My interview with Mr. MacFarland was extremely interesting. Mr. MacFarland is truly a patriot. He is someone who exhibits intelligence and bravery and I am proud to have had the opportunity to communicate with him.
I hope you find the interview interesting. Please look for his book on Amazon, it’s a definite must read!!
What made you feel compelled to write these volumes at this time?
Well, for one thing, I’m certainly not getting any younger but much more importantly; I think Americans need to understand how their government really works. It’s important that the public be given the facts so that they are motivated to get involved and actively participate.
What are the main themes you hope to get across to the readers?
1. On a personal level, I wanted to express my shock and anger at being betrayed by my own government and my deep disappointment in subsequently realizing that all governments, very much including our own, are truly amoral.
2. I wanted to portray JFK as the courageous and caring person that he really was.
3. I wanted people to understand how strongly Chairman Khrushchev was being urged by some of his top military advisors during the Cuban missile crises to make a devastating nuclear first strike on the United States.
4. I wanted to show what the Vietnamese people thought about the United States military presence in their country and why we should have known from the outset that the war there could never have been won by us.
How was JFK different from other Presidents you worked with?
He was much more open and honest than any other President I worked for. He genuinely cared more for the good of the nation than he did for his own re-election. He was incredibly courageous. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, he steadfastly resisted the advice of his two top official advisors – the Secretaries of State and Defense – (and on at least two occasions that I am personally aware of, the advice of his top unofficial advisor – his brother Bobby, the U.S. Attorney General) to carry out “precision” air attacks on the Soviet missile silos but instead continued his tough negotiating stance with the Chairman of the Soviet Union – Nikita Khrushchev. By doing so, he arrived at a peaceful resolution of a situation that avoided the nuclear war that Khrushchev’s top military advisors were advocating.
Secondly, he was the only President who became a close personal friend and invited me to become a member of his extended family. He was the only President who invited me for extended stays as a guest in his homes in Hyannis Port and Palm Beach and who introduced me to his mother - (who I loved and spent considerable time talking to).
He almost always asked me to attend his meetings with top administration officers. My function was to observe, synthesize and distill the factual, attitudinal and emotional essence of the meeting and to present it to him in private after the meeting ended. He truly valued those analyses.
Subsequent Presidents mostly regarded me in the same way that a surgeon regards a scalpel – an indispensable tool, which must be used in surgical situations, but a tool that is extremely dangerous and must be handled with great care. I accumulated rather inordinate power due to my vast network of contacts and “insider” knowledge of so many administrations. I think some Presidents were actually afraid of me.
What qualities do you look for in choosing someone to be in such a powerful position?
If you are referring to Presidents, honesty, intelligence, transparency, a proven track record as a top administrator, reflective and measured responses to challenges, etc. - but first and foremost - a total willingness to sacrifice his political life for the good of the nation.
Is the President truly powerful or are other forces more powerful?
It is the Congress of the United States that has the power of the purse – and what a power that is! The President has no power to spend any public funds that have not been appropriated to his control by Congress. The Supreme Court also has enormous power as well. Society has been monumentally changed by their decisions which, for example, eliminated segregation, legalized abortion, forced police to read a detainee his/her rights before being questioned (the Miranda decision), and prohibited the government from restricting corporations from making unlimited contributions to political campaigns. In some sense, the Presidency is the weakest of the three supposedly co-equal branches of government. In actuality however, the President can be much more powerful than the other two branches – by far. It depends on the President himself. His Constitutionally given authority to be Commander-in-Chief of the nation’s military forces is a formidable power but he assumes his most potent role when he acts effectively as the Convincer-in-Chief. The President has unparalleled access to the public. He is seen internationally as both the head of government and the head of state. (In England, for example, the King/Queen is the head of State but the Prime Minister is the head of government.) If the President can convince the people that he/she is a true leader whose practical but visionary plans will help the nation grow and prosper, there is almost nothing that can stand in his way. It’s really up to the President.
Is there anything else you want your readers to know?
It always amazes me that JFK was the only U.S. President involved in the Vietnam war to send someone out to sit down with and talk to the Vietnamese people. After Siddhi and I had spent two weeks talking with the village elders in villages all the way from the Delta in the south to nearly the demarcation line between North and South Vietnam, it was crystal clear that the South Vietnamese people wanted no part of a puppet government under the strong influence, if not outright control of, the United States. Most people don't know much about Ho Chi Minh but he was a fascinating figure. As a child he learned classical Chinese writing but also wrote fluently in colloquial Vietnamese. He was educated in the French lycée in Hué. In 1912, working as a cook's helper on a ship, he traveled to the U.S. and stayed for two years living first in Harlem and then in Boston. He also lived in west London at various times from 1913 to 1919. He lived in Paris, Moscow and China as well.
He was an ardent nationalist and dedicated his life to ensure that Vietnam would become a single, united country. He was a brilliant, zealous, charismatic leader. The United States has never seemed to learn that you can't bomb an idea.
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