Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 668 › Conversation 668-015

Nixon, Kissinger & Ziegler on Vietnam War and Public relations

Wednesday, February 9, 1972 · 11:20 AM–11:21 AM ET · Oval Office · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.; Ziegler, Ronald L.Conversation668-015 on Tape 668 (tape position 03:02:35–03:05:26)StartWednesday, February 9, 1972 at 11:20 AMEndWednesday, February 9, 1972 at 11:21 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 668-015 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon, Henry Kissinger, and Ronald Ziegler met to discuss the public and political reception of the President's recent radio address regarding the Vietnam War. Kissinger offered analysis on the motivations of administration critics, focusing on the intersection of patriotism and policy dissent. The participants framed the President’s withdrawal efforts as a significant achievement in reducing casualties and ending the conflict responsibly.

Audio

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Position in tape: 03:02:35 – 03:05:26

part B, 59:01

668a.mp3

668b.mp3

668b_i.mp3

NARA Description

On February 9, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:20 am to 11:21 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 668-015 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 668-15

Date: February 9, 1972
Time: 11:20 am - 11:21 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Henry A. Kissinger and Ronald L. Ziegler.

     The President’s recent radio speech
          -Kissinger’s view
               -Critics of Administration’ Vietnam policy
                      -Patriotism

                      -Responsibility
                 -Vietnam
                      -Communists

The President and Kissinger left at 11:21 am.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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

Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).

Thank you, Mr. Jackson.

Bear, you've got to get it.

I said, Thomas will pay for that.

I didn't see that.

Yeah, you didn't say it, but...

Thank you, Mr. Thomas.

I didn't think it was the only way to get it.

That's the best way to get it.

— 2 min 27 s with no transcribed speech —

Let me turn now to Vietnam.

Also recorded on February 9, 1972

020-081 10:15 AM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 10:15 am.
668-013 10:40 AM · 20 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:40 am and 11:04 am.
668-014 10:40 AM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Stephen B. Bull, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:40 am and 11:04 am.
020-083 11:04 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:04 am and 2:52 pm.
668-016 11:21 AM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:21 am and 12:05 pm.
321-001 12:08 PM · 52 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:08 pm and 12:16 pm.
321-002 12:08 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:08 pm and 12:16 pm.
321-003 12:16 PM · 45 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 12:16 pm to 1:05 pm.

All 47 conversations from February 9, 1972 →

Nixon & Kissinger on Vietnam War and Presidential Speech April 7, 1971 · 32 min
Nixon & Cox on Vietnam War and Public relations January 25, 1972
Nixon & Woods on Vietnam War and Presidential speech May 8, 1972 · 2 min
Nixon & Kissinger on Vietnam War and Naval blockade May 8, 1972 · 10 min
Nixon, Haldeman & Laird on Vietnam War and Mining of North Vietnamese harbors May 8, 1972 · 1 hr 21 min
Nixon alone in his EOB office on Vietnam War and Peace Agreement January 23, 1973 · 7 min

Cite this conversation

Conversation 668-015, February 9, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/668-015 (accessed November 2, 2026).