Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 45 › Conversation 045-051

Kissinger, Cox & Woods on Watergate and Presidential speeches

Monday, April 30, 1973 · 10:43 PM–10:45 PM ET · White House Telephone · 2 min

ParticipantsWhite House operator; Cox, Tricia Nixon; Woods, Rose Mary; Kissinger, Henry A.Conversation045-051 on Tape 45StartMonday, April 30, 1973 at 10:43 PMEndMonday, April 30, 1973 at 10:45 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 045-051 ↗

AI Summary

Henry Kissinger called President Nixon to express support following a speech regarding the Watergate scandal, framing the President's actions as courageous and historically significant. Nixon dismissed the political turmoil and criticism as temporary "hysteria" and insisted that his primary focus remained on maintaining world peace. The two men briefly discussed the necessity of ignoring the scandal and confirmed the scheduling of Kissinger’s upcoming trip to Moscow.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
Hello?
Dr. Kissinger for the president.
Just a moment, please.
Hello?
Dr. Kissinger.
Hello?
Hello, Mr. President.
Hi, Henry.
Well, that was a very difficult speech and a very courageous one.
And I think
Long after this turmoil is forgotten, what you've done in the last years will be remembered, and what you will do in the next years.
Well, we did.
We must do the right thing, and we're going to do the right thing.
There's no question.
And when do you go to Moscow, Henry?
I'm leaving on Thursday evening, Mr. President.
Through cheating.
Fine, fine, fine.
But there's absolutely no doubt that when this is over, that you'll make the same sort of decisions that got you to this point.
The only thing that matters is peace in the world, and that's the thing that you and I have got to work for, Henry, and forget all this crap.
It's pure crap, as you know.
When this hysteria is over, Mr. President, I think matters will be seen in the right perspective.
Imagine all your cross people are calling and gloating and saying, where will we finish this son of a bitch?
But they haven't, because they don't know me.
They don't know this.
And second, these things have to be seen in a historical perspective.
They won't see it.
No, they will not see it.
But six months from now, they'll have some other excitement.
Okay, Henry.
Thank you.
And it was very good.

NARA Description

On April 30, 1973, White House operator, Tricia Nixon Cox, Rose Mary Woods, and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 10:43 pm to 10:45 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 045-051 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 45-51

Date: April 30, 1973
Time: 10:43 pm - 10:45 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The White House operator talked with Tricia Nixon Cox.

     Telephone call from Henry A. Kissinger

Tricia Cox conferred with the President. Rose Mary Woods can be heard in the background.

[Begin conferral]

     Telephone call from Kissinger

[End conferral]

The President talked with Kissinger.

     Watergate
          -President’s speech
                -Impact

     Kissinger’s schedule
           -Moscow trip

     World peace
                                              -36-

                    NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                              Conversation No. 45-51 (cont’d)

     Watergate
          -President’s speech
          -Press reaction
          -Historical perspective

Also recorded on May 1, 1973

  • 045-048 10:34 PM · 4 min — White House operator, Tricia Nixon Cox, and Richard G. Kleindienst talked on the telephone from 10:34 pm to 10:36 pm.
  • 045-049 10:39 PM · 2 min — White House operator, Tricia Nixon Cox, President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, Harry S. Dent, and [Dwight] David Eisenhower, II talked on the telephone from 10:39 pm to 10:40 pm.
  • 045-050 10:41 PM · 1 min — White House operator, Tricia Nixon Cox, and Adm. Thomas H. Moorer talked on the telephone from 10:41 pm to 10:42 pm.
  • 045-052 10:45 PM · 20 sec — Tricia Nixon Cox, White House operator, and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:45 pm and 10:48 pm.
  • 045-053 10:48 PM · 2 min — White House operator, Tricia Nixon Cox, President Richard M. Nixon, and Ronald W. Reagan talked on the telephone from 10:48 pm to 10:50 pm.
  • 045-054 10:51 PM · 2 min — George P. Shultz and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone from 10:51 pm to 10:54 pm.
  • 045-055 10:54 PM · 44 sec — White House operator, President Richard M. Nixon, Tricia Nixon Cox, and Edward R. F. Cox talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:54 pm and 11:04 pm.
  • 045-056 10:54 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon, Julie Nixon Eisenhower, Tricia Nixon Cox, and Ronald L. Ziegler talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:54 pm and 11:04 pm.

All 181 conversations from May 1, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 045-051, May 1, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/045-051 (accessed October 10, 2026).