Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 620 › Conversation 620-009

Nixon & Butterfield on Military appropriations and Press relations

Wednesday, November 17, 1971 · 10:42 AM–10:47 AM ET · Oval Office · 46 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Butterfield, Alexander P.Conversation620-009 on Tape 620 (tape position 01:55:03–01:55:48)StartWednesday, November 17, 1971 at 10:42 AMEndWednesday, November 17, 1971 at 10:47 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 620-009 ↗ · National Archives Catalog, NAID 417179881 ↗

President Nixon met with Alexander P. Butterfield to discuss the strategic handling of a pending military appropriations bill. The pair coordinated the release of a formal press statement to be issued by Press Secretary Ronald L. Ziegler regarding the legislation. This brief consultation focused on aligning the administration's messaging concerning the bill's advancement.

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On November 17, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:42 am and 10:47 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 620-009 of the White House Tapes.

Conversation No. 620-009

Date: November 17, 1971
Time: Unknown after 10:42 am until 10:47 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield.

     Military Appropriations Bill

     Press statement
          -Ronald L. Ziegler

Butterfield left at 10:47 am.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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This is a military corporation.
Okay, how many seconds?
  • 014-149 9:59 AM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:59 am and 10:05 am.
  • 014-150 9:59 AM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:59 am and 10:05 am.
  • 014-151 10:05 AM · 13 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and John B. Connally talked on the telephone from 10:05 am to 10:18 am.
  • 620-007 10:05 AM · 12 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:05 am to 10:18 am.
  • 620-008 10:18 AM · 23 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:18 am to 10:42 am.
  • 620-010 10:47 AM · 20 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 10:47 am and 11:06 am.
  • 620-011 10:53 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:53 am and 11:06 am.
  • 620-012 11:06 AM · 1 hr 25 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald W. Reagan, Stephen B. Bull, John N. Mitchell, and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:06 am to 12:30 pm.

Conversation 620-009, November 17, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives (NAID 417179881). Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/620-009 (accessed November 15, 2026).