Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 31 › Conversation 031-032

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

Thursday, October 12, 1972 · 6:09 PM ET · White House Telephone · 17 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); White House operatorConversation031-032 on Tape 31StartThursday, October 12, 1972 at 6:09 PMEndThursday, October 12, 1972 at 6:09 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 031-032 ↗

President Nixon instructed the White House operator to facilitate a meeting with Charles W. Colson. He specifically directed that Colson be routed to the Executive Office Building (EOB) rather than the main White House office. This brief communication served as an administrative directive to coordinate a private consultation with his special counsel.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Could you pass Mr. Coulson to the separate DOB office, please?
To your office, sir?
DOB.
Yes, sir.

On October 12, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 6:09 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 031-032 of the White House Tapes.

Conversation No. 31-32

Date: October 12, 1972
Time: 6:09 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with the White House operator.

        Request for a meeting with Charles W. Colson
  • 796-003 9:45 AM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:45 am to 9:52 am.
  • 796-004 10:05 AM · 33 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, unknown person(s), Ronald L. Ziegler, and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:05 am to 10:33 am.
  • 031-033 6:09 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:09 pm and 6:10 pm.
  • 366-004 6:09 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at 6:09 pm.
  • 366-005 6:09 PM · 12 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 6:09 pm and 6:10 pm.
  • 031-034 6:10 PM · 12 sec — Henry A. Kissinger and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:10 pm and 7:05 pm.
  • 031-035 6:10 PM · 9 sec — Henry A. Kissinger and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:10 pm and 7:05 pm.
  • 366-006 6:10 PM · 2 hr 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Charles W. Colson, Stephen B. Bull, Manolo Sanchez, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Henry A. Kissinger, and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 6:10 pm to 8:46 pm.

Conversation 031-032, October 12, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/031-032 (accessed October 1, 2026).