Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 313 › Conversation 313-025

Nixon & Klein on Public Relations and India-Pakistan conflict

Monday, January 10, 1972 · 5:16 PM–5:21 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 4 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Klein, Herbert G.Conversation313-025 on Tape 313 (tape position 01:34:32–01:38:35)StartMonday, January 10, 1972 at 5:16 PMEndMonday, January 10, 1972 at 5:21 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 313-025 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Director of Communications Herbert G. Klein discuss Klein's recent media appearance and public reaction to administration policies. Nixon offers feedback on Klein's handling of questions regarding the India-Pakistan conflict and public sentiment. They conclude by discussing strategies to bolster the confidence of an unnamed individual within the administration who fears their professional credibility has been damaged.

Audio

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Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 2 minutes of this recording (about 47% 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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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You know, I didn't get to see their program, but from a news summary, I thought you did a fine job on.
They really put you on the spot on that thing.
But the only thing we could do is to really just face my worries and improve, because it's really a question of pretty much some eggs.
And that's what we're doing.
Nobody's saying anything else.
But on that, on Henry, yeah, with regard to India, you said,
Yeah, they have, but that's to say that their emotions have run both ways.
You know, a lot of people don't care that much.
They get up in that sense, you know, and they're fighting for anything they can get.
You know, a lot of them, I think, kind of run for their own.
Well, they basically play their own games and so forth.
And then I think they're back to just lose their lives.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Well, I frankly, it's good that you did it.
The entire industry is scared when he sees everything in such personal terms.
He thinks his credibility is destroyed.
His credibility is not destroyed.
It's what he would think.
I mean, you're an expert on that.
I think what you might do is spend a couple of hours
They'd come here on the, uh, the McClellan Telephone and say if you'd like to stay here, you know, or not to stay here.
They'd come through the press corps and totally, uh, totally be against the orders.
I think that's true.
Most of them.
I don't know if you agree or not.
Yeah, that basically, when they'd stay here, they'd talk about, you know, what they were doing.
You know, they're, they're trying to get us to stay here.
Thank God it's on the issue of India, not on the issue of something else.
There aren't that many people in the country, and I thought in the West, I didn't find a hell of a lot of people when I was out there, you know.
And here in Washington, you get to do it, and that's what it was all about.
Yeah.
But you should come and give him a call.
Don't let it appear too obvious.
Just say that you're on top.
Tell him that you've got a lot of reactions and you've talked to the president and the rest of them.
And he just doesn't have a headline.
There's just a lot of press comments.
They tell him that you're just a lawyer and I'm a senator.
And he just doesn't believe it.
Good, good.
Great.
All right.

NARA Description

On January 10, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Herbert G. Klein met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 5:16 pm to 5:21 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 313-025 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 313-25

Date: January 10, 1972
Time: 5:16 pm - 5:21 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President talked with Herbert G. Klein.

[See Conversation No. 18-50]

Also recorded on January 10, 1972

  • 018-048 5:11 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:11 pm and 5:16 pm.
  • 018-049 5:11 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:11 pm and 5:16 pm.
  • 313-023 5:11 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 5:11 pm and 5:16 pm.
  • 313-024 5:11 PM · 10 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 5:11 pm and 5:16 pm.
  • 018-050 5:16 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Herbert G. Klein talked on the telephone from 5:16 pm to 5:21 pm.
  • 018-051 5:21 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Robert J. Dole talked on the telephone from 5:21 pm to 5:24 pm.
  • 313-026 5:21 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Robert J. Dole met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 5:21 pm to 5:24 pm.
  • 313-027 5:24 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 5:24 pm and 5:27 pm.

All 83 conversations from January 10, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 313-025, January 10, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/313-025 (accessed September 24, 2026).