Reagan Family Planning Quiet Thanksgiving

It should be a quiet Thanksgiving for the Reagans this year as they enjoy a traditional holiday dinner at their mountaintop ranch north of here.

If top officials have their way, the most excitement will occur when a local aviation company, with special permission from the Secret Service, flies overhead, weather permitting, with a banner that reads: “Happy Thanksgiving Ron and Nancy.”

Most top White House aides did not accompany the President on this trip, their way of calling time-out between the Geneva summit and the crowded agenda of domestic issues that await Reagan’s return to Washington.

Tax Decision Due

Topping the list is a tax revision measure passed by the Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee. Aides said Reagan will decide early next week whether to endorse it. He is opposed to many of its provisions, but Treasury Department officials are urging him to support it if he wants to keep his dream of major tax overhaul alive.

They argue that the bill can be adjusted more to Reagan’s liking if it is allowed to reach the Republican-controlled Senate.

“There is an enormous amount of pressure being brought by both sides, those who want the process to go forward and those who want it to stop,” an Administration official said. “If I was a betting person, I would probably bet on it going forward, but it’s not a given.”

There was speculation that Reagan might use a fund-raising appearance on behalf of Sen. Slade Gorton (R-Wash.) in Seattle Monday to align himself with the Democratic version of tax reform, but top officials called that extremely unlikely.

More Time Needed

“Republican senators are not jumping up and down to deal with tax reform,” one said. Another noted that the Treasury Department has not finished studies of the bill’s impact on economic growth and that Reagan will need time to digest those after he returns to Washington Monday night.

Joining Reagan at the ranch for Thanksgiving will be his brother, Neil, and Neil’s wife, Bess. Three of the four Reagan children also will be present.