Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 14 › Conversation 014-039

Nixon phone call with Ehrlichman on Department of Agriculture

Thursday, November 11, 1971 · 3:07 PM–3:08 PM ET · White House Telephone · 2 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); White House operator; Ehrlichman, John D.Conversation014-039 on Tape 14 (tape position 01:06:34–01:08:09)StartThursday, November 11, 1971 at 3:07 PMEndThursday, November 11, 1971 at 3:08 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 014-039 ↗ · National Archives Catalog, NAID 417190609 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and John Ehrlichman discuss the internal strategy for reorganizing the Department of Agriculture, emphasizing the need to secure support from Roy Ash and the Ash Council. Nixon instructs Ehrlichman to coordinate with Charls Walker to ensure the reorganization plan is presented as a necessary concession to achieve broader community development goals. They also agree to balance the public framing of the decision by providing credit to both Earl Butz and Clifford Hardin.

Audio

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NARA Description

On November 11, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and John D. Ehrlichman talked on the telephone from 3:07 pm to 3:08 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 014-039 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 14-39

Date: November 11, 1971
Time: 3:07 pm - 3:08 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with the White House operator.

     John D. Ehrlichman

Ehrlichman talked with the President.

[See Conversation No. 298-15]

     Department of Agriculture organization

          -Roy L. Ash
                -President’s Advisory Council on Executive Organizations
          -Chet Holifield
          -John B. Connally
                -Charls E. Walker
          -Earl L. Butz
          -Clifford M. Hardin

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Mr. President, Mr. Ehrlichman?
All right, sir, Mr. Ehrlichman?
Yeah.
Fine.
There you are.
Thank you.
John, with regard to this setup on the Department of Agriculture, one thing that is very important, if you haven't already covered it, is to be sure the Ash Council people are covered.
All right.
Has somebody thought of that?
I am not sure they have.
You can see the problem.
Sure.
You're covering Hollyfield, but you better cover Ash.
All right.
Now, obviously, the way to handle it is simply to say that
We've just been negotiating like hell on the hill, and we have no chance to get community development unless we can work this one out.
This gets that support.
Right.
All right.
I'll get somebody to write on that.
We can't get it to Connolly.
Of course, he's abroad.
But get it to Walker's.
All right.
And read about it.
All right.
This is a decision that was made only because we found it was the only way we could get the support that we needed to get the...
community development plan through or anything you need to say.
With regard to that particular point, do you think we should simply leave it that Butts thought of this idea or don't you think we've got to give Hardin a little credit for it?
Well, I think you can give Hardin some credit for it.
I think we have to.
He certainly raised the question and one of the first subjects you took up with Butts was this problem and that it's been agreed.
I think the more you can give Butts credit for it, the more stock he'll have out in the territory.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Okay.
Fine.
Fine.
I'll do that.

Also recorded on November 11, 1971

  • 298-015 3:07 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 3:07 pm to 3:08 pm.
  • 014-040 3:08 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 3:08 pm and 3:27 pm.
  • 298-016 3:08 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:08 pm and 3:27 pm.
  • 298-017 3:08 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:08 pm and 3:27 pm.
  • 298-018 3:08 PM · 19 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:08 pm and 3:27 pm.
  • 014-041 3:27 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon talked on the telephone from 3:27 pm to 3:30 pm.
  • 298-019 3:27 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 3:27 pm to 3:30 pm.
  • 014-042 3:30 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 3:30 pm and 3:32 pm.

All 111 conversations from November 11, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 014-039, November 11, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives (NAID 417190609). Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/014-039 (accessed November 15, 2026).