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Conversation 670-006

TapeTape 670StartMonday, February 14, 1972 at 10:02 AMEndMonday, February 14, 1972 at 10:07 AMTape start time01:05:27Tape end time01:10:41ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Ziegler, Ronald L.;  Bull, Stephen B.;  Nixon, Richard M. (President);  Ziegler, Ronald L.;  Bull, Stephen B.Recording deviceOval Office
AI Summary

President Nixon met with Ronald Ziegler and Stephen Bull to coordinate strategy for the upcoming presidential trip to the People's Republic of China, specifically focusing on press management. They discussed maintaining an upbeat tone with the press corps to avoid frustration and deliberated on how to handle potential inquiries involving Henry Kissinger and Secretary of State William P. Rogers. The President ultimately decided against allowing Kissinger to conduct Q&A sessions with the press to prevent substantive leaks or conflicts, opting instead for controlled briefings that avoid policy details.

People's Republic of ChinaPress relationsHenry KissingerWilliam P. RogersPublic relations strategyOval Office
AudioNARA Description

On February 14, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald L. Ziegler, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:02 am and 10:07 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 670-006 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 670-6

Date: February 14, 1972
Time: Unknown between 10:02 am and 10:07 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Ronald L. Ziegler.

     Schedule
          -Trade with the People’s Republic of China [PRC]
               -Press
                     -Announcement
          -Busing meeting
               -Cabinet Room
                     -Senators
                           -Announcement
          -John D. Ehrlichman
               -Busing
                     -Legal aspect
          -PRC trip
               -Ziegler’s talk with H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman

     Meeting
          -Arthur F. Burns

     PRC trip
         -Ziegler’s talk with Haldeman
              -Press
                     -Briefings
              -Advance trip
                     -Talk with Chinese

Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 10:02 am.

     Burns’s arrival

Bull left at an unknown time before 10:07 am.

                           -Briefings
                           -Chinese customs
                -Press corps
                      -Need for upbeat tone
           -Press relations
                 -Henry A. Kissinger
                 -William P. Rogers
                 -John A. Scali
                       -Kissinger, Rogers, and Scali’s situation
                            -Ziegler’s actions
           -The President’s briefing                                 Conv. No. 670-23/671-1 (cont.)
                 -Hawaii
                       -Potential for questions
                            -Avoiding substance
           -Ziegler’s talk with Haldeman
                 -Possible uncertainty from the press
                 -PRC
                       -Preparation of film for Kissinger
                             -Off the record
                                   -Shown to the press
                             -Kissinger situation
                                   -Possible lecture off the record to the press
                                   -President’s view
                                         -Rogers
                                               -Potential problem
                                               -Eugene V. Risher
                                               -Edward R.F. Cox
                                         -Rogers

Ziegler left at 10:07 am.
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.

You have to hand it to me.
Hand it to me.
Forty.
Forty-five.
And say to Senator, you're in the cabinet.
Yes, sir.
I have to hand it out.
We're going to the outside.
I suppose you'd like me to do that for you.
Well, I wonder... Well, early in the winter...
I have a question about that.
Why don't you let them go out?
No, I think it's best perhaps for you to fill in and get space.
All you're going to make is space if you want to go home.
Right.
You'll be caught up in here because there's so many that we don't want to have that.
Well, as soon as we get a few of them, we're going to be there.
Yeah.
We're going to be there.
We're going to be there.
We're going to be there.
We're going to be there.
We're going to be there.
We're going to be there.
I have a pretty good feeling about this.
I know you have a lot of anesthesia.
The legal thing.
Right.
I don't want it.
I can see it.
Why don't we leave it loose until after the procedure and see how it goes.
Okay, okay.
What's the, what's the figure?
They all set up a crypt on everything?
I think pretty much.
We talked about this.
Why don't we take your time?
Go ahead.
I talked to Bob last night on the airplane.
I don't know if he's had a chance to cover it with you or not.
The press pretty well understand that we know Sussman's rape.
He's over there, that type of thing.
And I told Bob that I had discussed this, and the Chinese had discussed it with me at great length when I was there on the advance.
And, uh...
There's no problem.
They did say to me, however, that they understood that our, you know, our color briefings and that type of thing, and they expected the student.
They made the point, however, I said, well, we'd be even willing to cover that with you.
But they said, oh, no, you don't have to do that because in our system, we don't involve ourselves with that.
They said that we didn't understand your point.
What I said to Bob is one of the things we have to do is to take the press corps in there on an upbeat and not on a frustration.
And then my job would be to kind of temporize them so they don't turn negative.
You see, what we can do, what we cannot do, is a very difficult problem.
We cannot let Henry get out.
I'm going to deal with it.
But if he did, then Robertson could say something.
We're not going to do that.
That's cut.
I think you should say a few things, Scott.
family Kissinger and the Rogers thing under control.
Yeah.
The thing is that I believe that on the update they know that what we, I think what we have to do is that I will have to do a briefing, but I just want to make a statement.
In Hawaii.
Talk about Hawaii.
Right.
No questions.
That's fine.
I don't think it should be questions because I don't want to get into anything substantive.
Right.
Now, I also have another thought there.
I talked to Bob.
See, they're a little bit frustrated in Nancy now, and I get them on the upbeat.
Well, they're just unsure.
Whenever you go into this, there's something uncertain.
They're unsure.
What I want to do is take that away from them.
I think it would be a good idea, and we could do this, and this would help with the Kissinger problem, too, is on an off-the-record basis, and the Chinese expect us to do this, they prepared a film for Henry.
you know, a physicist, we could get the people who are going on the trip, show them the film, off the record, you know, and Henry could say, that's me, and that's the other guy, and so forth.
Henry could also use that opportunity to sort of lecture them on an off-the-record basis as to how they should conduct themselves there.
I want to do that.
I think it's better, I have to say something when I get to Hawaii, and I can't be there.
If you get Henry into a briefing in the press, it's going to be a hell of a massive problem for Rochester.
No, I don't think it's a problem.
I see your point.
You'll get in there, and they'll say, well, what about this or that or the other thing?
I don't give a shit what they've done.
Screw them.
They're not going to do that at all.
Screw them.
They're going on the trip.
And you'll never bother with me again.
You think you can do it.
I was just thinking last night.
Remember when you got Richard in here before you went out to be a what is it?
A fellow worker.
What is it?
Gene Richard.
Gene Richard?
Yeah.
He just got the hell out of us with a heart attack.
You know that?
You see, you don't trust him.
My point is, this is no good.
You cannot get Henry in any situation where he answers questions.
Now, he's going to be killed.
He's got a hell of a problem for us already.
Okay, don't film.
I don't care.
But not the other way around.
You know, you just see the film.
You cannot see the questions.
All right.
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