Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 398 › Conversation 398-001
Nixon & Price on Inaugural Address and Speechwriting
Friday, January 19, 1973 · 3:07 PM–4:10 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 41 min
AI Summary
President Richard M. Nixon and speechwriter Raymond K. Price, Jr. met to conduct a final review and refine the text of Nixon's upcoming second inaugural address. The discussion focused on editing specific passages, adjusting the speech's length, and ensuring the tone effectively conveyed a sense of national responsibility and personal appeal to the American people. The President directed Price to incorporate these revisions into a final draft for delivery, instructing him to coordinate the logistics with press secretary Ronald Ziegler.
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 14 minutes of this recording (about 33% 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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
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NARA Description
On January 19, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Raymond K. Price, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:07 pm and 4:10 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 398-001 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 397-25/398-1
Date: January 19, 1973
Time: Unknown between 3:07 pm and 4:10 pm
Location: Executive Office Building
The President met with Raymond K. Price, Jr.; the recording began at an unknown time while
the meeting was in progress.
[An unknown portion of the conversation was not recorded at this time while the tape was
changed.]
President's Inaugural speech
-Content and wording
-Revisions
-Last paragraph
-Sense of responsibility
-Public understanding
-Omitted lines [?]
-President’s suggestions
-Overlong sentence
-Government's role
-Quotability
-First paragraph
-Conclusion
-1969 Inaugural speech
-Text
-Reading copies
-Price’s suggestions
-Revisions
-Hallowing references
-Previous presidents
-Reliance references
-Appeal to deity
-Appeal to American people
-Future of US
-Typing of draft
-Length
-2-
NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
Tape Subject Log
(rev. Jan.-09)
Conversation No. 397-25/398-1 (cont’d)
-John F. Kennedy
-Central theme
-Sense of responsibility
-President’s views [?]
-Revisions
-Length
-Final draft
-Delivery
-Ronald L. Ziegler
-Hugh Scott
Price left at 4:10 pm.Also recorded on January 19, 1973
- 397-025 3:07 PM · 16 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Raymond K. Price, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:07 pm and 4:10 pm.
- 036-007 4:12 PM · 24 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 4:12 pm.
- 036-010 4:12 PM · 17 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:12 pm and 7:29 pm.
- 036-011 4:12 PM · 29 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:12 pm and 7:29 pm.
- 036-012 4:12 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:12 pm and 7:29 pm.
- 036-013 4:12 PM · 30 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:12 pm and 7:29 pm.
- 398-002 4:12 PM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at 4:12 pm.
- 398-003 4:12 PM · 15 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 4:12 pm to 4:29 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 398-001, January 19, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/398-001 (accessed October 24, 2026).