Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 465-006
Date: Wednesday, March 10, 1971 at 10:13 AM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Flanigan, Peter M.
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/465-006

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite it as authoritative.

[34:07] I talked to him last night.
[34:10] Yes, sir.
[34:11] You talked to him and he... My view is he's sort of a straight-up crack.
[34:22] It's all right.
[34:23] But it has to do with another thing.
[34:25] I'm just not going to have any congressman.
[34:29] I'm going to write a tough letter on my own.
[34:32] It's going to be very tough.
[34:36] It's going to have to do with me.
[34:38] I agree with you.
[34:39] I think what we ought to say is, or I think about it is rather than, I know you're worried and trying to get in safety.
[34:46] First, let me say, forget all the free trade crap.
[34:49] Forget the fact that the trade bill may come in.
[34:51] They may send a bad bill.
[34:53] There's a lot of stuff on it.
[34:55] I'll handle that when it comes.
[34:57] Who knows?
[34:57] I might sign it.
[34:59] I understand.
[35:01] Particularly if they let you wave wherever you want.
[35:02] Particularly if they let you wave wherever you want.
[35:05] That's right.
[35:06] That's right, because basically we may face a situation where a lot of people in this country report, no, what I'd like to say is basically that this is unsatisfactory.
[35:15] It does not meet these criteria, and therefore I am sending this legislation to the Congress.
[35:22] And until we have, until we get a satisfactory arrangement, or, I mean, I don't know how you put it in a way that says, well, maybe this deal with Mills is made, might or not be satisfactory.
[35:36] That worries me.
[35:37] Let me clear that.
[35:38] That's quite a worry.
[35:40] You got another idea?
[35:40] No, I was following your idea that, frankly, Mills told Peters and yesterday they're not going to be in textile quota legislation this year.
[35:48] Period.
[35:50] Therefore, it seems to me you can properly convey your message that the flow of legislation is controlled by or is affected by him, and you're going to enter this monitoring thing.
[36:02] Only if alternatives say you're going to monitor it, and if it doesn't work, then you'll send up legislation.
[36:07] But frankly, that makes it look as if you believe it's going to work.
[36:09] No, never.
[36:10] No, the legislation will score me.
[36:12] Right.
[36:12] And I think that you're just, I'd like to bring in a draft view.
[36:16] Well, I mean, you work on the thing, and then take it over.
[36:18] Let John Mitchell get him in to take a look at it and see whether he thinks it's hard enough.
[36:27] I will.
[36:29] I had to go the hard way.
[36:30] I talked to John Cowley, and boy, does he agree with you.
[36:33] He says, don't use that stiletto, use a meat axe.
[36:35] He says, say it so the fellow in the street can tell.
[36:38] We'll understand what you're trying to do.
[36:40] Know what he said?
[36:42] Yeah.
[36:44] He said, I see nothing wrong with this approach, and I see nothing wrong with the statement, but I think you ought to be good and strong.
[36:51] He says, I think you've been jobbed by those people over there.
[36:53] That's right.
[36:55] That's right.
[36:56] And we've got to say so, and I go ahead and bring it up.
[36:58] Well, that's my line.
[37:00] I just wanted to... All right, Mr. President, I've got to tell you that there is the usual consternation...
[37:07] to some extent, with regard to sending legislation now, is concerned, well, I'm going to let the ORG be.
[37:13] They're afraid you're going to get bad legislation.
[37:18] The legislation will be, whether we send it down or not, will not determine whether it's going to be legislation.
[37:26] That will be determined by other factors.
[37:29] The Georgia people this year, they're concerned about the fact that, you understand, if they want to have legislation, it's not going to be whether we send down a bill or not.
[37:39] It's already there.
[37:40] The other factor is that it will be determined by whether or not they
[37:45] the filibuster and all the rest.
[37:49] I would worry about that.
[37:50] I know what I'm doing.
[37:51] They're concerned about the other side of the coin.
[37:53] They don't want anything to do with the Japanese.
[37:56] I do.
[37:56] I'm not planning for the Japanese to do this to us.
[38:02] It isn't just keeping the commitment.
[38:04] The Japanese have broken their national commitment.
[38:06] We cannot have this.
[38:08] We're going to have other platforms.
[38:10] Other very big names.
[38:13] And I think the fact, and if we try and be above it and sort of just do it again.
[38:20] The problem that I, another problem that I think is attacked by this is when the ambassador came in and talked to me about this on Sunday night, I said, Mr.
[38:31] Ambassador, this does not meet the administration's requirements.
[38:35] He said, well, are you sure?
[38:36] Mr. Mills has indicated that the president would not find this unacceptable.
[38:40] And I said, Mr.
[38:41] Ambassador, I know the president's position on this, and he would not find this acceptable.
[38:47] And he said, well, didn't Mr. Mills have breakfast with the president?
[38:50] Sure.
[38:51] But the indication is that Mills went out of that, and by what he said, he indicated to the Japanese that you wouldn't mind this thing.
[38:59] Well, that's it.
[39:01] i never even saw it i said that i wouldn't i said that i was the baker which i've always said always said was sure to make their voluntary action but that they haven't gotten any yet right that's what i like and mills was very well but mills mills just made the election mills probably knows how weak this is
[39:24] You see, Mills made it work fairly well with steel, and he's not really gotten into the guts of this problem, and he thinks it'll work in textiles.
[39:32] It's a different problem.
[39:37] Oh, yes.
[39:39] They have promised.
[39:45] They've kind of Mickey-moused, frankly, on attacking Mills yesterday.
[39:52] And I said, don't ask them back in here unless they're ready to attack Mills.
[39:55] We don't want anything to do with them.
[39:57] So they have now promised that if we take some action such as this, they will immediately come out with a strong statement in support of you and attacking Wilberville.
[40:07] That's what they have to do.
[40:08] Why, sure.
[40:08] They've got to carry some of the heat on this thing.
[40:11] What's the matter with him?
[40:13] Nothing.
[40:14] Okay.
[40:15] Well, the other thing I was going to ask you is if you're going to tell a secret about him.
[40:21] I saw this statement on CBS.
[40:24] It was called, I don't know, Fletcher's Postal Department.
[40:27] I had her message on the bench.
[40:30] If he's against ABN, he doesn't get the job.
[40:33] He's not against ABN.
[40:35] This has got to be cleared up.
[40:39] What is it we're doing about this?
[40:41] I see this as bad business.
[40:45] And also saying that I didn't tell us about it.
[40:48] Nobody's even discussing it.
[40:51] Who put out such a goddamn story?
[40:53] Sure.
[40:54] Sure, at lunch three months ago before anyone talked to Fletcher, with Fletcher and three or four other presidents of universities.
[41:05] I have never in my life indicated a doubt on ABM.
[41:07] I've always been for it.
[41:08] That's what is wrong.
[41:09] We can indicate what his views are, but not mine.
[41:12] What I got?
[41:14] Fletcher was here for breakfast this morning.
[41:16] Got Ron to talk to Fletcher.
[41:17] He's talking to him, getting exactly what Fletcher said, and then putting the lie to shore on you're talking to Fletcher, you're having doubts, and on Fletcher having doubts.
[41:28] This means that I don't have doubts.
[41:30] Fletcher is.
[41:31] I realize all these times.
[41:32] Well, anyway, Fletcher denies it.
[41:35] Yes, sir.
[41:36] I know it there.
[41:38] He's a good, at least on my face, he's a good man.
[41:40] Incidentally, Casey 193.
[41:41] I saw the committee.
[41:43] I think it's a good report.
[41:44] Yes, I agree.
[41:45] I hope he does as well.
[41:48] I wish it was that.
[41:50] I hope he does as well and gets the full Senate, because the thought is he wants so.
[41:54] So the full committee will do all right when he gets it.
[41:59] One sidelight on the proxmire got a federal judge down here to testify against Casey on a case that he's been in, and apparently we had prime power in those fellows on the thing, and they just tore the federal judge apart.
[42:10] He didn't read it and reviewed the case for me.
[51:15] See if Mr. Price and Theo Cook