Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 15 › Conversation 015-047

Nixon phone call with an unidentified caller on Charles W. Colson

Thursday, November 18, 1971 · 6:04 PM–6:56 PM ET · White House Telephone · 5 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); White House operatorConversation015-047 on Tape 15 (tape position 01:01:55–01:02:02)StartThursday, November 18, 1971 at 6:04 PMEndThursday, November 18, 1971 at 6:56 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 015-047 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon initiates a request for the White House operator to place a telephone call to Charles W. Colson. The brief interaction serves solely to facilitate communication between the President and his special counsel. No further substantive policy matters or executive decisions are discussed during this exchange.

Audio

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data

Carlson, please.
Yes, sir.

NARA Description

On November 18, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:04 pm and 6:56 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 015-047 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 15-47

Date: November 18, 1971
Time: Unknown between 6:04 pm and 6:56 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with the White House operator.

     Request for a call Charles W. Colson

Also recorded on November 18, 1971

  • 015-041 5:09 PM · 2 min — Donald H. Rumsfeld, White House operator, and unknown person(s) talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:09 pm and 5:16 pm.
  • 015-044 5:16 PM · 38 sec — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon talked on the telephone from 5:16 pm to 5:17 pm.
  • 015-045 5:30 PM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:30 pm and 5:57 pm.
  • 015-049 5:55 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:55 pm and 7:16 pm.
  • 015-046 5:57 PM · 24 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield talked on the telephone from 5:57 pm to 5:58 pm.
  • 621-008 6:01 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, unknown person(s), and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 6:01 pm to 6:04 pm.
  • 621-009 6:04 PM · 1 min — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 6:04 pm and 11:59 pm.
  • 015-048 6:56 PM · 11 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 6:56 pm to 7:07 pm.

All 77 conversations from November 18, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 015-047, 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/015-047 (accessed October 17, 2026).