Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 718 › Conversation 718-014

United States Secret Service agents on Secret Service and Medical leave

Wednesday, May 3, 1972 · 12:35 PM–12:59 PM ET · Oval Office

ParticipantsUnited States Secret Service agents;  [Unknown person(s)]Conversation718-014 onTape 718 (tape position 02:43:00–02:43:43)StartWednesday, May 3, 1972 at 12:35 PMEndWednesday, May 3, 1972 at 12:59 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 718-014 ↗

AI Summary

Secret Service personnel engaged in a cryptic discussion regarding an individual’s upcoming medical operation and its potential impact on travel logistics. The participants evaluated the timing of the surgery and the necessity of keeping the subject out of the way during the recovery period. The conversation concluded without a definitive resolution, remaining largely unintelligible regarding specific identities or strategic intent.

Audio

Download MP3 (part 1) · 167.5 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 60.1 MB

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 02:43:00 into the tape and ends around 02:43:43.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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 · Timestamps are positions within the full tape recording.

2:42:58I don't want to light the fire for you.
2:43:00I think I'll go over.
2:43:01I'm afraid you're going to catch a cold.
2:43:04I think I'll go over actually.
2:43:07Let me go on that.
2:43:07You're going on that.
2:43:08I'm sure it's been working.
2:43:11Because I've seen him.
2:43:13He's been with me quite a while.
2:43:15Well, he said he's going to have to have an operation.
2:43:20He said he's going to knock him out in six weeks.
2:43:25Four weeks.
2:43:26Well, wait a moment.
2:43:31So if there's a way, it would be harder to be out of the way while you're traveling.
2:43:42Yeah.
2:43:42Okay, gee, it's going to be easy.
2:43:45It is the right one.
2:43:46It is?
2:43:47Oh, it's for this one.

NARA Description

On May 3, 1972, United States Secret Service agents and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:35 pm and 12:59 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 718-014 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 718-14

Date: May 3, 1972
Time: Unknown between 12:35 pm and 12:59 pm
Location: Oval Office

Unknown people [Secret Service agents] met.

An unknown agent talked with an unknown person at an unknown time after 12:35 pm.

[Conversation No. 718-14A]

     The President’s location
          -Executive Office Building [EOB]

[End of telephone conversation]

     [Unintelligible]

The conversation was cutoff at an unknown time before 12:59 pm.

Also recorded on May 3, 1972

  • 023-130 12:36 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 12:36 pm and 12:40 pm.
  • 335-004 12:36 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:36 pm and 12:40 pm.
  • 023-131 12:40 PM · 28 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield talked on the telephone from 12:40 pm to 12:41 pm.
  • 335-005 12:40 PM · 37 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:40 pm and 12:41 pm.
  • 023-132 12:41 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 12:41 pm.
  • 023-133 12:41 PM · 18 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 12:41 pm to 12:59 pm.
  • 335-006 12:41 PM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at 12:41 pm.
  • 335-007 12:41 PM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:41 pm and 12:59 pm.

All 63 conversations from May 3, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 718-014, May 3, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/718-014 (accessed September 18, 2026).