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Conversation 652-011

TapeTape 652StartThursday, January 20, 1972 at 2:57 PMEndThursday, January 20, 1972 at 3:05 PMTape start time01:30:25Tape end time01:40:16ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob");  Ziegler, Ronald L.;  [Unknown person(s)]Recording deviceOval Office
AI Summary

President Nixon met with H. R. Haldeman and Ronald Ziegler to coordinate the White House's political strategy regarding the fallout from his recent State of the Union address and upcoming labor legislation. The group discussed attacking Democratic critics like Edmund Muskie for their perceived partisanship while managing media coverage and potential responses to a dock strike. Nixon specifically instructed staff to employ aggressive, memorable rhetoric to characterize labor strikers as selfish and irresponsible in order to pressure Congress into taking action.

State of the UnionDemocratic PartyPolitical StrategyLabor UnionsDock StrikeRhetoric
AudioNARA Description

On January 20, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Ronald L. Ziegler, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House from 2:57 pm to 3:05 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 652-011 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 652-11

Date: January 20, 1972
Time: 2:57 pm - 3:05 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman.

       Dinner, January 20, 1972
            -Cabinet
                  -Business session

       The President’s schedule
            -Cabinet and Congressional leaders
                  -Meetings
                         -Frequency
                         -Value
                         -Frequency
                               -Selection of new Cabinet in second term
                               -Review
                         -Individual Cabinet members

Ronald L. Ziegler entered at an unknown time after 2:57 pm.

       Robert E. Merriam
            -Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations [ACIR] study
                  -The President’s letter to Merriam
                        -Release to press
                              -Ziegler’s conversation with John D. Ehrlichman
                              -Ziegler’s conversation with Merriam

       Edmund S. Muskie
           -Membership on ACIR
                 -Attendance at meeting
           -Reaction to the President’s State of the Union Address
                 -Applause
           -Statement
                 -Bi-partisanship

State of the Union Address
      -Democrats’ reactions
             -Henry M. (“Scoop”) Jackson
             -Television coverage
                   -Ziegler’s watching
                   -Cut to audience at closing remark
             -Bella S. Abzug’s reaction
                   -Statement
                         -The President’s tenure in office
             -Partisanship
             -Muskie’s reaction
                   -Number of proposals
                   -Statement for television
                         -Competition with Hubert H. Humphrey
      -Republican reaction
             -The President’s bipartisanship
             -Attack on Democrats
                   -Tone
                   -Muskie statement
                         -Vietnam war
                   -Personal attacks
      -Edward M. Kennedy’s reaction

Dock strike announcement, January 21, 1972
     -Handling by Ziegler and Laurence H. Silberman
     -The President’s involvement
            -Statement, January 20,, 1972
     -Rhetoric
            -Toughness
                  -Labor Department
     -Legislation for arbitration
            -Congress
            -The President’s State of the Union reference
     -The President’s input
            -Attack on strikers
                  -Irresponsibility
                  -Economy
     -George P. Shultz
     -Patrick J. Buchanan
     -Charles W. Colson’s office
     -Rhetoric
            -Toughness
     -Silberman
            -Legislation
     -Rhetoric
            -Toughness
An unknown person entered at an unknown time after 2:57 pm.

       Cabinet meeting

The unknown person left at an unknown time before 3:05 pm.

            -Rhetoric
                   -Toughness
                   -Buchanan

The President, Haldeman and Ziegler left at 3:05 pm.
Transcript (AI-Generated)

This transcript was generated automatically by AI and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite this transcript as authoritative. Consult the Finding Aid above for verified information.

I'll leave it at this.
Tonight we'll take a break.
We'll have a break on the business session kind of thing.
Well, we'll have to play as leaders and as careful as we can with the parts of the goodies.
Just give them enough that they feel they're a part of it.
I guess about every two weeks is it?
The leadership, of course, is important.
They have to be met.
But the cabinet, they've got to be met.
Well, I think when you get to the next term, you start selecting a new cabinet, we ought to say that it goes to the English.
we're going to release your letter to bob merriam on the uh
ACIR study to talk about, because it outlines what you're asking for.
So we're going to do that at 4 o'clock.
It's very general.
I talked to Bob Merriam.
He said fine.
Do you support what he's asking?
He's on the commission.
Sure.
He never goes, either.
I'm not sure he knows he's on it.
Probably doesn't.
His reaction, apparently, in the speech
It was an empty speech.
I didn't see his remark, but apparently during the speech it was quite obvious.
He'd sit there and meet people to applaud.
He'd look around and see if he could applaud, and then he'd scratch his face and he'd applaud.
I just watched it over.
He said it was an empty speech.
Let him say that.
That's the perfect thing for him to say with the president calling for bipartisanship and the best sense in the property.
Let him say it.
Democrats are all leaving in with the...
Scoop Jackson wasn't even there, so he shot something back saying it was terrible.
He didn't have anything to deal with, but he proposed it to me.
I think that's going to get a backlash on it.
I just watched it.
Did you watch it?
No.
On TV?
Very good.
The ending was very good.
And when the president of the line, you know, America, not because it's rich, not because it's powerful, but because it's good, they cut to the audience.
It was a good scene.
Bella, Bella, she said, he didn't say anything, but we got at the end, and all he did then was tell us it was a good country.
And she said, I already knew it was a good country, and it'll be a lot better when we get rid of him.
Yeah.
They're not that smart.
What's he talking about?
It all had mind proposals in it.
And also, there's a funny wiretap that says that Muskie and Humphrey collided with each other in their race with the television cameras.
Humphrey beat Muskie out, and Muskie had to cool his heels off.
Well, Humphrey did his bit before the cameras, before Muskie could get on.
Let him go.
Well, that's it.
That's the kind of stuff you want, I think, is the story of the two of them knocking the lights out and attacking me.
Well, I've got to attack him for being partisan.
And that's where, well, our guys are set for that, and our guys are set to lay the groundwork for it on the, because all of them have said, you know, praise you for the nonpartisan nature of the call to action, and see if we have to get these things going.
Now they move in and get these pastures.
They've got to be reputable, Bob.
Yeah, not being rough.
They're all right, but not long from there.
It's got to be very rough.
And they think, when Muskie says it's an empty speech, that someone should come back and say, is it empty when the war is being ended, when, you know, the environment?
He said it didn't say anything about how it was going to end the war.
It didn't deal with any progress in ending the war.
You know, they've got a hell of a time.
Yeah.
You know, they're doing exactly what you've got to do to them, yes.
If you're going to attack them.
Well, you want to attack them, so he doesn't empty his head.
Yeah.
Or something like that.
Get real personal.
That's the way they do it.
That's the way they all do it.
You know, they always stir her, stir her up.
And he hasn't said anything, apparently.
You know what he's talking about?
He hasn't.
Have you got the thing all set up for tomorrow in the box?
Silverman and I is coming down.
So I think, Bob and I talked earlier, Silverman and I can handle it and, you know, it'll be there.
It's your direction and so forth.
I don't really see a need for you to personally involve yourself in the announcement.
You haven't any others.
And with your statement today,
What does he do?
What's he going to say?
You see, the boys and ladies don't write strong enough language.
What is the language?
Well, I haven't seen the language, but I'll have to talk to them about it.
The material that I use in announcing it on the direction of the president will make it very strong.
What is it?
That's what I'm getting at.
Well, it's legislation.
Asking the Congress to act immediately to commit the two-parties to arbitration.
The President's line of speech today.
Very good.
And then go further.
Let's put it in some language.
You'll be affected.
No, no.
A little bit of selfish.
Selfish.
Irresponsible men can be allowed to bring this nation's economy to its knees, or something like that.
There's some language like that.
Selfish, irresponsible men can be allowed to bring this nation's economy to its knees.
Be allowed to injure the interests and business of Americans.
Bob, get somebody on this, you know, show us a subject, tell us a dishwater, and get Buchanan, get Buchanan to get some language that really curls their hair.
And when you do that, as close as anybody can write there either.
That way, I want it written in tough, really tough language, something that will ring, something that will be remembered.
And then the way we'll do that...
The way we'll do that is we can say, this came from the presidential compound, and he still asked me to say and then go through this strong language.
And then Silberman would deal more with the technicalities and legislation.
Hit, again, the need for before the emergency legislation that was aired, as he did at the end of the day.
But we'll be firm on it.
We can be.
Is this a question of being firm?
Is the legislature going to be having a strong
Words that will be picked up, brain words, they call them selfish, irresponsible, selfish, willful, irresponsible men.
A few selfish people cannot be, cannot be put above the... Oh, there he is.
I'm sure he has to be.
I'm good on that one.
All right.
All right.
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