Conversation 794-005

TapeTape 794StartMonday, October 9, 1972 at 11:58 AMEndMonday, October 9, 1972 at 12:10 PMParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Marsh, Winston W.;  Low, James;  Cashen, Henry C., II;  White House photographerRecording deviceOval Office

President Nixon met with Winston W. Marsh, James Low, and Henry C. Cashen, II to discuss the American Society of Association Executives and issues relevant to the tire industry. The group reviewed industry trends, including the popularity of radial tires and retreading, while sharing perspectives on labor and welfare policy. The President reminisced about his early experiences with automotive repair and exchanged pleasantries with the delegation.

Tire industryLabor and welfare policyAutomotive trendsAmerican Society of Association ExecutivesPresidential meetings

On October 9, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Winston W. Marsh, James Low, Henry C. Cashen, II, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:58 am to 12:10 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 794-005 of the White House Tapes.

Conversation No. 794-5

Date: October 9, 1972
Time: 11:58 am - 12:10 pm

                                        (rev. Nov-03)

Location: Oval Office

The President met with Winston W. Marsh, James Low and Henry C. Cashen; the White House
photographer was present at the beginning of the meeting.

        Introductions and greetings

        American Society of Association Executives [ASAE]

        Marsh's schedule
           -Honolulu, Las Vegas
                 -Conventions

        [Photograph session]

        ASAE poll

        The President's schedule
            -James O. Eastland
                -Vote

        ASAE
           -Polls
               -Small businessmen
                   -Las Vegas
                         -Japan
                         -Mexico
                         -South Africa
                   -Britain
                   -France
           -Democratic platform issues
               -Profit sharing
               -Welfare
                   -Poll results

        Tire industry
             -The President’s experience
             -Competition
                 -Advertisements
             -Michelin

                                (rev. Nov-03)

    -Radial
        -Goodyear
             -Cost
             -Comfort
        -Safety
             -Popularity with race drivers
    -Retreads
        -Great Depression
        -Statistics
        -Truck drivers
    -Long Beach
        -Downey
             -Whittier
        -Southern California
             -Cities and freeways

The President's schedule
    -Possible future meetings
    -ASAE work
    -1971 reception
        -Possible future meetings

Tire industry
     -Charles G. ("Bebe") Rebozo
         -Career
     -Changing tires
         -Vulcanizing
         -Dodge balloon tires
     -Scientifically Treated Petroleum [STP]
         -Graham Tully
               -Advertising
         -Racing drivers
               -Rodeo people
                   -Popularity
                        -Compared to horsing racing
                   -Betting
                   -Kentucky Derby
         -Mag wheels
               -Popularity
     -Cashen and Charles W. Colson

                                         (rev. Nov-03)

                  -Work with ASAE

         Presidential gifts
             -Cuff links
                  -Presidential seal
             -Pins
                  -Wives

Marsh et al. left at 12:10 pm.

This transcript was generated automatically by AI and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite this transcript as authoritative. Consult the Finding Aid above for verified information.

President Bill Martin.
Aye.
Aye.
I'll give you your number.
I'll give you your number.
I'll give you your number.
I'll give you your number.
I'll give you your number.
I'll give you your number.
I'll give you your number.
I'll give you your number.
conversation about that, I think, that most of us have.
Well, as I said, we were a pretty powerful group.
It's not the right start for me.
Well, I don't know what I have.
You were a model of them.
Yeah, so that's tough.
Yeah.
I just came back from Las Vegas, which is even worse.
Oh!
I don't know.
I wish they can.
Yes, yes.
What's that?
You want to look at each other?
Yes, I think let me tell them.
All right.
Let me try to find one.
Oh, yeah.
Here we go again.
Now I've got it.
That doesn't want to get...
Right now we'd like to get my mom to get one too.
Sure, you've got to get the professional father to do it.
He'll be right out here to call it.
We have people there from 50 states, as opposed to 17, 18 countries.
Yeah, and we did a battle.
President of the West.
And we had to teach this to the Italians and the Iranians.
Well, I suppose that I don't have a kind of figure, so we'll have to vote.
These people are responsible.
You're basically exactly the same.
Mr. President, these are all tires.
They weren't associations.
Oh, I thought you were an association.
I'm not an association.
I represent the tirade industry.
Yeah, you're a target.
That's why we were in Las Vegas.
These were our people who were there, including tirades in Japan and Mexico and South Africa and England and France, etc.
So it's a good, broad-based spectrum.
Next time we have to... We had several resolutions on the floor on some of the issues.
welfare people and so forth.
I bet they're down on some of those.
In fact, we have a great deal of trouble getting people to work.
I'll have to just mention the welfare issue.
You have the tariffs.
Well, because of the taxes.
Yeah, well, you know, basically.
I'm tired of that.
About 50 years ago, we were up in service.
That's a highly competitive thing.
You need people to get off their butts and do a little work.
You know what I mean?
You just can't have all these loafers.
And it's a good business, too.
If a guy works, he can make himself a good living.
Right.
That's right.
It's contented.
It's contented.
Oh, yeah.
I was looking through the weekly television shows.
You'd see those ads, you know, as Ronald was tired over those spikes and so forth.
You know, that's true.
Are they really that good?
Yes, they are.
Are they that good?
40,000 miles.
Yes, we have a fear of Christ.
What is the name of that call again?
It's a new European.
The Michelin?
No, no, no.
No, it's a Titan tire.
It's a radio.
It's a new radio tire.
Radio, yeah.
Is that green?
No, the radio tire is right here.
But it's not a gravitational release.
Around town.
Around town.
But on a highway, he had sailed.
I noticed the race drivers like it.
Yeah, they put them off their ass.
It has to do with driving characteristics.
You have a tendency to oversteer.
You know, and then your car starts to jerk.
And then you jerk it back, and then you get up.
There's so much more to it.
But he laughed at me.
or recaps we call them.
Recaps is a dirty word.
And we're still retreading.
We're doing about 31 million passenger tires this year, almost 11 million truck tires.
It's a great large town.
Incidentally, our president is from your part of the country.
He's from Long Beach.
Oh, yeah.
Well, that's a good market.
It used to be a town.
That's eight miles from where I grew up.
We have a very strong art tradition.
That was a great reception.
Yeah, we had about 100,000.
That's a very, that's a relative small number.
The difficulty is when you go to the other side, you can't go to the other side.
Yeah, that means an awful lot of material.
I don't know.
We'll work something out.
We'll be in a day when we want you to go.
We'd like to.
Pres, do you have a friend?
This right close to your place, ma'am.
That's right.
That's right.
That's his background.
He's a tire man.
You often kid about it.
I go back and I hear it.
I remember, you know, of course, the old days, you know, changing the tires and the tire tools.
You ever take an old 33 and a half and try to take it off the tire tools and pack it with a cold pack?
I'd be like, you know, being a higher man then, you really had to have it.
I started therapist in 1930.
You went too old.
Yeah, I went too old.
Yeah.
I remember it was a 4.33 and a half, which was a 31.4, which was an oxygen.
And eventually it got to the balloon tire, as you call it.
So I was saying, I'm going to go back to that.
I believe I'm going to go home.
I'm going to go home.
I don't know what SDP is, to be sure.
I don't know why it would be a good bet, though.
I mean, there's so much uncertainty in it.
because that ain't my thing.
I don't care for it myself.
My friends don't, but the part of this, to me, it's just that long, long wait between the races, everybody's not running through your eye.
About once a year, that's enough.
In fact, everybody gets it.
The jury just basically gives those dark men a trick, and we are now retreading those white track tires
And it's quite a thing.
I was amazed.
We had 16 exhibits of mag wheels.
And I never heard of mag wheels.
Two years ago, when they made these wheels out of magnesium, then the word mag became sort of a symbol.
And these kids saw these mag wheels, and they came to believe, and put them on their cars.
And they astounded when they went on them.
I know they do a great job.
As a new president, you've got the Presidential Conference, which is the CEO of the Atlantic Conference.
Thank you.
I saw you again.
Good luck.
Thank you very much.