Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 379 › Conversation 379-019
Nixon & Colson on 1972 election and Campaign strategy
Wednesday, November 1, 1972 · 12:26 PM–12:40 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 15 min
AI Summary
President Nixon and Charles Colson met to discuss campaign strategy and the political climate just days before the 1972 presidential election. The discussion focused on recent public demonstrations in Boston, the perceived shift in support among blue-collar voters, and the electoral outlook in Massachusetts. The pair assessed the influence of figures like Ted Kennedy and George McGovern while evaluating key campaign issues, including the economy and voter motivation, to ensure a decisive victory.
- 1972 election
- Campaign strategy
- Blue-collar voters
- Public opinion
- George McGovern
- Political demonstrations
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 8 minutes of this recording (about 52% 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.
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And John's reaction was just what I thought.
The people of Austin, he just sensed it.
He said, you know, the police out here in Boston, the local police.
And he said, if you look at the Boston Globe, it was like that.
And he said, I'll guarantee you that we may have held one of those.
But listen, it's very out of the reach of John.
All right.
There's...
They're going to the town.
Another picture of the place they were.
I said, where's it?
He said, I'm not sure.
He said, the police.
The police are up in our neighborhood.
I said, I don't know if that's true.
I don't know if it is true.
... ... ... ... ...
... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
Oh, they can watch.
It's a shame that we should hear from the government, or the mayor, or the people who are proud of him, or the people who are ready to respond.
He's great, but he's not good.
But he said, no, we're going to be made a whole lot better.
I think it's going to be a hundred better than I think.
I don't think it's going to be.
I don't think it's ever going to be a problem in the election.
I think we're going to win it.
We're going to win it.
We're going to win it.
But we will do it in advance.
some of the, uh, the, uh, oh, uh, he's writing extensively, so they, they put, also have, uh, two Democrats, but, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's,
I'm going to say what he had.
I'm going to call him out.
I'm going to call him out.
I've got a break.
I've got a lot of guys.
I've got a lot of guys.
I've got a lot of guys.
I've got a lot of guys.
I've got a lot of guys.
I've got a lot of guys.
It depends on how those blue colors come out.
It's really good.
If they decide to stay on this because they don't want to do it, they don't want to do it.
There's no contest to that.
There's not much to bring out of it.
If they bring it out and do a color program, it's really good.
It's a great show.
So we'll, we'll, we'll handle it today.
It's my, my whole purpose is not to do anything about it.
I don't want to do anything about it.
I don't want to do anything about it.
I don't want to do anything about it.
I don't want to do anything about it.
I don't want to do anything about it.
I don't want to do anything about it.
Thank you.
It's got to be enough to fit.
I would be surprised if I can't fit the rest of that thing.
That would be a little hard.
I'll tell you, by the way, by the way, I know that's it.
And it's all right, Tom.
It's a real reason for a lot of people, for a lot of people, to go through it.
And if you want to, you need as much as you said you did.
You've done all the stuff you did.
You've done it.
You've done all the stuff you did.
You've done all the stuff you did.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
There you go.
You're asking me right now if I'm told I'm supposed to trust you.
I'm not supposed to trust you.
Darryl Stewart, I know, I know, I know, I just know that Darryl Stewart is going to have to allow that to go down.
He's going to go out, so that's better.
I'm throwing him out right now.
He's going to have to go out, so that's better.
I'm throwing him out right now.
The bus over in the field, bus number two, was one of our nine other convoyers in the region.
John Frazier.
When you get to those five boxes, when you get two hundred and sixty bags, you lose gas from that one.
That's the way it is.
That's the way it is.
You know, they're going to knock you out.
You know, they're going to knock you out.
Well, there are some people out there that are jobless.
I mean, they're going to have a fit for a job.
That's what's happened to me these four years.
You know, you spend it that way.
You wait me out here.
I mean, even children, you know, you spend it like that.
That's what I want them to do.
I don't want them to go up here.
I want them to go up here.
I don't want them to go up here.
I don't want them to go up here.
I don't want them to go up here.
Thank you.
I'm glad that you brought this in.
Well, if I could just throw it at you, can I please?
I don't like that.
I don't like that.
They are lying.
They're through with it now.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
They're lying.
So there's one road to the right.
Yeah.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We're back there.
Great.
Well, yes.
.
.
.
Because our people are all hanging over the line to check it out.
We can't, we can't be in the war.
So that's why I'm saying, I'm not going to say that I'm telling you that I'm not at all.
I'm not at all.
But we've got to be clear, right?
We're doing this because there's no, there's no kind of war in the world.
We've got to be clear.
We've got to be clear.
Okay, what do you think about it?
NARA Description
On November 1, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 12:26 pm to 12:40 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 379-019 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 379-19
Date: November 1, 1972
Time: 12:26 pm - 12:40 pm
Location: Executive Office Building
The President met with Charles W. Colson.
-30-
NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
Conversation No. 379-19 (cont’d)
*****************************************************************
[Begin segment reviewed under deed of gift]
1972 election
-Demonstrators in Boston
-Colson’s report
-John F. Collins
-Reaction
-Public opinion
-Local police
-Boston Globe
-Public’s support for the President
-Nixon government victory
-McGovern
-Vice President Spiro T. Agnew
-McGovern
-Agnew
-Confrontation
-Demonstrators in Boston
-Attack on First Lady [Thelma C. (“Pat”) Nixon]
-Blue collar workers
-Infuriation
-Public attention
-Massachusetts
-The President’s possible victory
-Collins
-McGovern
-Margin
-Collins
-Demonstrators in Boston
-Benefit
-Irish
-McGovern
-Demonstrators in Boston
-Clark MacGregor
-Statement
-Democrats
-McGovern
-Collins
-Support for the President
-31-
NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
Conversation No. 379-19 (cont’d)
-McGovern
-Statement
-Voter turnout
-Other contested elections
-Motivation
-Republican program
-The President’s trips
-Edward M. (“Ted”) Kennedy
-McGovern
-Campaign
-Hubert H. Humphrey
-Kennedy
-Influence with voters
-Irish
-Television [TV] appearance
-Vietnam
-Portland, Oregon
-Economy
-Employment
-Bureau of Labor Statistics
-Geoffrey H. Moore
-Virginia
-Democrats
-Employment
-Winning issues
-Agnew
-Money
-Roy Sheskin [?]
-Chicago
-Taxation
-The President’s campaign staff
[End of segment reviewed under deed of gift]
*****************************************************************
Colson left at 12:40 pm.Also recorded on November 1, 1972
- 032-119 11:17 AM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 11:17 am.
- 379-017 11:20 AM · 27 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 11:20 am to 11:45 am.
- 032-120 12:25 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 12:25 pm.
- 379-018 12:25 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at 12:25 pm.
- 391-001 12:40 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Zosimo Monson met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:40 pm and 2:10 pm.
- 391-002 12:40 PM · 27 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:40 pm and 2:10 pm.
- 391-003 12:40 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:40 pm and 2:10 pm.
- 391-004 12:40 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:40 pm and 2:10 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 379-019, November 1, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/379-019 (accessed October 5, 2026).