{"conversationCode":"012-017","tapeNumber":12,"conversationNumber":17,"identifier":"37-wht-conversation-012-017","startDateTime":"1971-10-20T21:49:00.000Z","endDateTime":"1971-10-20T21:50:00.000Z","startDate":"20-Oct-1971","startTime":"5:49 PM","endDate":"20-Oct-1971","endTime":"5:50 PM","dateCertainty":"certain","timeCertainty":"certain","participants":"Nixon, Richard M. (President); Mitchell, John N.;","description":"On October 20, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and John N. Mitchell talked on the telephone from 5:49 pm to 5:50 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 012-017 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. 012-017\n\nDate: October 20, 1971\nTime: 5:49 pm- 5:50 pm\nLocation: White House Telephone\n\n       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542\n\nThe President talked with John N. Mitchell.\n\n[See Conversation No. 282-32B]\n\n     Supreme Court appointments\n          -Announcement timing\n              -Networks\n              -Ronald L. Ziegler briefing\n              -Nominees\n                    -Howard H. Baker, Jr.\n                    -Department of Justice role\n                          -Briefing papers","filename":["012-017.mp3"],"tapeStart":"00:35:22","tapeEnd":"00:36:28","participantsList":["Nixon, Richard M. (President)","Mitchell, John N."],"prevCode":"012-016","nextCode":"012-018","transcript":[{"start":1.23,"end":2.21,"text":"Yeah."},{"start":2.23,"end":3.01,"text":"Yes, Mr. President."},{"start":3.55,"end":6.84,"text":"John, just so that you won't know, we're going to announce this."},{"start":6.94,"end":9.59,"text":"We want to wait until we get the network time."},{"start":9.95,"end":13.92,"text":"So we're going to announce at 11 tomorrow, Ron's briefing, that I'm going on tomorrow at 730."},{"start":14.28,"end":14.48,"text":"See?"},{"start":14.82,"end":15.2,"text":"Yes, sir."},{"start":15.42,"end":19.83,"text":"So that'll, so that in any event, when you talk to your number two fellow."},{"start":20.42,"end":22.5,"text":"Who's not in yet from the airport."},{"start":22.88,"end":23.18,"text":"Okay."},{"start":23.28,"end":25.64,"text":"So it'll still fly tomorrow night, even though..."},{"start":25.86,"end":26.45,"text":"Tomorrow night."},{"start":27.63,"end":29.89,"text":"I'm not going to give that number two fellow any more time."},{"start":30.37,"end":32.67,"text":"He either comes tonight... Yep, I appreciate it."},{"start":32.7,"end":33.82,"text":"...or we go for the other fellow."},{"start":33.92,"end":34.24,"text":"Yes, sir."},{"start":34.26,"end":34.42,"text":"Okay?"},{"start":34.6,"end":35.22,"text":"Very good, sir."},{"start":35.26,"end":36.9,"text":"Fair, because I've got to get this stuff in a row."},{"start":37.04,"end":37.4,"text":"Fair enough."},{"start":38.28,"end":40.47,"text":"And do you want that to come from over here, or...?"},{"start":40.49,"end":40.89,"text":"No."},{"start":40.87,"end":41.77,"text":"What?"},{"start":42.45,"end":44.25,"text":"The background information on these people."},{"start":44.47,"end":45.49,"text":"Oh, yeah, yeah."},{"start":45.51,"end":47.7,"text":"You pick up the background dope the best you can."},{"start":47.73,"end":49.84,"text":"I mean, there's a strong sales talk on each."},{"start":50.24,"end":50.46,"text":"Right."},{"start":50.56,"end":57.41,"text":"Particularly where they, I mean, if they were top in their class or near the top, say so, things of that sort, you know."},{"start":57.75,"end":61.03,"text":"You know, the kind of thing that shows they're scholars and all that bullshit."},{"start":61.97,"end":62.29,"text":"Okay."},{"start":63.29,"end":63.87,"text":"Very good."},{"start":63.89,"end":64.17,"text":"All right."},{"start":64.37,"end":64.83,"text":"All right."}],"aiSummary":{"text":"President Nixon consulted with Attorney General John Mitchell regarding the strategic timing of an upcoming Supreme Court appointment announcement. Nixon instructed Mitchell to coordinate the release to coincide with prime-time network coverage, while issuing an ultimatum to a candidate who had not yet arrived in Washington. Additionally, Nixon directed Mitchell to compile favorable background dossiers emphasizing the academic credentials of potential nominees to ensure a strong public presentation.","topics":["Supreme Court appointments","Media strategy","John N. Mitchell","Candidate vetting","Presidential administration"],"generatedAt":"2026-04-05T23:31:51.967Z"},"topicSlugs":["supreme-court-appointments","media-strategy","john-n-mitchell","candidate-vetting","presidential-administration"],"audioDurationSec":67,"audioFiles":[{"file":"012-017.mp3","bytes":1598692,"durationSec":66.54,"bitrate":192197,"missing":false}],"audioIsShared":false,"audioProbedAt":"2026-09-18T02:19:22.040Z","findingAidSource":"nixonlibrary.gov subject log (2024-05), reslice-v2","findingAidUpdatedAt":"2026-09-18T08:42:36.043Z","audio":["https://nixon.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/audio/012-017.mp3"],"url":"https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/012-017","nixonLibraryUrl":"https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/12/conversation-012-017","license":"Public domain (U.S. Government work). AI-generated fields (transcript, aiSummary) are provided as-is without warranty."}