Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 293-015
Date: Wednesday, November 17, 1971 at 5:23 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Ehrlichman, John D.
Recording device: Old Executive Office Building
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/293-015

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[1:17:32] Hi, John.
[1:17:48] How are you getting along on that, uh, uh, person matter now?
[1:18:03] All right.
[1:18:03] I think, of course, it does not mean, in my opinion, that we put this in a budget necessarily.
[1:18:10] Would you agree?
[1:18:11] Because we can still go forward with our... Well, that's the only thing that's concerning after I talk to you, that we haven't...
[1:18:18] I don't want to, per se, say that we haven't changed our... one of our major post-mortem... post-mortem welfare reform because of the... so forth, but...
[1:18:33] but they're supportive of that.
[1:18:37] Good deal.
[1:18:37] That's good.
[1:18:38] Well, I think it's the less of the two bad choices.
[1:18:45] Yeah, well, we really got stoned by the fact that there's a chance of meeting one and a damn little chance of meeting the other, as I consider it.
[1:18:53] Because even though we have both governors, and the big governor is President Rockefeller on our side, he sure doesn't agree with one principle or the other.
[1:19:01] Well, both principles are on Rockefeller.
[1:19:03] He just believes that this is the same crap that we share.
[1:19:05] And it does.
[1:19:06] Isn't that his argument?
[1:19:08] Well, Reagan's argument is not that great.
[1:19:10] His argument is that it's going to mean an escalation of welfare costs.
[1:19:15] And he's dead right about that.
[1:19:16] It puts it on the top.
[1:19:17] God damn, that Percifer coming up was such a horrible mess.
[1:19:20] Well, I suppose it's because he's trying to help older people.
[1:19:23] Yeah.
[1:19:23] Yeah.
[1:19:23] I must say, it was...
[1:19:32] on the Ogilvy thing where we now go ahead and try to help him with these.
[1:19:38] I gave him his nickels and dimes.
[1:19:51] What the hell is he screaming about?
[1:20:01] But she feels pretty good, we should.
[1:20:03] She's gonna be able to survive.
[1:20:07] Okay, Tom, thank you.