Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 35 › Conversation 035-013

Nixon phone call with Bull on Nicaragua earthquake and Humanitarian aid

Wednesday, December 27, 1972 · 7:41 PM–7:43 PM ET · White House Telephone · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Bull, Stephen B.Conversation035-013 on Tape 35StartWednesday, December 27, 1972 at 7:41 PMEndWednesday, December 27, 1972 at 7:43 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 035-013 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon directs Stephen B. Bull to urgently coordinate a visit to Nicaragua to provide earthquake relief and demonstrate personal support for the victims. Nixon intends to arrive with a substantial financial donation and plans to visit devastated areas via helicopter while minimizing press fanfare. He instructs Bull to bypass the State Department and senior staff, tasking only Col. Richard T. Kennedy of the NSC with facilitating the logistics for a departure the following morning.

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Transcript (AI-generated)

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I've got a rather tough assignment for you, but it's quite important and see if you can work it out in the next half hour.

I'd like to fly to Nicaragua in the morning, check with the people in terms of what kind of a check I could take down.

You know what I mean?

We're giving a huge amount of relief there, but I want to

do something, also check with our helicopter crews so that I could fly into the areas that are, you know, the most difficult, you know, to show some concern about the people.

Okay?

Now, what time would you want to go, Mr. President?

Oh, about 8 o'clock, 9 or 7.

The earlier, the better.

I'd like to fly right down early in the morning.

I haven't said a word to anybody.

I'm just telling you that this is something I want to lay on, and I don't want you to check with 18 people.

I don't know who the hell you do check with, but I guess you have to check with the, don't check with the State Department, but check with maybe Kennedy at the NSC.

He's the only one around.

Hagan is sure gone.

in the NSC.

He can check with the ambassador down there who was a friend of ours, Turner Shelton.

Tell him he'd like to come down.

I just want to go down and spend two days.

I want to fly into the areas, you know.

I've got to know what kind of a check we can take down.

You know what I mean?

You well understand we're giving enormous amounts of money.

I'll take down

maybe $10 million check and hand it to them when I'm there.

Also, whatever we can do in terms of bringing things along.

I don't want any press.

You know, the press can go, but they've got to go to another plane.

We'd take a pool, of course, on ours.

Of course, of course, of course.

But what I meant is that we're not doing this for press purposes.

I just want to go down to show...

to demonstrate personally the interest of the United States in this terrible tragedy.

You do a little checking.

This is a damn good assignment for you now on your own.

All right.

You check it out.

Check it first with Kennedy and the rest, and call me back.

Now, don't raise it up to the... Don't ask Coleman about it.

I want him to have a little rest in California for a change.

All right.

Don't check with Haldeman.

Don't check with Ehrlichman.

Don't check with the State Department.

Tell Kennedy I want to go.

I want to leave at the earliest possible moment.

If we can leave at 7, that's better.

But no, you can't do that because you've got to tell the jackass press here.

So shall we say we'll leave at, say, 10 o'clock in the morning.

That's a good time to leave.

See what I mean?

I'll get on it and get back as soon as I can.

Fine.

Okay, boy.

Bye.

Thank you.

Bye.

NARA Description

On December 27, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull talked on the telephone from 7:41 pm to 7:43 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 035-013 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 35-13

Date: December 27, 1972
Time: 7:41 pm and 7:43 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with Stephen B. Bull.
                                           -16-

                 NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                             Conversation No. 35-13 (cont’d)

      The President's schedule
           -Possible trip to Nicaragua
                 -Relief aid to earthquake victims
                 -Visits to affected areas
                        -Helicopter
                        -Departure time
                        -Anastasio Somoza Debayle
                        -State Department
                        -Col. Richard T. Kennedy
                              -National Security Council [NSC]
                              -Alexander M. Haig, Jr.
                              -Henry A. Kissinger
                              -Turner B. Shelton
                        -Duration
                        -Nature of trip
                              -Relief aid
                                    -Amount
                              -Press pool
                                    -The President’s view
                        -The President’s instructions to Bull
                              -Kennedy
                              -Return call to President
                              -H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman
                                    -California
                              -John D. Ehrlichman
                              -State Department
                              -Kennedy
                        -Departure time
                              -Press notification
                        -Return call to the President

Also recorded on December 28, 1972

035-012 7:15 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:15 pm and 7:41 pm.
035-014 7:43 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:43 pm and 7:52 pm.
035-015 7:52 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull talked on the telephone from 7:52 pm to 7:53 pm.
035-016 7:53 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:53 pm and 8:14 pm.
035-017 8:14 PM · 20 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 8:14 pm to 8:33 pm.
035-018 8:33 PM · 26 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:33 pm and 8:39 pm.
035-019 8:39 PM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 8:39 pm to 8:45 pm.
035-020 8:45 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:45 pm and 8:49 pm.

All 76 conversations from December 28, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 035-013, December 28, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/035-013 (accessed October 11, 2026).