Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 035-007
Date: Tuesday, December 26, 1972 at 6:13 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Colson, Charles W.
Recording device: White House Telephone
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/035-007

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:00] So, yes, sir, Mr. President.
[0:02] Chuck, I just wanted you to follow up on something because I tried to call Haldeman.
[0:06] He's on his way to California, and I didn't want to bother with it because I'm going to be working on the inaugural for the balance of the next four days.
[0:15] But I want you to call him when he gets in California and tell him of my really great distress about Henry seeing Percy.
[0:25] and that uh we really that bob personally has got to take charge of this and really scare the hell out of henry while he's in palm springs that he must not must not must not talk to anybody while he's there what do you think oh i think that's a i think it's extremely important you can't get it across scally can't nobody else but bob can bob's got to scare him with an inch of his life that i was shocked and and once you say that your record show
[0:52] but our records show he saw percy for an hour or what henry believed that no that's that's right it would show down it would show for actually he was in there for 45 minutes but it would show that he was here for now for almost an hour to say almost an hour and i'm just shocked and that we've and just raise hell say timon's people are raising hell about it that we've had uh all of our supporters
[1:14] whether it's true or not is irrelevant.
[1:16] The point is that all of our supporters, Democrats and Republicans, saying, what the Christ, Henry kissed, we have requests him to see him, he doesn't see him.
[1:24] And Henry has got to shut up now, okay?
[1:27] I'll do it, Mr. President.
[1:28] What do you do?
[1:28] Don't you think it's a good idea to... You see, what I'm trying to do is shut him up on other things, too, with the goddamn colonists, huh?
[1:35] Well, I think it's more than a good idea.
[1:37] I think it's vital, really, because I think Henry...
[1:40] Listen, I talked to Scali again just a few minutes ago, and
[1:43] He's very sensitive to this point.
[1:45] He said, you know, Henry is just so goddamn obsessed with his own image and his own place in history that he said, I don't think he's worried about the president at all.
[1:52] I think he's worried about himself.
[1:53] I think it's important that he know that we are aware of things like this.
[1:59] Yeah, you tell Skelly to play the other line.
[2:01] Oh, Skelly, he's...
[2:03] He's probably pleased to pinch.
[2:05] Well, he's all the way with us, and he's just...
[2:08] It's going to work out, you know.
[2:09] Let me tell you, I'm not going to tell you what's happening, but I know what's happening, and it's going to work out.
[2:16] I'm convinced it's going to.
[2:18] The point is, Henry can screw it up by all this goddamn...
[2:21] You know, pandering to the Percys, and when he gets out to California, to the Jill St. Johns and all those bitches, because they'll leak to North Vietnam.
[2:31] Let's face it.
[2:32] Oh, absolutely.
[2:33] And that's what he never seems to understand.
[2:36] But this is a good, this will be a...
[2:38] I want you to call Bob.
[2:40] You tell him he should get Henry and say, this is a shocking thing.
[2:43] Tell him there have been 30 calls into Tim's office raising hell about it, why they see Percy.
[2:49] And Henry will say, well, he just took a trip abroad.
[2:52] Shit, everybody takes trips abroad.
[2:54] Yeah, that's the standard.
[2:55] With God.
[2:56] But the point is, Percy made a nice statement about Vietnam.
[2:59] Everybody's made.
[3:01] When was he there when we wanted him?
[3:03] That's right.
[3:03] When we ever needed him.
[3:04] I heard he wasn't there.
[3:05] Don't you agree?
[3:06] Oh, absolutely.
[3:07] Poor Torham now.
[3:08] Poor Torham, very hard.
[3:09] He used to shut his goddamn mouth for a week.
[3:11] Well, we'll do it.
[3:12] And this probably will be a healthy thing because we'll use this to keep him quiet, which we damn well ought to do.
[3:19] Well, I'll get hold of him when he gets in tonight, sir.
[3:22] You'll have a little fun with it, too.
[3:23] Okay.
[3:24] Okay, boy.
[3:24] We'll do it.
[3:24] Thank you, Mr. President.