Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 483-002
Date: Tuesday, April 20, 1971 at 7:55 AM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Bull, Stephen B.; Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/483-002

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:11] Thank you.
[0:44] I already asked for this, and I need so many things to make it complete again.
[1:01] As long as this is going to be studied by all those in the editorial department.
[1:04] And, uh, you remember Bob, there were out of these 30 or 40 in the dead.
[1:06] And, uh, they go through, and every one of those people is killed.
[1:13] I want you to listen today to the verses on the rockers that you follow through.
[1:36] Now, if you call me my name,
[1:41] about the possibility, you asked the federal head to come in.
[1:51] About the possibility of this going to, they've sent an invitation from Eastern Europe to go on over to Israel, possibly to Egypt.
[2:01] So I sent an invitation, I said fine.
[2:02] Now, the thing is, Bob, before he goes on this trip, he has got to step up personally to this issue.
[2:08] You've got to be watching Bill carefully to be sure that he doesn't get off the hook.
[2:16] Is he having a press conference this week or is he not?
[2:19] Because he's leaving in the end of the week.
[2:21] You could say he would.
[2:22] He must.
[2:24] And Sullivan must make money.
[2:25] Sullivan's going to do the hearing.
[2:26] When is that?
[2:27] That's this week.
[2:28] What about Rogers?
[2:30] Get Rogers up.
[2:31] I want him out this week on Vietnam.
[2:33] He's got to be out this week on Vietnam.
[2:36] I have preferred a press conference, right?
[2:45] Laos the whole night.
[2:45] Yeah, you know what I mean?
[2:46] Yeah.
[2:46] Just depending.
[2:47] It's Vietnam, Laos, the whole bit.
[2:49] Because I want him in the bed with us as we go forward on some of these other things, you see.
[3:01] I don't want to mention the way Shultz and Ervin have been recommended talking about some good, solid, fine, kind man, or a politician.
[3:16] I mean,
[3:17] These things are one of the few things that we get a little play on.
[3:31] But the people down the line, somebody that will exploit every goddamn one of these disaster things when they're made.
[3:38] Got it?
[3:38] So would you follow up and go, plan to get the things that we want?
[3:40] I want somebody who's not a businessman.
[3:41] I don't give a shit how it's run.
[3:41] We'll run.
[3:42] We've got a good deputy.
[3:42] We've got a good deputy.
[3:44] Who is also a good politician.
[3:47] Is that right?
[3:50] Yeah.
[3:51] Is that right?
[3:56] Yeah.
[3:56] Is that right?
[3:58] Yeah.
[4:00] Is that right?
[4:02] Yeah.
[4:02] Is that right?
[4:05] Yeah.
[4:06] Is that right?
[4:08] Yeah.
[4:08] Is that right?
[4:11] Yeah.
[4:14] The other thing I'd like to buy, I want a list of all those who were homeowners that I have any possibility with regard to appointing everybody in the government that is homeowners, whether it's schedule C's, et cetera, et cetera, homeowners who are still in the government.
[4:32] Now, I'm going to have to ask all of them to resign before the school year, September the 1st.
[4:37] Of course, we've got...
[4:38] Two exceptions, you've got Hoover and Helms.
[4:48] Understand?
[4:48] You have to research among those that will go, Philatel is among those that will go.
[4:52] But I've got to have this, and I want it done before the school year.
[4:53] I want the holdover, let's get Mellon to work on it immediately.
[4:56] I don't care whether they're good or bad.
[4:56] You want an evaluation on these two or you don't?
[4:58] I'm not interested.
[4:59] I'm not interested.
[5:02] If the holdover, unless the holdover happens to be a man that was for us before, I'm not interested in what their help he's done since.
[5:10] We've got to clean the house.
[5:14] The curious thing is that I get this, you know, I mean, I've been, our own staff, except for you, has not said anything about it, but goddammit, when people like Kyle,
[5:29] John McLaughlin, a message lesson.
[5:33] They're killing you.
[5:36] They're trying to kill you.
[5:39] And you guys are acting like a bunch of goddamn nineties.
[5:43] And you see what I mean?
[5:45] We've just got to get at this thing.
[5:46] Don't you agree?
[5:47] Sure.
[5:47] Because you know what?
[5:47] The Yost thing.
[5:48] Remember Yost.
[5:48] Remember Yost.
[5:51] Remember.
[5:51] Yeah.
[5:51] Let's get ready.
[5:52] And I'll get busy.
[5:52] I'll just catch up with you.
[5:53] Get busy immediately.
[5:53] I've got to get to George.
[5:54] George.
[5:56] George.
[5:58] Tell him that, now play a little game here, Tom, that I hear that the whole office is infested with people, and he must not be taking in the people that were with Yost, playing Yost and screwing us.
[6:10] I'm on a list, and I think he should clean house anyway, and he should ask for his own team.
[6:16] Is that clear?
[6:17] Yeah.
[6:18] Find out those that are there.
[6:19] When you do that, we have these things that we can follow up on.
[6:25] You can all open and get your scallion in, because I'm gonna see Henry today.
[6:45] It's just very crazy.
[6:45] That's not how I work scallion in my script today.
[6:49] And, uh, I mean, what about cotton?
[6:50] You've got to have got in on this one.
[6:51] There's, uh, he is on good.
[6:53] Here's to you, Freddie.
[6:58] I want him to be sure, I want him to be sure to find out whether he's satisfied that Hardin and Lennon are doing enough in Texas.
[7:07] I want to know, personally, what you're trying to do.
[7:14] See, he's a party inventor, you know what I'm saying?
[7:17] What's that?
[7:17] Why don't you sit crazy on something?
[7:19] There's a girl over here that works on Indian Affairs that's been cutting us up for a long time.
[7:30] Her name's Bobby.
[7:32] That's right.
[7:32] She's standing there.
[7:33] I've been trying that for years now.
[7:35] No, no.
[7:35] I'm firing her today.
[7:35] She used to go before the school year.
[7:37] She's one of those.
[7:39] She'd go, I don't like it.
[7:39] We've got her out with us.
[7:41] Yeah.
[7:41] But it's, boy, I'll tell you, that's really been a tough one.
[7:44] Well, why?
[7:45] I haven't any idea.
[7:46] She's any of the most sensitive in your area.
[7:49] I'll give you that.
[7:51] She's, and she's done this.
[7:51] Now, I've got, I got some information on yesterday.
[7:54] I'm not going to tell you where I got it.
[7:58] But I know, I know.
[7:59] She'll cut us, get her the hell out of there.
[8:04] And I mean, I mean before June, you understand?
[8:06] She is to go, come John, come John, look, I've got a right to do some good things around here.
[8:12] And here we are, you know, we're screwing around and just like that kid, that man out there in San Francisco, I tried to raise help out of the earthquake.
[8:19] It's two months since I raised help out of the earthquake and nobody did a goddamn thing.
[8:25] Now, there's something wrong with this office spot.
[8:38] I don't know what it is, but there's something wrong.
[8:41] I'm not looking to clean it up.
[8:42] Let's go.
[8:42] Okay.
[8:42] I'm sure of it.
[8:42] Did you accomplish any of that work?
[8:43] No.
[8:43] Have you heard of that?
[8:44] Concerned about it ever since?
[8:56] Okay.
[9:04] Okay.