Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 709 › Conversation 709-001

Nixon alone in the Oval Office on Genealogy and Michener family

Monday, April 17, 1972 · 8:36 AM–8:58 AM ET · Oval Office · 1 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President)Conversation709-001 on Tape 709 (tape position 00:01:46–00:03:45)StartMonday, April 17, 1972 at 8:36 AMEndMonday, April 17, 1972 at 8:58 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 709-001 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon reviews genealogical background information regarding the Michener family, noting their Quaker roots and connections to his own maternal ancestry. The discussion also touches upon a recent interaction between Gordon Robertson and Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau concerning the merits of a permanent civil service. Nixon and his interlocutor contemplate the tension between maintaining institutional continuity and the need for administrative changes to mitigate entrenched bureaucracy.

  • Genealogy
  • Michener family
  • Civil service reform
  • Bureaucracy
  • Pierre Trudeau
  • Gordon Robertson

Audio

Download MP3 · 3.2 MB

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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

This is a Mary Hansen profile that we have inscribed.
These are some random notes from a visit from the governor's family.
His ancestors had come from England.
They were English leaders in the Pennsylvania colony.
And they explained the very, very interesting fact that my mother's
Ancestors came from Ireland, but that's the name of the colony.
The Michener, who writes, is primarily an orphan who's adopted.
But it is the same Michener family.
I met Robertson, the opposite number of Bertrand, who spoke to
Trudeau about what high regard I had for training all the soldiers in the system, which provided for the continuity of dedicated civil service officers.
Robertson, in Trudeau's presence, said, well, maybe it wasn't too good an idea because there needed to be changes of government in order to get rid of the spiking bureaucracy, which otherwise looked good.

NARA Description

On April 17, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:36 am and 8:58 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 709-001 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 709-1

Date: April 17, 1972
Time: Unknown between 8:36 am and 8:58 am
Location: Oval Office

The President dictated a memorandum for the file.

*****************************************************************

[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift 10/04/2022.
Segment cleared for release.]
[Personal Returnable]
[709-001-w001]
[Duration: 1m 25s]

     D. Roland Michener
          -Ancestry
               -England and Pennsylvania
                    -Quakers
               -The President's maternal line
                    -Ireland and Pennsylvania
               -James A. Michener
                    -Background

     Gordon Robertson [?]
         -Conversation with Pierre E. Trudeau
              -Civil service policies
                    -Changes in administrations

*****************************************************************

Also recorded on April 17, 1972

  • 709-002 8:36 AM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:36 am and 8:58 am.
  • 709-003 8:36 AM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:36 am and 8:58 am.
  • 709-004 8:36 AM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:36 am and 8:58 am.
  • 709-005 8:36 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:36 am and 8:58 am.
  • 709-006 8:36 AM · 27 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:36 am and 8:58 am.
  • 709-007 8:36 AM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:36 am and 8:58 am.
  • 709-008 8:58 AM · 36 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, White House operator, and William P. Rogers met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:58 am to 9:34 am.
  • 709-009 9:35 AM · 56 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Ronald L. Ziegler, and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:35 am to 10:32 am.

All 48 conversations from April 17, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 709-001, April 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/709-001 (accessed October 12, 2026).