Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 12 › Conversation 012-029
Nixon phone call with an unidentified caller on Supreme Court appointments
Thursday, October 21, 1971 · 9:45 AM ET · White House Telephone ·4 sec
AI Summary
President Nixon consulted with John N. Mitchell regarding the selection and public announcement of new Supreme Court nominees. The discussion focused on coordinating the nomination of William H. Rehnquist and Lewis F. Powell, Jr. while managing potential political fallout and vetting concerns from the American Bar Association. Mitchell was tasked with leveraging key congressional contacts to facilitate the process and handle media inquiries surrounding the candidates.
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
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NARA Description
On October 21, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 9:45 am. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 012-029 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 012-029
Date: October 21, 1971
Time: 9:45 am
Location: White House Telephone
The White House operator talked with the President.
Telephone call from John N. Mitchell
[This is the original beginning of conversation No. 012-030, which has been merged with
conversation 012-029.]
John N. Mitchell talked with the President.
[See Conversation No. 281-9]
Supreme Court appointments
-Howard H. Baker, Jr.
-The President’s decision
-Previous conversation with Mitchell
-The President's discussions
-Richard A. Moore
-H.R. (“Bob”) Haldeman
-John D. Ehrlichman
-William L. Safire
-Ronald L. Ziegler
-Timing for announcement
-Telephone calls to Congress
-People's Republic of China [PRC], Soviet Union
-Mitchell's responsibility
-Herschel H. Friday, Mildred L. Lillie
-James O. Eastland
-Virginia Senators
-Robert C. Byrd
-Moore
-John B. Connally
-Moore
-The President’s announcement
-American Bar Association [ABA]
-Ziegler
-Possible questions
-Mildred L. Lillie story
-Washington Post
-Moore
-Safire
-Leon Jaworski
-Lawrence E. Walsh
-Mitchell’s forthcoming conversation
-William H. Rehnquist
-Lewis F. Powell, Jr.
-Martin Luther King, Jr.
-Civil disobedience
-MooreAlso recorded on October 21, 1971
- 281-008 9:39 AM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 9:39 am and 9:45 am.
- 012-030 9:45 AM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John N. Mitchell talked on the telephone from 9:45 am to 9:51 am.
- 281-009 9:45 AM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John N. Mitchell met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 9:45 am to 9:51 am.
- 012-031 9:51 AM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:51 am and 10:51 am.
- 012-032 9:51 AM · 20 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:51 am and 10:51 am.
- 281-010 9:51 AM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 9:51 am and 10:06 am.
- 281-011 9:51 AM · 31 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 9:51 am and 10:06 am.
- 281-012 9:51 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 9:51 am and 10:06 am.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 012-029, October 21, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/012-029 (accessed September 18, 2026).