On November 8, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Charles W. Colson, Ronald L. Ziegler, and Lawrence M. Higby met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:03 pm to 12:12 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 813-028 of the White House Tapes.
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 Do not cite this transcript as authoritative.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.
Mr. President, I thank you for putting me in last night.
For three years, I've wanted more than anything in my life to see you.
When I sat there last night, just emotionally drained because I couldn't believe it was all that bad.
Well, we were all tired.
Yeah.
You'll find it's going to be tired.
You'll find it's going to be tired.
You'll find it's going to be tired.
Well, as it turns out, we finally, except for the House and Senate thing, which we're going to have to handle, that's a candidate problem.
I've analyzed it.
It's a candidate problem.
Because we had to host attorneys.
Because Margaret Smith deserved to lose.
Allen deserved to lose.
Miller is an ass.
Who else did we lose?
No, but he had a tax record, and that's a good question.
He's a good candidate.
And Bob should not have lost.
Bob should.
Bob's the only one who should not have lost.
I don't know what the hell they could do there.
He's a cold sore.
He's a cold sore.
Just finally they ran a goer against him.
That's right.
We've got a very grand young goer.
We've got a young run more like a dimension, more like a...
He's the only one.
He's the only one.
We're up one for the Senate.
I think he was dragged onto this.
We'll let him get you.
We'll get some of him.
He had a penance.
I mean, he had a problem with that.
Thank God we took a vote.
You realize now that we took 49 of the 50 states.
So that's better.
And the bastards can't piss on it too much, can they?
No, sir.
We have a bigger majority than Johnson, right?
Yes, sir.
And a bigger majority than Johnson.
A bigger total vote, the biggest total vote that we have.
Of course, there are more eligible voters, but let's face it.
With the polls showing what they were and the blacks...
I think it was because they had written off the election.
I think that a lot of people felt that if you were re-elected, they didn't have to vote.
I think another 5 million votes would have edged our percentage up.
I really do.
Mr. President, could I ask a question?
I forgot to ask you that earlier.
Should I have?
If you just wanted to, that would reveal one, because there are so many others.
Right.
No.
I'm just saying, I've been taking calls from a number of people.
Congratulations.
I'm not going to go into it, but that's it.
I do think I'll mention that Steve Marge is a state prosecutor.
Yes, he's received it.
He's going to pass.
And it's going to be sure they're wired.
Rose, I got trying to get Alex, gets the collection of wires and things that I can take with me to Florida.
Right.
Yep.
But the phone calls that I haven't done, I just can't put you in on that.
He's made a great, I mean, he's received a number of calls just for the bad way he's seen calls.
I took them last night.
How's that, son?
Fine.
Excellent.
Now, you want me to have him in Canada?
Now, he's saying, just what we said, him or...
You know, Don Rogers made a terribly perceptive observation this morning.
Let me get to the figures again.
Is it going to turn out about 61?
Yes, sir.
Or a little less than 61?
Not less than 60, I don't know, but less than 61.
He gets the merger there, too, which knocks a point off.
No, the way the total is presented... Maybe I can't get him out of there.
$44,237,000.
This was at 10 o'clock.
To $27,498,000 to $999,000.
That's approximately 95% of all precincts.
So it'll go to 45 people or not?
It'll go to 45.
But you have to change that balance.
And that balance, I didn't.
What does that figure?
It's 61 plus at the moment. 61?
Yeah, Johnson is 61.1, Gord at 38.5, four-tenths of 1% to others.
So it's going to be, I think the percentage spread will be greater because of Schmitt's 1%.
Sure.
I think you're over 60.
I haven't done it last night.
Paul said we were under 60.
He hasn't figured it out.
Well, maybe, as I say, I haven't done a manatee, and they don't have it.
The last projected figure I saw was over 60-foot-two.
I would think the last things that come in would be ours.
Oh, yes.
And then the 5% that's left in the precincts, I think, would tend to be us a little bit, wouldn't it?
They'd be in the more rural areas, tend to be, for example, Arizona.
We've got quite a bit to pick, 10% of the state yet to come in.
The state of Washington, West Virginia, maybe.
No mention.
Texas will be rural country coming in, which will be a mixed bag, I guess.
Depends on which part.
It's hard to tell.
I would think that more of our vote would yet to be, would yet be coming in than the
That is, but it's going to be – It's a monumental – Aren't most people playing the landslide thing?
Yes, sir.
Is it on the back?
We didn't carry the Congress.
Well, the call – It's going to be an animal Congress.
It's going to be top ten.
Yep.
Is it going to be on the slaughters?
No, they're going to be upgraded because you represent – if we do it right, Mr. President, you represent the new majority of this country.
That $45 million, $46 million, whatever it ends up, is the new majority.
And his affiliation of the governor, what he stands for, is the case we've got to make.
Because this is the point John Rogers made this time.
He said party labels are gone in the traditional sense.
He said that the reason that you lost Republicans like Miller and Allitt and Boggs and Smith is that they're the old-style Republicans.
He said, if you had Jim Buckley's right, you'd be elected.
Or Belzano's.
Or Belzano's or DeSimone's.
They represent the wave of the future of this party.
And Don Rogers says, I'm a Bronx Democrat.
He said, I know the mentality of these people.
They're ready to be taken, but they will not be taken.
Larry, Larry, if you get me the briefcase at 4.30, I will, I mean, talk about it at the, getting the latest, I'll write down the sentence.
The latest was nine firm, but several in-depth.
Was it nine?
Yeah, nine.
Nine net gain, but several still in-depth.
We picked up that one in May, and we've got one in Massachusetts that's uncertain.
All right.
I can get that for you.
No, you can't, because they only tell you how many precincts in each state.
Right.
This is the same figure you got of 44, 602.
Let's talk a little bit, Mr. President.
Mine was $44,237.
Mine was $44,237.
So yours is more.
That's not the one.
This is 1210.
44602.
Webcat 27807.
What are your figures?
What are yours?
44237.
27498.
We're getting about the same amounts here.
All right.
Okay, Larry, you know what I mean.
Sure.
We ought to have a California figure plan, but getting all the final state results and so forth.
Thank you, sir.
Okay.
What did you say, Roger?
Well, who had signed it, Mr. President?
It's a very basic, fundamental, social...
He didn't spectacular.
He said this is just what he would hope for.
He wouldn't walk up to it.
He said he had no idea what this was all about.
I'm going to be in the new majority, whatever we call it, that you created four years ago.
I don't know who it is.
I don't know.