Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 249 › Conversation 249-003

Nixon & Woods on Electronic surveillance and J. Edgar Hoover

Thursday, April 15, 1971 · 8:36 AM–8:42 AM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 2 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Woods, Rose MaryConversation249-003 on Tape 249 (tape position 00:01:35–00:03:57)StartThursday, April 15, 1971 at 8:36 AMEndThursday, April 15, 1971 at 8:42 AMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 249-003 ↗

President Nixon and his personal secretary, Rose Mary Woods, discuss administrative matters and potential security concerns regarding electronic surveillance. The brief exchange touches upon the activities of J. Edgar Hoover and the presence of monitoring devices within the office environment. No definitive policy decisions were reached during this informal check-in regarding office security protocols.

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This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Names and numbers are often wrong; speakers are not identified. Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Yeah.
That's all right.
There's nothing here.
I'm just going to .
I don't know.
I don't know.
I don't know.
All right, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I don't think anybody.
They, uh, what's he called, a hoover?
Yeah, I don't know.
So they, uh, so they must be, in fact, surveilling Earth.
Is there anybody who cares?
They're so full of them.
On the other hand, on the other hand.
Stay out on the other hand, or I'm gonna run down.
Right.
You got a red dot?
Okay, I got a red dot.

On April 15, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 8:36 am to 8:42 am. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 249-003 of the White House Tapes.

Conversation No. 249-3

Date: April 15, 1971
Time: 8:36 am - 8:42 am
Location: Executive Office Building

Rose Mary Woods talked with the President

[See Conversation No. 42-41]
  • 249-001 8:32 AM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:32 am and 8:36 am.
  • 249-002 8:32 AM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:32 am and 8:36 am.
  • 042-041 8:36 AM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods talked on the telephone from 8:36 am to 8:42 am.
  • 042-042 8:42 AM · 27 sec — unknown person(s), White House operator, and Ralph Shields talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:42 am and 3:15 pm.
  • 249-004 8:42 AM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:42 am and 8:59 am.
  • 249-005 8:42 AM · 3 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:42 am and 8:59 am.
  • 249-006 8:59 AM · 1 hr 45 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, unknown person(s), Stephen B. Bull, Henry A. Kissinger, and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 8:59 am to 10:45 am.
  • 480-001 10:59 AM · 30 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry Ahlgren met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:59 am and 11:02 am.

Conversation 249-003, April 15, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/249-003 (accessed September 28, 2026).