Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 783-011
Date: Tuesday, September 19, 1972 at 11:45 AM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob"); Bull, Stephen B.
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/783-011

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:07] why i don't think he's able to figure this election out he's a curious he's always he's fascinated by bamboozle for the whole business
[0:35] Good.
[0:36] Yeah.
[0:38] Sure.
[0:38] Sure.
[1:13] You know, I was thinking about in this grain thing, you really got to say that those assholes from agriculture, so they're called, they did it.
[1:35] And that, in my view, well, it's totally legal.
[1:41] It's certainly not in the interest of the administration.
[1:43] There ought to be a law against it, God damn it.
[1:45] I mean, I just think it's a shit-ass thing for them to do.
[1:49] That son of a bitch, Pompey, no good anyway.
[1:51] A lot of crying, you know, I am.
[1:54] But, uh, I don't know how much, but we've got to say, guys have got to make a living and all that, but, uh,
[2:09] I hope they had the reach quite a bit to find some Kansas farmer who was fishing about this length.
[2:14] Yeah.
[2:14] I mean, most of the farmers, I don't think, get one dam.
[2:17] I think they're really pleased with the prices they're on right now.
[2:21] Sure.
[2:21] But I don't know.
[2:22] Some of them are mad because they sold at lower prices, apparently.
[2:25] But the point is, the new crops are down and up.
[2:27] They're going to be selling that new crop at even higher prices.
[2:32] So they can have it.
[2:43] I'm not sure.
[3:09] And then, pretty much, we've been trying to get on top of the... Don't let them get away off of this idea of the government paying for our campaigning.
[3:28] I saw it somewhere and I noticed it.
[3:48] now and the convention.
[3:50] I mean, the election, God, man, and family, and government are political.
[3:55] And is that being done?
[3:57] It has been since the convention.
[4:01] Who can put it out?
[4:02] McGregor or somebody?
[4:04] We have it.
[4:06] I guess it's just one of those things.
[4:09] Just so you've got it covered.
[4:12] One of the things they're talking about now
[4:18] and they were paying the salary of Muskie and Humphrey and all the rest of them.
[4:57] That's a very good point to make.
[5:10] Well, we can't answer every goddamn picture and everything that comes up.
[5:16] But one thing I was going to say, and I'm going to get into this with Colson.
[5:24] You've got three
[5:28] I notice that McGovern is now considering a national television address for the purpose of clarifying his position on that.
[5:38] We can't clarify his position on that.
[5:40] We've got to take a hard-line, self-reflection position on that and get it out.
[5:45] Can we get it early for all the rest of us to shake up on that issue and not compromise anything they ever say?
[5:51] Yeah, I don't think anybody is.
[5:53] Well, my views are very strong.
[5:56] I actually said it's nice.
[5:57] Anybody that's done it's going to pay a price.
[6:03] We have no variation from the line on that.
[6:07] How about running that?
[6:09] Do we have an amnesty ad?
[6:13] The Democrats are actually going to have an amnesty ad.
[6:20] There isn't one just on amnesty.
[6:22] I don't have a light on it.
[6:58] He's, you know, he's back down in his ups and downs physically.
[7:04] He was sick all weekend.
[7:05] You know, he had that cold before he left.
[7:09] Your flu type.
[7:09] He was, I talked to him yesterday.
[7:13] He was still in Texas.
[7:14] He was coming up this morning.
[7:16] And maybe he should have come today.
[7:19] Oh, no, he was fine.
[7:21] He wants to.
[7:23] But I've got a draft of the speech that...
[7:30] He just said today he wouldn't be here until, you know, anyway.
[7:34] I don't see if he wanted any of that, but I think we can do a straight add-up just on amnesty and just make the amnesty fine.
[7:50] There's one question I thought.
[7:54] We don't have very many.
[7:55] We don't want very many.
[7:57] That's why we have so many that I thought maybe just because of the atmosphere, it's really a great opponent since the older Jewish swimmers.
[8:06] Since the later guy.
[8:08] You can see that in a lot of those comments.
[8:15] That's right.
[8:15] Right.
[8:16] Democrats.
[8:16] The guy at the plant where I played as a manager said, I'm not for you because I don't like that atmosphere.
[8:21] Yeah.
[8:23] And...
[8:25] Also raises the war issue here.
[8:32] What was your, yeah.
[8:37] Okay, I'll just...
[8:58] I don't know.
[9:00] I don't know why that obsesses and surprises me with Stu Alsop, because he's not
[9:46] Just in a very discreet way, say, I'll just see what was picked up and where the quotes came from.
[9:54] And they'll see what I mean by that.
[10:35] It has to be more than the drug conference, because it's an apartment.
[10:45] I need about 1,500 words.
[10:48] Yeah.
[10:56] I'm sure about it.
[10:56] It's 900, and I added about a hundred.
[11:14] Well, this should take about, I think, 1,500, you think, or what?
[11:18] I'd say that'd be 1,200.
[11:23] Would you like to talk a little bit about it in terms of what your options are?
[11:43] I can't speak it myself, but 15 minutes, which is about 1,700 words.
[11:48] I'll take some of you.
[11:52] Or do you think it's shorter?
[11:55] No, that's okay.
[11:56] I think you're right.
[11:57] It's got to be a little bit more.
[11:59] It can't just be a game.
[12:03] We didn't say 1,800 words.
[12:05] I think you've got some.
[12:27] I think it has a good video and talk and so forth.
[12:30] I mean, I'm just talking from the beginning.
[12:36] Okay.
[12:40] So what happens if... Well, I'm going to take it from the beginning.
[12:45] Bill, if you think it's $1,800, do you think we should go to $2,000?
[12:50] I don't really think so.
[12:54] Do you think...
[13:11] He says they're going to want more to say on that, too, so that's...
[13:16] They're going to want...
[13:17] He says this is an early version.
[13:19] I'm sure that the others will have more to say.
[13:22] There won't be much talking and hauling over words and phrases.
[13:42] Well, let me say this.
[13:43] Could we make it in terms of Chris?
[13:51] Don't you think so?
[13:56] Yeah.
[13:58] Chris, this is like a 15-minute speech.
[14:02] Yeah.
[14:12] Yeah.
[14:13] Yeah.
[14:14] Yeah.
[14:14] Yeah.
[14:42] But he taught us a good start, but I don't want us to get into it until he feels that he has sort of gotten his two ideas in it.
[15:00] But if he can shoot for around 1,800 words, put the words