Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 269 › Conversation 269-035

Nixon & Ehrlichman on School prayer and Eighteen-year-old vote

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

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Ehrlichman, John D.Conversation269-035 onTape 269 (tape position 06:16:16–06:18:53)StartTuesday, August 3, 1971 at 1:47 PMEndTuesday, August 3, 1971 at 3:40 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 269-035 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and John Ehrlichman discussed potential responses to anticipated press conference questions regarding prayer in public schools and the voting age for eighteen-year-olds. They assessed the political implications of these issues, identifying potential opposition from secular groups, Jewish organizations, and constitutional scholars. The discussion focused on formulating a strategic administration stance to navigate these sensitive topics effectively during upcoming public appearances.

  • School prayer
  • Eighteen-year-old vote
  • Press conference strategy
  • Constitutional law
  • Public opinion

Audio

Download MP3 (part 1) · 111.8 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 111.5 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 111.8 MB ·Download MP3 (part 4) · 29.1 MB

This conversation has not yet been cut into its own clip, so the player above contains the full tape segment shared with neighbouring conversations. It begins about 06:16:16 into the tape and ends around 06:18:53.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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 · Timestamps are positions within the full tape recording.

6:17:22I wonder if maybe, uh, it would be perhaps, uh, if it was free, if it was legal, if it was good, just make sure you catch it on time.
6:17:27If he makes a decision, it's very good.
6:17:29Well, I think, you know, it's one of those that I use to kind of, you know, show off out there.
6:17:32I should have had my gun.
6:17:33I should have given it off to him.
6:17:35He's a nice one.
6:18:14Okay, bye.

NARA Description

On August 3, 1971, 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. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 269-035 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 269-35

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

The President talked with John D. Ehrlichman.

     Prayer in public schools
          -Possible press conference question
          -Possible opponents
                -Atheists, Jews
                -Constitutionalists
          -Possible press conference question
                -Voting by eighteen-year-olds

Also recorded on August 3, 1971

  • 269-027 1:47 PM · 4 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 · 37 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 · 1 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.
  • 269-031 1:47 PM · 13 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.
  • 269-032 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 · 10 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.

All 51 conversations from August 3, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 269-035, 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/269-035 (accessed September 18, 2026).