Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 232 › Conversation 232-010

Nixon phone call with Kissinger on Diplomatic Strategy and Negotiation Tactics

Wednesday, November 29, 1972 · 10:10 AM–1:47 PM ET · Camp David Hard Wire · 5 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.Conversation232-010 on Tape 232StartWednesday, November 29, 1972 at 10:10 AMEndWednesday, November 29, 1972 at 1:47 PMRecording deviceCamp David Hard WireSourceNixon Library record for 232-010 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Henry Kissinger met at Camp David to coordinate strategy for an upcoming, high-stakes meeting, emphasizing a firm and uncompromising tone to resolve lingering political or diplomatic frustrations. The discussion focused on narrowing the agenda to essential points to ensure maximum impact and maintaining a facade of lengthy, serious negotiations to signal the end of a conflict. Nixon also directed Kissinger to stay in a private residence in Florida to avoid media scrutiny while finalizing these sensitive arrangements.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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).
and I prepared on them.
I am not going to go into quite as much detail as these points would indicate, because I think that if you make eight points, you might get through one.
And I'm going to pick the points
That's right.
I'll say that I intend to cover that with brutality.
Don't worry.
I'll do that.
All right.
I'll make it again.
I don't know how many times that's going to be done, but I intend to say that, but...
Okay.
No, no.
I said, I wondered if we just should not give on that point.
So I said, not give.
I just wanted to open that door.
Price bills, flip the schedule, and a hell of a lot of other things.
But I just don't think that...
I don't think I'm going to afford to meet him at all because I think he's too unpredictable.
Don't worry, I'm not going to...
They're going to compress a hell of a lot harder on that than I think they will to get that.
But the fights are well done, and I'll work them out.
And as far as his...
Leonard is concerned and so forth, but the only problem is whether they do what he broke in math because they may, because there isn't going to be, we may have to do that.
He said, say, I'm going to tilt much stronger to the top line than he was doing around the mannequins.
Much stronger.
It has to be.
I know these people, and at this point, they've just got to say that there's no nonsense and that I am.
shocked that it's gone this way they haven't paid any attention to my letters and that uh and so forth now let's come right down to it this is all it's all finished let's get going that's what we do we'll leave at three o'clock now why don't you come to florida you better come down friday night don't you think i think we should make that so they were going to announce today we have a
four-hour meeting or something like that.
In other words, we'll have a long meeting.
The most best thing is how long we do meet, but you can say, we met for four hours, so that when you get back, they know it's all over.
So just plan that you're here for a period of at least four.
Yeah, good.
And you can just, and we'll put you, I told all of them to put you in the tree, in the house, so that you're not caught on the beach.
You see what I mean?
you know, the big house.
It's not right.
You see, if you're there, then you're in a position that the press doesn't know where you are and so forth.
They'll figure you're over in a compound.
You like that house, got the swimming pool and everything else.
So we can do that, and there's money to ruin that.
But we will meet, whatever length is required, but let's offer your information.
Frankly, I expect maybe an hour at most.
Okay.
Anything else?
Nothing new in the north or anything?
Relentlessly on.
That's what we have to do now.
Thanks for the information.

NARA Description

On November 29, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm. The Camp David Hard Wire taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 232-010 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 232-10

Date: November 29, 1972
Time: Unknown between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm
Location: Camp David Hard Wire

The President talked with Henry A. Kissinger.

[See Conversation No. 156-18]

Also recorded on November 29, 1972

  • 156-012 10:10 AM · 17 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm.
  • 156-013 10:10 AM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm.
  • 156-014 10:10 AM · 10 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm.
  • 156-015 10:10 AM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm.
  • 156-016 10:10 AM · 10 min — President Richard M. Nixon and George H. W. Bush talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm.
  • 156-017 10:10 AM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm.
  • 156-018 10:10 AM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm.
  • 156-020 10:10 AM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:10 am and 1:47 pm.

All 33 conversations from November 29, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 232-010, November 29, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/232-010 (accessed October 10, 2026).