Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 27 › Conversation 027-063

Haldeman & Dole on Thomas F. Eagleton and 1972 Presidential Campaign

Tuesday, July 25, 1972 · 5:55 PM–5:57 PM ET · White House Telephone · 55 sec

ParticipantsHaldeman, H. R. ("Bob"); Dole, Robert J.Conversation027-063 on Tape 27StartTuesday, July 25, 1972 at 5:55 PMEndTuesday, July 25, 1972 at 5:57 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 027-063 ↗

H. R. Haldeman and Senator Robert Dole coordinated the administration's public response to the recent disclosure of Thomas F. Eagleton’s health issues. Haldeman relayed President Nixon’s explicit directive that all campaign staff and party officials maintain a policy of no comment regarding Eagleton’s personal situation. The participants agreed that silence was the optimal strategy, anticipating that the controversy would naturally resolve itself without Republican intervention.

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Senator Dell.
Thank you.
Hello.
Bob.
Hi, Bob.
How are you?
Pretty good.
You've seen the Eagleton story, I assume.
Yeah, right.
President, just wanted to be sure that all of our troops have the instruction from the President that...
He has instructed everybody that we make no comment on any personal matter.
Right, that was my... Well, I'm sure it would be, but he thought if you had the opportunity to say that, the President has instructed us that in any situation of this sort, he has always had the rule of no comment on any personal matter.
Right.
Because we don't want to get, you know, this one will take care of itself.
Yeah, I think it will.

On July 25, 1972, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman and Robert J. Dole talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:55 pm and 5:57 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 027-063 of the White House Tapes.

Conversation No. 27-63

Date: July 25, 1972
Time: Unknown between 5:55 pm and 5:57 pm
Location: White House Telephone

H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman talked with Robert J. Dole.

[See Conversation No. 753-8G]

     Thomas F. Eagleton
         -Announcement of health problems
         -Campaign practices
               -The President's instructions

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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
[Personal returnable]
[Duration: 51s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1

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  • 753-008 5:27 PM · 14 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, Mrs. George E. Mock, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, Jack D. Maltester, Ronald L. Ziegler, Stephen B. Bull, Patrick J. Buchanan, Henry A. Kissinger, United States Secret Service agents, and Vice President Spiro T. Agnew met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:27 pm to 6:34 pm.
  • 027-057 5:35 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Jack D. Maltester talked on the telephone from 5:35 pm to 5:40 pm.
  • 027-058 5:40 PM · 26 sec — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:40 pm and 5:45 pm.
  • 027-059 5:41 PM · 39 sec — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, and unknown person(s) talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:41 pm and 5:45 pm.
  • 027-060 5:41 PM · 26 sec — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:41 pm and 5:45 pm.
  • 027-061 5:41 PM · 18 sec — the White House operator and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:41 pm and 5:45 pm.
  • 027-062 5:45 PM · 2 min — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman and Clark MacGregor talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:45 pm and 5:54 pm.
  • 027-064 6:24 PM · 2 min — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, United States Secret Service agents, President Richard M. Nixon, and Vice President Spiro T. Agnew talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:24 pm and 6:34 pm.

Conversation 027-063, July 25, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/027-063 (accessed September 26, 2026).