Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 638 › Conversation 638-003
Nixon with unidentified visitors in the Oval Office on Henry Kissinger
Wednesday, December 15, 1971 · 8:38 AM–8:45 AM ET · Oval Office · 6 sec
AI Summary
President Nixon met with an unknown individual to coordinate a brief, immediate briefing with Henry Kissinger. The primary objective was to ensure Kissinger’s prompt arrival at the Oval Office for an urgent consultation. The conversation concluded with instructions to expedite Kissinger's entry.
Audio
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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
Each line starts with a timestamp button; press it to play the audio from that point.
NARA Description
On December 15, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:38 am and 8:45 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 638-003 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 638-003
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542
Date: December 15, 1971
Time: Unknown between 8:38 am and 8:45 am
Location: Oval Office
The President met with an unknown person.
The President's schedule
-Meeting with Henry A. Kissinger
The unknown person left at an unknown time before 8:45 am.Also recorded on December 15, 1971
- 016-103 8:38 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and Margaret Chase Smith talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:38 am and 9:14 am.
- 638-001 8:38 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 8:38 am and 8:45 am.
- 638-002 8:38 AM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:38 am and 8:45 am.
- 638-004 8:45 AM · 2 hr 46 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Stephen B. Bull, Alexander P. Butterfield, Henry A. Kissinger, White House operator, Margaret Chase Smith, John B. Connally, Ronald L. Ziegler, John A. Scali, Julie Nixon Eisenhower, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:45 am to 11:30 am.
- 016-104 9:14 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:14 am and 11:22 am.
- 016-105 11:22 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Julie Nixon Eisenhower talked on the telephone from 11:22 am to 11:25 am.
- 638-005 11:33 AM · 12 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:33 am to 11:45 am.
- 638-006 11:45 AM · 22 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:45 am to 11:46 am.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 638-003, December 15, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/638-003 (accessed October 12, 2026).