Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 909-015
Date: Wednesday, May 2, 1973 at 10:15 AM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Ziegler, Ronald L.
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/909-015

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:11] I told you this whole thing is clemency.
[0:14] And you, the law manager, have not ever been discussing clemency with me.
[0:18] Right.
[0:18] And I don't want to deny that flat again.
[0:19] Yeah.
[0:20] Right?
[0:20] I mean, I don't think, I don't know what they're saying.
[0:24] Well, they're not the president promised clemency.
[0:27] He should not have promised clemency.
[0:28] I mean, for Christ's sakes, I don't, to anyone.
[0:31] Right.
[0:32] Never discussed.
[0:34] Right.
[0:34] We've said that.
[0:34] I'm sure eventually, most of the other problems is, you know what I mean?
[0:39] It's hard to say.
[0:40] I can't control that.
[0:43] But I need to call her.
[0:46] Okay.
[0:48] Okay.
[0:48] Do you have just one more moment?
[0:51] Sure.
[0:52] Um, Stu also called me, and he said, Ron, can I have lunch with you today?
[0:57] I don't know, uh, if that would be worthwhile or not.
[1:03] Uh,
[1:12] and in the background of decisions and so forth.
[1:15] But he might be a good bellwether, a good sensitizer.
[1:20] Well, this is the time to get in the background to see the president working and so forth and so on.
[1:26] It's time to talk about moving ahead.
[1:28] I had to tell him that they didn't want to go.
[1:32] There's the real story.
[1:34] That's right.
[1:34] And so on.
[1:35] This is not the thing.
[1:36] We're going right ahead with things and so forth.
[1:38] It's just one of those things where the president was too busy being president.
[1:43] Right.
[1:43] Just didn't pay attention to politics.
[1:45] Moved that line.
[1:45] Loved other people.
[1:46] Moved that line.
[1:48] Don't take any of the crap.
[1:50] You know what I'm saying?
[1:52] But I did the leak thing.
[1:53] You bet your life.
[1:55] I did that hard.
[1:57] Yes, sir.
[1:57] We had to tell them.
[1:58] We had to get that.
[1:59] We had to get the Pakistan thing.
[2:02] You know what I mean?
[2:03] It had to be done.
[2:04] both from the White House and from the FBI.
[2:06] And it's always been done from both, right?
[2:12] You know what I mean?
[2:13] Good.
[2:13] But as soon as this particular incident occurred in the White House, it didn't.
[2:18] Of course, you, as you said to me, you were not aware of the break-in.
[2:25] No, excuse me.
[2:26] I mean of the psychiatrist.
[2:28] I wasn't aware of it until
[2:32] I was informed of it by in March of this year.
[2:38] You know, my own investigation.
[2:40] Never heard of it.
[2:42] That's right.
[2:44] See, that leads to the question about expressing confidence in early fitness.
[2:49] Well, I guess they just didn't want to tell me that they had screwed something up.
[2:56] But my God, I'm like.
[3:15] I think the present people don't mind people who technically break in.
[3:19] I have absolutely no information.
[3:22] For Christ's sakes, I don't do stupid things.
[3:25] No, I'm not suggesting you do.
[3:26] You know what I mean?
[3:27] No, that's the point.
[3:28] I was just trying to emphasize that.
[3:30] Absolutely not.
[3:30] I'm sure of that.
[3:31] I'm sure.
[3:32] Nobody informed me of it.
[3:34] Nobody informed me of it.
[3:35] And again, it's just hard to believe.
[3:38] Why?
[3:38] They didn't get anything.
[3:40] And nothing more was done.
[3:43] But nobody informed me of it at all.
[3:45] No, I didn't know he had a psychiatrist.
[3:47] I was involved in the whole thing.
[3:53] Okay, good.
[3:55] If you stole the gun, then not.
[4:01] Let's get it back to the supply center.
[4:06] Okay, okay, sir.
[4:07] Bye.