Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 197 › Conversation 197-005

Nixon phone call with an unidentified caller on Camp David and Maintenance

Friday, July 21, 1972 · 5:36 PM–6:05 PM ET · Camp David Hard Wire · 18 sec

Participants[Unknown person(s)]Conversation197-005 on Tape 197StartFriday, July 21, 1972 at 5:36 PMEndFriday, July 21, 1972 at 6:05 PMRecording deviceCamp David Hard WireSourceNixon Library record for 197-005 ↗

AI Summary

Technical personnel met at the Aspen Lodge to assess the physical state of infrastructure and equipment at the Camp David facility. The participants discussed the complete deterioration of two specific units and agreed that they required immediate replacement. No high-level policy or political matters were addressed during this brief maintenance-focused exchange.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data

I'll go down.
This is the two units we're going to replace.
I'll go down.
Just that it won't do absolutely nothing.
It always thinks that way.
And everybody else is aware about it.
The commander's boss, everybody.
These two units, they're just completely deteriorating.
You know what I mean?

NARA Description

On July 21, 1972, unknown person(s) met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:36 pm and 6:05 pm. The Camp David Hard Wire taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 197-005 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 197-005

Date: July 21, 1972
Time: Unknown between 5:36 pm and 6:05 pm
Location: Camp David Hard Wire

Unknown men met.

      Replacement of units

Unknown men left at an unknown time before 6:05 pm.

Also recorded on July 21, 1972

  • 027-039 4:13 PM · 14 sec — The recording device engaged on an unknown date, sometime between 4:13 pm on July 21, 1972 and 11:55 am on July 24, 1972, but the conversation appears to be blank.
  • 750-013 4:20 PM · 34 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Alexander P. Butterfield, Rose Mary Woods, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:20 pm to 4:59 pm.
  • 750-014 4:59 PM · 46 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:59 pm to 5:00 pm.
  • 750-015 5:00 PM · 12 sec — United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 5:00 pm on July 21, 1972 and 8:47 am on July 24, 1972.
  • 197-001 5:36 PM · 12 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:36 pm and 6:05 pm.
  • 197-002 5:36 PM · 11 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:36 pm and 6:05 pm.
  • 197-003 5:36 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:36 pm and 6:05 pm.
  • 197-004 5:36 PM · 1 min — Manolo Sanchez and unknown person(s) met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:36 pm and 6:05 pm.

All 35 conversations from July 21, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 197-005, July 21, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/197-005 (accessed October 12, 2026).