Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 336 › Conversation 336-056

Nixon & Kissinger on Vietnam War and Naval blockade

Monday, May 8, 1972 · 6:22 PM–6:34 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Kissinger, Henry A.;  [Unknown person(s)]Conversation336-056 onTape 336 (tape position 02:39:09–02:49:14)StartMonday, May 8, 1972 at 6:22 PMEndMonday, May 8, 1972 at 6:34 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 336-056 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Henry Kissinger discussed the messaging and strategic rationale for the upcoming presidential speech announcing a naval blockade of North Vietnam. They reviewed the presentation of various U.S. courses of action, focusing on how to address potential North Vietnamese rejection of withdrawal offers and POW negotiations. The discussion emphasized the importance of maintaining a firm tone regarding the blockade while managing press perceptions and briefing administration officials like Melvin Laird and William Rogers.

Audio

Download MP3 (part 1) · 112.6 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 112.3 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 49.5 MB

This conversation has not yet been cut into its own clip, so the player above contains the full tape segment shared with neighbouring conversations. It begins about 02:39:09 into the tape and ends around 02:49:14.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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 · Timestamps are positions within the full tape recording.

2:39:49It's so good that the last time, that the light they haven't shut down, it's not quite as good as it was.
2:39:55We didn't understand Dick too much.
2:39:58I don't write enough, but I can give the comments very well.
2:41:09Uh, why don't you step over and for the rest of the last minute, look at something there, okay?
2:41:22Five weeks ago, I interviewed them.
2:41:24How did the darkness of the earth go down after the masses of dead babies?
2:41:28What's the marriage of the dead?
2:41:30Why should the passing of the living be subtle?
2:41:33And they, it would be possible by passing over and out of the masses.
2:41:40Sure.
2:42:14Uh, when we, uh, set out the three courses of action, we, one of them was the first one, the first one was E, and we all know that, but then another one was the bug out.
2:42:23And we say that, you know, that we, that we say that, but imagine the opportunity to do it now, and so, you know, it's not a big deal, it's not a scare, and it's a, you know, the rest of the lives, you know, it's not a big deal, it's not a big deal, it's not a big deal, it's not a big deal, it's not a big deal.
2:42:48Yeah, if they say, if we say that we're going to protect our ants, because they believe that we're going to have to get out there and protect our ants.
2:43:53I think that is true, that it can leverage.
2:43:56Basically, the way of offering them, in effect, they can turn down what we say is the O.W.
2:44:02of a withdrawal and so forth and all that.
2:44:06But if that's something you're going to recover free, you're still going to have to listen to what I'm talking about.
2:44:14I think you can turn it down.
2:44:19I don't know if I'm going to...
2:44:23They're going to ask for a higher price to draw.
2:44:28That's the point I made this morning.
2:44:31The prices are going to be higher in Washington.
2:44:36The major thing about when we had countries in Cambodia, after we had submitted it, we tried to show how we could.
2:44:48We had to show that we unfilled it.
2:44:52Uh, put me in trouble, that would be my decision.
2:45:04Uh, we'll have to do something about it.
2:45:09I don't know.
2:45:12I don't know.
2:45:13I don't know.
2:45:15I don't know.
2:45:16I don't know.
2:45:19Larry, who was a man, you know, who always touched on, just, you know, what, you know, kind of, uh, uh, what I wish, uh, that won't be affected, you know, and I think, you know, we'll try to save him, so, uh, he'll, I don't know if he'll say, but I think he'll say it in such a way that he, uh, he doesn't have to say it, but the best part of it is he won't hurt you.
2:45:46Too bad, eh?
2:45:47Yeah.
2:46:25Well, I could agree more, but having stated this, there's no use in throwing it out in the field by being, you know, going to get any credits at all for being reasonable, honestly.
2:46:44They wanted to put up a blockade that we wanted to do, so they're not going to have to do it.
2:46:50I think at this stage of the game, we have to leave the attention to the game in the theater.
2:46:55So the audience needs to listen to that, too.
2:46:57I mean, that's, you're not ordering me now, but... Well, what if you're asked that, what would you say?
2:47:04Oh, yeah, I'll say it.
2:47:05I'll say it.
2:47:06I always said it.
2:47:07I just said something else yesterday.
2:47:09I'm not contemplating it.
2:47:11One thing I think that you might have in mind is I'd say to them, don't raise quotes.
2:47:17I mean, you should attempt to.
2:47:21great hope that this is going to end itself.
2:47:27You see what I mean?
2:47:29I've not read the book.
2:47:30No, I couldn't.
2:47:31No, I think the point is, you should say this is going to take some time, but it will work.
2:47:37I put it that way.
2:47:38There's two things I'll do with this meeting at the briefing tomorrow.
2:47:41What I'm trying to think of is good.
2:47:44To convey some of the human problems that were produced that no one had figured out.
2:47:49uh, just the thing to give to the human, which you can't say.
2:47:54And also get across the, you know, it's utter idiocy that they're writing about.
2:48:00The idea of, uh, you know, the, you know, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the,
2:48:14That's right.
2:48:17You can, incidentally, I want yours to be, I want you to let me take the call.
2:48:44They had it all in Canada.
2:48:48Canada's out now.
2:48:50But we've actually found data on more of my interviews.
2:48:53I've been showing my pictures.
2:48:56I've told more.
2:48:58You can't tell.
2:49:02That's what they did at the champion's event.
2:49:04They had a long return on me, and then they put in the bird.
2:49:09Well, if they had money, I don't know.
2:49:13But I think you're right.

NARA Description

On May 8, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 6:22 pm to 6:34 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 336-056 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 336-56

Date: May 8, 1972
Time: 6:22 - 6:34 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President met with Henry A. Kissinger.

     Vietnam
          -President’s speech on the blockade
                -US courses of action
                     -Wording
                -Deletions
                -US withdrawal

The President talked with an unknown person at an unknown time between 6:22 pm and 6:34
pm.

[Conversation No. 336-56A]

                -Changes

[End of telephone conversation]

                -US offers
                     -North Vietnam rejection
                     -Prisoners of war [POWs]
                     -Withdrawal
                -Cambodia
                -Wording

                                         (rev. Nov-01)

                -Melvin R. Laird, William P. Rogers
                -Tone
           -Blockade
                -President’s decision
                      -President’s orders
           -Kissinger’s briefing
                -Termination of war
                -Importance
           -Kissinger’s meeting with Anatoliy F. Dobrynin
           -Blockade
                -President’s speech
                      -Demeanor
                            -Press reports
                -Kissinger’s briefing
                      -Arrangements
           -Previous US actions
                -Cambodia, Laos
                -Rogers, Laird
                -Cambodia
                -Laird, Rogers
           -Blockade
                -President’s decision
                -President’s speech
                      -Delivery
                            -Tone

Kissinger left at 6:34 pm.

Also recorded on May 8, 1972

  • 336-050 6:14 PM · 45 sec — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:14 pm and 6:22 pm.
  • 336-051 6:14 PM · 24 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:14 pm and 6:22 pm.
  • 336-052 6:14 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:14 pm and 6:22 pm.
  • 336-053 6:14 PM · 1 min — 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 6:14 pm and 6:22 pm.
  • 336-054 6:14 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:14 pm and 6:22 pm.
  • 336-055 6:14 PM · 44 sec — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:14 pm and 6:22 pm.
  • 336-057 6:34 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:34 pm and 7:14 pm.
  • 336-058 6:34 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:34 pm and 7:14 pm.

All 94 conversations from May 8, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 336-056, May 8, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/336-056 (accessed September 18, 2026).