Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 559 › Conversation 559-017

Nixon & Butterfield on White House logistics and Visitor management

Tuesday, August 10, 1971 · 2:37 PM–2:38 PM ET · Oval Office · 27 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Butterfield, Alexander P.Conversation559-017 on Tape 559 (tape position 02:49:04–02:49:31)StartTuesday, August 10, 1971 at 2:37 PMEndTuesday, August 10, 1971 at 2:38 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 559-017 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander Butterfield coordinate the logistics and movement of a visitor through the White House residence. The brief exchange focuses on ensuring the individual’s arrival and departure are managed discreetly, including confirming the visitor's awareness of their schedule. The discussion concludes with procedural instructions regarding the guest's path through the executive complex.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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over here.
Yeah, what about .
Was he coming, was he planning to go?
He's still, he's going through the residence, that's it.
And they just bring him in now and out.
Is he still out here, is he on his way to the residence?
Okay.
And he knows that he can come back and fight with his troops.
Okay.

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 2:37 pm and 2:38 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 559-017 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 559-017

Date: August 10, 1971
Time: 2:37 pm - unknown before 2:38 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield.

     President's schedule
           -George P. Shultz
           -Kenneth R. Cole, Jr.
           -Paul Harvey

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

Butterfield left at an unknown time before 2:38 pm.

Also recorded on August 10, 1971

  • 559-014 2:31 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Alexander P. Butterfield, Stephen B. Bull, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 2:31 pm and 2:33 pm.
  • 559-015 2:31 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 2:31 pm and 2:33 pm.
  • 007-085 2:33 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally talked on the telephone from 2:33 pm to 2:37 pm.
  • 559-016 2:33 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally met in the Oval Office of the White House from 2:33 pm to 2:37 pm.
  • 559-018 2:38 PM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Kenneth R. Cole, Jr., and George P. Shultz met in the Oval Office of the White House from 2:38 pm to 2:46 pm.
  • 559-019 2:46 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 2:46 pm and 2:59 pm.
  • 559-020 2:46 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 2:46 pm and 2:59 pm.
  • 559-021 2:59 PM · 21 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Mrs. Paul Harvey, Harry S. Dent, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 2:59 pm to 3:19 pm.

All 40 conversations from August 10, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 559-017, 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/559-017 (accessed October 9, 2026).