Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 11 › Conversation 011-014

Nixon phone call with Colson on Phase II economic controls and Public opinion

Thursday, October 7, 1971 · 9:03 PM–9:09 PM ET · White House Telephone · 5 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Colson, Charles W.Conversation011-014 on Tape 11 (tape position 00:19:11–00:24:40)StartThursday, October 7, 1971 at 9:03 PMEndThursday, October 7, 1971 at 9:09 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 011-014 ↗ · National Archives Catalog, NAID 417189929 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Charles Colson spoke shortly after Nixon delivered a nationally televised address outlining his Phase II economic controls. Colson relayed positive feedback from various observers, including pollster Louis Harris and Senator Barry Goldwater, who praised the President’s display of decisive leadership and strength. They also discussed the effective use of personal letters in the speech to humanize the administration's economic policies and briefly addressed the President's interest in potentially making a surprise visit to a concert at the Kennedy Center.

Audio

Download MP3 · 10.0 MB

NARA Description

On October 7, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 9:03 pm to 9:09 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 011-014 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 011-014

 Date: October 7, 1971
 Time: 9:03 pm - 9:09 pm
 Location: White House Telephone

 The President talked with Charles W. Colson.

        Economic speech announcing Phase II controls, October 7, 1971
             -Colson’s views
             -William L. Safire
             -Comments
                   -Julie Nixon Eisenhower, Tricia Nixon Cox
                   -Columbia Broadcasting System [CBS]
                   -Arthur H. (“Red”) Motley
                          -CBS
                   -Louis P. Harris
                          -Schedule
                          -Analysis
                               -Businessmen
                                    -Windfalls
             -Prices
                   -Virginia H. Knauer
             -Barry M. Goldwater
                   -Support for the President
                          -Compared with Harry S. Truman
             -George P. Shultz
             -Letters

        The President's schedule
             -Kennedy Center
                  -Eugene Ormandy

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.

Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data

Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).

Yeah.
Yes, sir, Mr. President.
Hello, Chuck.
I thought it went just beautifully.
The tone was right on.
You always say that, but I think I did a pretty good job tonight on that.
Well, I spent a lot of time working on it.
Sapphire did a fine job.
I may always say it, but it's only because it's true, and if I didn't think it, I wouldn't say it.
Well, we work on these goddamn things, you know.
You sure do what it shows.
No, I think, interestingly enough, the...
The comments we've gotten from a lot of people were that you were very firm, very much in command, very strong.
You know, my daughters liked the upbeat thing at the end.
They said you gave hope.
You know, that by God, the country isn't going to hell.
They liked that.
Just looking at my notes.
And everybody liked the letters.
The letters were excellent.
Just looking at my notes, it's a very strong ending.
And CBS gave us a very straight commentary afterwards.
Good.
Amazingly so.
In fact, some of the people we've been phoning, like Red Motley, great publications.
Oh, old Red, good old Red.
The boss did a sensational job.
He said, and I couldn't believe the CBS commentary.
It was fair and straight and good.
It was good.
It was excellent.
Harris is enthusiastic.
About Harrisfield, yeah.
You're bringing him in Wednesday, aren't you?
Yes, sir, if that's good.
You bring him in.
I told him that you want to see him.
He said you hit the nail right on the impression.
He liked the continuation.
Very much.
Well, of course, he was pushing on that part.
He said the two things that came through to him were very strong.
One, that it's very clear from this that you mean to do the job.
And secondly, that you're very confident in...
He described that it was an effective toughness.
And he said, you've just got this momentum rolling, and it's going to continue.
And he said, the businessmen are going to be very happy over the profit control.
Well, do you think the profit thing came off in a way it didn't scare him to death?
Yeah.
No, he thought it did.
Yeah.
He thought it was excellent.
And I did, too.
Some businessmen will worry, but we put it very, very narrowly.
I said, you know, those few cases where
Well, windfall is a good word because windfall to a businessman is something he didn't expect or didn't earn.
And I said, well, I don't mind all windfalls, but only those windfalls that are due to government policies.
Then they've got to pass it on.
Exactly.
I think, too, the idea that let's reduce prices.
That's a good theme.
This is an hour to hit that.
Oh, I talked to her.
She was getting on the plane to go to Indianapolis.
I got some great lines into her speech before she left.
And I talked to Barry Goldwater, who called me.
Good.
God, he's a great old soldier.
I think he'd had a couple of great looseners for the evening.
But he said, I want you to deliver a message to the president.
He said, I don't know whether this goddamn program will work.
He said, it doesn't make any difference.
He said, I'm not for control.
But he said, I'll tell you, I'll go anywhere in the country for this man.
I'll do anything for him.
I love him.
I'm a thousand percent for him.
And you know why?
Isn't that wonderful?
He said, you know why?
He said, not because of the goddamn program.
He said, he could.
He said, personally, I think it probably stinks.
So do I.
But he said, because the president's a leader.
He's like Harry Truman.
He's out front.
He's fighting.
He's strong.
He said, we have a president who's a president all the way.
He said, goddamn, I'll go anywhere and do anything you fellas tell me.
Isn't that great?
Yeah.
He said he thought your speech was extremely strong.
He said, I just felt goosebumps watching it because he didn't use the word goosebumps.
He said, I just felt proud watching it.
He said, he was so strong, so good.
Good, good.
And thus far, the reactions, there's been really nothing negative on the wire.
I haven't found any negative comments.
There's been no labor comments.
George Shultz is doing a hell of a job.
We'll put the labor people right on the goddamn spot where I... Those letters were all from people that had their wage increases.
Sure.
I thought those letters were beautiful.
Extremely effective, Mr. President.
And, you know, we get used to that kind of thing already, but I would admit...
to letters like that, but people out in the country love to hear that.
It puts a personal touch on it.
Makes them think their letters count.
That's right.
And it's something they understand, and they feel sort of, they identify with people who write to you.
Oh, and I think it does a hell of a good impact.
You made the point tonight, I thought, exceedingly effectively, that this was the all-volunteer army of American patriots.
Yeah, that was an insert.
Oh, I love it, because it gets the thought across, which you did
throughout it, but this depends on the people.
It's got to work unless the people make it work.
And you put kind of on them the responsibility, which is just the way you make people respond.
That's the best kind of leadership, because then they all feel they want to participate.
I think we're just to keep going.
Would you do something for me?
Yes, sir.
Find out what is on at the Kennedy Center
There's a concert of some sort.
If it's harmony, I might want to stop over for the last half of it, but I want to know.
I'm going to do it just as a surprise to come in.
You mean tonight, sir?
Yeah.
Harmony?
No, no.
Check to see what's on, if it's harmony.
And just find out what it's harmony, what he's playing.
All right.
Okay.
I'll call you back as soon as I have it.
Thanks.

Also recorded on October 7, 1971

  • 011-008 8:53 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and William L. Safire talked on the telephone from 8:53 pm to 8:57 pm.
  • 011-009 8:57 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 8:57 pm.
  • 011-010 8:58 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 8:58 pm.
  • 011-011 8:58 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:58 pm and 9:03 pm.
  • 011-012 8:58 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:58 pm and 9:03 pm.
  • 011-013 8:58 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:58 pm and 9:03 pm.
  • 011-015 9:09 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles G. ("Bebe") Rebozo talked on the telephone from 9:09 pm to 9:11 pm.
  • 011-016 9:17 PM · 39 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 9:17 pm to 9:20 pm.

All 108 conversations from October 7, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 011-014, October 7, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives (NAID 417189929). Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/011-014 (accessed November 2, 2026).