Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 531 › Conversation 531-023

Nixon & MacGregor on Vietnam War and Congressional relations

Monday, June 28, 1971 · 6:47 PM–6:50 PM ET · Oval Office · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); MacGregor, ClarkConversation531-023 on Tape 531 (tape position 01:43:01–01:45:51)StartMonday, June 28, 1971 at 6:47 PMEndMonday, June 28, 1971 at 6:50 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 531-023 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Clark MacGregor discuss the political challenges facing members of Congress regarding the Vietnam War, acknowledging the pressure representatives face from constituents to vote for withdrawal. To bolster support and show appreciation, the President decides to personally call several members of Congress, including John Jackson, Glenn Davis, and Keating. The meeting serves as a logistical coordination session for these outreach efforts to key legislative allies.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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My God, he had me in a hanging crate.
He said, we're going to lose.
My God Almighty.
Yeah.
Well, let me say that
But then I'm going to write every member of the House and Senate in support of this and thank them for it.
Because they, you know what I mean, in the end, I think they're going to look good.
But gee, these guys, I know what they're up against.
Heck, they want to vote for something.
They want to be on the side of getting out.
They're catching hell from home.
Look, tonight, did you have some suggestions on who ought to be called on my book?
Yeah, but who else?
Glenn Davis?
John Jackson?
Sure.
Sure.
Sure.
All right.
Yeah.
Oh, well, I failed.
Oh, I'm kidding.
But will you tell the person and Don Jackson and Glenn Davis and I don't know what other originals are here, but Keating, Keating, I'll call on him.
Will you tell him that I'll call on him?
Fine.
Yeah.
Well, how are these things?
We've got a BFM piano
Yeah, well, I think those will do.
And just get those on, and I'll just let you.
I didn't know, says Mr. and Mrs. Calvin.
Oh, well, is he in there?
Oh, Cale's in there.
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, okay.
Let's see if they want, want, want, want, okay.

NARA Description

On June 28, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Clark MacGregor met in the Oval Office of the White House from 6:47 pm to 6:50 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 531-023 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 531-23

Date: June 28, 1971
Time: 6:47 pm - 6:50 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President talked with Clark MacGregor.

[See Conversation No. 6-9]

Also recorded on June 28, 1971

  • 006-008 6:45 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:45 pm and 6:47 pm.
  • 531-020 6:45 PM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 6:45 pm and 6:47 pm.
  • 531-021 6:46 PM · 3 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at 6:46 pm.
  • 006-009 6:47 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Clark MacGregor talked on the telephone from 6:47 pm to 6:50 pm.
  • 531-022 6:47 PM · 25 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at 6:47 pm.
  • 531-024 6:50 PM · 34 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Charles W. Colson, Alexander P. Butterfield, Manolo Sanchez, White House operator, and Rex W. Scouten met in the Oval Office of the White House from 6:50 pm to 7:25 pm.
  • 006-010 7:08 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:08 pm and 7:12 pm.
  • 006-011 7:12 PM · 38 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Rex W. Scouten talked on the telephone from 7:12 pm to 7:13 pm.

All 69 conversations from June 28, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 531-023, June 28, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/531-023 (accessed October 5, 2026).