Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 006-007
Date: Monday, June 28, 1971 at 5:59 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Shultz, George P.
Recording device: White House Telephone
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/006-007

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:00] Yeah.
[0:01] Mr. Schultz.
[0:03] Yeah.
[0:04] Yes, sir.
[0:05] I was just reading the Freedman's, your memo on Freedman.
[0:10] He still is, despite all the crepe hangers, is still sticking to his guns.
[0:17] Well, on both sides, that is.
[0:19] He thinks that the...
[0:20] He thinks we have made progress on inflation, doesn't he?
[0:22] Yes, but he thinks that the...
[0:23] But if the money supply is...
[0:25] He was thinking it so fast that...
[0:28] We're going to have a hard time making much more, but he thinks that the recovery will come along.
[0:36] The main point that I get out of his is that, well, apart from what I expected, his opposition to the wage price board, but the main point I get out of his whole thing is that he's still confident about the recovery.
[0:48] He says there is one that's going on.
[0:50] Yes, he is.
[0:51] He feels there's, in other words, his term that there's a lot in the boiler.
[0:55] Yeah.
[0:56] And that it's just bound to start to...
[0:58] start to turn over pretty soon, huh?
[1:01] Yeah, that's right.
[1:01] He, of course, his economic information is, statistical material is what he picks up in the papers.
[1:09] He doesn't have, and I didn't feel I could sure pass on to him, the GNP figure, although that's been in the papers, so he knows more or less how that has come down.
[1:19] You mean the first quarter?
[1:21] Yeah, the 24, the 20 billion.
[1:24] 20 billion point four.
[1:26] Yes, 20.4 that we had.
[1:30] But that's his view.
[1:31] When will that be final?
[1:33] When will that 20.4 be final?
[1:34] In about the middle of July, we'll have a complete go-through of the entire year level and also their preliminary one for the second quarter.
[1:49] Now, they'll then have more information about May sales and June sales a little bit and additional information.
[1:57] Additional information.
[1:58] But this is just the first rough cut, basically, isn't it?
[2:01] Yes, sir, that's right.
[2:02] Although they don't often change it a great deal.
[2:06] Well, they changed the first quarter.
[2:08] They changed the first quarter.
[2:10] And there have been some things since then on the first quarter that could change it up some more, although I understand there's another one that more or less cancels it out, so it's likely to stay just about where it was.
[2:25] And how about the second quarter?
[2:27] Well, we don't know.
[2:29] Well, it's sort of the late May and June sales picture and inventory pictures will make a difference there.
[2:37] Okay, thanks, George.
[2:38] Yes, sir.