Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 725 › Conversation 725-032

Nixon, Ehrlichman & Bull on Gun Control and Public Opinion

Tuesday, May 16, 1972 · 12:46 PM–12:49 PM ET · Oval Office

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Ehrlichman, John D.;  Bull, Stephen B.Conversation725-032 onTape 725 (tape position 03:54:25–03:56:38)StartTuesday, May 16, 1972 at 12:46 PMEndTuesday, May 16, 1972 at 12:49 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 725-032 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and John Ehrlichman discussed the administration's policy on pending gun control legislation, with the President directing Ehrlichman to prepare formal recommendations. The discussion also touched upon the President's public image and the positive response to his recent foreign policy actions, specifically the mining of Haiphong. Additionally, the participants coordinated scheduling details regarding international visitors and potential meetings with public figures like Arthur Linkletter.

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 03:54:25 into the tape and ends around 03:56:38.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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

3:54:25First say a few words, and then I'll follow you in.
3:54:26Yeah, we'll all talk briefly and come back.
3:54:30We'll talk briefly and then leave, and then we'll go to sleep.
3:54:37I'll talk and I'll leave, and then you're going to sleep.
3:55:41So.
3:56:20Yeah, everybody who knows anything about this gun, we're not doing anything to it.
3:56:34I understand that.
3:56:36You know, you just may give me the recommendation.

NARA Description

On May 16, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, John D. Ehrlichman, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:46 pm to 12:49 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 725-032 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 725-32

Date: May 16, 1972
Time: 12:46 pm - 12:49 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with John D. Ehrlichman.

       Gun control legislation
          -Recommendations on action
                -John N. Mitchell
                -Richard G. Kleindienst
                -The President’s idea
                -Ehrlichman

Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 12:46 pm.

      [Enayet Karim]
           -Arrival
           -Press picture

Bull left at an unknown time before 12:49 pm.

                                        (rev. Jan-02)

      President's schedule
          -Walk to Treasury Department
                -Value
                -Response of tourists

      Public opinion
          -Fear
                -New York Times
                -Percentage
                      -Draft dodgers
                      -Courageous
          -President's actions
                -Mingling with public
                -Haiphong actions
                      -Letters of support to John D. Ehrlichman

Bull entered at an unknown time after 12:46 pm.

      Gen. Alexander M. Haig, Jr.
         -Meeting with Henry A. Kissinger
         -Samuel Hoskinson
               -Bangladesh representatives

Bull left at an unknown time before 12:49 pm.

      Arthur G. Linkletter
          -Trip to People’s Republic of China [PRC]
          -Possible meeting with President
                -President's schedule
          -Meeting with Ehrlichman

Ehrlichman left at 12:49 pm.

                                      (rev. Jan-02)

Also recorded on May 16, 1972

  • 725-041 12:45 PM · 49 sec — John D. Ehrlichman and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House at 12:45 pm.
  • 725-033 12:49 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Knayet Karim, Samuel Hoskinson, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:49 pm to 12:53 pm.
  • 725-034 12:54 PM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Toma Granfil, Helmut ("Hal") Sonnenfeldt, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:54 pm to 1:01 pm.
  • 725-042 1:01 PM · 7 min — United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 1:01 pm and 4:58 pm.
  • 340-001 1:12 PM · 21 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 1:12 pm to 1:13 pm.
  • 340-002 1:13 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon, unknown person(s), and Zosimo T. Monzon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:13 pm and 1:19 pm.
  • 340-003 1:19 PM · 48 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 1:19 pm to 1:20 pm.
  • 024-151 1:20 PM · 0 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 1:20 pm.

All 113 conversations from May 16, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 725-032, 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/725-032 (accessed September 18, 2026).