Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 337-023
Date: Wednesday, May 10, 1972 at 1:05 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President)
Recording device: Old Executive Office Building
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/337-023

This transcript was made by an AI model listening to the recording (google/gemini-3.8-flash) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Speaker names are the model's inference. Verify against the audio before citing.

[3:41:43] NIXON: and plans for the wars of the future, rather than those of the past.
[3:41:52] NIXON: The total resolve of the North Vietnamese to have constant attacks disclose the same capabilities of the North Vietnamese to wage a disturbingly long war, whether or not another weapon system is being used.
[3:42:06] NIXON: North Vietnam used against South Vietnamese forces, and South Vietnam [unintelligible] greatest need now is to get modern equipment for the defense establish, the Navy, Army, and Air Force.
[3:42:29] NIXON: The total resolve of the North Vietnamese to have constant attacks disclose the same capabilities of the North Vietnamese [unintelligible] disturbed [unintelligible] another weapon systems being used or not. South Vietnam used against South Vietnamese forces.
[3:42:45] NIXON: She [unintelligible]. Our greatest need now is to get [unintelligible] modern defense establish, the Navy, Army, and Air Force [unintelligible] have plans for the wars of future, rather than those of the past. [inaudible]
[3:43:07] NIXON: Memorandum for Kissinger. As you know, I have very little confidence in the CIA, in terms of their psychological warfare programs and propaganda, etcetera.
[3:43:27] NIXON: Certainly in this period, we could be doing a whole lot more on an urgent basis. I want CIA to develop a program to provide broadcasts, leaflets
[3:43:46] NIXON: [unintelligible] the Hanoi area, [unintelligible] targeting on North Vietnamese [unintelligible] in the Hanoi area.
[3:44:06] NIXON: B, that emphasize the isolation of North Vietnam through the backing out of the of the ships that are would be leaving Hanoi, and are, as well as those that are prevented from going into North Vietnam.
[3:44:24] NIXON: C, that with regard to the aerial activities, that they should find courage in the North Vietnamese leaders and their, and the population, to great terror.
[3:44:47] NIXON: Tell the, to tell the North Vietnamese reflections and secretly in this particular period, tell the effect of the airstrikes.
[3:45:00] NIXON: Third, three, our own propaganda, through the whole country, South Vietnam. Here the target is quite different.
[3:45:16] NIXON: We are to emphasize the need to raise South Vietnamese morale through the, striking hard at, significant morale problems, through, uh,
[3:45:33] NIXON: disseminating [unintelligible] courage. And third, I want to emphasize that [unintelligible] on projects, and frankly,
[3:45:46] NIXON: the fact seems to be that they've uh, done a better job in the media than ever has been before in creating
[3:45:56] NIXON: a feeling of [unintelligible] for CIA. The period must be close to an end, if they're harder to find these days, numbers of hours of broadcasts, numbers of leaflets, and then other words, something, how much
[3:46:09] NIXON: [unintelligible]
[3:46:26] NIXON: [unintelligible]
[3:46:40] NIXON: [unintelligible]
[3:47:13] NIXON: [unintelligible]
[3:47:36] NIXON: [unintelligible]