Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 725 › Conversation 725-017

Nixon & Rebozo on George Wallace and Assassination attempt

Tuesday, May 16, 1972 · 9:57 AM–9:59 AM ET · Oval Office

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Rebozo, Charles G. ("Bebe")Conversation725-017 on Tape 725 (tape position 02:00:36–02:03:30)StartTuesday, May 16, 1972 at 9:57 AMEndTuesday, May 16, 1972 at 9:59 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 725-017 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and his close associate Bebe Rebozo discuss the recent assassination attempt on Alabama Governor George Wallace, focusing on the assailant’s political background and the public reaction. Nixon notes that he has ordered Secret Service protection for Senator Ted Kennedy and offered the presidential suite for Wallace's potential recuperation. The conversation reflects Nixon’s desire to project a sense of presidential concern and bipartisanship in the wake of the violent incident.

Audio

Download MP3 (part 1) · 167.3 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 168.1 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 100.2 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 02:00:36 into the tape and ends around 02:03:30.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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.
2:00:31Yeah.
2:00:32Yeah.
2:00:32Yeah.
2:00:34Yeah.
2:00:36Yeah.
2:00:36The guy is crazy, probably.
2:00:37See, that day, he was wearing balls buttons, but we find he was a member of the Wisconsin Young Democrats.
2:00:44So, of course, that's a very left-wing outfit, so you can't tell.
2:00:55Yeah.
2:00:55Yeah.
2:00:58Yeah.
2:00:58Yeah.
2:01:00Yeah.
2:01:05What's the reaction down there?
2:01:09Yeah.
2:01:10You noticed that I ordered coverage for Kennedy?
2:01:12Yeah.
2:01:12I made a little statement, too, if you noticed.
2:01:20Did that come through without .
2:01:22Yeah.
2:01:25Today I'd like to offer the presidential suite and that's for recuperation if he wants it.
2:01:41Yeah.
2:01:43Well, does the NIC-50 see the service manual?
2:01:4750, not with me, but about probably... Yeah.
2:01:51Yeah.
2:02:00Well, they're going to just let it go.
2:02:25Yeah.
2:02:26Hello, did he?
2:02:28That wasn't a terrible thing.
2:02:29I tried to call you last night.
2:02:31Okay.

NARA Description

On May 16, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Charles G. ("Bebe") Rebozo met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 9:57 am and 9:59 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 725-017 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 725-17

Date: May 16, 1972
Time: Between 9:57 am and 9:59 am
Location: Oval Office

The President talked with Charles G. ("Bebe") Rebozo.

      [See Conversation 24-144]

Also recorded on May 16, 1972

  • 024-142 9:50 AM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:50 am and 9:56 am.
  • 725-014 9:50 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 9:50 am and 9:52 am.
  • 024-143 9:56 AM · 25 sec — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, President Richard M. Nixon, Alexander P. Butterfield, and Stephen B. Bull talked on the telephone from 9:56 am to 9:57 am.
  • 024-144 9:57 AM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles G. ("Bebe") Rebozo talked on the telephone from 9:57 am to 9:59 am.
  • 024-145 9:59 AM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:59 am and 10:00 am.
  • 725-018 9:59 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 9:59 am and 10:00 am.
  • 024-146 10:00 AM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon, and Walter R. Tkach talked on the telephone from 10:00 am to 10:05 am.
  • 725-019 10:00 AM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon, and Walter R. Tkach met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:00 am and 10:05 am.

All 113 conversations from May 16, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 725-017, May 16, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/725-017 (accessed October 9, 2026).