Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 488-025
Date: Tuesday, April 27, 1971 at 5:54 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Bull, Stephen B.; Etherington, Edwin D.; Donnell, Thmas R., Jr.; Cole, Albert L.; Fisher, Max M.; Ford, Henry, II; Goldenson, Leonard H.; Levy, Gustave; Mulford, Raymon H.; Pace, Frank, Jr.; Sonnabend, Paul; Stone, W. Clement; Townsend, Lynn A.; Grassmuck, George L.
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/488-025

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:31] You weren't here for the Boiling Air Award, were you?
[0:55] I was down in Florida for this.
[0:55] Oh, well, it's the 13th race.
[0:56] Hi, how are you?
[0:56] It's good to see you here.
[0:57] Here's our business.
[0:57] Hi, let's see you in a couple of hours.
[0:58] We were going to do this.
[0:59] Oh, we're going to do this.
[0:59] All right.
[0:59] All right.
[1:00] All right.
[1:00] All right.
[1:00] All right.
[1:00] All right.
[1:44] ... ... ... ...
[3:36] Oh, my God.
[3:42] Oh, my God.
[4:31] You know, but in the office here, basically this small, and really the heart of the organization, I want you to know first that I think we are very fortunate to have Ed Edrington in this position.
[4:56] We had a meeting with him previously, gone over this whole thing, and he really didn't charge.
[5:05] I want to question all of you in complete cooperation of this office, and not only this office, but every cabinet officer, every cabinet wife, sub-cabinet people, and of course that means government and so forth.
[5:26] That means not only money, but president and so forth and so on, whatever it is.
[5:27] All of you, of course, can provide that, and not just the whole business of
[6:03] Most of you didn't think this year you're definitely in the jobs program or the boys clubs or whatever, you know what I mean, the things we work in there.
[6:15] And I know that sometimes you must wonder, well now, can we take, can we develop something new here which is just another layer on top of all of this myriad
[6:47] Anyway
[7:16] and talk about peace for our kids.
[7:20] And, you know, you all have been asking a little bit
[7:44] and others and so forth who just need, who really need the, you know, the opportunity to do something that is great and helpful and the rest.
[7:56] It's really good for all of us.
[7:57] You feel a little better.
[8:25] That little, that picture, that big of a dead boy, and they did a lot of other things for the fire department, sure.
[8:40] Didn't spark anything else.
[8:42] Just having that little kid in here.
[8:43] And this is the kind of spirit that Ed, I mean, is bringing to this whole thing.
[8:45] So we want you to know that this is the, that you have complete support of the White House, complete support of the President, First Lady, whatever that's word.
[8:52] and the rest.
[8:59] But what we really need from you is, and I know, of course, you say, oh, they're here against the devil, the unknown.
[9:02] But also we need ideas
[9:54] a lot of full services from the center.
[10:10] We are short on resources, but we're not short on energy and hope.
[10:12] And I have an idea that we may accept clients today where people want to get behind us.
[10:13] But we're going to help them in the resource sector.
[10:14] I don't want to start with you, but you know, we're going to find somebody.
[10:16] Bob mentioned our office in the Georgia Crest, and I said, have you given him responsibilities?
[10:23] and not in a way that doesn't control what will be done.
[10:37] But what we need is a plan.
[10:38] And just one success.
[11:05] about putting up our devil and all that sort of thing.
[11:11] Hold on, we'll have to break it.
[11:12] Well, the plan of action we have
[11:36] coordinating with the existing volunteer organizations.
[11:52] You know, we're going to use the volunteer action centers as a method to find them.
[12:55] I just make a comment here on this because, as you say, nobody knows whether this will work until you try it.
[13:05] And it is one of the most amorphous things that there is in our society.
[13:11] And I think everybody will agree with me that the program as it's laid out is pragmatic.
[13:16] It's limited.
[13:17] Max made the point that you want to see it.
[13:23] you're going to do it or you aren't.
[13:35] You're going to have your centers working successfully and within a very limited period of time, far more limited than I thought.
[13:38] And they really put themselves at a tough goal, but the point is, it is a provable or non-provable thing.
[13:40] And if you don't,
[13:41] Then you've got something that people can tie to.
[13:45] I think all of us who've dealt with this old field are really pleased with the way it's laying on them.
[13:53] The guarantee is success, but the pattern is sound.
[14:29] as you know, and can't imagine anything more fun and more rewarding than working with boys.
[14:36] And aside from the good that it'll do, the good that it'll do you is so tremendous.
[14:43] And that can be told in a thrilling way.
[15:09] We met at Deadline.
[15:30] We would have met at Deadline better if it had been a month later.
[15:31] I mean, it's sad, but we did what we could.
[15:32] Yes.
[15:32] But the two, you took a role and presented.
[15:33] There's no, uh, knowledge.
[15:34] No, there's no knowledge.
[15:34] But we will have to leave that.
[15:35] Yes, I guess we'll go over and say hello to everybody.
[15:36] Why don't you try a little pop?
[15:37] That's good.
[16:21] of the businessmen, the major people who have to either make contributions or go out and get the contributions to support this.
[16:36] The most important single thing is to show them a plan.
[16:37] Some people work otherwise.
[16:38] They're not going to put out the dough.
[16:38] They're not going to go out and get it.
[16:39] You've got to have a plan first.
[16:40] And if he came up with that, well, that's what we needed, a good plan.
[16:58] Thank you very much.
[17:32] I mean, even today, I thought he was sort of old.
[17:38] Yeah, they all were.
[17:38] They were all expressing today.
[18:37] here he is you know uh destined to be probably the best you
[19:25] Thank you.
[19:52] Thank you.
[20:58] Walk out this way.
[21:04] Come on.
[21:04] Great.
[21:04] Nice to meet you.