Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 21 › Conversation 021-023

Nixon phone call with Ziegler on Busing and Florida Primary

Wednesday, March 8, 1972 · 4:40 PM–4:43 PM ET · White House Telephone · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Ziegler, Ronald L.Conversation021-023 on Tape 21 (tape position 01:01:21–01:03:44)StartWednesday, March 8, 1972 at 4:40 PMEndWednesday, March 8, 1972 at 4:43 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 021-023 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon consulted Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler regarding media inquiries addressed during the daily briefing to prepare for his upcoming press conference. Ziegler reported that he successfully navigated questions concerning controversial busing policies, the Florida primary, and potential rumors surrounding the China trip, including the ITT and Lockheed aircraft deals. The President approved of Ziegler’s strategy to delay the busing decision until after the Florida referendum and to maintain a low-key response to primary election results.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
Mr. Ziegler, sir.
You are.
Yes, sir.
Ron, anything come up in your briefing that may affect my preparation for tomorrow?
No.
The question on the Florida, excuse me, the busing matter came up, and I handled it just as we discussed.
Tell me again.
Well, I made the point that you had met Monday, and you had asked the committee and the staff for additional material that you would meet with them on Friday about, and that you would then spend the weekend at Camp David redoing this, and that you...
contemplated reaching a decision in principle over the weekend.
And that decision would not be made before the referendum because you didn't want to influence it.
And your decision would be announced in some days following that.
So that's where we're postured.
But our decision would be made some days following.
Right.
Fine.
That's good.
Okay.
Okay, sir.
They still keeping after you on IT&T?
No.
As a matter of fact, I didn't get one question on IT&T.
Not today.
But there were a couple minor things on rumors.
on the fact that we had talked about Lockheed, that you had discussed Lockheed aircraft sales to China when you were there, and something about a week deal.
And I had talked to Haig, and so I shot those two things down after stating a principle that, you know, I'm not going to get into the details of the discussions in any way, but in terms of, you know, false rumors like this, there's no foundation to them.
That's right.
That's right.
Well, it's pretty hard to say that things were or were not discussed.
But anyway, I guess you had to do that.
Well, they felt that.
But I said I was not going to get into a checklist on it.
That's right.
That's right.
That's right.
Did they ask you about New Hampshire?
Yes, they did.
And I had lived the way we talked about it.
I said, of course,
President was grateful to show his support and appreciated the assistance of those who campaigned for him.
And the other line I had written down, I pulled right from the statement that you were aware of.
Low key, no follow-up questions.
Right, right.
And I referred them for any assessment to the...
I wouldn't give it from here, and I said that the Citizens Committee has had a press conference today, and you could have referred questions there.
All right.
Okay, sir.

NARA Description

On March 8, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler talked on the telephone from 4:40 pm to 4:43 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 021-023 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 21-23

Date: March 8, 1972
Time: 4:40 pm - 4:43 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with Ronald L. Ziegler.

[See Conversation No. 321-27]

     Ziegler’s press briefing
          -The President’s forthcoming press conference
          -Busing
                -The President’s recent meeting with Cabinet committee and staff
                      -Forthcoming meeting
                -Camp David
                      -Timing of decision
                            -Forthcoming referendum in Florida primary
          -Questions at briefing
                -International Telephone and Telegraph [ITT]
                -People’s Republic of China
                      -Lockheed Aircraft
                      -Wheat deal
                            -Gen. Alexander M. Haig, Jr.
          -New Hampshire primary results
                -The President’s appreciation for support
                -Statement
                -John N. Mitchell
                -Citizens committee
                      -Press conference

Also recorded on March 8, 1972

  • 321-025 4:35 PM · 2 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 4:35 pm and 4:40 pm.
  • 321-026 4:35 PM · 5 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 4:35 pm and 4:40 pm.
  • 321-027 4:40 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 4:40 pm to 4:43 pm.
  • 321-028 4:43 PM · 10 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 4:43 pm and 4:56 pm.
  • 021-024 4:56 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 4:56 pm to 5:01 pm.
  • 321-029 4:56 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 4:56 pm to 5:01 pm.
  • 321-030 5:01 PM · 12 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 5:01 pm and 5:03 pm.
  • 321-031 5:03 PM · 40 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 5:03 pm to 5:50 pm.

All 36 conversations from March 8, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 021-023, March 8, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/021-023 (accessed October 2, 2026).