{"conversationCode":"252-003","tapeNumber":252,"conversationNumber":3,"identifier":"37-wht-conversation-252-003","startDateTime":"1971-04-21T19:31:00.000Z","endDateTime":"1971-04-21T19:42:00.000Z","startDate":"21-Apr-1971","startTime":"2:31 PM","endDate":"21-Apr-1971","endTime":"2:42 PM","dateCertainty":"certain","timeCertainty":"certain","participants":"Nixon, Richard M. (President); Colson, Charles W.;","description":"On April 21, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 2:31 pm to 2:42 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 252-003 of the White House Tapes.","locationCode":"EOB","recordingDevice":"Old Executive Office Building","latitudeEstimated":38.897567,"longitudeEstimated":-77.039147,"chronCode":1,"chronRelease":"First Chronological Release","chronReleaseDate":"5-Oct-1999","aogpRelease":null,"aogpSegment":null,"lastModified":"2015-07-27T17:04:10.235Z","findingAid":"Conversation No. 252-3\n\nDate: April 21, 1971\nTime: 2:31 pm - 2:42 pm\nLocation: Executive Office Building\n\nThe President talked with Charles W. Colson\n\n[See Conversation No. 42-63]","filename":["252-003-splice.mp3"],"tapeStart":"00:03:38","tapeEnd":"00:08:42","participantsList":["Nixon, Richard M. (President)","Colson, Charles W."],"prevCode":"252-002","nextCode":"252-004","tapeTranscriptFile":"252a.mp3,252b.mp3","transcript":[{"start":207.29,"end":207.51,"text":"Yeah."},{"start":209.35,"end":210.79,"text":"Yeah."},{"start":210.83,"end":210.93,"text":"Oh."},{"start":210.95,"end":229.93,"text":"Tells me the hard-ass were pleased with my welfare stand-up."},{"start":229.95,"end":232.29,"text":"Not everybody heard about it."},{"start":239.99,"end":255.22,"text":"What do they think of the crowd at the mall down there?"},{"start":255.52,"end":261.56,"text":"Do they mention that or do they see it?"},{"start":261.58,"end":261.96,"text":"It's awful."},{"start":261.98,"end":265.05,"text":"They shouldn't fight veterans."},{"start":267.44,"end":269.18,"text":"We're getting many points out of Dillman."},{"start":269.2,"end":277.22,"text":"Some of those folks in the cabin kind of got around."},{"start":277.28,"end":278.75,"text":"That's the word."},{"start":278.81,"end":291.37,"text":"The idea is somebody they know darn well will run away from the meeting and they're going to go out and talk to us."},{"start":292.1,"end":296.1,"text":"We've got also some more jobs."},{"start":296.18,"end":305.58,"text":"I mean, I'm inviting ships starting to go up in that space."},{"start":305.74,"end":306.52,"text":"All right."},{"start":307.1,"end":316.78,"text":"We've got no use for the concentration camp."},{"start":316.8,"end":321.38,"text":"The concentration camp is just the same as the Moscow one."},{"start":328.43,"end":347.41,"text":"So, I told Bob this morning, I don't know what it was, I don't know what it was, I don't know what it was, I don't know."},{"start":349.08,"end":360.72,"text":"They want to help me, but they don't want to help these people with their sponge and gold working off the others."},{"start":360.96,"end":361.34,"text":"I'm good."},{"start":364.02,"end":367.23,"text":"It's helpful particularly to get into the personal deceit."},{"start":368.34,"end":373.68,"text":"There was a lot of speech writing on here, and of course I had to do some things on my own."},{"start":373.74,"end":379.64,"text":"And also a lot of the kids from Rio Grande High School, you know, had to stop."},{"start":379.68,"end":380.62,"text":"I have a little story here."},{"start":380.98,"end":386.78,"text":"A fellow speech writer who does this said, you know, I'll take the price of the pros and then it's fine too."},{"start":386.8,"end":388.82,"text":"A little pro, a little of that."},{"start":388.88,"end":391.06,"text":"A little Leanne, a little of that."},{"start":392.11,"end":393.57,"text":"That can get around."},{"start":393.87,"end":401.17,"text":"Another thing that you might do is get back to the area that Bob was going to have really done."},{"start":401.21,"end":412.72,"text":"Not only that, but all the Republican members, the Congress, and all this other kind of thing."},{"start":413.32,"end":417.8,"text":"This is an issue that really strikes home right now."},{"start":418.04,"end":421.56,"text":"They're very behind back in the welfare industry."},{"start":421.88,"end":423.01,"text":"It's a lot of money."},{"start":424.6,"end":433.24,"text":"And I'm proud of my mom, of course, and I'm very proud of her."},{"start":433.32,"end":435.24,"text":"Of course, the best part of everything."},{"start":435.32,"end":438.46,"text":"I guess, you know, that's what married as far as the truth."},{"start":438.54,"end":442.1,"text":"In fact, the trouble is, it penalizes itself."},{"start":442.14,"end":444.06,"text":"It's a lot harder than ours."},{"start":444.17,"end":446.06,"text":"It's a lot harder than our situation."},{"start":446.19,"end":447.97,"text":"It's a lot harder than our situation."},{"start":448.09,"end":449.69,"text":"It's a lot harder than our situation."},{"start":450.77,"end":453.59,"text":"That's a good call."},{"start":453.97,"end":460.09,"text":"Now check up today."},{"start":471.13,"end":473.49,"text":"Check up today to see what's happening."},{"start":473.57,"end":476.97,"text":"These guys now, they can't make this shit go out in the world."},{"start":477.01,"end":477.99,"text":"They talk about courage now."},{"start":478.01,"end":479.99,"text":"This is a profile from courage now."},{"start":480.61,"end":481.89,"text":"That's when they do that."},{"start":482.29,"end":486.53,"text":"Check today and have a goal or somebody, somebody just want to make a speech and do it."},{"start":486.55,"end":486.93,"text":"It's better."},{"start":486.99,"end":489.73,"text":"I don't know where I'm in here as a free Democrat."},{"start":490.15,"end":492.87,"text":"They won't stand up to be counted on either side."},{"start":492.97,"end":495.51,"text":"Things are what I think they're doing."},{"start":495.53,"end":498.39,"text":"So, that's it."},{"start":498.41,"end":499.03,"text":"That's it."},{"start":499.93,"end":500.19,"text":"That's it."},{"start":500.63,"end":500.99,"text":"That's it."},{"start":501.8,"end":503.32,"text":"Well, now let's see what they did today."},{"start":503.4,"end":507.95,"text":"They have to go today."},{"start":508.01,"end":512.81,"text":"They didn't table it."},{"start":512.85,"end":517.66,"text":"Let's come down a little."},{"start":517.74,"end":517.96,"text":"Good."},{"start":518.78,"end":519.34,"text":"Oh, yeah."}],"transcriptBoundary":{"start":207,"end":522,"startMethod":"llm-alignment","endMethod":"llm-alignment"},"transcriptConfidence":"high","transcriptSource":"bigtape","originalFilename":["252a.mp3","252b.mp3"],"spliceSource":{"spliceType":"bigtape","sourceFiles":["252a.mp3"],"cutStart":205.5,"cutEnd":523.5,"adjustedStart":205.5,"adjustedEnd":523.5,"boundaryMethod":"llm-alignment","confidence":"high","splicedAt":"2026-09-18T14:10:24.259Z"},"aiSummary":{"text":"President Nixon and Charles Colson discuss strategies for managing public perception regarding anti-war protests and the welfare system. The President expresses concern over the political optics of demonstrators occupying the National Mall and emphasizes the need to leverage support from conservative factions. Nixon instructs Colson to monitor current legislative developments and mobilize political allies to take a firm stand on these divisive issues.","topics":["Public relations","Welfare reform","Anti-war protests","Political strategy","Legislative affairs"],"generatedAt":"2026-04-06T11:49:01.449Z"},"topicSlugs":["public-relations","welfare-reform","anti-war-protests","political-strategy","legislative-affairs"],"audioDurationSec":318,"audioFiles":[{"file":"252-003-splice.mp3","bytes":5077020,"durationSec":318.01,"bitrate":127717,"missing":false}],"audioIsShared":false,"audioProbedAt":"2026-09-18T14:10:24.259Z","transcriptPrev":{"segments":61,"replacedAt":"2026-09-18T14:11:36.071Z"},"audio":["https://nixon.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/audio/252-003-splice.mp3"],"url":"https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/252-003","nixonLibraryUrl":"https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/252/conversation-252-003","license":"Public domain (U.S. Government work). AI-generated fields (transcript, aiSummary) are provided as-is without warranty."}