{"conversationCode":"009-055","tapeNumber":9,"conversationNumber":55,"identifier":"37-wht-conversation-009-055","startDateTime":"1971-09-17T01:24:00.000Z","endDateTime":"1971-09-17T01:31:00.000Z","startDate":"16-Sep-1971","startTime":"9:24 PM","endDate":"16-Sep-1971","endTime":"9:31 PM","dateCertainty":"certain","timeCertainty":"certain","participants":"Nixon, Richard M. (President); Colson, Charles W.;","description":"On September 16, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 9:24 pm to 9:31 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 009-055 of the White House Tapes.","locationCode":"WHT","recordingDevice":"White House Telephone","latitudeEstimated":38.89767,"longitudeEstimated":-77.03655,"chronCode":2,"chronRelease":"Second Chronological Release","chronReleaseDate":"26-Oct-2000","aogpRelease":null,"aogpSegment":null,"lastModified":"2015-07-27T17:04:10.235Z","findingAid":"Conversation No. 9-55\n\nDate: September 16, 1971\nTime: 9:24 pm - 9:31 pm\nLocation: White House Telephone\n\nThe President talked with Charles W. Colson.\n\n     Colson's previous location\n          -Sequoia\n          -H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman\n                -Senior staff\n\n*****************************************************************\n\n[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift 01/03/2018.\nSegment cleared for release.]\n[Personal Returnable]\n[009-055-w001]\n[Duration: 3m 29s]\n\n       Press Conference\n             -Edmund S. Muskie’s speech\n             -Draft\n             -Edmund S. Muskie’s speech\n                   -Press coverage\n                   -The President’s view\n                         -1960, 1968\n                   -Henry Hubbard\n                         -Call to William L. Safire\n                         -Edmund S. Muskie’s reaction\n                   -Press coverage\n                         -Paul N. (“Pete”) McCloskey, Jr.\n\n                       -Columns\n                              -Robert D. Novak\n                              -Rowland Evans\n                              -David S. Broder\n                 -Edward W. Brooke\n                       -Massachusetts\n                       -Vice Presidency\n                       -Jesse L. Jackson\n                       -Black community\n                              -Voting\n            -The President’s delivery\n                 -Ronald L. Ziegler\n                 -William L. Safire\n\n*****************************************************************\n\n       Press Conference\n          -Draft issue\n               -Vote\n                      -Senate\n                      -Middle East\n                      -Robert T. Stafford\n                      -Deane C. Davis\n                      -George D. Aiken\n                      -Michael J. (“Mike”) Mansfield\n          -Economy\n          -Draft issue\n               -Vote\n               -Tabling motion","filename":["009-055.mp3"],"tapeStart":"01:45:52","tapeEnd":"01:52:57","participantsList":["Nixon, Richard M. (President)","Colson, Charles W."],"prevCode":"009-054","nextCode":"009-056","transcript":[{"start":0.4,"end":8.79,"text":"Hello?"},{"start":8.81,"end":10.25,"text":"Hello?"},{"start":10.39,"end":17.26,"text":"Good evening, Mr. President."},{"start":17.28,"end":18.3,"text":"Were you on the Sequoia?"},{"start":18.32,"end":19.64,"text":"Yes, sir."},{"start":19.66,"end":21.39,"text":"I took several members of the senior staff out, which was a very nice thing to do."},{"start":21.41,"end":21.51,"text":"Good."},{"start":21.53,"end":22.15,"text":"Just coming in when you called."},{"start":22.17,"end":22.43,"text":"Right, right."},{"start":22.45,"end":23.77,"text":"Well, I thought I'd better not talk over that open... Oh, hell no."},{"start":23.79,"end":24.41,"text":"I didn't want to get you there."},{"start":24.43,"end":25.21,"text":"That open radio circuit, I don't trust."},{"start":233.92,"end":254.84,"text":"Well, also your remarks on the draft were just more than most irresponsible."},{"start":254.87,"end":255.39,"text":"I can imagine some of you."},{"start":255.41,"end":257.87,"text":"Yeah, and to say that they are going to vote against the draft is a vote to make the United States number two in the world."},{"start":257.89,"end":259.75,"text":"A vote against the draft is to seriously jeopardize our peace initiatives all over the world."},{"start":259.77,"end":260.23,"text":"In the Mideast, I said."},{"start":260.25,"end":261.03,"text":"And, you know, what are the Jews about?"},{"start":261.05,"end":262.57,"text":"Well, I would hate myself to be a senator tomorrow voting against the draft."},{"start":262.86,"end":282.82,"text":"Well, it looks like we're going to win the vote."},{"start":282.84,"end":284.02,"text":"We're going to have one more senator than we planned today."},{"start":284.04,"end":284.55,"text":"Is he going to be it?"},{"start":284.56,"end":284.99,"text":"Will he vote with us?"},{"start":285.39,"end":307.38,"text":"He's got to vote with us on this test, will he?"},{"start":307.4,"end":308.56,"text":"I want you to tell him we've got to have him on this vote."},{"start":308.58,"end":308.81,"text":"First vote."},{"start":308.83,"end":309.33,"text":"He's got to vote with us."},{"start":309.35,"end":309.79,"text":"He's aching, you know."},{"start":309.81,"end":310.35,"text":"He's slobbering away on it."},{"start":311.17,"end":332.28,"text":"Well, they can go from that field over."},{"start":332.3,"end":332.44,"text":"I know."},{"start":332.46,"end":332.7,"text":"That's true."},{"start":332.72,"end":333.7,"text":"No, no, but Bob, Bob very clearly was open to it."},{"start":333.72,"end":333.96,"text":"He was good."},{"start":333.98,"end":334.44,"text":"That's the reason he..."},{"start":334.46,"end":334.74,"text":"It'll make it."},{"start":334.76,"end":335.46,"text":"The answer really isn't the answer."},{"start":335.49,"end":336.21,"text":"It's not clear about... Oh, hell no."},{"start":336.23,"end":336.55,"text":"Thank you, guys."},{"start":336.57,"end":337.83,"text":"You're more popular in all three of them cities, really, today."},{"start":337.85,"end":338.93,"text":"Well, these days, the governor is a lot sober tonight."},{"start":338.95,"end":339.71,"text":"But all the staff at that school is..."},{"start":340.37,"end":348.86,"text":"Really?"},{"start":363.07,"end":363.17,"text":"Okay."},{"start":363.19,"end":364.35,"text":"Well, I also got in a couple of good looks on the economy."},{"start":364.37,"end":365.63,"text":"I said we would have a follow-on program and it would have tea."},{"start":365.65,"end":366.3,"text":"Well, your phrase was excellent."},{"start":366.31,"end":367.22,"text":"The drug on it can't be affected without tea."},{"start":367.24,"end":367.8,"text":"You had some great catch-on."},{"start":367.82,"end":368.66,"text":"It was beautiful the way you surprised me."},{"start":368.68,"end":369.16,"text":"I didn't like it either."},{"start":371.52,"end":394.65,"text":"Of course, winning this doesn't really do anything but just protract the debate."},{"start":394.67,"end":395.25,"text":"It just protracts the debate."},{"start":395.27,"end":396.82,"text":"Even if we win it, it just means that we just go back to the jury filibuster."},{"start":398.3,"end":420.16,"text":"Well, maybe if they lose the tabling motion, then there isn't much tripping when they continue to deviate."},{"start":420.18,"end":421.24,"text":"I can prevail or still try to, but I just don't know."},{"start":421.26,"end":422,"text":"It breaks their back psychologically."},{"start":422.02,"end":423.8,"text":"If they don't have the motion to reconnect, or to come back to campus, they'll peter out."},{"start":423.82,"end":424.02,"text":"I hope so."},{"start":424.04,"end":424.24,"text":"Okay, bye."},{"start":424.26,"end":424.34,"text":"Bye."},{"start":424.36,"end":424.44,"text":"Bye."},{"start":424.46,"end":424.96,"text":"Thank you."}],"aiSummary":{"text":"President Nixon and Charles Colson discuss strategies for securing a pivotal Senate vote on the military draft and managing the associated political fallout. Nixon emphasizes the national security implications of the draft, framing opposition as a threat to global peace initiatives and United States' standing. They assess the legislative outlook, expressing confidence that winning a key tabling motion will psychologically defeat the opposition and stall the ongoing debate.","topics":["Military draft","Senate lobbying","Legislative strategy","National security","Political filibusters"],"generatedAt":"2026-04-05T22:54:40.246Z"},"topicSlugs":["military-draft","senate-lobbying","legislative-strategy","national-security","political-filibusters"],"audioDurationSec":426,"audioFiles":[{"file":"009-055.mp3","bytes":10222235,"durationSec":425.86,"bitrate":192027,"missing":false}],"audioIsShared":false,"audioProbedAt":"2026-09-18T02:19:21.708Z","transcriptGapSeconds":129,"transcriptGapShare":0.3,"transcriptQuality":"incomplete","audio":["https://nixon.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/audio/009-055.mp3"],"url":"https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/009-055","nixonLibraryUrl":"https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/9/conversation-009-055","license":"Public domain (U.S. Government work). AI-generated fields (transcript, aiSummary) are provided as-is without warranty."}