Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 765-001
Date: Tuesday, August 8, 1972 at 10:11 AM
Participants: Scott, Hugh; Ford, Gerald R.; Cook, Richard K.; Klein, Herbert G.; Korologos, Thomas C.; Nixon, Richard M. (President)
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/765-001

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:01] I heard.
[0:01] Hi, how are you?
[0:02] I'm sure we need to get you to the clinic today.
[0:06] Oh, it's boring.
[0:07] Did you have an operation?
[0:08] Yeah, they took the cardiac out and screwed around some ligaments.
[0:13] And I hope to get off, you know, another week, 10 days.
[0:18] But I'm supposed to see the doctor at 1130.
[0:20] It's coming a lot better, so I just can't.
[0:25] It's slow, you know.
[0:26] Okay.
[0:27] No, it really hasn't been.
[0:28] Annoying.
[0:29] Annoying.
[0:29] Fine.
[1:06] I'll be off these in a week, 10 days.
[1:29] I was thinking, I was thinking, I was thinking, I was thinking, I was thinking, I was thinking, I was thinking, I was thinking, I was thinking,
[2:00] I think that the shocking thing, of course, is that a part of the $1,000 a person thing, which you should derive always,
[2:29] That would cost $180,000,000.
[2:30] But apart from that, and taking into account the cuts that he would have on his defense budget, it would mean a government program to get the maximum increase of $180,000,000 in taxes.
[2:46] And a tax increase for the average American family, $1,000,000.
[2:48] I think that's not a bad thing to do.
[2:52] What do you think?
[2:53] Well, I agree.
[2:54] We are doing it.
[2:55] But we need more people to do it.
[2:57] I mean, I think so.
[3:01] My governor here, he told his... You might want to use that term, recognize.
[3:10] I'm sorry?
[3:11] May or may not.
[3:12] He has told his own staff not to use the phrase 1,000 at all.
[3:18] It's because of the jokes.
[3:20] The jokes are going around.
[3:21] I think you'll be interested in just one quick one.
[3:26] emergency session because they'd had a wire from the government saying it was a thousand percent for Israel.
[3:36] President, would you suggest the approach to talking about the taxing and the political aspect of that by the idea that we had a report on the economy and then they questioned him as if it was initiated by the leaders and not by the White House?
[3:53] Oh, yes, that's right.
[3:54] Well, actually, you could either put
[3:59] on the economy growing.
[4:00] I think you can certainly make the point that, I think another very good point, that it's very significant on the employment, that since this administration, there's been an increase in peace-time jobs, in peace-time jobs, or job reduction for peace, what, four and a half?
[4:23] Four and a half.
[4:25] And there's been a decrease of two and a half
[4:29] jobs and production for war, including the armed, that includes people that are out of the armed services of over a million, and they made it in half, and that's directly related to the war.
[4:40] I think that's a hell of a strong country.
[4:42] I mean, jobs for peace, they increase it four and a half years or so.
[4:47] I think the, you know, as far as food production and, you know, pollen and everything, and then demanding it, I simply say that's a real problem.
[5:00] And I would say that we have a report also on the budget that asks questions about what the better programs would cost.
[5:13] And it's not without the $1,000, which would cost an astronomical, which everybody has thought is a better budget.
[5:29] The figure is $144 billion without the $1,000, and you add $189 billion with the $1,000.
[5:35] And that's over the $250 million ceiling that we're going to price for.
[5:40] Yes, yes.
[5:55] I think we could take the harmonies that I brought with us.
[5:58] There's 144 capsules.
[6:00] Then if you add, that's flat form.
[6:02] Then if you add the $1,000 proposal, there's 189 million more.
[6:06] We could get 329 or 323.
[6:07] Well, I think one of us could start out by talking about our medical economics.
[6:17] If he wants to do it, it's fine.
[6:18] Then I could talk about the $250 billion ceiling.
[6:21] And then talk about...
[6:26] over that, 189 over that.
[6:29] That is 144 of the Democratic platform.
[6:33] Right.
[6:34] And 189, if you add in the, the $1,000 a person, which everybody has said.
[6:42] And then get into the tax increases, which would be?
[6:46] You can say conservatively, conservatively, it would increase net, not 180, but it's 144, whatever it is.
[6:54] And that would be, conservatively,
[6:56] It means that if you go to the McGovern policies, it's an increase of an average of $1,000, $1,000 for every average family in America.
[7:07] It's 1,000.
[7:07] 1,000 is a very good average.
[7:10] And if you go to the McGovern, it's over $2,000.
[7:12] Yeah, and if you add, well, it's actually about $2,500.
[7:16] You may as well just exaggerate a bit there.
[7:20] Sure.
[7:20] For the average company, it would be about $2,500.
[7:28] I would say, I like the line, if you could, a vote for a secret, a vote for this secret is a vote against a tax increase.
[7:37] It's a vote that will provide insurance against a tax increase.
[7:40] It's a vote that will provide insurance against a tax increase.
[7:43] But will there be a tax increase if you don't have it?
[7:46] The president will fight it.
[7:46] He's going to fight it through vetoes and so forth.
[7:48] But a vote for the secret, it means that the Congress joins the president in the responsibility
[7:57] rather than the irresponsibility of having one.
[7:59] And it gets you away from having to fight such things as baby care and all the other things that a lot of people are for.
[8:05] You see, if we get into the business of this thing of fighting all the issues of poverty and child care and all the rest, you'll lose.
[8:14] You'll be old folks and so forth.
[8:15] But we want people to be thinking of the fact that their programs will bring an increase in taxes, inflation,
[8:27] and unemployment, which of course it would.
[8:31] Also, don't use this yet, because you haven't gotten the figure, but I need you to get that.
[8:37] The total, when you take the present budget of $250 million, add to it the government budget of $350 million, you are then taking over the, well, you're on the figure that it's over,
[8:57] total income, personal income of all people in America, but more importantly, looking at a trillion dollar economy, over half that, over 50% of the economy of the United States would have to go in the government.
[9:10] And that the American, the average American is going to be working more for the government than he is for himself.
[9:16] And I just think that's a good line, because that's terribly difficult, terribly difficult.
[9:20] And also, and also, and it's the welfare of people.
[9:25] to pay for these huge welfare costs.
[9:28] Now, another line that's interesting that we have developed is that a $100,000 program would add 80 billion people to the welfare rolls.
[9:37] 80 billion people to the welfare rolls.
[9:40] You could say that's underrated.
[9:42] But that's true.
[9:43] That's the God's truth.
[9:44] It would add 80 billion people.
[9:49] So all the time, time and time.
[9:52] Well, we also need to do it all the time.
[9:55] And incidentally, as time goes on, as you get into the political season, you're going to get more flooding than you're presently getting.
[10:01] I don't think, actually, the whole business about the private interests and so forth, I mean, they've had their problems, and now they're campaigning against them.
[10:09] I mean, you say, based on the way they started, it's going to be a highly irresponsible campaign, and we're going to answer the truth.
[10:17] We're going to answer their distortions, et cetera, their misrepresentations, and use lies a little later than that.
[10:26] Oh, we hear the truth.
[10:28] But you're the master of that truth.
[10:31] Well, I told the press that McGowan, Vice President of the Office, had been outlawed by his Senate colleagues, so he had to go to an in-law.
[10:44] What?
[10:45] I'm sorry.
[10:48] I'm sorry.
[10:48] I'm sorry.
[10:49] I'm sorry.
[10:50] I'm sorry.
[10:50] I'm sorry.
[11:00] What do you need to do, Paul?
[11:03] It may not come up.
[11:05] If it comes up, you can say it.
[11:08] The president, of course, does not say it.
[11:12] He says he'll look at it and guess it.
[11:14] But he has clearly warned the Congress and warned the leaders that if this bill comes here, it's substantially above his budget.
[11:22] It's a veto candidate.
[11:24] I'm not going to say what he's going to do, but he said, the president said, he always reserves the right to, I'm going to veto it, I'm sure.
[11:33] I'm going to veto that.
[11:35] Unless you have a jury, he's up there.
[11:40] But this will be vetoed, for sure.
[11:45] But why is it?
[11:57] So it acts.
[11:58] But if it exceeds the budget's extension, what is the extension for ?
[12:03] We have to be responsible.
[12:05] We have to.
[12:06] I think the idea that what the president is asking for $250 billion is for Congress to join with the president in taking responsibility to stop a tax increase on spending.
[12:21] People want to get a life-spending insurance.
[12:23] I don't like tax insurance.
[12:24] But I say it's a vote against the tax
[12:27] Anybody who votes against that ceiling is voted for, which actually pays attention.
[12:33] The president paid attention to the ceiling because they didn't think it had a chance of getting through.
[12:38] Yeah.
[12:39] With Mills supporting it, or at least in the whole thing.
[12:43] If he will support it, he's committed to support it.
[12:46] In fact, he's talking about putting it on the next set of limitations.
[12:50] Yeah.
[12:50] Well, if he doesn't can't lead it, we sure will try.
[12:55] Okay, sir.
[12:56] Thank you.
[12:56] Thank you.
[12:57] Good luck.
[13:00] Appreciate all your hard work.
[13:02] You, you take care of yourself now.
[13:03] We're going to need you again.
[13:05] I'm in great shape.
[13:06] I know, Doctor.
[13:07] I just...
[13:08] If you want to get your nut cutting out there, it'll help.
[13:10] I'll be here.
[13:13] Hey, you.
[13:14] Yes?
[13:14] We sent Romney up here to Wilford.
[13:17] I saw that piece in my class for him.
[13:18] I did.
[13:18] Oh, you're not going to let him do that?
[13:21] No.
[13:21] Mel Shatner got his first crack in when Shatner was notably inactive.
[13:29] I will.
[13:30] But you're strong, I can take care of that myself.