May 15, 1957 MEMORANDUM OF CONFERENCE WITH THE PRESIDENT May 15, 1957 Others present: Admiral Strauss General Goodpaster The purpose of the meeting was to obtain the President's consideration of the fissionable material and weapons program of the AEC for fiscal year 1958. Admiral Strauss gave the President a letter setting out a proposed program and, after discussion, the President signed an endorsement approving the program. The discussion included questions by the President as to amounts of material shown for peaceful uses, the nature of military uses of material for other than weapons purposes, and the justification of amounts recommended for these uses, and questions by the President as to whether we may not have reached the stage of "overrefining" in remodeling and reworking old types of weapons which are then retired from the stockpile. On this last point, Admiral Strauss will have a review made, and will report further to the President. The President kept for his own files the original of Admiral Strauss' memorandum, anda carbon copy of the endorsement he signed. He read through the "'key'' giving the numbers and amounts which were left blank in the memorandum, and returned the key to Admiral Strauss. There was then discussion on a few incidental matters, including an atomic expert for the U. S. Embassy in Bonn, the progress of the treaty for the International Atomic Energy Agency, the importance of which the President stressed, and some recent indications of a strained relationship between the Atomic Energy Commission and the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy. Admiral Strauss said he would give attention at once to this latter pryblem. EJ Poeee” “ A. J. Goodpaster Brigadier General, USA™ ROCLASSIFICD EG. 12275, Sec. 3-254 "| Spada flag INR RO WES oe ey Dil cate t/M5L REPOSITORY ExatrbagurAgbiary COLLECTION BOX Ne FOLDEM Ann bAdmnanw Fels ny 1457 / Staff, Nobis i. |