agents out this morning. Naturally even if they wanted to publicize the motorcade route they wouldn't be able to do so in this instance. But on other occasions it had been announced sooner than that or about as soon in various areas; yes, sir.
Mr. Stern.
Did you set up the areas at which the press would be located at Love Field and at the Trade Mart?
Mr. Lawson.
Yes, sir; I did, with the approval of Mr. Hawkes from the White House staff, when he made a trip a little bit later. Time was of the essence. Sometimes we do it all when they do not send out someone to represent the press office from the White House, and sometimes they do it. In this case, because telephone lines, power lines, various engineering data would have to be disseminated and fixed up, we had to know where the press areas were going to be before Mr. Hawkes was able to come.
So I told them that I would set it up in the belief that I knew what they usually wanted from the White House press office, but that he would have the power to overrule me, and I requested assistance of a local TV technician as to the angles and what not that the cameramen would like.
Mr. Dulles.
May I ask one question there. Do you know whether any consideration is now being given to withhold the announcement of the actual route to be followed by the Presidential party until say the morning that the trip is actually taken?
Mr. Lawson.
Does this go into the realm of what we were talking about before as to what we are going to do in the future?
Mr. Smith.
It might...Do you suppose, sir, that that is one of the things that----
Mr. Dulles.
One has to do it in time so that those who want it could get it, but it seems to me that say if the party was going to move here about noon, now if the morning papers gave that that would give people plenty of time to get to the positions they wanted, but wouldn't give a prospective assassin very much time to prepare.
Mr. Smith.
Sir, I don't know what the answer to that question is, but the question arises as to whether this isn't in that area where, you know, we are sort of deferring because of the sensitive nature of it. I don't really know what
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