On December 29, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David from 5:20 pm to 5:32 pm. The Camp David Hard Wire taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 237-030 of the White House Tapes.
Transcript (AI-Generated)This transcript was generated automatically by AI and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite this transcript as authoritative. Consult the Finding Aid above for verified information.
One further thought which somebody in the right narrowing should have, which occurs to me, which is sophisticated only, but Scully will understand it totally, is that this action, of course, while it was not done for this purpose, will enormously increase the incentive for shamanic
Or shall we say, it will increase the disincentive for the enemy to break an agreement.
You see the point?
Exactly.
In other words, the enforceability, the lasting quality of an agreement.
And also, that's true all over the world.
The world, I mean, people will squeal and scream and all that about this sort of thing.
But this has its effect, too, sort of thing.
that the president will step up in the hard way to take the action to keep our commitments.
In other words, that it gives great courage to our allies.
That's right, that's right.
The one point that is very difficult to explain is the weapons.
Why did we do it?
Well, of course, we did it to break the ball buster and get the bastards to talk.
Threatening to continue to talk while they were preparing to fight, which is exactly the syndrome we were getting.
What do you think?
Is he?
What's he say?
We're up, and their infiltration has increased there.
All right, good.
Good, good.
All right, all right, all right.
Scali's reaction is encouraging because his gut reaction was the same as yours apparently.
He still feels that way this afternoon.
Good.
They'll have money if I have to write.
He can do an awful lot of good if he can get rid of the wires.
He can build the verticals.
In fact, he can give them a quick go.
And beyond that, the others are a routine basically.
And try the TVs to the best you can.
He's got the story written himself.
Just say here's what it is.
What?
So that's the last thing that occurred to me.
Well, it's quite true, of course.
It happens to be factually true.
But anyway...
The Congress, you're really getting very tiresome.
They say, why don't you consult the leaders?
I don't think, I think Pivots and the boys have got to go ahead and use the term, the leaders.
Don't just say the Congress.
Don't you think so?
Why call them the leaders?
They're already leaders down there.
I mean, they would consult the Congress, or the Senate, or the House, but never the leaders.
Now, we'll say we're going to consult the Congress, and the Republican Congress, the Republicans in Congress.
Why call it the leaders?
I mean, that's a deal so much too much.
Yeah.
He doesn't breathe.
But God almighty, the crazy son of a bitch, he's just a member of the armchair.
We can't breathe.
We can't talk to every member of the committee.
I make a few noises about him in Ohio after this.
I can't breathe.
Real hard, you know.
Yeah, told us to say, just say, I think my mate got running done for the primary.
Yeah.
Well, you know, he's learned a lot.
He could be Sam Devine, you know, one of those boys.
Yeah.
But Devine can stir it up and Luton can stir it up, you know.
And the two of them just say, well, Devine might say he's thinking of considering running, but he's thinking, you know, we're going to mix with a bigger band.
The president went by 61%.
Carried their state by 60%.
Good God, if they win by 53%, they think it's a landslide.
Basically, I am convinced, despite all the business, that the trouble with basically our Republicans down was lost.
Whether it was looking at Senator Mark and poor old nice fellow Bob
No, I'm very strong.
But Miller was always trying to have a little space.
And Alec Wood, all right, but he had a little space, too.
You know, he was trying to be independent.
Basically, man, the Republicans, that poor goddamn Wilson.
The Republicans never got it across to enough candidates to judge.
You know, we pounded and pounded and pounded, and I know some of you did.
But the idea that they had to run the election, they were trying to run it on their own too much.
Yeah, well, maybe so.
You know, Russia is just as typical as Yale, you know, Russia.
But that's what we need.
We need to go out and out on the basis that we didn't suddenly work.
Well, anyway, this is, uh, this is kind of slapping in the basement of a wet fish tomorrow, isn't it?
It's got to be that way.
They don't think of their prisoners.
They don't think of trying to end the killing from both sides.
They don't think of any honor for this country.
They just think of how they can, if they were all from a government, trying to think how they could justify.
Let's say this.
If there's been anything you're
I mean, tell it to hang on him.
Why don't you say it that way?
Why don't you give him a little shot?
You've got to be able to do it.
Let's go ahead.
Okay.
As a matter of fact, they might just, just, just, but they ought to come out there and somebody ought to come out while he's having those services dispatched right now.
I really think so.
I mean, do it in a dramatic way that won't embarrass you.
And, uh, and confront him and talk to him.
Get an articulate person who can do it.
Maybe that blind veteran goes out.
Okay.
That's what I mean.
Okay.
Fine.
All right.
That's fine.