President Nixon and John Ehrlichman coordinate the strategy for a high-stakes televised address regarding federal school busing policies. They discuss the legislative pursuit of a constitutional amendment and a moratorium, while weighing potential constitutional challenges and the anticipated reactions from the press and internal staff. To build political momentum, they finalize plans for a coordinated outreach campaign involving direct mail to Congress and a series of telegrams to be managed by Charles Colson.
On March 16, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman talked on the telephone from 11:13 pm to 11:18 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 021-098 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding AidConversation No. 21-98
Date: March 16, 1972
Time: 11:13 pm - 11:18 pm
Location: White House Telephone
The President talked with John D. Ehrlichman.
Busing speech
-Ehrlichman’s forthcoming briefing
-Constitutional amendment
-Moratorium
-Legislative route
-Press
-Unconstitutionality
-Daniel L. Schorr
-Decision to make the speech
-Leonard Garment
-Delivery
-Mail to Congress
-The President’s call to H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman
-Ehrlichman’s call to Charles W. Colson
-Telegrams to congressmen
-William L. Safire draft
-Emotional element
-Julie Nixon and [Dwight] David Eisenhower, II
-Black administration staff response
-Ehrlichman’s forthcoming briefing
-Constitutional amendment
-MoratoriumNo transcript is available for this conversation. The audio may not contain audible speech, or the recording may not yet have been processed.