Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 288 › Conversation 288-002

Nixon & Kissinger on Foreign Policy and Information Security

Monday, October 11, 1971 · 9:26 PM–9:34 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.Conversation288-002 on Tape 288 (tape position 00:01:18–00:04:55)StartMonday, October 11, 1971 at 9:26 PMEndMonday, October 11, 1971 at 9:34 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 288-002 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Henry Kissinger met to discuss strategy regarding interactions with an individual identified as Johnson and the management of sensitive information networks. The dialogue focused on navigating potential inquiries and defining a clear, cautious posture to avoid compromising official positions during external questioning. The two reached an understanding on maintaining discretion and prioritized internal consensus over written documentation.

Audio

Download MP3 · 2.9 MB

This clip was extracted from the full tape recording by Easy Nixon.

Listen to the full tape segment

Position in tape: 00:01:18 – 00:04:55

288a.mp3

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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

· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).

Yeah.

How'd you get along with, uh, Johnson?

Yeah.

Oh, you're a Johnson boy.

That's good.

Keep him, uh, hop up a little.

I don't plan to get into this, but our position is that what they say is considered one or two times.

But the Russians have three boats in the United States.

It's not an economic deal.

Russia is trying to .

That's pretty well .

Let me ask you another thing.

I just don't know the way out of it.

It might have some question about whether we're going to fight in conference to get the burden and to leave.

I do want to say no.

Yeah, I think they're not good.

I guess, yeah.

I don't know if they want to get out of the forest, but I don't know if they want to get out of the forest.

So that way I thought that was true.

I think the best thing is to read the statement and not comment at all on the questions.

I deal with it.

If I go to a question, I go to comment and say what the significance of this is.

Just let them figure it out.

Thank you.

Not that much of a pig.

That's right.

We just don't have to worry about it.

We'll talk tomorrow, so if you're feeling like it, you're not going to have to send me a message.

But then, if not, I can say to you, third, you're going to have to send me a message.

I don't know if you can have Wednesday, but I'm going to take it.

All right.

I'm going to take it.

I'm going to let Henry get out of that.

I'm going to let him do it.

All right.

Bye.

NARA Description

On October 11, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 9:26 pm to 9:34 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 288-002 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 288-2

Date: October 11, 1971
Time: 9:26 pm - 9:34 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President talked with Henry A. Kissinger.

[See Conversation No. 11-47; One item has been withdrawn from the conversation]

Also recorded on October 12, 1971

011-047 9:26 PM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 9:26 pm to 9:34 pm.
288-003 9:36 PM · 1 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 9:36 pm and 9:40 pm.
588-004 12:01 AM · 9 sec — Ronald L. Ziegler and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:01 am and 11:22 am.
588-005 12:01 AM · 8 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:01 am and 11:22 am.
588-006 12:01 AM · 4 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:01 am and 11:22 am.
588-022 12:01 AM · 7 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:01 am and 11:22 am.
288-004 8:25 AM · 1 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 8:25 am and 8:30 am.
011-048 8:30 AM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 8:30 am.

All 71 conversations from October 12, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 288-002, October 12, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/288-002 (accessed October 12, 2026).