Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 686 › Conversation 686-008

Nixon & Butterfield on Camp David and William P. Rogers

Friday, March 17, 1972 · 11:55 AM–12:00 PM ET · Oval Office

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Butterfield, Alexander P.Conversation686-008 on Tape 686 (tape position 00:33:32–00:37:28)StartFriday, March 17, 1972 at 11:55 AMEndFriday, March 17, 1972 at 12:00 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 686-008 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield consulted on logistics regarding the use of Camp David by Secretary of State William P. Rogers. They discussed whether Rogers should occupy the facility alone or invite additional staff members and family. The discussion concluded with instructions for Butterfield to coordinate these details directly with H.R. Haldeman.

Audio

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This conversation has not yet been cut into its own clip, so the player above contains the full tape segment shared with neighbouring conversations. It begins about 00:33:32 into the tape and ends around 00:37:28.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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33:44Yeah, uh, I had a phone call with the commissioner that he's on the mission, Rudy Walker, and Senator Rogers.
33:50Yes, I forgot to call him back.
33:52Yeah, he's out there, won't you catch him before he leaves?
33:55Right now, instead of, I think he has first the...
33:58The buzzer is on.
34:00So I briefly had the thing, and he said he hadn't heard, so I, I said I had to call him.
34:06Well, that's fine, because I ran into the phone.
34:08Yeah, yeah, yeah.
34:11He said that we might just let him have it alone.
34:15He could have it alone and take it back or other staff people if he wants.
34:20He doesn't want to then give it to layers.
37:43There is one.
37:43I don't hear her.

NARA Description

On March 17, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:55 am to 12:00 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 686-008 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 686-8

Date: March 17, 1972

Time: 11:55 am - 12:00 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield.

      Camp David
          -William P. Rogers
                -H.R. (“Bob”) Haldeman
                      -Butterfield’s forthcoming call to Haldeman
                -Family
                -Staff members
          -Melvin Laird

Butterfield left.

Also recorded on March 17, 1972

  • 095-002 10:13 AM · 1 hr 24 min — President Richard M. Nixon and members of the National Security Council, including Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, William P. Rogers, Melvin R. Laird, Gen. George A. Lincoln, John B. Connally, John N. Irwin, II, Richard M. Helms, Adm. Thomas H. Moorer, Ronald I. Spiers, David M. Kennedy, Gerard C. Smith, Philip J. Farley, Spurgeon M. Keeny, Jr., [Name withdrawn], Gen. Royal B. Allison, Paul H. Nitze, Henry A. Kissinger, Col. Richard T. Kennedy, Philip A. Odeen, Helmut ("Hal") Sonnenfeldt, and Gardiner L. Tucker, met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 10:13 am and 11:54 am.
  • 686-009 12:00 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:00 pm and 12:05 pm.
  • 686-010 12:05 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, William Warnack, Alexander M. Haig, Jr., Marion H. Smoak, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:05 pm and 12:11 pm.
  • 686-011 12:16 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Tina Diver, Neil Diver, and Margita E. White met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:16 pm and 12:19 pm.
  • 687-002 12:16 PM · 18 sec — Tina Diver, Neil Diver, and Margita E. White met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:16 pm to 12:19 pm.
  • 687-003 12:19 PM · 30 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Stephen B. Bull, Henry A. Kissinger, and John D. Ehrlichman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:19 pm to 1:14 pm.
  • 686-012 12:36 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:36 pm and 12:42 pm.
  • 687-004 1:14 PM · 40 sec — Stephen B. Bull and United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at 1:14 pm.

All 55 conversations from March 17, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 686-008, March 17, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/686-008 (accessed October 3, 2026).