Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 016-080
Date: Friday, December 10, 1971 at 4:20 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Annenberg, Walter H.; Connally, John B.
Recording device: White House Telephone
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/016-080

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:00] Well, a week in about two weeks.
[0:02] No, about ten, yeah, yeah.
[0:05] In Bermuda.
[0:06] I think that you will find the Prime Minister in a cordial frame of mind.
[0:13] I think he was a bit unhappy for a period.
[0:17] Yeah, well, we're going to have to, you know, we'll talk very candidly, honestly with him, but I think we'll get along.
[0:25] We'll get along.
[0:26] All right.
[0:27] Mr. President, I'm just delighted to...
[0:32] that you like the genre?
[0:34] Well, it's one of the most beautiful things I ever saw.
[0:37] I can't tell you how much I like it.
[0:41] It shows so much of a design on your part, too.
[0:46] I know what that is.
[0:47] I know what that involved.
[0:49] Well, I know, but the... And the good taste.
[0:52] And the good taste is...
[0:53] Very, very meaningful.
[0:54] Oh, yes.
[0:54] Being to me.
[0:55] Well, let me say it's in good taste.
[0:57] You're going to be... Oh, incidentally, when you come over to Bermuda, are you going out to your California or you...
[1:04] What I'm going to do is hopefully my plane at Andrews Air Force to pick me up when we return to Washington.
[1:15] Sure, sure.
[1:16] And I'll fly from there directly to California.
[1:19] Good, good.
[1:20] Incidentally, would you please give my very best to John Connolly?
[1:23] Yeah, I'll let you do it.
[1:24] I'll let you say hello to him.
[1:29] Here he is.
[1:29] Mr. Buster?
[1:31] Walter?
[1:32] John?
[1:33] How are you?
[1:34] Couldn't be better.
[1:34] That's great.
[1:36] Well, I'm delighted to hear from you, and I'm looking forward to seeing you.
[1:38] Because I'm anxious to see how the Star of the President came out.
[1:44] I planned it about five months ago, went over the drawings.
[1:49] Yeah.
[1:50] Naturally, it was executed by Stupin up at Corning, New York.
[1:55] Yeah.
[1:57] And I'm
[1:57] I thought it was an original approach, you know.
[2:02] Well, I'm sure it is.
[2:04] I haven't seen it, but I'm sure it's magnificent.
[2:08] If you had anything to do with it, I know it's superb.
[2:12] Don, may I tell you how very much I admire your drive, your initiative, and the change of pace you use.
[2:24] Well... You keep everybody guessing, and that's right.
[2:27] Well, we've got some tough problems, Walter, as you well know.
[2:31] It's hard to deal with ten nations at the same time, and it just takes a lot of everything out of us.
[2:39] And the president has just been magnificent in his approach and his support, so I'm trying to carry out his wishes as best I know them.
[2:50] And I think we're going to make some headway.
[2:52] And don't you let anybody kid you that we're trying to tear things up.
[2:56] We've been the most forthcoming, the most expansionist nation in this world.
[3:01] You just take it from me.
[3:02] We want to settle this thing, and we've offered more to settle it than any other nation in the world has offered water.
[3:09] And so don't let them...
[3:10] I think our friends here in Europe are attempting to organize...
[3:19] to play their string out just as firmly and as long as they can.
[3:25] Well, that's right, because they've got the advantage of it, of us, and they want to keep it as long as they can.
[3:32] Well, let me give you an example, Walter, without belaboring this.
[3:37] In the paper the day before yesterday, we saw where Great Britain was going to run a $3 billion surplus in her balance of payments this year.
[3:45] Mm-hmm.
[3:46] the largest surplus in her history, the largest in the history of the nation.
[3:51] That's right.
[3:52] Now, that's fine.
[3:53] $3 billion doesn't sound like too much.
[3:55] But on a $100 billion economy, it's an awful lot.
[3:59] In our terms, that would mean the equivalent of us running a $33 billion surplus.
[4:06] And we've never done that, never even come close to it.
[4:09] If we talked about running a $33 billion surplus, the world would stand on its head.
[4:14] They don't think we entitled any such thing.
[4:17] The reaction around Europe is that you're pretty close to a deal, that a deal has been roughed out.
[4:29] It's just a question of the president and some of the leaders putting the finishing touches on it.
[4:38] At least that's a reaction that I get occasionally.
[4:43] out of all the countries over here.
[4:45] Well, Walter, that's right.
[4:46] The president's options are entirely open to him.
[4:50] We've tried to structure it in such a way that we're fairly close, but those countries over there have to be forthcoming a bit now.
[4:57] We've already gone further than we should, but the president has the options, and if Pompidou, Heath, and the rest of them are halfway reasonable, I think it can be settled in the next month.
[5:12] Very important because if we let it drag on after January, you could get into a sticky situation.
[5:21] I understand.
[5:23] And psychologically, that could be unattractive.
[5:26] That's right.
[5:26] That's what I tell them.
[5:27] They all preach that we're going to have a recession, a worldwide depression.
[5:31] And I say, well, if you already believe that, you all come up with something.
[5:34] We've made you an offer.
[5:35] We're willing to take less than we deserve to keep that from happening.
[5:39] Now y'all come forward.
[5:41] But they talk one way and act another.
[5:43] That's the problem.
[5:45] But we're not going to be... We can't give on everything, Walter.
[5:51] We can't take... And you know that.
[5:54] They want us to give on everything.
[6:39] But I want to wish you and Lee a very Merry Christmas.
[6:43] Well, I'll see you before then, but I want to...
[6:46] Please give our very best to Nellie.
[6:48] I shall.
[6:49] All the best to you, John.
[6:50] Thank you, Walter.
[6:51] Bye.