Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 281-055
Date: Thursday, October 21, 1971 at 5:50 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Woods, Rose Mary; Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")
Recording device: Old Executive Office Building
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/281-055

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite it as authoritative.

[4:16:34] There's a typo where it says, I acquainted an Assistant Attorney, Office of Legal Counsel, and Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel.
[4:16:55] Don't do it over for me, because I don't need it.
[4:17:05] Oh, sure.
[4:17:05] He's got to have a release right after I finish.
[4:17:08] Why?
[4:17:11] Why?
[4:17:11] Well, ask him if he needs it.
[4:17:18] Maybe they can just take it off and then he'll not give it up.
[4:17:20] Ask him what he needs.
[4:17:21] I think you might as well.
[4:17:23] I think it's just one of those type of damn things.
[4:17:25] And let him have it.
[4:17:31] It's right on the first copy, just right on this copy.
[4:17:34] General's not on it.
[4:17:36] You got the last page?
[4:17:41] You got the last page?
[4:17:44] Fine.
[4:18:08] In turn, the President of the United States makes over 3,000 major appointments in various government agencies.
[4:18:14] By far, the most important appointments he makes are to the Supreme Court of the United States.
[4:18:19] Presidents come and presidents go, but the Supreme Court, through its decision, goes on forever.
[4:18:25] Because they will make decisions which will affect your lives and the lives of your children in generations to come, I should like to share with you tonight my reasons for selecting the two individuals whose names I will send to the Senate tomorrow for confirmation as justices of the Supreme Court of the United States.
[4:18:41] Over the past two months, I received thousands of letters from all over the country recommending scores of able men and women for appointments at two bases in the Court.
[4:18:59] I have two vacancies prepared for you today.
[4:19:03] One of the vacancies is that left by the retirement and death of Mr. Justice Black, a former United States Senator.
[4:19:14] There's been strong support for the appointment of a member of the House of Senate and the Court, so that the appointment, so that the point of view of Congress would be actively moved.
[4:19:28] A number of letters have recommended the appointment of a woman since no woman has ever been named in the Supreme Court.
[4:19:33] A number of others have recommended the appointment of representatives of religious, racial, and nationality groups not presently represented in the Court.
[4:19:40] I believe the Supreme Court should, in the broadest sense, be representative of the entire nation.
[4:19:46] Though with only nine seats to fill, obviously every group in the country can't be represented on the Court.
[4:19:52] These are the criteria I believe should be applied in naming people to the Supreme Court.
[4:19:57] The Supreme Court is the highest judicial body in this country.
[4:20:01] Its members should be among the very best lawyers in the nation.
[4:20:05] The two individuals I have nominated for the Court meet that standard to an exceptional degree.
[4:20:12] Second consideration is the judicial philosophy of those who are to serve in the Court.
[4:20:17] I emphasize the word judicial because whether an individual is a Democrat or a Republican should not be a decisive factor in determining whether or not he should be appointed to the Court.
[4:21:08] Are you sure you don't want us to do that one page over?
[4:21:10] Don't tell them it's only one.
[4:21:12] But it was very low on the page I noticed, too.
[4:21:18] I think it's very good, huh?
[4:21:22] And from what I know, hearing people, it sounds great.
[4:21:27] Well, Rancor does not know, except among people with knowing, the qualifications that he can't knock you.
[4:21:35] Anybody who will spurs you into class in Stanford, they're all a bunch of goddamn snobs.
[4:21:38] But if you spurs you into class in Stanford, you just break here in the government.
[4:21:42] You just run circles around all these other guys.
[4:21:44] And I know Hope told me the other day, I told him, he's got powers, right?
[4:21:48] You know, he's a little older than me.
[4:21:50] Well, everybody's saying, everybody's...
[4:21:53] But you didn't see that even in the middle of that.
[4:21:55] You couldn't find it.
[4:21:57] I hadn't.
[4:21:59] So it's our, we've got the deal made, and nobody knows it.
[4:22:02] No, well, I didn't know.
[4:22:03] I didn't know what he could be told, and I denied him anybody who said anything.
[4:22:06] Oh, but... Powell doesn't want to serve you at all.
[4:22:09] But he's, he's, he's everybody's choice.
[4:22:11] the difficulty of Rehnquist cases in 1947, but that goddamn Potter Stewart was 40 when they... Well, with their rights on the... 38 or something.