Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 9 › Conversation 009-127
Nixon phone call with Haldeman on Presidential travel and Media relations
Wednesday, September 22, 1971 · 6:00 PM–6:06 PM ET · White House Telephone · 6 min
AI Summary
President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman coordinated the logistics for an upcoming trip to Detroit, Michigan, specifically addressing passenger accommodations for various political figures and their spouses. Nixon explicitly requested that he remain separated from these guests during the flight, suggesting they be hosted by First Lady Pat Nixon instead. The two also discussed the scheduling of a Cabinet meeting and ultimately decided against setting up cameras for a potential question-and-answer session in Portland, Oregon, to preserve the President's flexibility and account for unfavorable broadcast timing.
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Yeah.
Mr. Holderman, Mr. President.
Yeah.
Mr. President.
Any late reports?
No, sir.
We're all set on the people you wanted to take out.
My Falcon was going anyway, and we've added Grassmont.
We're taking the congressman's...
wives, well, Romney, Ford, and Griffin's wives, we were under a lot of pressure, well, Griffin particularly, and Romney to some degree.
Just so they understand, if I may please God, I will not see them.
Understood.
Completely understood.
They've been told I'm not going to see them?
Right.
I do think what we ought to do, we're on 970, not 26,000, because it's in the shop.
I do think we ought to put them in the lounge, which is the big lounge.
Yeah.
If Mrs. Nixon can take an hour of them.
Well, she'll take an hour of them.
But you don't need to... No, I'll have to just go in that other little place there.
Use the other room.
Yeah.
And it's not as good as your regular one, but it's... Well, it'll work.
Got the desk and all, anyway.
It's only an hour's flight, isn't it?
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
And... Yeah.
Incidentally, you were talking about Gravel.
I would not make an issue out of his not coming back.
You remember we talked about that?
Yeah.
What I meant is that... You mean if he wants to come?
Is he going to be there?
Apparently not.
Well, then how was it?
As of now, there's no problem.
Then that's it.
But if he's there, he's got to be invited.
Oh, yeah, he will be.
To go back.
You see my point?
Right.
A long ride, and I don't give a damn.
I'm not going to go back and talk to him anyway.
I'm going to talk to Schultz on the way back.
Right.
That's what we were going to do if we had to, but we weren't going to go out of our way to offer it.
But as of now, at least, he's going to be there.
Right.
Don't even mention it to him.
Now, we did invite Hart.
Oh, fine.
On Michigan, but he isn't going.
That's fine.
So that worked out fine.
Fine.
I'm sure it gets out that he was invited.
Right.
So we're taking Griffin and Ford and Romney, and then we've got the Michigan folks from the administration, the economic types, and they'll go right on into the dinner
Which they should.
Which is good for us.
I mean, they can move around.
Well, they ought to go in just as quick as they can.
They ought to go directly there.
Right.
That's their plan.
That's exactly the plan.
They'll go right from the plane in.
Yeah.
And they understand that I've got to get cleaned up and then the way back.
Yep.
No problem.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Okay.
And you've got the cabinet thing set up for Friday, have you?
Yes, that's at 3 o'clock, because Conley has to testify in the morning.
Fine, that's better for me.
And I thought it would be better anyway.
And we had kept the afternoon clear for preparation for the weekend, but this will...
I don't need any preparation for the weekend.
Well, if you do the Q&A at Portland, you may want to spend some time, but you'll have... Well, I'll do that in the plane.
As much as I can.
We'll keep the rest of the afternoon clear, so you won't have... And understand, I don't want any announcement made of a Q&A in Portland.
Right.
Because if I get out there and I feel a little tired or anything of that sort, or it just depends on how the thing moves.
Play it any way you want to.
I just may decide to go in and say hello and thank you very much and shake hands.
Yep.
I don't...
I think that's the way it should be handled.
For that reason, I just wonder if you do want to put a camera in there, though.
Sure.
Still do it anyway, huh?
Why not?
We're going to have the Q&A.
If you're going to have the Q&A, it's worthwhile.
But if you don't have it, I wonder if you... Let me see.
Is it Saturday?
Yeah.
There's a pretty good reason not to have Q&A.
I'd say... Just on the basis that there's no place for it to run.
I think you've got a point.
With Sunday coming up and it's Saturday night news and it's going to be too late to get the East and it might get some of the West, that's about all.
What time is it going to be?
Will we be doing it?
It's at 4...
Forget it.
Something like that.
Don't use the camera.
This is one place where I just wouldn't have it.
Exactly.
I really don't think it's right.
Exactly.
But then I could still do the Q&A and then it's enough.
They can cover it by stand-ups and let them radio it.
I'd record it.
Right.
And how's that?
Right.
That's right.
Don't have a camera.
That's a long trip and everything.
It's a lousy time to have to be up for camera.
Excellent idea.
Then I can go in looking like I please and, you know, talk as I want.
Yeah, yeah.
That's good.
That's good.
That's a very good thought.
Especially on a Saturday night.
Well, since we're there so late, too, we're there that you've missed the east, and you won't make the west either at that hour.
That's right.
You won't.
Not out of Portland.
You would if you were in L.A. Yeah.
They'll never make it, so no camera.
And make it hard line hours.
They're going to want him to appeal this one.
Right.
You know, because there's just no reason to there at that hour.
I think that's right.
I think getting the camera in tomorrow night, you've done that kind of thing anyway.
Yeah.
Sure.
And then you're completely flexible.
You can play Portland any way you want up to the time you walk in the door.
That's right.
Do it as a little talk and a couple questions or a total Q&A or a total talk or whatever you want.
Sure.
Well, I don't want a total talk.
That's an answer.
Okay.
All right.
Nothing else, huh?
No, sir.
All right.
NARA Description
On September 22, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 6:00 pm to 6:06 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 009-127 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 9-127
Date: September 22, 1971
Time: 6:00 pm - 6:06 pm
Location: White House Telephone
The President talked with H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman.
The President's schedule
-Upcoming trip to Detroit, Michigan
-Paul W. McCracken
-George W. Romney, Gerald R. Ford, and Robert P. Griffin
-Wives
-Airplane accommodations
-Thelma C. (“Pat”) Nixon
-Return
-Michael Gravel
-George P. Shultz
-Meeting with the President
-Michigan
-Philip A. Hart
-Griffin, Ford, Romney
-Administration staff
-Dinner
-Cabinet meeting
-Time
-Connally testimony
-Portland, Oregon
-Question and answer
-Announcement
-Camera
-Time
-Radio
-Broadcast time
-Ronald L. ZieglerAlso recorded on September 22, 1971
- 009-125 5:38 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:38 pm and 5:41 pm.
- 279-032 5:38 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 5:38 pm and 5:41 pm.
- 009-126 5:41 PM · 17 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 5:41 pm to 5:58 pm.
- 279-034 5:41 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 5:41 pm to 5:58 pm.
- 279-036 5:50 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Walter R. Tkach, and Dr. W. Kenneth Riland met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 5:50 pm to 6:25 pm.
- 279-035 6:00 PM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 6:00 pm to 6:06 pm.
- 009-128 6:06 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:06 pm and 6:31 pm.
- 009-129 6:06 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:06 pm and 6:31 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 009-127, September 22, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/009-127 (accessed September 18, 2026).