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Conversation 043-058

TapeTape 43StartTuesday, February 13, 1973 at 8:35 AMEndTuesday, February 13, 1973 at 8:37 AMParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Denton, Jeremiah A., Jr.Recording deviceWhite House Telephone
AI Summary

President Nixon called Mrs. Jeremiah A. Denton, Jr. to express his gratitude and admiration for her husband following his recent release from captivity as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. The President acknowledged the sacrifices made by the families of POWs and credited their resilience with helping the administration achieve an honorable end to the war. During the exchange, Nixon shared personal anecdotes from his own military service to emphasize the significance of the simple comforts the returning men would soon enjoy.

Jeremiah DentonPrisoners of WarVietnam WarPOW returnMilitary service
AudioNARA Description

On February 13, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Jeremiah A. Denton, Jr. talked on the telephone from 8:35 am to 8:37 am. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 043-058 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 43-58

Date: February 13, 1973
Time: 8:35 am - 8:37 am
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with Mrs. Jeremiah A. Denton, Jr.

[See Conversation No. 854-4]

       Denton’s return from captivity
            -Reaction
            -Length in captivity
            -The President’s appreciation

       The President’s military experience
            -World War II

       Timing of return
            -Physical
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                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                        (rev. Aug.-08)

                                                                Conversation No. 43-58 (cont’d)
Transcript (AI-Generated)

This transcript was generated automatically by AI and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite this transcript as authoritative. Consult the Finding Aid above for verified information.

Right, right.
Mr. President.
Hello.
Mr. President.
Ms. Denton, I wanted you to know how very proud we all were when we saw your husband come off and what he said from that plane.
And we're just...
I'm very proud of him too.
Very happy and very grateful to you as all of us are.
Well, I said that the main thing is that all of you, I mean you, the wives and children, the fact that you sort of kept the faith, that made it possible for us to get an honorable end to this war.
And that's what all matters.
They didn't suffer in vain.
Well, I don't think so, and I don't know how to express how happy we are and how relieved the men are.
Well, you just, when they get back there now, you feed him up a little.
He looks a little bit thin.
I will.
He called me yesterday and said he had the first hot bath in seven and a half years.
So they have a lot to catch up on, a lot of things that we take for granted.
A hot bath, sure, and I suppose it, oh, you'll be looking for, you know, the...
Things that we all take for granted.
I remember that one of the things I recall was that it was nice to feel a cloth napkin again, you know?
Yeah.
I was in the Pacifica, but that wasn't much, but I remember there was that.
And get some real potatoes again, that was something, instead of the other kind.
So, well, you're at Virginia Beach, are you?
Yes, sir.
Well, that's fine.
And all your children are all right and everything?
getting along pretty well.
Right.
We wish you just the very best.
Well, thank you, Mr. President.
I appreciate it.
When will you see him?
About two or three days he'd be back?
Maybe a week.
I think what they want to do, I think, is to give them a chance to, you know, get a hot bath and get all their physicals and all that sort of thing.
And then they'll get them home.
But I issued instructions there to keep them only as long as it's necessary.
But, you know, when we send our men to the moon, we have to put them in, you know, try to wash off all that moon dust, and I guess they want to get all that North Vietnam dust off of them before they come home.
After seven and a half years, my goodness.
It's a lifetime.
Well, now you make up for it, okay?
Well, we will intend to do that, and thank you.
That's your life.
Take a nice trip.
Okay.
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