Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 15 › Conversation 015-038

Nixon phone call with Colson on John B. Connally and Tax Bill

Thursday, November 18, 1971 · 3:47 PM–3:51 PM ET · White House Telephone · 4 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); White House operator; Colson, Charles W.Conversation015-038 on Tape 15 (tape position 00:47:13–00:50:50)StartThursday, November 18, 1971 at 3:47 PMEndThursday, November 18, 1971 at 3:51 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 015-038 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Charles Colson discuss the successful recruitment of John B. Connally for an upcoming administration project, for which Colson will provide a briefing book prior to Connally's meetings with the President, George Shultz, and Henry Kissinger. They also review legislative frustrations regarding the Senate tax bill, with Connally suggesting he can neutralize the controversial campaign check-off provision through administrative adjustments. Finally, they coordinate a strategy to publicly promote Connally's economic stance, with Nixon considering a follow-up call to personally commend Connally's recent work.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Mr. Colson, Mr. President.
Hello.
Yes, sir.
How about, did you get to John on that?
Yes, sir.
We had an hour together, and let's see, does he look to it with favor?
No, he started out just the way I thought, with a little bit of apprehension over all the pressures on him.
And as we talked and went through all the reasons, he came around on it entirely.
He, at one point, said, well, I'll do it if the president wants me to do it anyway, and there's no point.
discussing that i said no no i said that isn't the point he specifically said that he didn't want to do it on that basis only if you agreed with us
And I gave him all the reasons, and then he turned around and said, yes, I do agree with you, and let's do it.
So I promised him a briefing book and stuff.
What day?
Monday.
Monday.
And he would meet with you on Tuesday.
And then he'll have the meeting with Schultz and, what's his name, Kissinger Tuesday.
I would assume all I told him is that... Well, this comes first.
He's got to have the time and everything on this, and...
Briefing book and so forth good.
Well, I'll give him all of that.
We had a very good discussion of a lot of other things How is he feeling good?
He's way up and he was did he been did you did you get into money supply about burns?
No, that's the one subject that I guess we didn't hear we talked about everything What's he think of what the Senate is doing in that tax bill I
He's probably apoplectic.
I am.
I'm just unbelievable.
You mean on the campaign check-off?
No, that damn thing.
No, but the other irresponsible things.
You know, they're going to have babysitter deductions.
That's awful.
Jesus Christ.
I mean, it's unbelievable.
We'll have to sign it.
Well, I said to him, we ought to veto it if it has this campaign check-off.
And he said, oh, hell no.
No, no.
He said, I got a way around that.
He said, the forms have already gone out for next year.
And he said, yeah.
And we'll modify it.
He said, well, I'll send out a special bulletin to taxpayers.
And he said, then we'll put out a lot of stories about how confused the Treasury is and they can't handle all this.
And he said, nobody will give any money.
That's right.
He said, God, he's a clever fellow.
Well, on this thing, though, he felt, though, he could take a bullish position, right?
Oh, yes, and we went into the GNP thing, and he wants to really hit that.
His attitude is just like yours and mine, Mr. President.
I'm going to talk to you just based on what Connolly said.
He just said we should stop putting out the preliminaries.
Yeah.
And he really gets very... Good.
He said, look, I've been here in this town.
I know what those bastards and those agencies do.
And he said, we've just got to get a handle on it.
Well, let's help them all we can, and let's build it up.
When can it be announced?
Will he announce it?
Yes, sir.
And what I...
suggested to him was he do it tomorrow, I'll work with him on it.
But then we want to just build up that thing as a major press conference.
I went through the whole thing with him and I think he's all on board.
You told him that I was going to hit the next week.
Yes, sir.
I just told Haldeman of the conversation and told Bob that if he filled you in, you might want to call Connolly and say, great, if you get a chance.
I made it very clear we weren't ordering him out.
In other words, not to call him yet, though.
Or I am to call him.
Well, I think you could do it almost any time.
Oh, yeah.
All right, fine.
I mean, any time you feel like it, just... Fine.
Because he was very flattered that you had read his economics speech.
I told him you had read that.
Yeah, I did.
And he said, did he read it?
He responds to that.
He told me to.
Okay, I'll check with Holloman.
Yes, sir.

NARA Description

On November 18, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 3:47 pm to 3:51 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 015-038 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 15-38

Date: November 18, 1971
Time: 3:47 pm - 3:51 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with the White House operator.

     Charles W. Colson

The President talked with Colson.
[See also Conversation No. 294-22D]

     John B. Connally
          -Conversation with Colson
               -Briefing book
          -Meetings with the President, George P. Shultz, John D. Ehrlichman and Henry A.
               Kissinger
          -Schedule
          -Arthur F. Burns
               -Money supply

*****************************************************************

[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift 06/19/2019.
Segment cleared for release.]
[Personal Returnable]
[015-038-w001]
[Duration: 8s]

      John B. Connally
             -Arthur F. Burns
                    -Campaign money supply
                           -Interest in forthcoming political conversation

*****************************************************************

     Senate
          -Tax Bill
               -Deductions
          -Campaign check-off provision
               -Possible veto

     Gross National Product [GNP]
          -Shultz

     Connally announcement

     H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman
          -The President's possible call to Connally

     Connally's speech

     Haldeman

Also recorded on November 18, 1971

  • 015-034 2:48 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and Tricia Nixon Cox talked on the telephone from 2:48 pm to 2:52 pm.
  • 294-021 2:48 PM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 2:48 pm to 2:52 pm.
  • 015-035 2:56 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 2:56 pm and 3:36 pm.
  • 294-022 2:56 PM · 1 hr 39 min — President Richard M. Nixon, George P. Shultz, and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 2:56 pm to 4:50 pm.
  • 015-036 3:36 PM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and Peter M. Flanigan talked on the telephone from 3:36 pm to 3:42 pm.
  • 015-037 3:42 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 3:42 pm and 3:47 pm.
  • 015-039 3:51 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 3:51 pm and 4:17 pm.
  • 015-040 4:17 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and John B. Connally talked on the telephone from 4:17 pm to 4:24 pm.

All 77 conversations from November 18, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 015-038, November 18, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/015-038 (accessed October 1, 2026).