Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 040-054
Date: Tuesday, June 12, 1973 at 11:38 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Haig, Alexander M., Jr.
Recording device: White House Telephone
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/040-054

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:00] Hello.
[0:01] The general on the line, sir.
[0:02] Thank you.
[0:03] Hello?
[0:04] Well, I want you to know I just called to bring it on there.
[0:07] Oh, did you get him?
[0:08] All right.
[0:08] Which I thought was good.
[0:09] Fine.
[0:09] And I spoke to him quite candidly and said that, look, there's no security problem.
[0:16] He said, well, he wasn't worried about that.
[0:18] I said, that's fine.
[0:18] I know.
[0:19] But I want to assure you there's none.
[0:21] And then I also told him that I was going to open up my daughter's room and the guest room so that we could have
[0:29] him and Gromyko if they wanted to stay.
[0:31] And he said, well, just me.
[0:33] So it's all worked out, and they're delighted.
[0:36] And he says, Brecksnuff wants us to have some quiet talks with me alone with just him and Henry.
[0:43] Great.
[0:43] Oh, that's funny.
[0:45] And so it's all worked out, and he's happy as a clam.
[0:51] He says, believe me, this guy's looking forward to this visit.
[0:54] I think so.
[0:55] I really do.
[0:56] That's right.
[0:57] No, this is going to be...
[0:58] This is going to smash the press.
[0:59] Yes, sir.
[1:00] It is.
[1:01] Well, that's wonderful.
[1:02] I'm really delighted that we're going out there because I think it...
[1:06] He and I were riding the same plane.
[1:08] He doesn't want to go to Houston.
[1:10] Good.
[1:11] And that's good because we were...
[1:13] But you see, in Houston, you could run into birchers.
[1:16] In California...
[1:17] It's a controlled audience.
[1:19] And by God, there will be nothing there.
[1:21] I'll shoot every son of a bitch in the place.
[1:25] Screen them all.
[1:29] But I want a crowd.
[1:30] But I want them to be decent.
[1:33] Yeah.
[1:36] I think that's shaped up just a few things are working out.
[1:40] You might be surprised, but boy, if you can get Scranton, that'll be the greatest thing.
[1:45] And let me know in the morning if he's interested, and I'll call him and tell him, Bill, you've got to do this job.
[1:51] The way I put it, it's very hard.
[1:52] The president needs you.
[1:54] This is a command performance, Bill.
[1:56] You're the only man that can do it.
[1:57] He's your first choice.
[1:59] You know, all that sort of thing.
[2:01] And that we want you not only to come down for this,
[2:05] But you'll sit in the National Security Council and things of this sort so far.
[2:10] Great.
[2:10] He'll love that.
[2:11] Oh, he'll love it.
[2:12] Yeah, well, I know he's been fishing.
[2:14] He wants a job.
[2:15] Good.
[2:16] Great.
[2:16] All right.
[2:17] Good.
[2:17] All right.