Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 599 › Conversation 599-008
Nixon, Woods & Bull on Pay Board and Price Commission
Friday, October 22, 1971 · 10:40 AM–10:52 AM ET · Oval Office · 10 min
AI Summary
President Nixon met with Rose Mary Woods and Stephen B. Bull to discuss his recent televised address, manage his daily schedule, and address personnel and political matters. The group coordinated the President's attendance at a meeting regarding the Pay Board and Price Commission, ensuring no photography occurred due to the absence of labor leaders. Additionally, they reviewed potential Supreme Court nominees, evaluated a letter from Senator Charles Percy, and considered guest list arrangements for an upcoming White House dinner.
- Pay Board
- Price Commission
- Supreme Court
- Charles Percy
- White House Scheduling
- Public Relations
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 1 minute of this recording (about 6% of it) is represented by only a few words. Listen to the audio rather than relying on the text below; a corrected transcript is queued.
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Oh, okay.
Well, that's very handsome.
And the one last thing I'd love to tell you.
Somebody, like Marge, even said, gosh, you look so great in a white shirt and a tie and a gray suit.
It really was.
The blackness, the lighting, everything was just perfect.
And he just thought you looked absolutely wonderful.
He was very pleased with the way you handled it and talked about the prize.
And Bob was with him.
He said, you might just force me, you know, laughing, you might force me to go over and walk your cake, stuff like that.
He also said that he, he said, uh,
He felt that all, you know, he might have gotten a little chilled last Sunday because it was, you know, the pool was so great.
It was a little cool.
And he thought your voice was last weekend.
Yeah, well, whatever it was.
All right, Mr. President, I believe you have three advices.
The main amendments are not here.
It looks as though they're not going to show.
For the sake of the church, I'll just say for the final check, I don't think they're going to show.
It doesn't mean you're able to work out the entity.
What's the reason for that?
I don't have the reason.
According to Hawthorne last night, they were annoyed that it was a foul play.
Remember, he thought that you called me.
I don't think he had an issue.
Did you?
He hasn't become the best.
They're ready if you'd like to open the meeting.
I'm not supposed to open the meeting.
Are you supposed to drop in?
The meeting is just about to start if you'd like to come in right at the beginning.
It would be very appropriate for us to have them outside.
So they're sure to wait for people to come in?
I'm not 90% sure.
They're 15 minutes late now and apparently not coming in.
There will be no pictures then?
There will be no pictures.
That's correct.
Because if the labor people are not there...
Yes sir.
Do you get my point?
Yes sir.
They understand.
Yes sir.
They don't know that you're coming in anymore.
So if the labor people are not there, it would be very obvious.
Yes sir.
And the other point, it looks like...
I'm not sure who it is.
Sign up for a very new exam.
That's right.
I will not be able to attend school.
Tell him I'll be about five minutes late.
Fine.
We'll let him stay for a year.
Just let her.
We'll have a little interspersed.
I don't think that I'll be ready in about five minutes.
So I'd rather have you do that.
I'll read the words and I'll accomplish them.
Sure, yeah.
He said he was just worried about coming down there because of the nice weather.
Well, I agree with you.
Oh, I get it.
I don't know about that.
I don't know the whole theater.
It would be a little better for everything.
Well, I got the American Bar Association, so I had income.
And actually, there would be a little bit cheaper for some kind.
At least the bar would be bigger.
I don't know.
I don't have at least one woman on the board.
It was 12 and up.
It was 12 and up.
And the women, that is not a pair.
There are women lawyers.
They are members of the ADA.
One of them should be a lawyer.
But they both wrote money.
Well, I think in between times.
It's good.
Because there will be another time.
They can really.
Build somebody up.
Yeah.
In fact, someone I haven't known is in there.
Someone called me yesterday and gave the notes on Eva Adams.
Oh, I don't know.
Eva Adams is a nice woman.
Never, never, never, never.
She's a liar.
I know it.
No way.
She said it.
Because she's on the cat community.
I mean, we're from the cat community.
There are too many.
That's what I mean.
Too many problems.
I know her very well.
I have a letter I want to share, too, that came to you.
Really, it's the best way I can read a little bit from that.
Thank you.
We need Percy.
I've got to look at this letter.
You remember when I got here around 5.30 or 6.00 last night, before you knew who the choices were, he...
Objected to it.
Well, he was saying that you had talked with him at your office, saying that you were looking forward to this helping out or something in Hawaii.
And that he just, and you had said there wouldn't be any...
Supreme Court appointments to hurt or something like that.
And he said, no, it looks like there might be.
You know, I came close to picking up the phone call and saying, he really annoys me.
It arrived, a handwritten letter.
It arrived to me.
Went down and did his goddamn thing out there in Chicago.
Well, you know, and I... Don't tell me how that letter is going to be responded to.
Oh, no.
The trouble is, all these people are not here to answer.
Everything.
I'm not going to let any of them speak to us.
No.
It's viable.
It's viable.
And don't tell them how we're going to be gotten either.
No.
And I...
But I just think you might want to... Our people are so stupid.
They want to respond to everything.
Oh, they've sent to me.
But, you know, and I think Henry was very embarrassed because Joe told me that...
Henry arrived, and of course Henry didn't want to do a straight-out political thing.
Do you know, that was a big $100 plate dinner or something like that, and it was a, you know, it was a big crowd.
And Henry did a good job.
He even said, well, Chuck had asked him to come out for, I suppose he said Senator, had asked him to come out for a few, you know, his close friends, and then he got there, and it was a big political meeting.
Joe said he felt sorry for him.
I personally ask for everything and give something, and he's just, on that one, I would just, I just finally forget it.
You know that Negro woman that I mentioned there?
I think I'll put that woman and her husband on a dinner, one of these dinners coming up.
We meet Negroes all the time, but it's not a dinner.
Is that all right, or would that be embarrassing?
I don't even know.
Okay.
No, I know you don't, but I don't want to.
NARA Description
On October 22, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:40 am to 10:52 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 599-008 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 599-008
Date: October 22, 1971
Time: 10:40 am - 10:52 am
Location: Oval Office
The President met with Rose Mary Woods.
The President's appearance for October 21, 1971 televised speech
-Marjorie P. Acker
-Charles G. (“Bebe”) Rebozo
-Woods previous conversation
-Robert H. Abplanalp
The President's schedule
-Walker's Cay
**********************************************************************
[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift 07/08/2019.
17s segment cleared for release. 24s remain closed as 599-008-w001.]
[Personal Returnable]
[599-008-w001]
[Duration: 17s]
The President's schedule
-Charles G. (“Bebe”) Rebozo
-Walker's Cay
-October 21-22, 1971
-Pool
**********************************************************************
BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
[Personal Returnable]
[599-008-w001]
[Duration: 24s]
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542
END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
**********************************************************************
Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 10:40 am.
The President's schedule
-Pay Board and Price Commission
-George P. Shultz
-George Meany
-I. W. Abel
-Leonard Woodcock
-Purpose of meeting
-James D. Hodgson
-Meany
-The President's presence
-Donald H. Rumsfeld
-Labor attendance
-Possible photograph
-The President's presence
Bull left at an unknown time before 10:52 am.
**********************************************************************
[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift 07/08/2019.
12s segment cleared for release. 49s remain closed as 599-008-w002.]
[Personal Returnable]
[599-008-w002]
[Duration: 12s]
The President’s schedule
-Rose Mary Woods’s conversation with Charles G. (“Bebe”) Rebozo
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542
**********************************************************************
BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[Personal Returnable]
[599-008-w002]
[Duration: 49s]
END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
**********************************************************************
Supreme Court nominees
-American Bar Association [ABA] board
-Women
-Ratings
-Members
-Eva B. Adams
-The President’s view
-Patrick A. McCarran committee
-Letter to the President
-Charles H. Percy
-Supreme Court nominees
-Response by White House
Percy
-Henry A. Kissinger's attendance at dinner in Chicago
-Joseph Woods [?]
-John A. Volpe
-The President’s view
Negro woman and husband
-Forthcoming White House dinner
-The President’s view
**********************************************************************
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542
BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 3
[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift 07/08/2019.
Segment will remain closed.]
[Personal Returnable]
[599-008-w003]
[Duration: 2m 15s]
END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 3
**********************************************************************
The President and Rose Mary Woods left at 10:52 am.Also recorded on October 22, 1971
- 599-005 9:06 AM · 20 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:06 am to 9:25 am.
- 599-006 9:34 AM · 13 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:34 am to 9:50 am.
- 081-001 10:38 AM · 22 min — President Richard M. Nixon and members of the Pay Board and Price Commission, including George H. Boldt, Arnold R. Weber, Dr. Neil H. Jacoby, William G. Caples, Kermit Gordon, Rocco C. Siciliano, Virgil B. Day, Robert Bassett, Leonard F. McCollum, Benjamin F. Biaggini, George Meany, I[lorwith] W. Abel, Leonard Woodcock, Floyd E. ("Red") Smith, Frank E. Fitzsimmons, Dr. C. Jackson ("Dan") Grayson, Jr., William W. Scranton, John William Queenan, William T. Coleman, Jr., Marina von Neumann Whitman, J. Wilson Newman, and Robert F. Lanzillotti, met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 10:38 am and 11:59 pm.
- 599-007 10:40 AM · 21 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at 10:40 am.
- 599-009 10:52 AM · 2 min — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:52 am and 11:09 am.
- 599-010 11:19 AM · 18 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Ronald L. Ziegler, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:19 am and 11:43 am.
- 599-011 11:43 AM · 23 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Imedla Marcos, Alexander M. Haig, Jr., Manolo Sanchez, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:43 am to 12:06 pm.
- 599-012 12:16 PM · 30 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Stephen B. Bull, Peter H. B. Frelinghuysen, Clark MacGregor, Alexander M. Haig, Jr., and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:16 pm to 12:45 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 599-008, October 22, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/599-008 (accessed October 23, 2026).