{"conversationCode":"590-012","tapeNumber":590,"conversationNumber":12,"identifier":"37-wht-conversation-590-012","startDateTime":"1971-10-13T17:43:00.000Z","endDateTime":"1971-10-13T17:50:00.000Z","startDate":"13-Oct-1971","startTime":"1:43 PM","endDate":"13-Oct-1971","endTime":"1:50 PM","dateCertainty":"certain","timeCertainty":"certain","participants":"Nixon, Richard M. (President); Fitzsimmons, Frank E.;","description":"On October 13, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Frank E. Fitzsimmons met in the Oval Office of the White House from 1:43 pm to 1:50 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 590-012 of the White House Tapes.","locationCode":"OVAL","recordingDevice":"Oval Office","latitudeEstimated":38.8974,"longitudeEstimated":-77.0374,"chronCode":2,"chronRelease":"Second Chronological Release","chronReleaseDate":"26-Oct-2000","aogpRelease":null,"aogpSegment":null,"lastModified":"2015-07-27T17:04:10.235Z","findingAid":"Conversation No. 590-12\n\nDate: October 13, 1971\nTime: 1:43 pm - 1:50 pm\n\fLocation: Oval Office\n\nThe President talked with Frank E. Fitzsimmons between 1:43 pm and 1:50 pm.\n\n[See Conversation No. 11-85]","filename":["590-012.mp3"],"tapeStart":"04:46:57","tapeEnd":"04:51:40","participantsList":["Nixon, Richard M. (President)","Fitzsimmons, Frank E."],"prevCode":"590-011","nextCode":"590-013","transcript":[{"start":13.35,"end":36.38,"text":"I just wanted to thank you for your various support yesterday in working out that problem we had over there with the, you know, on this waste."},{"start":36.4,"end":37.8,"text":"And I think without you, we couldn't have made it."},{"start":37.82,"end":39.44,"text":"And we want to work with you, and we hope that we can have some good cooperation."},{"start":39.46,"end":41.12,"text":"But I guess I just didn't want you to – I can thank you all for that, Tom,"},{"start":58.3,"end":71.8,"text":"Well, you know, I'm sure that I initialed the understanding."},{"start":71.82,"end":77.47,"text":"I think there was basically a misunderstanding, frankly, that I intended all along."},{"start":77.49,"end":81.19,"text":"But, you know, by the time the press begins to breathe and all that, then one guy will say something that he didn't, was quite supposed to say, and there'll be a misunderstanding."},{"start":81.21,"end":83.62,"text":"But it takes folks like you to sort of keep up a rocker to go to about two times a day."},{"start":87.95,"end":103.83,"text":"Yeah, yeah."},{"start":103.85,"end":104.85,"text":"Good point."},{"start":104.87,"end":108.17,"text":"Well, we're going to try to do our best to get along."},{"start":108.19,"end":110.67,"text":"I know this is tough."},{"start":110.69,"end":113.53,"text":"It's often tough, too, with the pressures with your locals and so forth."},{"start":115.67,"end":127.29,"text":"This battle is a good fight."},{"start":127.31,"end":129.23,"text":"It's one where I think we're all responsible."},{"start":129.59,"end":133.96,"text":"We've fixed my headway on it."},{"start":133.98,"end":139.41,"text":"As I'm sure you know, our Russian trip, which now that the Chinese trip means that just exactly what it says, as I point out in the press, doesn't mean that we"},{"start":141.95,"end":163.01,"text":"change our philosophy, but it does mean that we're not going to negotiate on some of these things that otherwise might get us involved in some kind of conflict that affects the rest of Vietnam."},{"start":163.03,"end":165.89,"text":"And I think your membership will prove it, particularly because, as you well know, I don't want to do it, but they do their job, which is good."},{"start":165.91,"end":170.44,"text":"All right."},{"start":173.03,"end":189.47,"text":"Frank, I'm not, I'm not a voter at the moment, but Connolly just got back in, and I told you that my last report was that that was rocking along pretty well."},{"start":189.49,"end":199.64,"text":"I mean, I haven't had the, I can't be humble, but my recollection is that they were gonna work out some certain deal on that."},{"start":199.66,"end":199.92,"text":"And there is,"},{"start":201.53,"end":216.51,"text":"I don't know."},{"start":216.53,"end":218.26,"text":"I called you to do it."},{"start":218.28,"end":218.84,"text":"What did you tell your team?"},{"start":218.86,"end":220.76,"text":"That you can absolutely turn it on, that you talk to me."},{"start":220.78,"end":223.14,"text":"As I say, the Secretary of Treasury and I are working on the Canadian thing."},{"start":223.16,"end":223.59,"text":"It's a special thing."},{"start":223.6,"end":224.19,"text":"We don't want to."},{"start":224.21,"end":226.65,"text":"We can't, of course, get an American position."},{"start":226.67,"end":227.11,"text":"We want something now."},{"start":227.13,"end":227.61,"text":"But we're going to work."},{"start":231.07,"end":251.99,"text":"And also the other countries too, but they like the Japanese, they better come a little ways for me, for God's sake."},{"start":252.01,"end":252.53,"text":"I think you agree with me."},{"start":252.55,"end":255.72,"text":"Basically, Japan is our best overseas customer."},{"start":256.32,"end":257.4,"text":"Japan and Canada are our best customers."},{"start":257.42,"end":258.88,"text":"Okay, well you tell our team we're all for them."},{"start":259.31,"end":264,"text":"All right."},{"start":264.28,"end":264.8,"text":"I'll be there in a minute."}],"aiSummary":{"text":"President Nixon met with Teamsters President Frank E. Fitzsimmons to express appreciation for Fitzsimmons' recent assistance in resolving a labor dispute. The discussion touched upon the necessity of maintaining cooperative relations despite external pressures and misunderstandings exacerbated by the press. Nixon also briefly updated Fitzsimmons on international economic negotiations, specifically referencing efforts by the Treasury Department to reach trade agreements with Canada and Japan.","topics":["Labor relations","International trade","Economic policy","Teamsters","Foreign relations"],"generatedAt":"2026-04-07T00:19:04.711Z"},"topicSlugs":["labor-relations","international-trade","economic-policy","teamsters","foreign-relations"],"audioDurationSec":266,"audioFiles":[{"file":"590-012.mp3","bytes":10644163,"durationSec":265.98,"bitrate":320154,"missing":false}],"audioIsShared":false,"audioProbedAt":"2026-09-18T02:19:51.635Z","transcriptGapSeconds":60,"transcriptGapShare":0.22,"transcriptQuality":"incomplete","audio":["https://nixon.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/audio/590-012.mp3"],"url":"https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/590-012","nixonLibraryUrl":"https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/590/conversation-590-012","license":"Public domain (U.S. Government work). AI-generated fields (transcript, aiSummary) are provided as-is without warranty."}