Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 511-003
Date: Monday, June 7, 1971 at 11:49 AM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Butterfield, Alexander P.; Bull, Stephen B.
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/511-003

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[1:16:18] Is there any more that I can call them on the stereo that I can pass on the red lines up?
[1:16:22] No, I said he's letting go of two seats tonight.
[1:16:25] I think he's very, very hard.
[1:16:27] Well, let me trick him.
[1:16:29] His daughter, well, it's a great experience enough to watch him.
[1:16:32] And all the work will argue this ever since.
[1:16:34] It's important that this is told to me today.
[1:16:36] I don't want to let him know I heard it first.
[1:16:38] I'll let you know when I read the show.
[1:16:47] a great golf course here.
[1:16:47] I caught him in the golf course yesterday.
[1:16:50] I said to him, get into the burning tree.
[1:16:52] And I hit him around.
[1:16:54] I've done everything I can on it.
[1:16:56] I don't want to hear any more from him about it.
[1:17:00] We can't get into it.
[1:17:01] We didn't get into it in the summer.
[1:17:06] Do you have any objections as far as the General Counsel?
[1:17:12] No, I don't even know if there's an objection there at this point.
[1:17:16] I want to move on.
[1:17:18] I want to get some credit for it.
[1:17:20] All of a sudden, all the cosmetics, you can get credit in the Congress, you can get credit all through the labor, I mean the business groups that we're putting in somebody in the General Counsel for the first time is going to be on our side.
[1:17:35] and I've played it all the way down the line.
[1:17:37] See, what I mean is, John, it's kind of an appointment where you're going to look quietly.
[1:17:41] Let it out, let me squeal.
[1:17:45] Colson raised, the only question he did raise is whether he was confirmable, or whether we were getting into a Carswell situation, where we were getting first, yeah, for everything.
[1:17:55] Well, I asked, very hotly, I asked these guys in the department, and they said, well, of course you didn't know him, Carswell.
[1:18:06] Yes, sir.
[1:18:07] Well, that's the only question, Chuck.
[1:18:10] Great.
[1:18:10] And I have not had a text chat with McGregor to see what his reaction is.
[1:18:14] Check it out.
[1:18:14] I don't want to send somebody who's in federal defense and somebody who is, who's on the right.
[1:18:19] I am not going to find out.
[1:18:20] You can't have a Labor Department lawyer at that job.
[1:18:26] Well, damn it, I'm not going to have another one in there.
[1:18:28] You've got that government's loaded on that side.
[1:18:31] I think for us it's a good signal.
[1:18:35] We've used him, as you know, for two years, and he's very knowledgeable in this area.
[1:18:39] So, you see, it's going to help a lot of people.
[1:18:42] But, gosh, the business men sit in there.
[1:18:46] That's where you've got some labor management.
[1:18:50] Of course, George Romney talks about that.
[1:18:54] Thank you, gentlemen.
[1:18:55] They really are.
[1:18:56] This is the boardroom syndrome.
[1:18:58] This is all they've got to talk about.
[1:19:00] All the boardroom.
[1:19:01] All day we start to keep up.
[1:19:02] Let's do something about the unions.
[1:19:04] Now, what in the name of Christ are they talking about?
[1:19:06] They've got the only president in this office that ever understood the unions, frankly.
[1:19:09] And then, you know, Crowman...
[1:19:13] For I had the slightest idea what a mercy union was about, John.
[1:19:17] And of course, Kennedy was in their pocket.
[1:19:20] Johnson was in their pocket.
[1:19:21] So here I sit, fighting for God and battle day after day, and I don't quit seeing these people.
[1:19:28] I went to New York and spoke to the chief executives of these 30 corporations in this anti-union group.
[1:19:36] This was three weeks ago.
[1:19:38] And they gave me this whole thing.
[1:19:42] And I said, look, this is a congressional problem.
[1:19:45] Go elect us a congress.
[1:19:47] Just what you said to these fellows in there.
[1:19:49] And they said, well, we passed.
[1:19:52] What do we do?
[1:19:52] We put up the damn bill.
[1:19:54] They haven't even given it here.
[1:19:56] They haven't started it.
[1:19:57] They haven't given it to us.
[1:19:58] They're going to put it on everything.
[1:20:00] The way that we do it, even if it takes a day, we've got to support the Congress now.
[1:20:04] That's the point.
[1:20:05] That's the point.
[1:20:05] And, John, the union don't keep walking.
[1:20:10] I'm more and more into the fight.
[1:20:13] But can't we separate the two?
[1:20:17] I just don't know.
[1:20:19] He is a total partisan Democrat.
[1:20:23] Chuck Colson is not quite as sophisticated here.
[1:20:46] Thank you.