Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 43 › Conversation 043-125

Nixon phone call with Bull on Piano tariffs and Trade policy

Tuesday, February 20, 1973 · 7:21 PM–7:22 PM ET · White House Telephone · 49 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Bull, Stephen B.Conversation043-125 on Tape 43StartTuesday, February 20, 1973 at 7:21 PMEndTuesday, February 20, 1973 at 7:22 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 043-125 ↗

AI Summary

Stephen B. Bull contacted President Nixon regarding an urgent decision required on piano tariff rates before the existing escape clause expired at midnight. Bull sought approval to deliver the memorandum from Peter M. Flanigan for the President's signature. Nixon instructed Bull to send the document over, noting that Manolo Sanchez would handle the delivery to ensure the deadline was met.

Audio

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Transcript (AI-generated)

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Hello.
I have Steve Bull calling you, sir.
Yeah.
Thank you.
Mr. President, sorry to disturb you.
Yes, sir.
Steve Bull, sorry to disturb you.
A paper just came in from Peter Flanagan regarding, of all things, an action on piano tariff rates.
And apparently the current escape clause rate expires tonight at midnight.
And they have a paper that it asked me to bring before you today.
before midnight tonight for your decision on whether to continue it.
Shall I just bring it up to you?
Just send it over, yeah.
I'll sign it.
Shall I bring it up to your room, sir?
Just send it over, and Manolo will pick it up, and I'll send it back to you, okay?
All right, sir.
Thank you.
It's no problem.
All right, sir.
It's fine.

NARA Description

On February 20, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull talked on the telephone from 7:21 pm to 7:22 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 043-125 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 43-125

Date: February 20, 1973
Time: 7:21 pm - 7:22 pm
Location: White House Telephone

Stephen B. Bull talked with the President.

       Peter M. Flanigan’s memorandum
             -Piano tariff rates
             -Manolo Sanchez
                   -Delivery

Also recorded on February 21, 1973

  • 043-126 7:22 PM · 19 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:22 pm and 7:30 pm.
  • 043-127 7:30 PM · 11 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 7:30 pm to 7:41 pm.
  • 043-128 7:41 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:41 pm and 7:43 pm.
  • 043-129 7:43 PM · 41 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 7:43 pm to 7:44 pm.
  • 043-130 7:44 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:44 pm and 7:54 pm.
  • 043-131 7:54 PM · 22 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:54 pm and 8:21 pm.
  • 043-133 8:21 PM · 25 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:21 pm and 10:00 pm.
  • 859-001 8:27 AM · 12 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:27 am to 8:40 am.

All 88 conversations from February 21, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 043-125, February 21, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/043-125 (accessed October 1, 2026).