Easy NixonAbout

Conversation: 070-001

Prev:  069-002 Next: 070-002

Start Date: 17-Aug-1971 10:39 AM

End Date: 17-Aug-1971 12:54 PM

Participants:

Nixon, Richard M. (President)Agnew, Spiro T. (Vice President)Mansfield, Michael J. ("Mike")Griffin, Robert P.Young, Milton R.Ellender, Allen J.Sparkman, John J.Tower, John G.Bennett, Wallace F.Long, Russell B.Ford, Gerald R.Arends, Leslie C.Widnall, William B.Mills, Wilbur D.Byrnes, John W.Connally, John B.Walker, Charls E.McCracken, Paul W.Burns, Arthur F.Shultz, George P.Ehrlichman, John D.Ziegler, Ronald L.Peterson, Peter G.Safire, William L.BeLieu, Kenneth E.Nixon, Richard M. (President)Agnew, Spiro T. (Vice President)Mansfield, Michael J. ("Mike")Griffin, Robert P.Young, Milton R.Ellender, Allen J.Sparkman, John J.Tower, John G.Bennett, Wallace F.Long, Russell B.Ford, Gerald R.Arends, Leslie C.Widnall, William B.Mills, Wilbur D.Byrnes, John W.Connally, John B.Walker, Charls E.McCracken, Paul W.Burns, Arthur F.Shultz, George P.Ehrlichman, John D.Ziegler, Ronald L.Peterson, Peter G.Safire, William L.BeLieu, Kenneth E.

Recording Device: Cabinet Room

070a.mp3

070b.mp3

NARA Description:

On August 17, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon, Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, and bipartisan Congressional leaders, including Michael J. ("Mike") Mansfield, Robert P. Griffin, Milton R. Young, Allen J. Ellender, John J. Sparkman, John G. Tower, Wallace F. Bennett, Russell B. Long, Gerald R. Ford, Leslie C. Arends, William B. Widnall, Wilbur D. Mills, John W. Byrnes, John B. Connally, Charls E. Walker, Paul W. McCracken, Arthur F. Burns, George P. Shultz, John D. Ehrlichman, Ronald L. Ziegler, Peter G. Peterson, William L. Safire, and Kenneth E. BeLieu, met in the Cabinet Room of the White House from 10:39 am to 12:54 pm. The Cabinet Room taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 070-001 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid:

Conversation No. 70-1

Date: August 17, 1971
Time: 10:39 am - 12:54 pm
Location: Cabinet Room

The President met with Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, Michael J. (“Mike”) Mansfield, Robert
P. Griffin, Milton R. Young, Allen J. Ellender, John J. Sparkman, John G. Tower, Wallace F.
Bennett, Russell B. Long, Gerald R. Ford, Leslie C. Arends, William B. Widnall, Wilbur D.
Mills, John W. Byrnes, John B. Connally, Charls E. Walker, Paul W. McCracken, Arthur F.
Burns, George P. Shultz, John D. Ehrlichman, Ronald L. Ziegler, Peter G. Peterson, William L.
Safire, and Kenneth E. BeLieu; members of the press were present at the beginning of the
meeting

     [General conversation/Unintelligible]

     Attendees’ schedule

     National economy
          -President’s program
                -Preparation
                     -Wage-price freeze
                     -Investment tax credit
                           -International monetary situation
                                 -Banking and currency
                           -Treasury Department
                           -Council of Economic Advisors
                           -Shultz
                           -Burns
                     -Import surcharge
                     -Floating of the dollar
                     -Exchange rates
                     -Possible impact on inflation
                     -US trade policy
                           -Exchange rates
                           -Agricultural exports
                           -Productivity
                                 -Labor
                                 -Industry
                           -Investment tax credit
                           -Expenditures cuts
                           -Automobile excise tax
                                       2

                    NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

                               Tape Subject Log
                                 (rev. 10/08)



                       -Competitiveness
                 -Federal budget
                 -Revenue sharing
                 -Welfare reform
                 -Foreign economic aid cuts
                 -Federal payroll cuts
           -President’s authority
                 -Import surcharge
                       -General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade [GATT]
                 -Wage-price freeze
                 -Investment tax credit
                 -Congress’s role
           -Development
                 -Secretary of Treasury
                 -Burns, McCracken, Shultz
                 -Congress’s role
                       -Importance of cooperation
                       -Changes in tax laws
     -Automobile industry
           -Importance
                 -Jobs
           -President’s program
                 -Repeal of excise tax
           -McCracken’s conversations
           -Connally’s conversation with James M. Roche, August 16, 1971
                 -Automobile prices
           -Effect of President’s program
                 -George W. Romney’s comment, August 16, 1971
     -President’s program
           -Personal income tax exemptions
                 -Mills
           -Investment tax credit
                 -Long
           -Purpose
           -Machine tools

National defense
                                               3

                           NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

                                      Tape Subject Log
                                        (rev. 10/08)



******************************************************************************

     Navy

[To listen to the segment (36s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-551.]

******************************************************************************


     National economy
          -Steel
          -Automobiles
          -Efficiency in industry
                -Investment tax credit
          -President’s program
                -Political credit
                      -Mills and Long
                -Investment tax credit
                -Wage-price freeze
                -Implementation
                      -Congress
                -Investment tax credit
                      -Four-year lien time
          -Previous tax reform
                -Real estate industry
          -Interest rates
          -President’s program
                -Tax law changes
                      -Excise, investment and personal income taxes
                      -Possible Congressional action
          -Interest rates
                -Effect of President’s program
                      -Real estate
                      -Automobile
                -Connally’s forthcoming letter to American Bankers’ Association
          -Automobile excise tax
                -Highway Trust Fund
          -President’s program
                -Implementation
                      -Trade Expansion Act of 1962
                      -Congress’s role
                -Import surtax
                                    4

                NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

                           Tape Subject Log
                             (rev. 10/08)



            -Possible foreign retaliation
-US agricultural exports
-President’s program
      -Import surtax
            -Possible foreign retaliation
            -GATT
            -Application
-US trade policy
      -Non-duty items
      -Quotas
            -GATT
            -Possible foreign retaliation
-President’s program
      -Mexico, Canada
            -Cattle
-President’s program
      -Wage-price freeze
            -Interest rates
            -Profits
            -Bonuses of industry
                  -Mansfield
            -Dividends
            -Profit margins
            -Interest rates
                  -Bankers and corporations
                  -Mortgages
                  -Federal Reserve Board
-Interest rates
      -Inflation
      -Fluctuations
      -Competitive market
      -Banking industry
            -Prime rate
      -Consumer loans
      -Markets
      -Possible tax
      -President’s program
      -Consumer lending legislation
            -Effect
-President’s program
      -Military pay increase
            -Connally’s press conference
                                               5

                           NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

                                      Tape Subject Log
                                        (rev. 10/08)



                -Public works
                     -Waterways
                           -Tulsa, Oklahoma
                     -Railroads
                           -Financial status
                     -Pending legislation
                           -September, 1971
                -Goals
                     -Fight inflation
                     -Budget deficits
                -Federal budget
                     -Pending legislation
                           -Revenue sharing and welfare reform
                     -Federal pay
                     -Federal employment
                           -Attrition
                     -Office of Economic Opportunity [OEO]
                     -Sewer and water grants
                     -Public housing
                           -Impoundment
                                 -Office of Federal Housing
                     -Reductions in tax revenues
                           -Personal income tax reduction
                     -National defense
                     -Fiscal year [FY] 1972 project commitments
                     -Inflation
                     -Appropriations in excess of requests
                           -Congressional action
           -Goals
                -Unemployment
                     -Possible service jobs


******************************************************************************

     Canada

[To listen to the segment (42s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-551.]

******************************************************************************
                                   6

               NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

                          Tape Subject Log
                            (rev. 10/08)



-Administration
      -Office of Emergency Preparedness [OEP] information centers
            -Staffing
            -McCracken’s role
      -Wage-price freeze
            -School tuition
                  -Effect
            -Hospitals
            -Unknown man in Little Rock, Arkansas
            -Pay raises
            -Rents
            -No exceptions
            -Administration
                  -Cost of Living Council [COLC]
            -Success of previous programs
                  -World War II and Korean War
            -Effective date
            -Camp David meetings
      -Import surcharge
            -Application
            -Products covered
      -Administration
            -Council of Economic Advisors [CEA]
            -OEP
            -McCracken, Herbert Stein
            -Connally’s forthcoming meeting, August 18, 1971
            -Bennett
      -Import surcharge
            -Procedures
                  -Duty
      -Effect on automobile industry
            -Jobs
            -Excise tax
            -Surcharge
            -Equipment charge
            -Consumers
            -Employment
            -Stockholders
      -Goals
            -Industrial competition
-Government revenues
-President’s program
                                               7

                           NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

                                      Tape Subject Log
                                        (rev. 10/08)



                -Effect
                      -Automobile industry
                            -Freeze price of new car models
                            -Mills’s conversation with reporter, August 16, 1971
                            -Roche
                            -Excise tax
                -Import surcharge
                      -Applicability
                -Automobile excise tax
                -Reaction
                -Burns’ comments
                      -International monetary system
                -Paul A. Volcker’s and James Dewey Daane’s trip to Europe
                -Goals
                -Import surcharge


******************************************************************************

     Japan

[To listen to the segment (10s) declassified on 02/28/2002, please refer to RC# E-551.]

******************************************************************************


                -Bipartisanship
                      -Congressional action
                -Development
                -Political credit
                      -Arthur H. Vandenberg’s cooperation with Harry S Truman
                            -Marshall Plan
                            -Franklin D. Roosevelt administration
                -Necessity for Congressional cooperation
                      -Long
                      -Psychology
                      -Appropriations
           -Federal expenditures
                -Government projects
                -Timing and effect
                -Emergency Public Service Act
                -Budget cuts
                                  8

               NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

                          Tape Subject Log
                            (rev. 10/08)



-President’s program
      -Goals
      -Revenue loss
           -Offsets
      -Budget cuts
           -Import surcharge
           -FY 1972 budget
           -FY 1971 budget
           -Expenditures
           -Congressional action
                 -Revenue sharing
           -Impoundment
                 -Office of Management and Budget [OMB]
                 -Highway Trust Fund
                 -Public works
                 -Contracts
-Federal budget
      -Effect on Louisiana
      -Public works
           -Ellender’s efforts
-President’s program
      -Congressmen’s views
      -Need for congressional action
      -Democrats’ previous views
           -Partisan battle
           -Long
      -Possible change in minimum standard deduction
           -Tax reform bill
      -Possible congressional action
      -Tax reduction
      -Timing
           -Voting on bills
      -Procedures
           -Witnesses
      -Timing
      -Tax bill
           -Investment tax credit
           -Personal exemption increase
      -Procedures
-Revenue sharing
-Welfare reform
      -Department of Health, Education, and Welfare [HEW]
                                                 9

                            NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

                                         Tape Subject Log
                                           (rev. 10/08)



           -Revenue sharing
                 -House Resolution [HR] 1
           -Federal budget
                 -Status of Congressional appropriations bills
                 -George H. Mahon
           -President’s program
                 -Revenue sharing
                 -Welfare reform
                 -Congressional priorities

     Mills’ schedule

     Louisiana
          -Power in Congress
               -Mansfield
               -F. Edward Hébert
               -[Thomas] Hale Boggs
               -Long
               -Ellender

     Arrangements for photo

     National economy
          -President’s program
                -Importance
                -Wage-price freeze
                      -Duration
                      -Follow-up
                      -Consumer interest rates
          -Interest rates
                -Federal Reserve Board

     [General conversation/Unintelligible]

The President, et al. left at 12:54 pm