Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 463 › Conversation 463-005

Nixon & Butterfield on Speechwriting and William Safire

Monday, March 8, 1971 · 5:38 PM–5:41 PM ET · Oval Office ·40 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Butterfield, Alexander P.Conversation463-005 onTape 463 (tape position 00:55:26–00:56:06)StartMonday, March 8, 1971 at 5:38 PMEndMonday, March 8, 1971 at 5:41 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 463-005 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met to coordinate the delivery of two drafted speeches prepared by William Safire. Nixon requested that both documents be sent to his office for immediate review. The pair specifically discussed the status of a speech scheduled for an upcoming engagement in Newport to ensure its completion and availability.

Audio

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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I'm going to have those two speeches to be ready.
That's ready right now.
I'm going to send it over and I'm going to read it.
Yeah, just have it sent over.
How about the other one?
The other one in Newport.
Oh, I speak in Newport, too.
If you find the one that'll be ready.
I will.
And sell that part right in here, if you will.
He's finished with it?
Yes, he's finished with it.
Good.

NARA Description

On March 8, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:38 pm and 5:41 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 463-005 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 463-5

Date: March 8, 1971
Time: Unknown between 5:38 pm and 5:41 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield

     A delivery
          -Two speeches
                -William L. Safire

Butterfield left at 5:41 pm

Also recorded on March 8, 1971

  • 049-012 8:32 AM — President Richard M. Nixon and members of the National Security Council, including Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, William P. Rogers, Melvin R. Laird, John N. Mitchell, Adm. Thomas H. Moorer, Richard M. Helms, Henry A. Kissinger, John B. Connally, David Packard, and Paul H. Nitze, met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 8:32 am and 10:27 am.
  • 464-001 12:06 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Daniel T. Kinsley, Bill Horton, and Frederic V. Malek met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:06 pm and 1:08 pm.
  • 463-001 12:10 PM · 53 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Frederic V. Malek, Daniel T. Kinsley, Bill Horton, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Manolo Sanchez, and Walter R. Tkach met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:10 pm and 1:13 pm.
  • 463-002 5:38 PM · 45 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:38 pm and 5:41 pm.
  • 463-003 5:38 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:38 pm and 5:41 pm.
  • 463-004 5:38 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:38 pm and 5:41 pm.
  • 463-006 5:41 PM · 59 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Donald H. Rumsfeld, unknown person(s), and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:41 pm to 6:38 pm.

Cite this conversation

Conversation 463-005, March 8, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/463-005 (accessed September 18, 2026).