Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 561
Nixon White House Tape 561 (August 11, 1971)
14 conversations · Oval Office · about 4 hr 21 min of released audio
Featuring Nixon, Haldeman, Ziegler, Sanchez, Kissinger
President Nixon held a brief meeting in the Oval Office with an unidentified individual to review his daily schedule. The discussion focused on coordinating the President's upcoming appointments and logistical arrangements for the day. No substantive policy decisions were documented during this short exchange before the participant departed.
President Nixon consulted with the White House operator to facilitate a communication with Carmen Kildrew, who was affiliated with the Minnesota Twins baseball team. The discussion centered on confirming the recipient's interest in receiving a message from the President. The exchange concluded with an affirmative expectation that Kildrew would be receptive to the outreach.
President Nixon and Henry Kissinger discuss coordinating a meeting involving H.R. Haldeman to clarify specific administrative or strategic objectives. The President emphasizes his desire to establish clear expectations and ensure that all parties are aligned regarding the intended focus of the discussion. This brief interaction serves as a preparatory step to streamline communication and firm up the agenda for the subsequent meeting.
President Nixon met with H. R. Haldeman and Henry Kissinger to discuss sensitive foreign policy initiatives, including the upcoming secret negotiations with the Soviet Union and planning for his potential visits to China and Moscow. The President emphasized a strict information blackout regarding these trips, directing that the New York Times be excluded from access, and expressed his frustration with media coverage, specifically an interview involving James Reston and Zhou Enlai. Additionally, they reviewed domestic political concerns, including responding to urban issues and the President's stance on busing, while finalizing public relations strategies for his upcoming diplomatic agenda.
President Nixon met with his personal valet, Manolo Sanchez, in the Oval Office to address administrative and service-related needs. The brief exchange focused primarily on the President's request for refreshment, specifically coffee. No significant policy discussions occurred during this interaction.
President Nixon met with aide Stephen B. Bull to coordinate administrative logistics and manage his daily schedule. The discussion centered on finalizing the location for an upcoming meeting with John D. Ehrlichman, selecting between the Oval Office and the Executive Office Building, and managing the queue for pending bill signings. Additionally, the President issued a brief instruction to Manolo Sanchez regarding a delay on a specific, unspecified action.
President Nixon met with Stephen B. Bull and Manolo Sanchez to coordinate his daily schedule and logistical arrangements for upcoming appointments. The discussion focused on the venue for a meeting with John D. Ehrlichman, specifically debating the preference between the Oval Office and the Executive Office Building, as well as the processing of various bill signings. Additionally, the participants touched upon the First Lady’s schedule at Wolf Trap and the coordination of presidential appearances.
President Nixon, John Ehrlichman, and Ronald Ziegler met to coordinate administration strategy regarding news leaks, classification policies, and the public handling of the Pentagon Papers. The President emphasized his commitment to a new, stricter classification system while justifying past actions as necessary for protecting sensitive foreign negotiations, such as those with China and the Soviet Union. The group also discussed the management of busing policy, the possible retirement of J. Edgar Hoover, and upcoming domestic policy initiatives, including welfare reform and revenue sharing.
President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman met to coordinate upcoming schedule adjustments and strategy sessions regarding speechwriting. The discussion focused on organizing individual meetings with speechwriter Raymond K. Price, Jr. and advisor George P. Shultz to refine the President's public messaging. Nixon directed Haldeman to structure these appointments to ensure direct, separated consultations for each project.
President Nixon held a brief meeting with an unidentified individual to facilitate a scheduled appointment with Charles W. Colson. The discussion served as a logistical arrangement to ensure a future consultation between the President and his special counsel. No substantive policy matters were addressed during this short exchange.
President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman met briefly to finalize details regarding the President's upcoming schedule. The primary focus of the discussion was confirming a meeting or event involving the Executive Office Building (EOB). The conversation concluded with the pair agreeing to a three o'clock appointment.
President Nixon met with staff members, including Ronald Ziegler, Charles Colson, and H.R. Haldeman, to discuss a range of domestic and political issues, including school desegregation policy and public relations strategies. The conversation focused on exploiting political divisions among Democrats regarding the Pentagon Papers and the Vietnam War, and preparing for future economic messaging during the autumn. Additionally, Nixon addressed concerns over a potential security breach involving lost personal notes from a trip to Indiana and coordinated upcoming administrative schedules and briefings.
President Nixon held a brief meeting in the Oval Office with an unidentified individual, which concluded shortly after initial greetings were exchanged. Due to the limited duration and the lack of a recorded transcript, the substance of the discussion remains unavailable for analysis. No significant policy decisions or administrative actions were documented during this short interaction.
President Nixon and senior staff, including H.R. Haldeman and Ron Ziegler, held extensive discussions regarding the strategic planning of the President’s upcoming trips to the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the USSR. The conversation covered the coordination of public announcements, the management of press coverage—specifically regarding New York Times interviews with Chou En-lai—and the integration of these diplomatic maneuvers into the 1972 re-election campaign. Furthermore, the participants reviewed domestic political concerns, including school busing, potential changes to the presidential ticket, and the implementation of a new national economic program involving wage and price controls.