Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 862-008
Date: Friday, February 23, 1973 at 10:53 AM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Brennan, Peter J.; Cole, Kenneth R., Jr.; Oates, James F.; Cavanaugh, James H.; Faircloth, H. Spencer (Col.); Ayers, William H.; Oäó»Conner, Lawrence L.; Gerstenberg, Richard; White House photographer
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/862-008

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:00] Hello, how are you?
[0:01] Nice to see you again.
[0:02] I'm John.
[0:02] Nice to meet you.
[0:03] I'm Adam.
[0:03] Nice to meet you.
[0:04] I'm Val.
[0:06] Nice to meet you.
[0:07] You did a great job.
[0:08] I'm Mr. President.
[0:10] Hi.
[0:10] I'm Mr. Val.
[0:11] How do you like our new secretary?
[0:12] Very much.
[0:12] Very much.
[0:13] Our kind of guy, right?
[0:15] Right.
[0:15] Hi.
[0:15] Hi.
[0:15] How are you?
[0:15] I'm great.
[0:17] Good to see you.
[0:17] I'm Mr. President.
[0:18] Yes.
[0:20] Good to see you.
[0:25] Where's Howard?
[0:25] I'm Howard.
[0:28] All right.
[0:39] All right.
[0:50] All right, Senior Secretary Branson, you sit here.
[0:57] You're over here, not your side.
[1:02] I don't need our Secretary.
[1:03] I want to let her know that you hold down various places around here.
[1:09] I was thinking about that.
[1:11] Yeah, I was thinking about that.
[1:46] Thank you.
[2:10] Thank you.
[2:36] every one of them
[3:02] Thank you.
[3:37] Thank you.
[4:08] And those are going to have to .
[4:09] . .
[4:35] Thank you.
[5:07] oh i can't really that's wonderful
[5:33] And I read the letter of recommendations.
[5:56] And I'd like to summarize those recommendations.
[5:58] The third reason is because this is the one chance to meet a government.
[6:03] The first is basically to think that we ought to be able to phase out and put the remaining tasks in the hands of private or government or permanent agencies by the end of this year, certainly by the end of July.
[6:16] That's what I'm saying.
[6:20] That's what I'm saying.
[6:21] That's what I'm saying.
[6:22] That's what I'm saying.
[6:24] That's what I'm saying.
[6:25] But in the process of getting to that point, we have a few fundamental recommendations.
[6:33] Number one, we recommend that the President declare and proclaim a Honored Veterans Week incident to Memorial Day at the end of May to the end that the whole nation may have an opportunity
[6:53] in local affairs and local meetings and advertisements to pay their respect and vouch for their loyalty to our veterans.
[7:04] In that week, we should have, in our judgment, a registration day at which every veteran, unemployed, can register with NAB, with employment service, perhaps in a post office, so that we will know just where this
[7:22] The remaining problem exists.
[7:24] Now, in material furnished by the Secretary of Labor, we know that the power remaining group of unemployed veterans is only 250,000.
[7:34] And half of those are in the mid-70s, are in 58 cities that are here.
[7:38] And we propose that we get to a key point.
[7:42] It's how much of that is the power group working?
[7:49] Only working?
[7:49] That's right.
[7:52] What we want to do is to pinpoint these 58 cities and stir up the activity there to the end, and that figure can be substantially reduced.
[8:07] That will give us a chance also to get employment for the disabled more in the forefront than it has been in our general model.
[8:22] And we have reason to believe that American business is going to like to dovetail with your work.
[8:29] We also want to return to our international job information.
[8:34] We've had three of them, one in Asia and two in Europe.
[8:37] And they've been more than sufficient, the guys who are hitting them in Europe.
[8:44] These are the fellows that were soon to be veterans.
[8:46] And more than that, Mr. President, they also have the temptation to citizen.
[8:51] And I'm in trouble with that program.
[9:04] It would be done by the Department of Defense and NAB.
[9:09] But our group would sponsor the last one and that would be our response on that particular sort of activity.
[9:17] So we're going to have a registration pinpoint.
[9:21] I think the only thing in connection with Vermont is Britain.
[9:27] Yeah.
[9:27] Let me suggest something on that.
[9:29] Yes, sir.
[9:29] Tomorrow is fine.
[9:30] But the very significant day of the Great Conference will be the 27th day of March, when the last few of your returns will be.
[9:51] Why not have it?
[9:53] that people .
[9:54] In other words, Memorial Day is a holiday, and people are running around and screwing around.
[10:01] They don't .
[10:01] You might just say, all right, that's it.
[10:04] And if they won't hear, they have to return.
[10:05] Now, let's honor our POWs, but let's honor all veterans, because I think a lot of guys, you know, who's first, also third, and they don't come back heroes.
[10:16] They've been kicked around and all the rest of them.
[10:19] Do you think so?
[10:20] Yes, I agree with him.
[10:21] Because I know that.
[10:22] It's like the guy that's in the rear area of the war.
[10:25] He does a hell of a job and all the rest of it.
[10:27] And so some guys out in the front and so forth, they have to jump the foxhole a couple of times.
[10:33] The guy in the background would have been there if he had been ordered there, but he wasn't.
[10:39] So we just got on a remote.
[10:40] That's the whole point.
[10:45] I like the idea.
[10:46] I like the idea.
[10:47] We'll do it one way or the other.
[10:50] Then you will follow through then.
[10:52] I want this to follow through with regard to the people abroad, because we're going to continue the people abroad coming back.
[11:04] And your manpower training and the rest of the
[11:10] And we've had that experience.
[11:12] We have co-sponsors with defense.
[11:15] It really works.
[11:16] Another point, Mr. President, we discussed before you came in, and I know you have some thoughts about it.
[11:27] The approximately 150,000 men out of the country, we don't want them to come by and grab these jobs.
[11:33] We have to do something to see if these veterans get, you know, whatever's going to happen on these stop cities.
[11:39] I want to give them amnesty.
[11:41] We just feel that, well, I think this group agrees with my opinion, we shouldn't give them amnesty.
[11:46] But the big thing here, which I point out to the general public, we've got 150,000 coming back who have been competing with these veterans who have served their country for a long time.
[11:55] We have to do something to see that that doesn't happen.
[11:57] We must not worry about it.
[12:00] Oh, we wouldn't want to exaggerate it, Jim, but we have to make sure the tech people are listening to us.
[12:02] And I'm glad that I didn't listen to them.
[12:03] That's kind of a big, big problem.
[12:04] I mean, so they would cover some side of it, but I don't think anyone else would have dealt with it like they did.
[12:23] I would like to be one of those guys with a great job.
[12:28] I'm sorry.
[12:29] I'm sorry about that.
[12:32] Right.
[12:37] Right.
[12:57] That's the point.
[13:23] Because when the individuality is .
[13:28] Under General Oaks, and in your direction, he's got a very good team.
[13:36] I mean, you met Captain Bauer when he was here, and I was over at the .
[14:00] I'm sorry.
[14:12] We have a big name here.
[14:16] Mr. President, let's get down to some hard figures.
[14:21] Let's get down to some hard figures.
[14:26] We have a goal of $150,000 this fiscal year.
[14:30] We have employed 126,048 and made 83% of the goal.
[14:38] We've got five more months to go.
[14:40] We guarantee over 200,000 veterans on the job.
[14:46] You know, the key to that, as I understand it, though, is we've got to keep, we've just got to keep the economy going.
[14:53] Yes, we just get better.
[14:54] The other part, I'll just, I think it's going to, that's our prediction.
[14:58] That's all we can do.
[14:59] That's why we're fighting for the responsible policies that will make it move.
[15:03] As far as this advantage is concerned.
[15:07] We are in the middle of our goals, our goals.
[15:07] You know, and that connection is really, you know, the price from being on this 12-in-1.
[15:10] As you know, I told the Jordanian boys that we were going to be repricing what we had since we wasn't purging enough, you know, the prices that we were on.
[15:25] So we can just get those damn food prices down.
[15:27] That, of course, is really just, you know, I guess people are eating more.
[15:35] Is that it?
[15:36] We've got to import it.
[15:38] That's going to make some of our cattle.
[15:44] We've got to make a lot more.
[15:49] We're going to have a great department.
[15:53] I raised the bonus.
[15:54] Right.
[15:55] Right.
[15:55] And then you did last fall.
[15:57] Cheese.
[15:58] We're also, we opened the cheese room.
[16:01] Our dairy, they're our strongest, my strongest supporters.
[16:04] Thank you very much.
[16:06] It's wild.
[16:07] You've got to do it.
[16:08] Everybody's eating it.
[16:10] Cheese is very expensive.
[16:14] It's protein.
[16:16] It's protein.
[16:18] Ah, come on.
[16:18] Well, next year.
[16:21] Yes, sir.
[16:21] Well, next year, we have a goal that we're going to shoot as far as we can.
[16:33] Better.
[16:33] Yeah, of course.
[16:35] The limitations are getting down, so it's going to be a little more difficult.
[16:41] It's like when you break 100 in golf.
[16:43] It's a great achievement.
[16:45] You're starting to break 90 and stuff.
[16:49] You break 80.
[16:49] You try to knock it off.
[16:52] That's impossible.
[16:52] That's what you're going to get.
[16:55] We've got a hard core.
[16:57] We're going to try to come up a little hot.
[16:59] That's where I'm coming from.
[17:01] We've got to be great.
[17:02] We've got to be great.
[17:04] I just love that handicap.
[17:06] I just think it's great because you know, there's nothing wrong with our brain.
[17:24] The motivation is great.
[17:25] That's the point.
[17:27] You know, you get a great big hug from a man with a reasonably good mind, and the rest of him sits in his can.
[17:37] But you've got to be a guy that's really motivated.
[17:41] That's one or two and a half in your shop, isn't it?
[17:46] That's why sometimes the very pretty girls are much less, shall we say, competitive with all the others.
[17:59] I don't know us, so you've got to use the time.
[18:02] Everyone frankly knows about this.
[18:03] I was just returning to this.
[18:06] I said, now we're signing.
[18:08] Nobody tried to teach us.
[18:11] are on the record now .
[18:20] So those are .
[18:27] And I'm sure that we're going to make a big dent in the state .
[18:35] I like your .
[18:35] These people all have .
[18:38] And so I'd like for their wives .
[18:47] Well, I'd like to all give you professional medals of honor, but you deserve more than you deserve.
[18:59] The key to this is to keep the economy going.
[19:02] I want Sears to sell more, right?
[19:06] That's right.
[19:07] There you are.
[19:11] This is a new resurrection.
[19:21] I don't have a wife.
[19:23] I don't have a wife.
[19:25] I don't have a wife.
[19:43] In session, it was a great spot.
[19:45] It was a great spot.
[19:46] You didn't see it.
[19:47] We missed you down here, but it looks like you're here.
[19:50] Well, I appreciate it.
[19:50] And also, I mean, you told me how much you believe in our concern in the other areas.
[19:59] That's equally great.
[20:00] But no one has come that, this hard road.
[20:02] And we have to face it.
[20:03] And I'm probably agreed about this.
[20:10] um um
[20:32] And I know this.
[20:33] And I know that what you have to do at all times, and I know you've been in the Maryland business, what you have to do is to bring them in, give them a little bit of an extra chance.
[20:45] But then that makes a lot of your other people who are not in the minority group say, gee, I work my day off and so forth.
[20:52] Why is this clown going to get the job?
[20:54] I know.
[20:54] I understand that.
[20:55] But we want you to work on it.
[20:57] We will.
[20:59] And Brandon will get them all.
[21:00] Brandon's a good man.
[21:01] Thank you.
[21:02] Thank you.
[21:05] Thank you.
[21:09] Thank you.
[21:10] Thank you.
[21:13] Thank you.
[21:15] Thank you.
[21:18] Thank you.
[21:41] Thank you.