Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 639 › Conversation 639-016

Nixon & Bull on Presidential travel and John B. Connally

Saturday, December 18, 1971 · 5:05 PM–5:12 PM ET · Oval Office · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Bull, Stephen B.Conversation639-016 on Tape 639 (tape position 01:48:23–01:52:26)StartSaturday, December 18, 1971 at 5:05 PMEndSaturday, December 18, 1971 at 5:12 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 639-016 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Stephen B. Bull coordinate the logistics for the President's upcoming departure to New York City. The discussion focuses on scheduling adjustments, the coordination of the presidential party at the helipad, and the inclusion of Tricia Nixon Cox in the travel arrangements. Additionally, Nixon weighs the timing of a potential press release and a phone call to John B. Connally, stipulating that plans remain off the record pending further confirmation.

Audio

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Well, we may have to move it back.
I'll see you sometime.
This is what it's about.
We need to do that, sir.
We need to do that, sir.
We need to do that, sir.
We need to do that, sir.
We need to do that, sir.
We can make this present.
We can have them meet us there.
Or we can have them meet us at the helipad, sir.
And then the family can all arrive in.
Yeah, let her come to the helipad.
I think we can go to the east side helipad, west side helipad.
I said, well, we're going to do that.
We can move to the west side helipad.
We can put us a little bit closer.
I'll figure it out.
At the moment, it won't change until I find out whether it's for sure.
But if it does, I mean, in 15 minutes.
In 15 minutes, we can still do it very easily.
They go in a second car over there.
Well, they go in a second car over there.
Okay.
And they have a big car over there.
They can all get in there.
Okay.
I'll let you know whether he's on or off, and we won't tell him until I hear from him.
It's off the record until I hear from him.

NARA Description

On December 18, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:05 pm and 5:12 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 639-016 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 639-016

Date: December 18, 1971
Time: Unknown between 5:05 pm and 5:12 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Stephen B. Bull.

     President's schedule
           -Phone call to John B. Connally
           -Bill signing
           -Departure for New York City
                 -Timing
                 -Tricia Nixon Cox
                 -Connally
                       -Smithsonian Institute
                 -Press release
                 -Helipad

     President’s schedule
           -Possible statement in New York City

Bull left at an unknown time before 5:12 pm.

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

Also recorded on December 18, 1971

  • 639-022 4:43 PM · 21 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:43 pm and 5:03 pm.
  • 639-025 5:03 PM · 1 hr 32 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Jerrold L. Schecter, Hugh S. Sidey, Hedley W. Donovan, Henry A. Grunwald, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:03 pm to 6:35 pm.
  • 639-015 5:05 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:05 pm and 5:12 pm.
  • 639-017 5:05 PM · 23 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:05 pm and 5:12 pm.
  • 639-018 5:12 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:12 pm to 5:20 pm.
  • 639-019 5:20 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:20 pm and 5:26 pm.
  • 016-118 5:26 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally talked on the telephone from 5:26 pm to 5:28 pm.
  • 639-020 5:26 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:26 pm to 5:28 pm.

All 52 conversations from December 18, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 639-016, December 18, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/639-016 (accessed October 11, 2026).