Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 650
Nixon White House Tape 650 (January 18, 1972)
15 conversations · Oval Office · about 5 hr 42 min of released audio
Featuring Nixon, Butterfield, Bull, Woods, Ehrlichman
President Nixon met with Stephen B. Bull to coordinate his daily schedule and manage upcoming appointments. The discussion focused on arranging meetings with key advisors, including John Ehrlichman, George Shultz, John Connally, and Arthur Burns, to address economic concerns such as the West Coast dock strike. Bull was tasked with finalizing the sequence of these engagements to ensure efficient management of the President's afternoon agenda.
President Nixon met with Alexander P. Butterfield and Rose Mary Woods to manage a variety of administrative and scheduling tasks, ranging from locating missing Treasury Department memoranda to coordinating the President’s personal correspondence. The President emphasized the urgent need for a final draft of his State of the Union speech by late afternoon and directed his staff to compile favorable editorial coverage regarding First Lady Pat Nixon’s trip to Africa. These discussions served to streamline White House operations and ensure the timely completion of key policy and public relations materials.
President Nixon met with Alexander P. Butterfield to discuss administrative matters regarding a memorandum authored by John B. Connally. The discussion focused on personnel requests involving Henry A. Kissinger, the National Security Council staff, and potentially Peter G. Peterson. The brief exchange served to coordinate internal executive staffing and organizational oversight.
President Nixon and John Ehrlichman discussed administrative strategy regarding the West Coast dock strike, emphasizing the need for a firm stance against Harry Bridges to avoid public relations issues. The President also requested an options paper by early the following week concerning federal policy on school busing, specifically seeking legislative or constitutional alternatives to pending court decisions. Nixon underscored his desire to clarify his position on the busing issue for the upcoming State of the Union address, directing Ehrlichman to ensure the message was drafted and ready for review.
President Nixon interacted with the White House operator in the Oval Office to place a routine request for food service. The brief exchange focused specifically on ordering a meal for the President. No substantive policy matters or administrative decisions were addressed during this interaction.
President Nixon met with Charles Colson to strategize for the 1972 campaign, emphasizing the need for an aggressive, hard-hitting approach against Democratic opponents. The discussion focused on framing the Vietnam War as the responsibility of the Democratic Party and exploiting divisions among contenders like Edward Kennedy, Edmund Muskie, and Hubert Humphrey. Nixon and Colson also reviewed the political impact of busing, polling data trends, and the necessity of keeping Republican Congressional leadership actively engaged in the political counterattack.
President Nixon and Stephen B. Bull briefly conferred regarding the logistics of the President's upcoming daily schedule. The primary focus of the meeting was to coordinate the timing and appearance of scheduled appointments with Arthur F. Burns and John B. Connally. Bull also alerted the President to the imminent arrival of Dr. Hayes for a subsequent meeting.
President Nixon met with Ronald Ziegler and Stephen Bull to coordinate the strategy for his upcoming State of the Union address and related public relations tasks. The discussion focused on separating the content of the address into an oral message primarily covering domestic policy, while reserving foreign policy for the upcoming 'State of the World' report. Additionally, Ziegler prepared for a trip to New York to meet with network executives regarding the President’s visit to the People's Republic of China, and the group briefly addressed the West Coast Dock strike and a loan controversy involving F. Donald Nixon and Howard Hughes.
President Nixon met with Arthur Burns and John Connally to coordinate economic policy and public messaging ahead of the State of the Union and the upcoming budget message. The discussion focused on establishing a federal spending ceiling, managing inflation, and potential leadership changes within the Pay Board, including the possible recruitment of Arthur Goldberg. The group also addressed the challenges of wage and price controls, specifically concerning the decontrol of small businesses and the administration's political narrative regarding economic recovery.
President Nixon met with Alexander P. Butterfield to discuss a phone call from Senate leaders Hugh Scott and Mike Mansfield. The brief exchange served as a situational update regarding the legislative leadership's communication with the White House. No specific policy decisions were finalized during this short interaction.
President Nixon met briefly with Senate leaders Hugh Scott and Mike Mansfield to coordinate an upcoming meeting and discuss general scheduling. The President noted the unique position of both senators as non-candidates in the upcoming election cycle, expressing his desire to engage in informal dialogue away from partisan pressures. The exchange served primarily as a brief pleasantry to arrange a more substantive future engagement.
President Nixon met with John Ehrlichman and George Shultz to discuss strategies for addressing the persistent West Coast dock strike and the administration's public posture toward labor unions. They evaluated the political necessity of firm rhetoric and potential legislative action, including an arbitration bill, while managing the logistical challenges of upcoming budget messaging and the appointment of Peter Peterson to the Commerce Department. The discussion also addressed the administration's broader concerns regarding the State Department's performance, foreign policy negotiations, and the need to mount a more aggressive political defense against Democratic challengers like Edward Kennedy.
President Nixon, H.R. Haldeman, and John Connally met to discuss 1972 political strategy, the President's upcoming schedule, and the administration's internal power dynamics. A central focus was addressing the professional friction between Henry Kissinger and William Rogers by drafting a formal directive to ensure the President remained fully informed on sensitive foreign policy matters, including negotiations with China, the Soviet Union, and the Middle East. Additionally, the participants evaluated 1972 election campaign tactics, polling data, and plans to manage public perceptions of the President, including strategies for handling potential political attacks from the Kennedy camp.
President Nixon held a brief, three-minute meeting in the Oval Office with an unidentified individual, potentially H.R. Haldeman. The discussion remains largely obscured due to the lack of a clear transcript, resulting in no identifiable policy decisions or administrative actions. The encounter serves primarily as a record of a short, private interaction during the President's daily schedule.
Secret Service personnel engaged in a brief discussion regarding President Nixon’s physical location at the Executive Office Building. The exchange appears to be a logistical status check concerning the President's whereabouts during his work day. No broader policy or political developments were recorded during this brief administrative communication.