Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 158 › Conversation 158-051

Nixon phone call with Moorer on Vietnam War and Operation Linebacker II

Saturday, December 30, 1972 · 12:35 PM–12:37 PM ET · Camp David Study Table · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Moorer, Thomas H. (Adm.)Conversation158-051 on Tape 158StartSaturday, December 30, 1972 at 12:35 PMEndSaturday, December 30, 1972 at 12:37 PMRecording deviceCamp David Study TableSourceNixon Library record for 158-051 ↗ · National Archives Catalog, NAID 648452623 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon consulted with Admiral Thomas H. Moorer to discuss his desire to send a formal message of appreciation to military commanders following recent bombing operations over North Vietnam. Moorer confirmed that North Vietnamese forces were significantly depleted of missiles and supplies, attributing the success of the campaign directly to the President's decisive leadership. Nixon requested that the commendation avoid a tone of triumphalism while emphasizing the professionalism and courage of the Air Force personnel involved.

Audio

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NARA Description

On December 30, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Adm. Thomas H. Moorer talked on the telephone at Camp David from 12:35 pm to 12:37 pm. The Camp David Study Table taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 158-051 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 158-51

Date: December 30, 1972
Time: 12:35 pm - 12:37 pm
Location: Camp David Study Table

The President talked with Adm. Thomas H. Moorer.

[See Conversation No. 238-13]

       Vietnam War
            -US bombing of North Vietnam
                 -The President’s message to military commanders
                       -The President’s appreciation for courage and sacrifice
                             -Criticism
                 -The President’s letter
                 -Effect on North Vietnamese
                       -Military equipment
                             -Missiles
                                             -64-

                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                           Conversation No. 158-51 (cont’d)

                  -Costs
                  -The President’s message to military commanders
                        -Avoiding “gloating” about victory
                  -North Vietnamese reaction
                        -Significance
                              -Resumption of negotiations
                                    -“Peaceniks” view
                  -The President’s role
                        -Courage
                        -Air Force
                  -Air Force
                        -View of the President
                  -The President’s message to military commanders

Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 2 minutes of this recording (about 59% of it) is represented by only a few words. Listen to the audio rather than relying on the text below; a corrected transcript is queued.

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.

Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data

Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).

Uh, well I just wanted to, uh, to, uh, hand out a message to the, sorry, the commanders, uh, you know, who involved in the operation for the past.
Well, Mr. President, that's all the time we have.
We really appreciated your letter the other day.
And I just think they did a terrific job.
As you know, those people up there are just about out of all kinds of missiles and so on.
I think they're in real tough shape.
And these boys did a terrific job.
And thank you very much for thinking about it.
And great talk.
I think the most important thing is the energy that should be running.
It doesn't look like it's loading or anything like that.
I don't know if you can.
Well, thank you so much, sir.
I appreciate your advice.
I'll do that right away.
Thank you.
This is for you.
This is for you.
This is for you.
This is for you.
This is for you.
Absolutely, sir.
Mr. President, it's your courage.
I mean, your courage is what made this happen.
I'm not playing any games.
I know that.
So, uh, that's what we want.
Yes, sir.
Well, we have a, you know, a great group of professionals.
Right.
And they certainly, uh, listen to a man in my youth.
All right.
Okay.
Thank you.
Yes, sir.
I'll send that right away, Mr. President.
Thank you.

Also recorded on December 30, 1972

  • 238-013 12:35 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Adm. Thomas H. Moorer met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David from 12:35 pm to 12:37 pm.
  • 158-052 12:37 PM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 12:37 pm and 12:38 pm.
  • 238-014 12:37 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 12:37 pm and 12:38 pm.
  • 158-053 12:38 PM · 23 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at 12:38 pm.
  • 238-015 12:38 PM · 24 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at 12:38 pm.
  • 238-016 12:38 PM · 26 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 12:38 pm and 12:40 pm.
  • 158-054 12:40 PM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at 12:40 pm.
  • 238-017 12:40 PM · 19 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at 12:40 pm.

All 62 conversations from December 30, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 158-051, December 30, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives (NAID 648452623). Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/158-051 (accessed November 2, 2026).