Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 285 › Conversation 285-026

Nixon, Safire & Acker on Inflation and Economic policy

Thursday, October 7, 1971 · 1:05 PM–2:43 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 8 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Acker, Marjorie P.; White House operator; Safire, William L.Conversation285-026 on Tape 285 (tape position 03:06:01–03:13:48)StartThursday, October 7, 1971 at 1:05 PMEndThursday, October 7, 1971 at 2:43 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 285-026 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon met with speechwriter William Safire to refine a public statement regarding inflation, economic policy, and public support for his administration. Nixon emphasized the need to address the psychology of rising prices, specifically suggesting that the rhetoric should include a call for price reductions on "windfall" goods. The conversation focused on balancing the messaging to acknowledge the economic frustrations of the American public while maintaining a positive tone about the administration's goals.

Audio

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Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 5 minutes of this recording (about 70% of it) is represented by only a few words. Listen to the audio rather than relying on the text below; a corrected transcript is queued.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
All right.
We'll put another video in the next video.
I want you to drop this out.
And we're on a separate page, and I'm going to go on to help put this line.
Thousands of letters of support for the White House.
Tens of letters of support for the White House as I announce the inauguration program.
I want you to listen to what people all across America all want to hear.
So each of these on a separate page.
But, you know, it's a little bit of a mouthful.
You know, it's a little bit of a statement.
And the wire took up four separate pages.
This is just to give knowledge of the future of the rest.
I've got this in the wrong place.
This that I've written here comes in right after they lettered me a certain thing.
I wrote a letter saying that the thousands of others who have written similarly, I want your help.
I want you to know how much it means.
Most Americans will put their country in a local person's hands.
Here, is that a place where you meet another person?
Maybe one or two or under a day or one.
Pay under that.
That means all of us.
For six years, this large wage generation has been, I've received big wage increases.
And every wife of a worker knows that those increases are practically all that we've done by arriving across the border.
Before that, this comes right in here.
Now, I realize that it's popular to be against those who are popular.
And some, uh, it's considered popular.
I realize that it's considered popular.
And, uh, I realize that some consider it popular.
I realize that many consider it popular to be against the, um...
.
.
.
.
.
I'm in a position today just to be against problems.
I'm not in a stable factory, I don't know.
It goes into the other side of the chain.
It's all in my head.
We have lived too long in this country.
I know it's crazy, and I know it's crazy.
Everybody goes to the supermarket, and there are more prices to go, and there are more prices to go, and there are more prices to go, and there are more prices to go.
Where are we?
Where are we?
Where are we?
Where are we?
Bill, I think I should put in, and I'm not going to put in a drift, where we say, because it puts more balance between where we say that we are
We have just, we live in a place in psychology where everybody gets some prices go up, you know.
There's time for some price reductions in psychology.
When there are windfall prices, problems, prices should come down.
That's part of it.
Windfall.
Windfall.
Okay.
Alright.
Bye.
Bye.
Leave that out there.
Okay.
Rose, do you want a little better?
Well, she's here today.
She's going to make it up to you.
Oh, she should.
Good God, no.
She's still a little baby.
Well, she's had a hell of a time.
been out a month or five weeks.
It's going to take a long time.
She'll take another month before she gets over it.
But in a way, it's probably a good thing for her.
What she doesn't realize is the boredom is terrible and the frustration is rest.
And just to have her mind in control for that one month of time, I think it's good for her.
All right.

NARA Description

On October 7, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon, Marjorie P. Acker, White House operator, and William L. Safire met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:05 pm and 2:43 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 285-026 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 285-026

Date: October 7, 1971
Time: 1:05 pm - unknown before 2:43 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President met with Marjorie P. Acker.

     Draft of speech for October 7, 1971
           -Text changes

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

                 -Wage earners
                 -Windfall profits

The President talked with White House operator at an unknown time between 1:05 pm and 1:20
pm.

[Conversation No. 285-26A]

[See Conversation No. 10-135]

The President conferred with Acker.

            -Text of draft

The President talked with William L. Safire between 1:20 pm and 1:22 pm.

[End of telephone conversation]

**********************************************************************

[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift 07/22/2019.
Segment cleared for release.]
[Personal Returnable]
[285-026-w001]
[Duration: 42s]

     Rose Mary Woods
          -Health
               -Time missed recovering

**********************************************************************

Acker left at 1:25 pm.

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

Also recorded on October 7, 1971

  • 010-131 12:48 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and William L. Safire talked on the telephone from 12:48 pm to 12:51 pm.
  • 010-132 12:51 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 12:51 pm and 1:02 pm.
  • 285-023 12:51 PM · 5 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 12:51 pm and 1:02 pm.
  • 285-024 12:51 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 12:51 pm and 1:02 pm.
  • 010-133 1:02 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 1:02 pm.
  • 010-134 1:02 PM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Marjorie P. Acker talked on the telephone from 1:02 pm to 1:03 pm.
  • 285-025 1:02 PM · 17 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Marjorie P. Acker met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 1:02 pm to 1:03 pm.
  • 010-135 1:03 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, Marjorie P. Acker, and William L. Safire talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:03 pm and 1:20 pm.

All 106 conversations from October 7, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 285-026, October 7, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/285-026 (accessed October 6, 2026).