Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 759 › Conversation 759-010

Nixon, McFarland & Woods on Presidential Gifts and Vietnam War

Wednesday, August 2, 1972 · 12:33 PM–12:38 PM ET · Oval Office · 4 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Woods, Rose Mary; McFarland, Harvey J.Conversation759-010 on Tape 759StartWednesday, August 2, 1972 at 12:33 PMEndWednesday, August 2, 1972 at 12:38 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 759-010 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, and Harvey J. McFarland met in the Oval Office for a personal visit, during which McFarland presented the President with gifts, including cheese. The conversation centered on nostalgic anecdotes regarding Nixon's past travels and encounters as Vice President, particularly in Canada. The discussion briefly turned toward political topics, with McFarland expressing his views on the Vietnam War and criticizing the Bay of Pigs invasion during the Kennedy administration.

Audio

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Just a year or something?
Well, honestly, you're never going to think in your life that you've really done something for me.
Well, it's a great...
It brings me up just to see where he works.
God bless.
It's just great.
Pat, I had two of them that just pulled together.
And I'm sorry you've been so faithful for 17 years, John.
I don't have anything.
It's not me.
It's just me.
It's just me.
It's just me.
It's just me.
Well, how are you, old man?
Good to see you.
How are you?
You had a heart attack.
You're good at that.
Right, right, right.
You look fine.
I can eat your cheese.
Let's look out here at this television picture.
Through the years, you've sent us all these things.
It's so helpful.
I mentioned it there.
I was at the Canadian, you know, when we were visiting Trudeau.
That's the day that I mentioned that.
That time we came across the lake to pick them.
In the paper and all the decisions, it was just wonderful.
Yeah, I didn't even mention it.
But I'll never forget the time that you and Devils came in to pick them.
I remember you had your pleasure.
That's right.
So I had to deal with this man, and the President did.
Yeah.
Because he's a little boy.
Do you remember him coming down?
You were sent in the age of old sign autographs.
And he said, my mother would be here to say hello to you, Mr. Vice President, but she's one of your great fans, but she's not him.
He spoke up and he said, how far do you live from here?
In her view, never.
We walked up the Antelope Hill.
I told this old man that he left his plaid shirt on, which I got the pictures of, you and I.
We walked up to him with this little boy, what each of you would eat, and went around the block and shook him on his knee.
The young man, you can just imagine him knocking on the door and saying, Mother, who's the vice president?
Well, I don't know if I went over the picture, but I went across to Rochester, I went across to every place.
It shows you what it means.
I will.
Now, we want to give you a few little comments here.
This is the sequel.
That's very special.
but that's a nice thing.
This is something.
This is a presidential extra for the sea life.
That's all you get for all that cheese.
I've been down there before.
I've been on a special trip.
And everything's been put on there.
But there's some things I won't do yet.
And I made a right to go planning because of this whole mess with...
that I don't want to take your time.
But they blame, I'm making myself a rope when I hear them come back and say that the war, the war was started.
You had nothing to do with nothing.
I don't like to talk about this, but it was the late Jack Cotton, Jack Kennedy.
That's the little one I called the bunch of robos they took over to Cuba to take it over.
He went over there with a fleet of 5,000.
Yeah.
And took it over.
You wouldn't have had to go through that.
It wouldn't have been happening across the island.
I agree.
I agree.
I agree.
I agree.
I agree.
I agree.
I agree.
I agree.

NARA Description

On August 2, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, and Harvey J. McFarland met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:33 pm to 12:38 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 759-010 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 759-10

Date: August 2, 1972
Time: Unknown between 11:47 am and 12:33 pm
Location: Oval Office

Rose Mary Woods met with Harvey J. McFarland; the White House photographer was present at
the beginning of the meeting.

             The President's schedule

             Oval Office

             The President’s family
                 -Thelma C. (“Pat”) Nixon
                 -Daughters

             Woods's career
                -Length of service with the President

The President entered at 12:33 pm.

             Mcfarland
                -Health

                -Cheese
                -[Photograph session]
                -The President’s previous conversation with Pierre E. Trudeau
                    -Lake Ontario
                         -Picton, Ontario
                -Anecdote about the President as vice president
                    -Unknown boy
                         -Unknown woman
                    -Picton
                    -Rochester, New York
                -Gift presentation
                    -Cufflinks
                         -Presidential seal
                    -Moneyclip
                    -Ashtray
                    -Cheese

            US foreign policy
                -McFarland’s view
                    -Vietnam War
                    -Cuba
                        -Bay of Pigs
                              -Use of force
                                  -John F. Kennedy

Woods and McFarland left at 12:38 pm.

Also recorded on August 2, 1972

  • 759-006 11:47 AM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:47 am and 12:33 pm.
  • 759-007 11:47 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:47 am and 12:33 pm.
  • 759-008 11:47 AM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:47 am and 12:33 pm.
  • 759-009 11:47 AM · 26 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:47 am and 12:33 pm.
  • 759-011 12:38 PM · 20 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, unknown person(s), White House operator, Henry A. Kissinger, George D. Aiken, and Rose Mary Woods met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:38 pm to 1:17 pm.
  • 028-042 12:54 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 12:54 pm and 12:59 pm.
  • 028-043 12:59 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon, George D. Aiken, and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 12:59 pm to 1:08 pm.
  • 028-044 1:08 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:08 pm and 2:33 pm.

All 29 conversations from August 2, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 759-010, August 2, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/759-010 (accessed October 1, 2026).