Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 10 › Conversation 010-080

Nixon phone call with Price on Public opinion and Speechwriting

Wednesday, October 6, 1971 · 11:46 AM–11:47 AM ET · White House Telephone · 1 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Price, Raymond K., Jr.Conversation010-080 on Tape 10 (tape position 02:36:43–02:37:56)StartWednesday, October 6, 1971 at 11:46 AMEndWednesday, October 6, 1971 at 11:47 AMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 010-080 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon instructed speechwriter Raymond K. Price, Jr. to incorporate specific public feedback regarding the administration’s wage and price freeze into an upcoming address. The President requested that the draft feature a diverse array of examples from thousands of letters, highlighting support from various demographics such as union members, housewives, and retirees. This effort aimed to demonstrate broad, grassroots approval for the economic policy through a punchy and representative narrative.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
Yeah.
Mr. Ray Price, sir.
Yeah, sir.
Ray, I'd like you to try that exercise two different ways.
One, if you can find, say, something where there's maybe the one letter deal, but another way that could be perhaps a little more effective.
I want to, I'm going to put in this paragraph with regard to the overwhelming public support we have had for the wage price freeze.
And I can say that thousands of letters have poured into the White House since I made this announcement.
These are typical.
A union member from Schenectady wrote one sentence.
A housewife from California.
A teacher from Texas.
About six or seven, something like that, you see.
And they don't have to be people that have sacrificed.
If they have, that helps.
But just somebody says, or a retired person from this,
See what I mean?
And I think that might be very sharp and punchy, and then cover the country sort of that way, and cover the various types of the people.
Okay?
So that it will take a half a page or so.
I mean, good?
Okay.

NARA Description

On October 6, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Raymond K. Price, Jr. talked on the telephone from 11:46 am to 11:47 am. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 010-080 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 10-80

Date: October 6, 1971
Time: 11:46 am - 11:47 am
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with Raymond K. Price, Jr.

[See Conversation No. 283-31]

     Wage and price freeze
         -Speech
              -Examples of support
                     -Number of letters

Also recorded on October 6, 1971

  • 010-077 11:39 AM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:39 am and 11:44 am.
  • 010-078 11:39 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:39 am and 11:44 am.
  • 010-079 11:44 AM · 29 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and William L. Safire talked on the telephone from 11:44 am to 11:45 am.
  • 283-030 11:44 AM · 24 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and William L. Safire met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 11:44 am to 11:45 am.
  • 283-031 11:46 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Raymond K. Price, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 11:46 am to 11:47 am.
  • 010-081 11:47 AM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:47 am and 11:55 am.
  • 283-032 11:47 AM · 27 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 11:47 am and 11:50 am.
  • 283-033 11:50 AM · 39 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, H. R. Gross, Henry A. Kissinger, and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 11:50 am to 12:35 pm.

All 110 conversations from October 6, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 010-080, October 6, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/010-080 (accessed October 20, 2026).