Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 566 › Conversation 566-023

United States Secret Service agents on Secret Service and Personnel Selection

Tuesday, August 17, 1971 · 5:04 PM ET · Oval Office

ParticipantsUnited States Secret Service agentsConversation566-023 on Tape 566 (tape position 03:55:18–03:55:53)StartTuesday, August 17, 1971 at 5:04 PMEndTuesday, August 17, 1971 at 5:04 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 566-023 ↗

AI Summary

Secret Service agents gathered in the Oval Office to discuss the recruitment and vetting of a highly partisan and disciplined individual for a specialized team. The speakers emphasized the candidate's professional expertise and his capacity to function effectively within a rigid, politically driven framework. This discussion reflects efforts to organize a dedicated unit capable of executing specific operational tasks.

Audio

Download MP3 (part 1) · 169.3 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 171.7 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 8.1 MB

This conversation has not yet been cut into its own clip, so the player above contains the full tape segment shared with neighbouring conversations. It begins about 03:55:18 into the tape and ends around 03:55:53.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data

3:55:19But, I'm going to get somebody that the guy's going to be on that team.
3:55:21He is good at it.
3:55:21That's one thing.
3:55:21He is good at it.
3:55:22He's in the business.
3:55:22He's driving it.
3:55:22Now, there's going to be a band of people who are going to stand up and do this sort of thing.
3:55:24And I'm going to let them know that he's good at it.
3:55:25He's rigid.
3:55:26And partisan.
3:55:26He's partisan.
3:55:26He's really good at it.
3:55:27He's really good at it.
3:55:27Basically, God, God, means.
3:55:28A lot of people don't even know why.

NARA Description

On August 17, 1971, United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at 5:04 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 566-023 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 566-23

Date: August 17, 1971
Time: 5:04 pm
Location: Oval Office

Unknown people [Secret Service agents] met.

     The President’s and John B. Connally’s location
          -South Grounds of the White House

[The recording was cut off during the conversation]

Also recorded on August 17, 1971

  • 566-016 3:26 PM · 29 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 3:26 pm and 4:12 pm.
  • 008-026 4:12 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 4:12 pm.
  • 008-027 4:12 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 4:12 pm.
  • 008-028 4:12 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:12 pm and 5:04 pm.
  • 008-029 4:12 PM · 16 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Julie Nixon Eisenhower talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:12 pm and 5:04 pm.
  • 566-022 4:30 PM · 3 min — United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:30 pm and 4:56 pm.
  • 566-019 4:56 PM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at 4:56 pm.
  • 566-020 4:56 PM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Jayne B. Spain, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:56 pm to 5:04 pm.

All 48 conversations from August 17, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 566-023, August 17, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/566-023 (accessed October 12, 2026).