{"conversationCode":"045-119","tapeNumber":45,"conversationNumber":119,"identifier":"37-wht-conversation-045-119","startDateTime":"1973-05-01T23:19:00.000Z","endDateTime":"1973-05-01T23:22:00.000Z","startDate":"1-May-1973","startTime":"7:19 PM","endDate":"1-May-1973","endTime":"7:22 PM","dateCertainty":"certain","timeCertainty":"certain","participants":"Nixon, Richard M. (President); Rogers, William P.;","description":"On May 1, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and William P. Rogers talked on the telephone from 7:19 pm to 7:22 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 045-119 of the White House Tapes.","locationCode":"WHT","recordingDevice":"White House Telephone","latitudeEstimated":38.89767,"longitudeEstimated":-77.03655,"chronCode":"5.5","chronRelease":"Fifth Chronological Release: Part V","chronReleaseDate":"21-Aug-2013","aogpRelease":"Abuse of Governmental Power Release","aogpSegment":"Segment 0","lastModified":"2015-07-27T17:04:10.235Z","findingAid":"Conversation No. 45-119\n\nDate: May 1, 1973\nTime: 7:19 pm - 7:22 pm\nLocation: White House Telephone\n\nThe President talked with William P. Rogers.\n\n[See also Conversation No. 433-59]\n\n     Watergate\n          -Special Prosecutor\n               -Sense of the Senate resolution\n               -Elliot L. Richardson’s possible statement\n               -Effect\n\f                                              -77-\n\n                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM\n\n                                                            Conversation No. 45-119 (cont’d)\n\n                 -Charles H. Percy’s statement\n                      -Implication for Richardson","filename":["045-119.mp3"],"tapeStart":"","tapeEnd":"","participantsList":["Nixon, Richard M. (President)","Rogers, William P."],"prevCode":"045-118","nextCode":"045-120","transcript":[{"start":0.57,"end":1.45,"text":"Yeah."},{"start":1.47,"end":2.03,"text":"Yeah, Mr. President."},{"start":2.56,"end":5.7,"text":"Oh, Bill, just get your judgment before I give Elliot a call."},{"start":6.18,"end":14.98,"text":"You know, with regard to this sort of sense of the Senate resolution about a special prosecutor, I think Elliot should stay one jump ahead of that."},{"start":15.04,"end":19.93,"text":"You know, I've told him he could do what he wanted, but after all, he is the prosecutor."},{"start":19.95,"end":20.88,"text":"He is it himself."},{"start":21.87,"end":30.6,"text":"he should simply say that he plans to once the grand jury finishes, or what's your advice that I tell him or I want to tell him?"},{"start":30.9,"end":43.57,"text":"Well, I think maybe what he ought to do, what he should do is to say that maybe they'll consult with the congressional leaders about that, to get their"},{"start":43.91,"end":49.27,"text":"I suggest we shouldn't rush into that because basically, you know, we know the problem of the special prosecutor."},{"start":49.31,"end":54.5,"text":"It isn't a question of trying to get justice done."},{"start":54.52,"end":56.4,"text":"It's a question of delaying it."},{"start":56.46,"end":66.49,"text":"Not only that, but, you know, he's 100% honest and he should not be sort of taken out of the picture as if he's a man of no integrity."},{"start":66.97,"end":71.95,"text":"But I think that what he could say is it's a difficult problem to respond to the"},{"start":72.97,"end":78.5,"text":"to the public interest in having impartial prosecutor just as you do."},{"start":78.78,"end":79.08,"text":"Sure."},{"start":79.2,"end":82.42,"text":"And he wants to consult with the leaders of the Congress."},{"start":82.44,"end":82.76,"text":"Right."},{"start":82.84,"end":87.01,"text":"See if they have any suggestions and try to work it out sensibly for the interest of the country."},{"start":87.45,"end":87.92,"text":"Fine."},{"start":87.94,"end":89.08,"text":"Good."},{"start":89.1,"end":90.14,"text":"I think that's the way to do it."},{"start":90.6,"end":93.61,"text":"God damn, I must, I sure agree with you on that."},{"start":95.12,"end":95.9,"text":"You know, Percy."},{"start":96.32,"end":97.29,"text":"Well, I went too far."},{"start":97.31,"end":98.31,"text":"I went beyond the pale."},{"start":98.39,"end":101.66,"text":"Yeah, I mean, if he had made it as a suggestion or something."},{"start":101.72,"end":102.14,"text":"That's right."},{"start":102.3,"end":106.24,"text":"But it just makes it sound as if Elliot Richardson is not a man of integrity and stature, my guy."},{"start":106.26,"end":108.45,"text":"Well, it attacks the new attorney general."},{"start":109.25,"end":109.53,"text":"Of course."},{"start":109.55,"end":111.17,"text":"That's why the hell we appointed him, Bill."},{"start":111.27,"end":112.48,"text":"That's right."},{"start":112.5,"end":112.86,"text":"All right."},{"start":112.9,"end":113.98,"text":"Well, we'll not worry about it."},{"start":114,"end":115.4,"text":"Just one round in the battle."},{"start":115.78,"end":115.92,"text":"Good."},{"start":116.02,"end":116.32,"text":"That's right."},{"start":116.44,"end":116.78,"text":"Okay."},{"start":116.8,"end":117.17,"text":"Thanks, Mr."},{"start":117.2,"end":117.91,"text":"Prince."}],"aiSummary":{"text":"President Nixon and Secretary of State William P. Rogers discuss how incoming Attorney General Elliot Richardson should respond to Senate pressure regarding the appointment of a special prosecutor for the Watergate investigation. Rogers advises that Richardson should proactively propose consulting with congressional leaders rather than appearing forced by a Senate resolution, a strategy intended to defend Richardson's integrity. Nixon agrees with this approach, noting that the pressure from figures like Senator Charles Percy unfairly undermines the new Attorney General's credibility.","topics":["Watergate","Elliot L. Richardson","Special Prosecutor","U.S. Senate","Charles H. Percy","Executive Branch Integrity"],"generatedAt":"2026-04-06T07:11:12.185Z"},"topicSlugs":["watergate","elliot-l-richardson","special-prosecutor","u-s-senate","charles-h-percy","executive-branch-integrity"],"audioDurationSec":125,"audioFiles":[{"file":"045-119.mp3","bytes":3997696,"durationSec":124.8,"bitrate":256262,"missing":false}],"audioIsShared":false,"audioProbedAt":"2026-09-18T02:20:02.407Z","findingAidSource":"nixonlibrary.gov subject log (2024-05), reslice-v2","findingAidUpdatedAt":"2026-09-18T08:42:44.627Z","audio":["https://nixon.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/audio/045-119.mp3"],"url":"https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/045-119","nixonLibraryUrl":"https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/45/conversation-045-119","license":"Public domain (U.S. Government work). AI-generated fields (transcript, aiSummary) are provided as-is without warranty."}