{"conversationCode":"908-008","tapeNumber":908,"conversationNumber":8,"identifier":"37-wht-conversation-908-008","startDateTime":"1973-05-01T14:14:00.000Z","endDateTime":"1973-05-01T14:26:00.000Z","startDate":"1-May-1973","startTime":"10:14 AM","endDate":"1-May-1973","endTime":"10:26 AM","dateCertainty":"certain","timeCertainty":"certain","participants":"Nixon, Richard M. (President); Ziegler, Ronald L.;","description":"On May 1, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:14 am to 10:26 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 908-008 of the White House Tapes.","locationCode":"OVAL","recordingDevice":"Oval Office","latitudeEstimated":38.8974,"longitudeEstimated":-77.0374,"chronCode":"5.5","chronRelease":"Fifth Chronological Release: Part V","chronReleaseDate":"21-Aug-2013","aogpRelease":null,"aogpSegment":null,"lastModified":"2015-07-27T17:04:10.235Z","findingAid":"Conversation No. 908-008\n\nDate: May 1, 1973\nTime: 10:14 am - 10:26 am\nLocation: Oval Office\n\n       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542\n\nThe President met with Ronald L. Ziegler. The recording began at an unknown time while the\nconversation was in progress.\n\n       Watergate\n             -Staff reaction\n                     -Ziegler\n                                     -President’s meeting with William E. Timmons and\n                       William J. Baroody, Jr.\n                      -Role of uncertainty\n               -President’s speech\n                      -Reaction\n                              -Wire services\n                      -Public support\n                      -Raymond J. Price, Jr.\n\n       President’s meeting with Congressional leaders\n              -William E. Brock, III\n\n       Support for President\n\n       Henry A. Kissinger’s schedule\n\nZiegler left at 10:26 am.","filename":["908-008.mp3"],"tapeStart":"","tapeEnd":"","participantsList":["Nixon, Richard M. (President)","Ziegler, Ronald L."],"prevCode":"908-007","nextCode":"908-009","transcript":[{"start":2.27,"end":18.46,"text":"Well, I think I'm certain they were sitting on 16th and around 15th."},{"start":21.7,"end":23.52,"text":"Well, god damn it, they won't step up for this."},{"start":23.54,"end":24.96,"text":"This is the only way they'll ever do it."},{"start":25,"end":26.55,"text":"This is what it's all about."},{"start":26.73,"end":27.39,"text":"That's right."},{"start":27.41,"end":28.49,"text":"I looked at the wires."},{"start":28.59,"end":29.19,"text":"Look at them."},{"start":29.21,"end":31.33,"text":"There's 750 wires, four of 250 against."},{"start":31.41,"end":34.63,"text":"I ain't gonna have to figure everybody against."},{"start":34.99,"end":41.16,"text":"Plus the fact that I turned on White's MTV last night and just people lose sight of the fact."},{"start":41.86,"end":44.78,"text":"There are guys out there sitting, you know, having their lunch."},{"start":45.8,"end":50.63,"text":"Middle-class insurance agents supporting the truck drivers, these guys."},{"start":52.02,"end":57.8,"text":"There's a tone of always support for the president, and it's here."},{"start":59.48,"end":69.88,"text":"The way to deal with this matter, though, as you suggest, is not to panic, but also not to get all tied up in knots about assessing it in obsession."},{"start":70.72,"end":72.84,"text":"It's assess it, move on, change the direction."},{"start":72.98,"end":73.22,"text":"Right."},{"start":73.24,"end":74.44,"text":"He did a good job, didn't he?"},{"start":74.46,"end":74.62,"text":"He did."},{"start":74.64,"end":78.14,"text":"Right, right, right."},{"start":78.18,"end":80.04,"text":"Well, I sure believe that that damn leadership meeting made."},{"start":80.84,"end":81.74,"text":"I'll never forget that one."},{"start":82.03,"end":82.61,"text":"That was a good one."},{"start":82.65,"end":83.73,"text":"You should maybe try it."},{"start":83.75,"end":87.2,"text":"What you said before was great, but this is modest."},{"start":87.78,"end":90.18,"text":"I didn't."},{"start":90.2,"end":91.76,"text":"You wouldn't want to use it."},{"start":91.82,"end":92.9,"text":"All right."},{"start":94.86,"end":106.84,"text":"But also, ladies and gentlemen, regarding the piece of the world, we had a pretty good year, and I'm a cousin."},{"start":106.91,"end":109.95,"text":"I really want to spark you in my cousin's brain right now."},{"start":118.37,"end":140.69,"text":"I think the important thing is that there are a lot of people around who pull up to the election."},{"start":159.06,"end":159.45,"text":"Thank you."}],"aiSummary":{"text":"President Nixon and Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler discussed public and media reactions to the Watergate scandal following the President's recent address. Nixon expressed confidence in his core base of support, citing positive wire service reports and favorable sentiment among middle-class voters. The two emphasized the need to maintain a composed, forward-looking strategy rather than fixating on the ongoing political crisis.","topics":["Watergate","Public opinion","Press coverage","Presidential speech","Crisis management"],"generatedAt":"2026-04-08T23:46:50.535Z"},"topicSlugs":["watergate","public-opinion","press-coverage","presidential-speech","crisis-management"],"audioDurationSec":165,"audioFiles":[{"file":"908-008.mp3","bytes":5289984,"durationSec":165.17,"bitrate":256214,"missing":false}],"audioIsShared":false,"audioProbedAt":"2026-09-18T02:20:06.082Z","findingAidSource":"nixonlibrary.gov subject log (2024-05), reslice-v2","findingAidUpdatedAt":"2026-09-18T08:45:00.965Z","transcriptGapSeconds":39,"transcriptGapShare":0.23,"transcriptQuality":"incomplete","audio":["https://nixon.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/audio/908-008.mp3"],"url":"https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/908-008","nixonLibraryUrl":"https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/908/conversation-908-008","license":"Public domain (U.S. Government work). AI-generated fields (transcript, aiSummary) are provided as-is without warranty."}