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(Hartford Courant) – The tapes reflect secretly recorded conversations between Nixon and his associates during January and February 1973. Among the things on his mind during that period were the Vietnam War, how to savage his political enemies and the unfolding Watergate drama.
The tapes also caught his reaction to Roe vs. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion. In a Jan. 22 conversation with aide Chuck Colson, Nixon can be heard saying: “There are times when abortions are necessary — I know that. . . . Suppose you have a black and a white, or a rape.”
Nixon and Colson agreed that legalized abortion encouraged permissiveness. “It breaks the family,” Nixon says.
… Discussing Nixon’s political opposition, Colson says it included “the blacks and the poor.” Nixon adds: “And the intellectuals.” Colson goes on to say that it also included “the lavender shirt mob . . . the homos and the queers.”
The Nixon Tapes: Richard Nixon Hates All in the Family (1971)
More below the fold …
“I noticed a couple of very attractive women, both of them Republicans, in the Legislature,” Nixon tells Bush. “I want you to be sure to emphasize to our people, God, let’s look for some. . . . Understand, I don’t do it because I’m for women, but I’m doing it because I think maybe a woman might win someplace where a man might not. . . . So have you got that in mind?”
“I’ll certainly keep it in mind,” Bush replies.
“Boy, they were good lookin’ and bright,” Nixon continues. And he had been informed, further, that “they’re two of the best members of the House.”
“Well, that’s terrific,” Bush says.
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."
