Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 724 › Conversation 724-006

Nixon, Haldeman & Butterfield on George Wallace and Assassination attempt

Monday, May 15, 1972 · 5:06 PM–5:14 PM ET · Oval Office · 9 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Butterfield, Alexander P.; Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob"); White House operator; Nixon, Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan)Conversation724-006 on Tape 724 (tape position 03:06:50–03:15:17)StartMonday, May 15, 1972 at 5:06 PMEndMonday, May 15, 1972 at 5:14 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 724-006 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon met with Alexander P. Butterfield to receive an urgent update regarding the assassination attempt on Governor George Wallace, including details about the assailant, the victims, and the severity of Wallace’s injuries. Following this, the President consulted with H. R. Haldeman and First Lady Pat Nixon to assess how to handle a scheduled Blue Room reception in light of the national tragedy. They ultimately decided to restrict press access to the event to avoid optics that would appear inappropriate given the gravity of the shooting.

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Position in tape: 03:06:50 – 03:15:17

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Transcript (AI-generated)

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
Yeah.
The doctor would say his condition is stable.
That just means he's good.
He's got a bullet that's embedded in his stomach near the spine.
They say he can't move his legs.
He said he can't move his legs, so it could be one of those.
The other shot was under the right armpit, so it's under the right armpit.
The best facilities that we have
White channel 35 to 40 was there.
We have no idea who he was.
And three other people were shot as well by the same man yesterday.
Where the hell was he?
He was supposed to be with them.
One agent was shot.
Was it an agent?
They didn't see him?
A law guy had just come down into the crowd after speaking and was taking his coat off.
This fellow was about three rows back, jumped up, fired, emptied his revolver.
And then we got three others, as well as Wallace twice.
He hit a woman, Mrs. Thompson.
They said the governor's staff, I assume they mean Wallace's staff, they may be from Maryland, which I guess they didn't want.
He wouldn't be there.
And a policeman, a state policeman, and a secret service agent.
And another agent jumped on the fellow and hit the ground.
Oh, good.
The agent was there.
Yeah.
Well, what do we do about it?
Well, I just got the report.
It's fixed on the property.
The problem you've got, this, of course, is just totally not made in the news.
If you go out to open the Blue Room, you have full press coverage there.
There you are, laughing around about the brilliant pictures on your wall, while everybody in the country is thinking about Jesus Christ, they've shot another candidate.
Because I didn't like talking to Mrs. Mixon about it.
No, because we wanted to get a fix here.
I don't want to hurt people, ma'am.
My inclination is that I can't.
I don't think you can.
There's no crisis you do.
Just go ahead.
She could go ahead.
I don't think she should do that.
I think we should tell the people at the gate when they arrive because of the unfortunate thing that happened.
Mr. Mason, please.
You can't do it.
You can do it.
You can open it by saying, let's have three minutes of silence.
Oh, shit.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
And then say, no, no, no, no, no.
Better all go home.
But I can't get into that.
No, I can't do that.
You can't just ignore it, though.
No, I mean, all right.
It can't go on.
It's got to be done.
We've got a problem.
You heard about Wallace.
No, but he's quite serious.
He's paralyzed in the rest.
The strong feeling is that, for me, to be there, smiling, laughing, and so forth, as we will have to in the preceding line, when the whole country is concerned about this as abolishing all things, is just not a good idea.
well i i let me put it this way i think you could maybe but i i don't think i should i mean either you know i think it's uh
Well, my own view is that I got as much as I would like to, but you can see the problem.
If anything happens during the time, or even when he's critically injured, he's got just one bullet in the stomach, there in the spine, and they, he, who knows?
You've got to show that he lives.
He may be paralyzed.
He may not be, but he has pain.
Well, you want us to think a little about it, and I'll call you back.
I just want you to know a little bit.
What do you feel about it?
What do you feel?
Maybe you, or maybe you and Quinn could do it without the press.
But if you and Quinn could do it, well, without the press, that's the problem.
Could you do it without the press and let the press see it another time?
I don't know.
I don't see how you can do that.
Yeah?
The press has already had it.
I don't believe, I think that you and Glenn ought to receive them without, without any press pictures or, you see what I mean?
I think that would be all right.
In other words, if you just receive them without, uh... Why don't we just tell the press it's closed to the press because of this event?
And then you receive them.
How's that?
So you've done your part already.
Could that be all right?
See, if you receive them without the press being there, I see no problem in it.
No problem in it.
I know, I know that if you receive them without the press being there, they aren't here to get their pictures on paper.
But I do feel... Yeah.
Okay.
All right, if you will, call us back.
Ask Tommy and Mitchell to come forward.
Tommy and Mitchell?

NARA Description

On May 15, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Alexander P. Butterfield, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, and Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:06 pm to 5:14 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 724-006 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 724-6

Date: May 15, 1972
Time: 5:06-5:14 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield.

     George C. Wallace
         -Condition
               -Possibility of paralysis
         -Offer of services by the President
               -Dr. William M. Lukash
               -Facilities
         -Assailant
               -Race
               -Sex
               -Identity
         -Other victims
               -Alabama state policeman
         -Secret Service protection
         -Shooting
         -Other victims
               -Dora Thompson
                     -Wallace staffer
               -State policeman
               -Secret Service agent
         -Assailant
               -Apprehension

Butterfield left and H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman entered at an unknown time after 5:06 pm.

     President's schedule
          -Blue Room reception
                 -Press coverage
                 -Possible public reaction
                 -Thelma C. (“Pat”) Nixon
                 -President's appearance
                 -Mrs. Nixon's schedule

The President talked with the White House operator at an unknown time between 5:06 and 5:10
pm.

[Conversation No. 724-6A]

[See Conversation No. 24-82]

[End of telephone conversation]

     President's schedule
          -Blue Room reception
                 -President's attendance
                       -Actions

The President talked with Mrs. Nixon between 5:10 and 5:13 pm.

[Conversation No. 724-6B]

[See Conversation No. 24-83]

The President conferred with Haldeman during the telephone conversation.

     Blue Room reception
          -Press coverage

[End of conferral]

[End of telephone conversation]

     President's schedule
          -Meeting with John B. Connally and John N. Mitchell

Haldeman left at 5:14 pm.

Also recorded on May 15, 1972

  • 724-005 4:54 PM · 12 min — President Richard M. Nixon, George P. Shultz, Caspar W. ("Cap") Weinberger, and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:54 pm to 5:05 pm.
  • 024-082 5:06 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:06 pm and 5:10 pm.
  • 724-010 5:06 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at 5:06 pm.
  • 024-083 5:10 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon, and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 5:10 pm to 5:13 pm.
  • 724-007 5:14 PM · 55 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:14 pm and 5:16 pm.
  • 024-084 5:16 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:16 pm and 5:21 pm.
  • 724-008 5:16 PM · 51 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon, John B. Connally, Ronald L. Ziegler, Cornelia Wallace, Edward M. Kennedy, Eugene T. Rossides, and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:16 pm to 6:06 pm.
  • 024-085 5:21 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon, and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 5:21 pm to 5:23 pm.

All 44 conversations from May 15, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 724-006, May 15, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/724-006 (accessed October 27, 2026).