Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 2 › Conversation 002-025

Nixon phone call with Saxbe on Laos and Southeast Asia

Wednesday, April 21, 1971 · 4:59 PM–5:02 PM ET · White House Telephone · 2 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Saxbe, William B.Conversation002-025 on Tape 2 (tape position 00:36:12–00:38:10)StartWednesday, April 21, 1971 at 4:59 PMEndWednesday, April 21, 1971 at 5:02 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 002-025 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon calls Senator William B. Saxbe to express appreciation for Saxbe's recent televised comments regarding his ten-day fact-finding mission to Southeast Asia. The discussion centers on the complex situation in Laos, with Nixon emphasizing the presence of North Vietnamese and Chinese troops and highlighting the historical context established by W. Averell Harriman. Nixon directs Saxbe to provide a comprehensive debriefing to Henry Kissinger regarding his observations and the performance of Ambassador G. McMurtrie Godley.

Audio

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Hello.
hello bill yes sir just wanted to thank you for your i didn't get to see it but i just looking at my news summary and i saw you your your comments on the morning show and i'm grateful i hope you don't catch too much hell for it i'm i won't no i think that i followed you while you were out there how long you were gone about how long 10 days 10 days it's it's it's really worthwhile you know you give you an insight on what's going on especially because nobody can believe that
I have asked, and I would appreciate it if you would do this, you know, and I know you get that thing, but if you could give a full report to Henry Kissinger on it.
I would be happy to.
And then after you finish, I'd like to get a little feel of it myself.
One of the difficulties that I had talking about last is that it,
I'm sure you're familiar with it.
What's going on there is just very unusual.
Yes, of course.
We know.
You don't even talk about it on the phone.
A lot of it's classified, and I was limited on what I could say, but I think this godly is doing about all he can do.
He's a good man.
He's a good man, and a decent man, too, you know.
He's a decent man, and he's thrust into an unusual position for a different man.
You want to remember, too, that, Bill, that Laos is something that Harriman set up back in 1962, that this has been going on, that we made the first disclosure of it last year in March, and that we're doing everything we can to wind the damn thing down.
If there weren't 50,000 North Vietnamese in there, there'd be no problem.
And don't forget about 14,000 Chinese.
Yeah, yeah, up there in that road thing, that's the kind of thing I'd like to get a little fill in.
Well, I'll have Henry give you a call, and if you'd fill him in, I'd appreciate it.
I'd be happy to.
Fine, fine.
And get a little rest.
Thank you.
Bye.

NARA Description

On April 21, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and William B. Saxbe talked on the telephone from 4:59 pm to 5:02 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 002-025 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 2-25

Date: April 21, 1971
Time: 4:59 pm - 5:02 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with William B. Saxbe.

[See Conversation No. 485-4B]

     Saxbe's appearance on television

     Saxbe's visit to Southeast Asia
          -Laos
                -Report to Henry A. Kissinger
          -Kissinger
          -G. McMurtrie Godley
          -W[illiam] Averell Harriman
                -Origins of Laotian policy
          -North Vietnamese, People’s Republic of China [PRC] troops
          -Administration's policy

Also recorded on April 21, 1971

  • 252-008 3:01 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:01 pm and 3:08 pm.
  • 252-009 3:01 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:01 pm and 3:08 pm.
  • 485-001 3:08 PM · 2 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 3:08 pm and 3:14 pm.
  • 485-002 3:14 PM · 35 min — President Richard M. Nixon, George P. Shultz, Paul W. McCracken, Peter M. Flanigan, John C. Whitaker, and William E. Kriegsman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 3:14 pm to 3:51 pm.
  • 485-003 3:51 PM · 22 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 3:51 pm and 4:16 pm.
  • 485-004 4:18 PM · 1 hr 53 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, John N. Mitchell, Ronald L. Ziegler, Manolo Sanchez, White House operator, William B. Saxbe, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:18 pm to 6:13 pm.
  • 002-024 4:38 PM · 2 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:38 pm and 4:59 pm.
  • 485-005 6:13 PM · 3 sec — United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 6:13 pm and 6:37 pm.

All 46 conversations from April 21, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 002-025, April 21, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/002-025 (accessed October 7, 2026).