Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 269 › Conversation 269-031

Nixon & Sanchez on Political victories and Senator Dominick

Tuesday, August 3, 1971 · 1:47 PM–3:40 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 13 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Sanchez, ManoloConversation269-031 on Tape 269 (tape position 05:40:18–05:53:19)StartTuesday, August 3, 1971 at 1:47 PMEndTuesday, August 3, 1971 at 3:40 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 269-031 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon met with Manolo Sanchez to discuss the President's schedule and recent political victories, specifically thanking Senators Tower, Boggs, and Cook for their support. Nixon also expressed frustration with Senator Pete Dominick's negative stance on China policy and campaign activities. The conversation touched on the timing of a press conference, with Nixon wanting to avoid it immediately after a budget speech, and also briefly mentioned the administration's position against busing and repudiation of an HEW plan, with Mitchell tasked to communicate these stances.

  • Senate support
  • Political victories
  • Senator Dominick
  • China policy
  • Press conference timing
  • Busing
  • HEW plan
  • Senator Mitchell

Audio

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Position in tape: 05:40:18 – 05:53:19

part B, 1:53:45

269a.mp3
269b.mp3
269c.mp3
269d.mp3

NARA Description

On August 3, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 269-031 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 269-31

Date: August 3, 1971
Time: Unknown between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President met with Manolo Sanchez.

     The President's schedule

Sanchez left at an unknown time before 3:40 pm.

Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript was made by an AI model listening to the recording (gemini-3.8-flash) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Speaker names are the model's inference from the voices and the participant list. Words and names can still be wrong — verify against the audio and the finding aid before citing.

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Nixon[unintelligible]
NixonMacGregor, please.
Nixon[unintelligible] try to reach MacGregor last night to tell him something [unintelligible].
NixonI just can't couldn't figure out a list of [unintelligible]
NixonWhy is there a list of calls?
NixonI did a little notes on that night [unintelligible]. For example, [unintelligible]
NixonTower, first, who didn't want to call, then the other fellow that went out. Some of the pictures are neat. You can't call anybody without calling Tower. Just say, "Dear John, Dear John, great job. Many thanks. RN." Caleb Boggs, "Many thanks. RN."
NixonAnd Bill Roth, "I know I know this was I know that a lot of people were [unintelligible]. I am ultra-grateful. RN." [unintelligible]
NixonYeah. I tried to reach you last night. You're in New York, they said, and slept going to a play, or theatre, or some dive. But I just thought that was a great victory, and, did you take off right afterwards, or did you take off earlier? Yeah, right. All right. Yeah.
NixonI tell you, when you win one, you win them big, don't you? That's right. Landslide Landslide MacGregor. Yeah, yeah. Well, that's great. I'll send I'm sending little notes to various people: to John Tower, to Caleb Boggs.
NixonYou know, Caleb and Roth came through. That was critical. And, and how about Cook? Yeah. I wrote both. I'm writing Tower. How about Cook? Did you get Marlow Cook? Yeah. Yeah. Okay.
NixonWell anyway, the Oh, one other thing. You know, your, yours and my dear friend, Pete Dominick. Can't you get him to sort of pipe down a little, I mean that? You know, the guy, first on the China thing and virtually every time he turns around he comes up with something quite negative. And after all, he is the campaign chairman.
NixonI don't mind him voting against Lockheed. I understand that. And we win. But, you know, look look at our leaders, our great leaders. We lost Scott, we lost him, we lost Aiken, good God. We lost Margaret Smith.
NixonYeah. What?
NixonI know. Is there anything we can do for him, for Pete? I mean, I don't know, he You know, Henry's talked to him about the thing, and he really thinks it's true on the China thing, Clark. It's a smart thing. Not only smart, but it's right. And And, don't you agree?
NixonYeah. Yeah. Yeah, because, basically, we're fighting to keep Taiwan in. If we if we weren't doing that, they'd be out on their ass right now.
NixonYeah. Good. Well. Good. Well, when he gets back, call him. Gee, say a few fosterings. He is the Senate campaign committee chairman. Okay. Well, you you did a great job, all your team.
NixonAnd say John, I called, will you? And is there any other notes that you I don't want to write too many because if you did, it it'll cheapen the currency. But I will write Marlow Cook since I know him.
NixonGood. Good. Yeah. Now, I called several, but the only one that came through was Caleb. And he came through because Roth came through.
NixonRight. Okay. Did you pay did Now, we got to get him that Secretary of Commerce thing. Well, I will. I will. I believe in keeping my bargains. Okay.
NixonAnd that was Marlow Cook, dear Marlow. "In the all tests, yours was the decisive vote. I want you to know how grateful I am. RN. Along with many others, yours [unintelligible] decisive vote. [unintelligible]."
Nixon[unintelligible]
NixonI think this is far better than what I have been doing. I know some other where I wrote everybody who voted for it. But you [unintelligible]. Because that then really does cheapen. It shit.
NixonMost of them, you see Most of them didn't vote for you. Some of these people voted because you you put the heat on. A lot of others purely because they had to. Now Gambrell voted for Lockheed, not for you. He voted for Lockheed [unintelligible] because of Atlanta. And so did the other, the Georgia, too, did that. [unintelligible] you get the idea. It's very boring. [unintelligible] pile of 16 letters, only 7 of them for me to sign.
NixonAnd then the people who see that it's like their birthday or whatever. I could I call somebody, but sometimes I don't call. And that's good. And these shit is well. When it's shouldn't be easy for him to go over there [unintelligible] Call in that woman. [unintelligible] where? Yeah, and got a theater in New York.
Nixon[unintelligible] that sort of thing. Well, I like to do it, if I have nothing else [unintelligible].
NixonOkay. Well, John is still at Shultz's. Well, I just got I just got to get everybody to understand. I told Shultz that we can't direct pass, go, and I have many, many [unintelligible].
NixonSorry, yeah. Morgan has several people that they that they go back in. I said part of the problem is those people kicked me out of Atlanta last year. It's a couple of them that's ended up in Austin this year. And the same people did that again.
Nixon[unintelligible] I assume you're not going to press that tonight, all right? No, I'm not. You aren't. I think I might as well get in touch with Bob, uh,
UnknownAnd Ziegler called to say that that Haldeman buttoned up, then you might want to put it off because there's there's some rustle out that you're going to have one tomorrow afternoon, and that will turn out to be [unintelligible]
NixonWhy would Haldeman want to put it off?
UnknownI don't know, but a lot of people probably thought there might be one tomorrow. [unintelligible] Buchanan said that. You know, we check with a few people and stuff. They get a feel of it, and he thought to get at it tomorrow.
UnknownWhat what he suggests is that what you might want to do is have it at 11:00 in the morning or 12:00 or something like that, instead of 3:00, which is when they're expecting, which would then throw throw them off as far as getting the regulars in. But, the disadvantage, you may not get you get
Nixonmorning, so you get the wild, the wrong people. You get Mary McGrory and all those people instead of regular reporters.
UnknownYeah. And, also also, they have a chance then to tear it all during prime time that day.
NixonHm. That they may do anyway if they're expecting 1:00 or 2:00, they said.
NixonWell, we've got that. They're told? So they're off my hip. I excuse you to get it. I don't want to get it off till after I don't want to put it off till after that damn budget speech tomorrow night because because they will be where they are, up on their high horses and, you know, they could be because that's a sequel variation. I don't want a heck of a comment on the damn budget speech.
UnknownThey just, you know, they wouldn't talk about anything. But but I just think that you got to do it, if you want. They have tonight, they have to-
NixonWell, why does why does Ziegler wait? Why didn't Ziegler announce it?
UnknownI suppose that threw him off.
UnknownThe Press Secretary's guarded [unintelligible] all or whatever it is, and then they want it set.
NixonFine, if he wanted, but fine. Did they have to announce it?
UnknownNo, [unintelligible] but it has the Press secretary going around setting a meeting for the ER.
NixonOh. That's true. That might be [unintelligible]
UnknownYeah. In other words, just take off.
NixonAll right.
NixonYeah.
UnknownYeah.
NixonYeah. I wonder what our I understand. I I just been here for dinner now. What is the what is the latest on this? He told me that that I hadn't had told that we're not going to take this truck. So,
Nixonuh, so what's the, what about the dead [unintelligible] can't we let him get out sure if we're going to put that out or not put that out?
NixonYeah. That'll be a while. That's right. All right.
NixonWould you uh and Mitchell will call them and tell them that that the President expects them to listen.
NixonAll right.
NixonAll right.
NixonYeah.
UnknownYeah.
NixonNow, on that score then, is the appeal filed today?
NixonSo Christ's sake, uh, on the waiting period, are we making our statements, uh, I think you better make these calls next week, or next, next year.
NixonNow Haldeman's not calling. Well, but you can tell John, I did, I know you were in the other meeting, but when you call Mitchell, you personally follow up. Mitchell must make these calls to and takes the ones that are like to pop off because the Texas attorney first and the second attorney second. I don't know which attorney [unintelligible]
UnknownYeah. Uh, how about the Texas Attorney?
NixonYeah.
UnknownYeah.
NixonSo, uh, the Attorney General Mitchell Mitchell Mitchell Mitchell will tell them that first, you're against bussing. We got to act first, and uh and then also that as far as this plan is concerned, we we repudiate the HEW plan. We repudiate the HEW plan.
Nixonand propose to appeal. And he might like
NixonI think that I guess

Also recorded on August 3, 1971

  • 269-027 1:47 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
  • 269-028 1:47 PM · 39 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
  • 269-029 1:47 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
  • 269-030 1:47 PM · 43 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
  • 269-032 1:47 PM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
  • 269-033 1:47 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
  • 269-034 1:47 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
  • 269-035 1:47 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.

All 45 conversations from August 3, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 269-031, August 3, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/269-031 (accessed November 2, 2026).