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Conversation 797-011

TapeTape 797StartFriday, October 13, 1972 at 11:45 AMEndFriday, October 13, 1972 at 12:02 PMParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Ziegler, Ronald L.;  Colson, Charles W.;  Bull, Stephen B.Recording deviceOval Office
AI Summary

President Nixon met with Ronald Ziegler and Charles Colson to discuss press relations, the 1972 campaign, and strategies for neutralizing political attacks regarding the Watergate scandal. The participants expressed frustration with perceived media double standards and reviewed plans to prepare a 'white paper' documenting Democratic campaign improprieties to mirror those alleged against the Republicans. Additionally, they analyzed George McGovern's recent political comments on troop commitments and discussed the effectiveness of internal polling data in mitigating the impact of Watergate coverage.

Watergate1972 Presidential ElectionPress RelationsGeorge McGovernWhite House StrategyCampaign Sabotage
AudioNARA Description

On October 13, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald L. Ziegler, Charles W. Colson, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:45 am to 12:02 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 797-011 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 797-11

Date: October 13, 1972
Time: 11:45 am - 12:02 pm
Location: Oval Office

                                        (rev. Nov-03)

The President met with Ronald L. Ziegler.

        Press relations
            -Possible press conference
            -Clark R. Mollenhoff
                 -Recent press conference
                      -Invitation

Charles W. Colson entered at 11:46 am.

             -Watergate
                 -Zeigler’s knowledge
                      -Questions from Mollenhoff
                           -Committee to Re-elect the President [CRP]
                 -Mollenhoff’s story
                      -Denial
             -Possible press conference
                 -The President’s view
                      -Chicago
                      -Mollenhoff
                 -Philip Potter
                 -Atlanta
                 -1972 election
                 -Chicago
             -Chicago
                 -Announcement of trip
                      -Timing
             -Watergate
                 -Double standard on campaign practices
                      -White paper
                           -Preparation
                           -Democratic party activities
                           -[Flyers from] Berkeley [office]
                           -Telephone calls from Los Angeles office
                           -Republican National Convention
                           -Richard (“Dick”) Tuck

*****************************************************************

BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
[Personal returnable]

                                        (rev. Nov-03)

[Duration:   2m 56s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1

*****************************************************************

Ziegler left at 11:53 am.

         Vietnam
             -Statements by the President
                  -Possible press conference
                  -US allies
             -George S. McGovern
                  -Minnesota television [TV] appearance
                      -Question and answer [Q & A] answer
                      -US troops
                           -Asia
                                -Turkey
                                -Israel
                                     -US Jews
                                         -New York
                                              -Rita E. Hauser
                                -Thailand
             -McGovern
                  -Use of tape in campaign
                      -News summary
                      -Media coverage
                           -Jerry Williams
                                -Colson’s view
                                     -Boston
                                         -Radio station
                           -Possibility of fraud
                                -Federal Communication Commission [FCC]
                                     -Warnings from the administration
                                -Comparison with Ku Klux Klan [KKK] charge

         1972 campaign
             -Media and press relations
                 -McGovern
                 -Sabotage charges

                                        (rev. Nov-03)

                     -Washington, New York
                     -White House response
                     -Louis P. Harris
                          -Poll
                               -Watergate and campaign financing
                     -Washington Post
                          -Front page story
                     -Boston Globe
                     -New York Times
                     -St. Louis Post Dispatch
                     -Tuck
                     -Howard K. Smith’s previous conversation with Colson
                          -American Broadcasting Company [ABC], National Broadcasting
                          Company [NBC], Columbia Broadcasting System [CBS]
                               -Network spies
                                    -Competition among the networks
                     -Automotive industry
                          -Intelligence gathering
             -Watergate
                -Justice Department
                -Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI]
                     -L.[ouis] Patrick Gray, III
                          -Response

Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 11:53 am.

        The President's schedule
            -Utility workers group
                 -Cabinet Room size

Bull left at an unknown time before 12:02 pm.

*****************************************************************

BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[Personal returnable]
[Duration: 1m 30s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2

                                         (rev. Nov-03)

*****************************************************************

Colson left at 12:02 pm.
Transcript (AI-Generated)

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.

No, he was pushing it up.
He said he was upset he wasn't invited to the press conference the other day, in the year.
But I didn't.
Well, I know that, you know, he thought he should have gotten the call out.
Well, you want to do something for him?
No, sir.
No, sir.
Well, he came into my office after the first conference.
He got into the water game.
I told him, I said, Clark, I know absolutely nothing about the water game up there.
He went on about, you know, how to get the information to the right center of college.
I said, you know, I said, Clark, you know, send him money.
So he dug up my story about it, which I then had to deny.
And it didn't get much credit.
But I said that he had interpreted the remarks.
He went through a 30-minute challenge this morning in the press room.
And I just kept, you know, what are you doing?
But that's because we're not in control of the press anyway.
Yeah, that's true.
I just hate it.
I think my idea was to arrest him and try to cover him.
And I think that's good.
It's fine.
No, but you can't run the risk at this point.
There's no reason to get into a 30 minute crapping around about this stuff, which is exactly what it would be at this point.
I cannot comment on the big stuff.
We're having a press conference.
It's a very important event.
It's a very important event.
What do you want to do?
Announce it at the end of next week.
You're going to get more than three weeks.
I'm not worried about that.
I just... Well, I don't like to see it not be in any of our papers, but the whole why is that?
What is the shameful double standard?
I just can't understand it.
You never get it in any of the other kind of stuff.
Is the white paper being prepared or not?
That I've been requesting.
You mean with the bookers?
The white paper, I don't know.
all the goddamn stuff, I mean, the Berkeley, the Berkeley stuff, the phone calls, most things, the way they did in our convention.
Good Christ almighty, the Dick Tuck operation, what the hell, everybody was talking about that, thought, wouldn't that just fun, right?
Yeah, he became a celebrity.
Yeah.
God knows about the pain thing.
I can't say one word beyond that.
The governor last night, what I have about our prime time in Minnesota for its first Q&A, and he said, I will make a flat pledge, without resolution, that the elected president and I will never commit a single group to Asia.
Asia.
Asia includes Turkey, Israel.
I mean, that's a very... Oh, no, Asia is not Asia.
You say Asian.
Yes, sir.
I don't think it's the abortion of Indies.
It's Asian.
It's the condemnation.
Our Jews are going after it today.
It's technically.
Most people don't think of it that way.
I haven't thought of it either.
But you're right.
Indies is the abortion of India Minor.
Turkey.
But then I have to force them to say, oh, I knew there was some progress there.
Three seconds is now asking me...
He'll be backing and filling up after we've backed and filled up time after we've backed and filled up prisoners' guides.
The reports that I've been getting, they just get a bomb guide and they tell them to call the station.
to know the Jerry Williams show that I was speaking about.
Oh, I'm convinced that Jerry Williams is a left-wing, anti-war activist, and he's a bad guy.
networks warned that if they use that tonight, they're subject to the possibility of being exposed as a fraud, in which case they have all sorts of MCC friends.
That's been done, because I'd like to keep that off the networks, and it's powerful self-assurance.
Well, I'm sure it's something you can all make up.
You can be all right with that.
But the networks, are they going to use it?
Well, they didn't warn us.
They didn't run a big risk.
It's just like the crude books.
He uses unsubstantiated, unproved material to make a point.
And that's what we're seeing.
We don't go with that.
Some of the press are beginning to go with that.
They're getting on it.
But the travel experts are really beginning to get down on this because he continues to make these judgments and I'm saying, well,
Yeah, Washington, Mr. President.
Again, we've got to be careful.
That is not playing at once.
It is a Washington, New York story.
It still isn't hitting on the country.
Yes, conceivably it could.
Yesterday, the day before yesterday, I felt the time.
I'm not going to answer this, but I wish I did.
That's it.
Harris has a poll that I have for publication.
It's absolutely devastating.
It points out that the Watergate and the secret five churches have had absolutely no influence on people.
None whatsoever.
People like the politicians raised money.
In fact, people like the contributors shouldn't have to disclose it.
It's a hell of a poll.
It'll cut the nuts out of those who are trying to build this issue.
It'll help.
But it's still Washington.
fear to get all disturbed.
Bullshit.
We're not going to do it.
This and this and this.
God doesn't give up on the other side.
He gives it to us.
Nobody gets outraged when they talk about Christ.
I sort of laughed about it.
I said, well, that's pretty clever.
They laughed about it.
What the hell do they call this?
I will keep
ongoing operation in ABC and so does CBS NBC to find the spies that the other networks are planning in to get our news stories.
The big game we have is at 4 o'clock.
We try to keep secure of what our news stories are going to be because we're trying to compete with the other networks.
And he said, we're constantly firing people for getting information out to the other side.
The automobile company, for example, has a terrible, terribly effective spy system.
The FBI has to.
I think Pat Gray has already got a pretty good start.
I think he's working on it.
He's removed a hell of a lot of people.
He's changed.
He's done quite a clean sweep, as a matter of fact.
Yes, sir.
I bet.
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