On December 24, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and George P. Shultz met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 1:37 pm to 1:46 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 309-003 of the White House Tapes.
Transcript (AI-Generated)This transcript was generated automatically by AI and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite this transcript as authoritative. Consult the Finding Aid above for verified information.
Hello.
I thought you were taking off today.
Great.
I just wanted to tell you, I just finished with Henry and John, and I'm just delighted that the medicine worked out in your mind.
The main, the only thing that concerns I have is that you've had, or you've answered in that, that is, I, as far as the numbers concern, I'm not...
That doesn't bother me.
Well, I just want to be sure that Laird is on board so that he doesn't go around our backs to the right wingers and our third and others and all that sort of thing.
So if I understand, he now is dependent, will depend on the budget.
Is that correct?
Right.
Well, then, if the deal is made and it was to trial and done, what do you find, what number did you find to get to?
I didn't ask the number.
I just said it was an ordinary number.
Yeah.
I had a question about the water bill.
You said that you were concerned that we had great budgetary conditions for the issue.
Do you understand that we don't have to sign the land deal?
I don't know for the future.
Well, I want you to know that my whole, as you know, I'm not keen on the water to begin with.
I just don't think I want to have a veto fight about this.
Also, it builds musty up too much.
And I don't think we have to do it.
So is that all right with you?
All right.
We've got a veto, huh?
All right.
I know George and Max will be right here with everybody nuts in this subject, but I think we're going to have to start talking to them so that they can do something about it.
The other thing is, obviously, you could tell John, I told him, thank you, I'm talking to you about it.
Go ahead.
I'm signing that bill right there.
We'll find a way to screw it up, and we'll see what the conditions are in the case.
It's kind of right up to the rats' hand, the matter is.
I was thinking, uh...
I guess the, uh...
The guy with the money said, by the way, we've got to go to Fowler's Bar.
We'll be returning every now and then.
I mean, as far as my influence on him, that's what I've ever heard.
And he said, I, uh, what was his name?
He said, uh, I'm on the line.
I said, all right.
Well, you watch it, and then remind me that, uh, if I am talking to him again, I'll go in.
Next time, I'll just bring him in.
Well, you've just got to realize that it's more likely that it's a burger.
It's virtually the same.
It's virtually the same deal.
And it's the way it ought to be.
I haven't done anything in a few years.
The Board of Henry, of course, is so worried about the impact on Dr. Henry.
He did the best he could.
He saved 40% of the man's country when it was abolished.
He grew well up and off.
And as far as the people of this country were concerned, they were just glad he stayed out of it.
Don't you think that's true?
They don't want him to fall in the back.
The way in which Kevin Petty...
And I was very emotional about this sort of thing.
You might not be in my country, but we're all back in the area.
And people are worried about this kind of thing.
You know how it is.
I personally believe that columns and this kind of thing.
You have to realize that in a country that's like that, it's not what I want to do to you.
I don't want anybody to speak out of love with Joe Kraft, like Charles Kraft.
Okay, well, Merry Christmas, and you'll play tennis tomorrow?
Yeah, good.
It was a nice ceremony.
People were quite moved by that time.
And who knows?
Who knows?
Oh, one other thing.
I told John that I had put on in my house theater Sunday night the Brian song.
I don't know whether you saw it or not, but it's an ABC hour-and-a-half movie on Brian Bigelow, and they all say it's the best thing that race relations have ever done in my memory.
And it's a beautiful movie.
So be sure to have a few in case anybody's around for a Monday night conversation.
It's really wonderful.
Okay, bye.