Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 273 › Conversation 273-049

Nixon & Safire on Economic Policy and Speechwriting

Sunday, August 15, 1971 · 7:34 PM–7:36 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Safire, William L.Conversation273-049 onTape 273 (tape position 04:42:21–04:43:37)StartSunday, August 15, 1971 at 7:34 PMEndSunday, August 15, 1971 at 7:36 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 273-049 ↗

AI Summary

President Richard Nixon met with speechwriter William Safire to finalize the content and tone of his forthcoming address concerning major economic policy shifts. The discussion focused on refining the rhetoric surrounding new tax plans, currency convertibility, and long-term economic strategies. Key advisors, including John Connally, Herbert Stein, and Paul Volcker, were consulted to ensure the messaging effectively communicated the administration's plan to stabilize the economy.

Audio

Download MP3 (part 1) · 111.9 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 112.0 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 67.9 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 04:42:21 into the tape and ends around 04:43:37.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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.

4:42:21Mae'r cynyddiadau cyflogol rwy'n eu cynnig, wedi'u cymryd gyda'r hyn sydd wedi cael ei wneud yn ystod y flwyddyn cyntaf y flwyddyn yma.
4:42:26Byddwn ni'n symud yn fawr i'r golau.
4:42:28Nid yw'r dyn ni wedi cael ei gyflawni ers 1956.
4:42:31Mae'n ymddangos i'r holl gyflog a'r amser ymlaen.
4:42:34Ydych chi'n edrych at y dyfodol?
4:42:43Yn y dyfodol, rwyf wedi cyfeirio i'r Prif Weinidog a'r Trasur ar gyfer cymryd newydd cynlluniau tax yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynulliad yn gyda'r Cynull
4:43:10Rhaid i'r cyllid cyllid i'r cynllun symuladu'n gysylltiedig â'r cyllid trefnu er mwyn lleihau'r cwestiwn.
4:43:20Rhaid i'r cyllid trefnu'n gysylltiedig â'r cyllid trefnu.
4:43:24Rhaid i'r cyllid trefnu'n gysylltiedig â'r cyllid trefnu.
4:43:27Yn ymwneud â hynny, ers bod y Cymru wedi arwain ar ddwy o'r amgueddfeydd mawr o'r amgylchedd hon, byddaf yn gofyn i'r Cymru i gyflawni fy nghymhwysoedd i ddychmygu'r cyflawniad o'r rhaglenni rhaglenni dros 3 mis ac 12 mlynedd ar ôl y flwyddyn.

NARA Description

On August 15, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and William L. Safire met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 7:34 pm to 7:36 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 273-049 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 273-49

Date: August 15, 1971
Time: 7:34 pm - 7:36 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President talked with William L. Safire.

     President's forthcoming speech on economy
          -Content and phraseology
                 -Possible changes
                       -Convertibility
                            -John B. Connally
                            -Effect on listeners
                            -Herbert Stein
                            -Paul A. Volcker

Also recorded on August 15, 1971

  • 273-046 7:14 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon and William L. Safire met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 7:14 pm to 7:24 pm.
  • 273-047 7:24 PM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 7:24 pm and 7:34 pm.
  • 273-048 7:24 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 7:24 pm and 7:34 pm.
  • 273-050 7:36 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 7:36 pm and 8:55 pm.
  • 273-051 7:36 PM · 15 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 7:36 pm and 8:55 pm.
  • 273-052 7:36 PM · 28 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 7:36 pm and 8:55 pm.
  • 273-053 7:36 PM · 30 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 7:36 pm and 8:55 pm.
  • 273-054 7:36 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 7:36 pm and 8:55 pm.

All 31 conversations from August 15, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 273-049, August 15, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/273-049 (accessed September 18, 2026).