640–5

Conversation No. 640-5

Date: December 22, 1971
Time: 11:03 am - 11:33 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Lewis F. Powell, Jr., Mrs. Josephine Powell, Mrs. Richard S. Smith, Mrs.
Christopher Sumner, Lewis F. Powell, III, William H. Rehnquist, Mrs. Natalie Rehnquist, James
Rehnquist, Janet Rehnquist, Nancy Rehnquist, John N. Mitchell, Wallace Johnson, John D.
Ehrlichman, Egil G. (“Bud”) Krogh, Jr., Richard A. Moore, Charles W. Colson. Herbert G.
Klein, Geoffrey C. Shepard; the White House photographer and members of the press were
present at the beginning of the meeting.

[General conversation]
-Introductions

Formal ceremony
-Thelma C. (“Pat”) Nixon
-Press coverage

[General conversation]
-Certificates
-Civil War

Presentation of commissions
-Powell
-Remarks by the President
-Rehnquist
-Remarks by the President
-Senate confirmation
-President's law experience
-Duty to the law
-Politics

[General conversation]
-Picture
-Powell family with the President
-Rehnquist family with the President
 14

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 640-5 (cont.)


-Gifts
-Cufflinks
-Presidential seal
-Mike Reynolds
-White House tour
-“A Day in the Life of the President”
-Football
-Mitchell
-Larry Johnson
-Performance
-Rehnquist vote
-Charles E. Hughes
-Louis D. Brandeis
-Johnson
-Roman L. Hruska
-Unknown person
-Annapolis
-Unknown dinner
-[David] Dwight Eisenhower II and Julie Nixon Eisenhower
-Age
-Gifts

The President’s remarks

Shepard [?]
-Health
-Schedule
-Ehrlichman
-Revenue sharing
-Welfare reform

Powell, et al. left at 11:21 am.

Yeoman Charles E. Radford
-Polygraph

Adm. Robert O. Welander
-Forthcoming meeting with Ehrlichman
-Henry A. Kissinger's letter

Alger Hiss
 15

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 640-5 (cont.)



Whitaker Chambers

Jack N. Anderson
-Possible blackmail of yeoman


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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
[Privacy]
[Duration: 15s ]


END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1

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-Re-interrogation of Radford
-Polygraph

Radford
-Compared to Daniel Ellsberg
-Knowledge
-Strategy
-Threat of prosecution
-Welander's involvement
-Kissinger
-Transfer
-Meeting with Adm. Thomas H. Moorer
-Interrogation of Welander
-Joint Chiefs of Staff [JCS] involvement
-Possible admission from Welander
-JCS
-Maj. Gen. James D. (“Don”) Hughes's successor
-Welander
-Difficulties
-Effect on career
 16

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 640-5 (cont.)


Anderson
-Relationships within the government
-Compared to Drew Pearson
-Walter J. Hickel
-Sources
-William L. Safire
-Hidden sources
-Check of columns
-Young

Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 11:21 am.

The President’s schedule
-Cabinet Room

Bull left at an unknown time before 11:33 am.

Justice Department staff
-Wallace H. Johnson
-Eisenhower
-John W. Dean, III
-Donald E. Santarelli
-Johnson
-Duties
-Hruska
-Congress
-Eisenhower
-Dealing with Congress
-Campaign reform legislation
-Letter from the President
-Congratulations

Radford
-Instructions to Mitchell
-Methods
-JCS
-Kissinger
-State Department
-Leaks
-William P. Rogers
-Security officer
 17

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS STAFF

Tape Subject Log
(rev. 10/06)
Conv. No. 640-5 (cont.)


-Briefing from Young
-Memorandum from Young about incident
-Espionage

Chairman of Commission on Financial Structure and Regulation
-Address
-Washington State
-Tacoma

The President, Mitchell, and Ehrlichman left at 11:33 am.