Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 340 › Conversation 340-009

Nixon, Connally & Bull on Foreign Policy and Diplomatic Strategy

Tuesday, June 6, 1972 · 9:21 AM–9:58 AM ET · Old Executive Office Building

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Connally, John B.; Bull, Stephen B.Conversation340-009 on Tape 340 (tape position 00:30:39–00:50:49)StartTuesday, June 6, 1972 at 9:21 AMEndTuesday, June 6, 1972 at 9:58 AMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 340-009 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon met with John B. Connally and Stephen B. Bull to provide instructions and background context for an upcoming international trip undertaken by Connally. The President dictated a memorandum outlining the mission's central theme, which focused on the shifting global balance of economic and political power among the U.S., Western Europe, the Soviet Union, China, and Japan. Nixon also shared personal reflections on his past travels to various nations to assist Connally in his engagements with foreign leaders.

Audio

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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 00:30:39 into the tape and ends around 00:50:49.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Timestamps are positions within the full tape recording.
31:00I have some other random thoughts that might be of use to you on your trip.
31:03None of them are particularly important, but they may give you some
31:39in the conversation we had with the various leaders.
31:43With that in mind, Mayor, we'll clarify the response to the question.
31:47I'll let it go forward.
31:48In the box.
32:25I envisaged all the taxes that you would use on this trip.
32:30You probably haven't compiled the record line at the time of the statement that was made by, uh, President, by the head of the government of the state of Manhattan.
32:43Go ahead.
32:44In any event, sir,
32:52Here's a brief rundown for the rundown that you need to mind.
32:54I was in Columbia in 1958, and I was Columbia president with the state of the state.
33:20And I received it along with the President of the State Department.
33:22I was in Brazil twice.
33:22As Vice President, again, I received it from the President of the State Department.
33:25And the people of the State Department said,
33:52Hurry up and share.
33:53Hurry up and share.
33:53All right, this is Olivia.
34:53It's been easy after the earthquake.
34:54In fact, my little apartment is already being renovated.
34:56And again, it's a private city.
34:56It was renovated in 2007.
34:57It's a pretty good car.
34:57My house is...
35:24It was the first foreign country I lived in.
35:25I have at least two.
35:54I visited Australia and the gas on the private
36:24on the White House side of the President's office.
36:25Incidentally, while you were in Ontario, the President was scheduled to call on the former Prime Minister, Robert Menzies.
36:29He's been quite ill, and maybe he'll be coming to the seat.
36:30But he's a great friend of mine.
36:31He's a top world leader, and I'm very proud of him.
37:32If you are aware of this, a number of us have said that maybe it's not.
37:34In 1963, I was both in Saigon and Hanoi.
37:35Then before the country was purgated in 1956, I was in Saigon again.
38:03I was out of office, and I was there at least six times.
38:05And I've been there once.
38:05And so, I got pregnant.
38:06I was in Malaysia.
38:06I was following up for her, and I agreed.
38:07And then, again, I tried to say,
38:35And, uh,
39:02I consider him among the most competent of the world leaders in the international world.
39:04He has a profound understanding of international affairs.
39:42to attend to the performance at the Kennedy Center for the Royal Concert of the Dancers on May 1st.
40:26My head is there, but now my hair is red, and I'm a little bit underwhelmed.
40:28You know, it's just pretty...
40:28It's hard for me to be very familiar, so...
40:29It's tough for us to not be denied the fact that I had a pretty good look on the scene.
40:31It's a wonder of the world.
40:32It's very, very...
40:56I visited Iran in 1963 when I first got the job, and again in 1967.
40:57I was here in the state of Hawaii.
40:58I was there two or three years ago, and I lost my career.
41:00I didn't go after my possible career.
41:33again in 1957.
41:34And then in 1969, on the Round the World trip, I was in Cambodia, and I was practicing there.
42:07I also was attached to my mom's jewelry while I was out of office.
42:09Right.
42:09And, uh, I was attached to my mom's jewelry while I was out of office.
42:11Right.
42:11I have seen her.
42:11I have, uh,
42:36to seek to find the present hope of freedom and peace.
42:38In each country that you visit,
43:04You will probably be asked for a very personal message from the president if you have a reference that is sacred.
43:08You should answer it in the primary in any case.
43:10I will never call it a practice, but I have a letter to hand over
43:34I had taken up several matters with the U.S. government in the United States, and also agreed on that.
44:03to get therapy in general.
44:04They did as well all the time besides the last one
44:35A general theme for your trip might be along the following lines, period.
44:40Of course, if you know, I have made several speeches for the back of it.
44:45There are probably a million, even on political television in the world, in the United States.
45:07The question of current Soviet people, people from other China, and China's security.
45:15Some had a purpose to visit and go to any country that wasn't matter.
45:21True as far as their presence, industrial and political.
45:28Even though their presence was industrial and political,
45:43On the other hand, over half the people, people of the world, and all over half of the people research, and over half of the world research.
46:01It's not going to work out.
46:03It's not going to work out.
46:06It's going to work out.
46:08It's going to work out.
46:13to cover all the areas, all of that.
46:17We're going to be cycling down the road.
46:19And as they develop their resources and funding, we're all on the world stage, because they are capable.
46:28I'm telling you, it's impressive, but my own interest
46:43We are not forgetting our allies and friends.
47:16I'm sorry about that.
50:29This is a memorandum to, uh, John Mitchell, copies to, uh, Alderman Colston.

NARA Description

On June 6, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, John B. Connally, and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 9:21 am and 9:58 am. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 340-009 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 340-9

Date: June 6, 1972
Time: Unknown between 9:21 am and 9:58 am
Location: Executive Office Building

The President dictated a memorandum to John B. Connally.

     Method of delivery
         -Venezuela

     Connally's trip
         -President's views

Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 9:21 am.

     A box

Bull left at an unknown time before 9:58 am.

     Connally's trip
         -President's previous travels
                 -Colombia
                 -Brazil
                     -Emilio Garrastazu Medici
                 -Bolivia
                 -Peru
                     -Luncheon at the White House for wife of the President
                     -Earthquake
                            -Thelma C. (“Pat”) Nixon
                 -Argentina
                 -New Zealand
                 -Australia
                     -Courtesy call to former Prime Minister Robert Gordon Menzies
                            -The President’s suggestion
                 -Vietnam
                     -Saigon
                     -Hanoi
                     -Other trips
                 -Malaysia
                 -Singapore
                     -Lee Kuan Yew
                 -Cambodia
                     -John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

                 -Angkor Wat
                      -North Vietnamese
            -Iran
                 -[Shah of Iran] Mohammed Reza Pahlavi
                      -Moscow trip
            -India
            -Pakistan
            -[Pope Paul VI] Giovanni Battista Motini

President's instructions
     -Letters from the President
     -Connally's role
            -The President’s recent trip to the Soviet Union
     -Theme for Connally's trip
             -Economic and political power centers
                  -US
                  -Western Europe
                  -Soviet Union
                  -People's Republic of China [PRC]
                  -Japan
                  -Industrial strength
                  -Defense capacity
                  -Military
                  -World resources
                        -Development
                              -Italy
                  -President's interests
                  -PRC
                  -Soviet Union
                  -Allies

Connally’s trip
    -New York Times, Washington Post

Also recorded on June 6, 1972

  • 340-007 9:20 AM · 36 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and David C. Hoopes met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 9:20 am to 9:21 am.
  • 025-008 9:21 AM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:21 am and 9:58 am.
  • 340-008 9:21 AM · 18 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 9:21 am and 9:58 am.
  • 340-010 9:21 AM · 13 min — President Richard M. Nixon, John N. Mitchell, and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 9:21 am and 9:58 am.
  • 340-011 9:21 AM · 3 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 9:21 am and 9:58 am.
  • 340-012 9:21 AM · 13 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 9:21 am and 9:58 am.
  • 340-013 9:21 AM · 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 9:21 am and 9:58 am.
  • 340-014 9:21 AM · 54 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 9:21 am and 9:58 am.

All 40 conversations from June 6, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 340-009, June 6, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/340-009 (accessed October 9, 2026).