Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 157 › Conversation 157-010
Nixon phone call with Camp David Operator on Melvin R. Laird
Wednesday, December 6, 1972 · 3:31 PM–4:40 PM ET · Camp David Study Table ·34 sec
AI Summary
President Nixon requested that the Camp David operator confirm the locations of Secretary of Defense Melvin R. Laird and Secretary of State William P. Rogers. He specifically sought to verify if both officials were attending a NATO conference, while explicitly noting he did not wish to speak with either of them. The President directed the operator to consult the National Security Council staff to resolve the inquiry and call him back with the information.
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
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NARA Description
On December 6, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm. The Camp David Study Table taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 157-010 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 157-10
Date: December 6, 1972
Time: Unknown between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm
Location: Camp David Study Table
The President talked with the Camp David operator.
-14-
NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Apr.-08)
Conversation No. 157-10 (cont’d)
[See Conversation No. 233-16]
Melvin R. Laird and William P. Rogers
-Location
-North Atlantic Treaty Organization [NATO] conference
-National Security Council [NSC]
[There is no Conversation No. 157-11]Also recorded on December 6, 1972
- 157-008 3:31 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm.
- 157-009 3:31 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm.
- 157-012 3:31 PM · 14 sec — Camp David operator and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm.
- 157-013 3:31 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm.
- 157-014 3:31 PM · 19 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Gerald R. Ford talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm.
- 157-015 3:31 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm.
- 233-014 3:31 PM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm.
- 233-015 3:31 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 3:31 pm and 4:40 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 157-010, December 6, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/157-010 (accessed September 18, 2026).