Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 43 › Conversation 043-194

Nixon phone call with Ford on People's Republic of China

Friday, February 23, 1973 · 3:38 PM–3:44 PM ET · White House Telephone · 5 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Ford, Gerald R.Conversation043-194 on Tape 43StartFriday, February 23, 1973 at 3:38 PMEndFriday, February 23, 1973 at 3:44 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 043-194 ↗ · National Archives Catalog, NAID 417195091 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Representative Gerald Ford discussed managing bipartisan congressional travel to the People's Republic of China, emphasizing the need for selective, balanced participation. The two also reviewed the positive reception of a recent White House event intended to reward political loyalty, specifically addressing concerns from members excluded due to their opposition to administration policies. Furthermore, they strategized on encouraging Democratic defections to the Republican Party and identified the importance of fostering congressional pride in the administration's Vietnam settlement.

Audio

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NARA Description

On February 23, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Gerald R. Ford talked on the telephone from 3:38 pm to 3:44 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 043-194 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 43-194

Date: February 23, 1973
Time: 3:38 pm - 3:44 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with Gerald R. Ford.

[See Conversation No. 413-17A]

       Foreign relations
             -The People’s Republic of China [PRC]
                   -The President’s conversation with Carl B. Albert
                   -Henry A. Kissinger’s talks with Chinese officials
                                            -111-

                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                       -Chou En-lai
                  -Congressional travel to the PRC
                       -US position
                       -Members of Congress
                             -Michael J. (“Mike”) Mansfield
                             -Albert and Ford
                                    -Role
                             -Bipartisanship

       February 22, 1973 meeting
            -The President’s speech
                  -Reaction
            -The President’s supporters and opponents
                  -Ford’s view
                  -Revenue sharing
                  -Evenings at the White House
                  -Dinners
                  -Jacob K. Javits
            -Donald W. Riegel, Jr.
                  -William C. (“Don”) Daniel
                        -Possible party switch
                              -House of Representatives rules
            -Mark O. Hatfield
                  -Vietnam policy
            -Veto votes
            -Vietnam settlement
                  -Pride
                        -Public
                        -Prisoners of War [POW]
                        -Congress

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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I have Congressman Ford for you now.
Yeah.
Hi, Mr. President.
Jerry, I wanted to tell you that I had mentioned to Earl, and he may have spoken to you, that I mentioned in the meeting the other morning that we, when Henry talked to Joe and I, we clearly understood that we'll approve all of the
that dare to go over there and we'll see that the house gets a proper break on it mansfield is asked to go again you know and uh so uh we're just going to be damn sure that you know that we will do it now the problem there is that you just can't you're going to you and you and he are going to have to take a lot of the either deciding who does it doesn't go because everybody wants to go to the darn place right uh carl spoke to me after you talked to him and uh i think carl and i can work this out very uh
They want it always, and they don't want Republicans alone.
They want Republicans and Democrats, and they don't want Democrats alone.
I think we ought to keep it at a reasonable figure.
And some of the boys really deserve it.
Highly selective.
Exactly.
That was a damn good meeting yesterday, or last night, Mr. President.
They're a great bunch of guys, aren't they?
Right.
I didn't go through the receiving line because a lot of fellows wanted to do it.
But I thought it was a great speech and nothing but good response.
I heard indirectly this morning in Washington, I'm out in Grand Rapids now, and that some of the Senate boys were...
My reaction, I mean, the ones who didn't get invited, my reaction was, damn it, they should have known that things were going to work out, and they ought to have been on the right side instead of politics.
As I said in my opening, you know, I was very clear.
I said we have people down when they support us on revenue sharing, and we have people down when they support us on something else.
Right.
And also, incidentally, all the Republicans in the House will be invited either to a church or an evening in the next four weeks.
They're all on the list, and they'll all have their invitations in the next three or four days.
So they're all covered.
But you couldn't really—I mean, you couldn't have, for example, a Javits there, for Christ's sakes.
Or, you know, really, these people have gone through hell.
It wasn't to try to divide them.
It was simply the question of—
them for what they had done on certain boats that's right and when there'll be other times and some of these guys will not support us and they won't be there either you might be interested in light of the little problem we're having with don regal dan daniel sidled up to me last night at the reception and he's a great guy oh i know former commander right and he said jerry i'm going to be with you next year
And if we can get Dan and about four or five others to commit themselves before the primary, we could start a real flood.
Right.
I want to talk to Dan in a little more depth.
You get at it and see if he could be a leader in the thing.
Because really, I'll tell you that.
of them ought to do it.
There are just plenty of those guys around there that just aren't going to be comfortable in that other party.
And the more they go through this caucus rigamarole that they're going through now...
The way they're destroying the rules of the House, Jerry, for Christ's sake.
That's right.
And destroying any independence within the Democratic Party, these fellows can't stomach that.
I think it's a sort of a catalyst that may bring about
some things that we've been working on but couldn't find the right key to put it together now if you get any the thing you or uh the rest of me in the center but many guys in the house who aren't there you can say look fellows we uh everybody was there you know we had some that had voted against us a couple of times but we couldn't have something that voted against us all the time you know how could you how can you have hatfield such a thing that's right and you couldn't have uh don regal either and uh
and a few others.
Sure.
Because, you see, otherwise, Jerry, we don't let our guys that stand up.
And that also means, like, we get a couple of tough vetoes here.
Right.
Now, if we sustain them, I'm going to have the people down for reception.
We've got a couple coming, and that would be great.
Right.
Because that'll give some backbone to some of these people that are, you know, scared to death of what one vote means, and it doesn't mean a damn thing.
Right, right.
Well, it was a great party.
I think the one thing that we all want to do, Jerry, we want all of our people to be proud of what we've done in Vietnam and not relieved.
That's right.
I mean, that's really what this is about.
By God, the men are proud, the VOWs are proud, and the congressmen should be proud that they just didn't get out, but that they got out accomplishing our goal.
You see, that's the message we're trying to get to them.
I think you've got about 200 plus that'll have a good message after that meeting last night.
Thank you very much, Mr. President.

Also recorded on February 23, 1973

  • 043-191 3:29 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and George H. W. Bush talked on the telephone from 3:29 pm to 3:32 pm.
  • 043-192 3:32 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 3:32 pm and 3:38 pm.
  • 043-193 3:32 PM · 26 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 3:32 pm and 3:38 pm.
  • 413-014 3:32 PM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:32 pm and 3:35 pm.
  • 413-015 3:35 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:35 pm and 3:38 pm.
  • 413-016 3:35 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:35 pm and 3:38 pm.
  • 413-017 3:35 PM · 41 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Gerald R. Ford, White House operator, Wilbur D. Mills, Stephen B. Bull, Henry A. Kissinger, and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 3:35 pm to 4:40 pm.
  • 043-195 3:44 PM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 3:44 pm and 3:47 pm.

All 94 conversations from February 23, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 043-194, February 23, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives (NAID 417195091). Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/043-194 (accessed November 1, 2026).