Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 559 › Conversation 559-001
Nixon & Butterfield on Oval Office and Henry Kissinger
Tuesday, August 10, 1971 · 8:52 AM–9:11 AM ET · Oval Office · 5 sec
AI Summary
President Richard M. Nixon met with Alexander P. Butterfield in the Oval Office to facilitate an urgent administrative request. The primary purpose of this brief interaction was for the President to summon Henry A. Kissinger for a consultation. Following the exchange, Butterfield departed to carry out the President's instructions.
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
No transcript is available yet for this conversation. The recording may contain no audible speech, or it may not have been processed.
NARA Description
On August 10, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:52 am and 9:11 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 559-001 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 559-001
Date: August 10, 1971
Time: Unknown between 8:52 am and 9:11 am
Location: Oval Office
The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield.
Requested that Henry A. Kissinger come to the Oval Office
Butterfield left at an unknown time before 9:11 am.Also recorded on August 10, 1971
- 007-082 8:52 AM · 3 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:52 am and 9:28 am.
- 559-002 8:52 AM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:52 am and 9:11 am.
- 559-003 9:11 AM · 54 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Henry A. Kissinger, unknown person(s), White House operator, Charles W. Colson, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:11 am to 10:05 am.
- 068-006 9:14 AM · 6 min — Alexander M. Haig, Jr. and unknown person(s) met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 9:14 am and 10:05 am.
- 068-007 9:14 AM · 2 hr 15 min — President Richard M. Nixon, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and staffers, including Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, Melvin R. Laird, David Packard, Adm. Thomas H. Moorer, Gen. John D. Ryan, Gen. William C. Westmoreland, Gen. Leonard F. Chapman, Jr., Adm. Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr., Brig. Gen. Alexander M. Haig, Jr., and the White House photographer, met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 9:14 am and 11:54 am.
- 007-083 9:28 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 9:28 am to 9:30 am.
- 007-084 9:30 AM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:30 am and 2:33 pm.
- 559-004 10:05 AM · 2 min — unknown person(s), Manolo Sanchez, and United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:05 am and 11:59 am.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 559-001, August 10, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/559-001 (accessed October 13, 2026).