Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 191 › Conversation 191-005

Nixon phone call with Haldeman on Media management

Thursday, May 18, 1972 · 10:58 AM–11:08 AM ET · Camp David Hard Wire · 5 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")Conversation191-005 on Tape 191 (tape position 00:22:58–00:30:17)StartThursday, May 18, 1972 at 10:58 AMEndThursday, May 18, 1972 at 11:08 AMRecording deviceCamp David Hard WireSourceNixon Library record for 191-005 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman met at Camp David to coordinate upcoming logistical arrangements, including travel security and media management for a planned public appearance. They discussed avoiding a large press caravan at Walter Reed by opting for an alternative landing site and streamlined their schedule for meetings with political leaders and the press. Additionally, the pair strategized on diplomatic gift-giving, specifically determining that the exchange of a hydrofoil with the Soviet government should be presented as an official state gesture rather than a personal transaction.

Audio

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Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Names and numbers are often wrong; speakers are not identified. Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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With regard to the ballast thing, I wonder if probably the better thing to do is still just to make a telephone call to the provider.
Do you have any more thoughts about it?
Oh, good.
Yeah.
I believe that.
Oh, well, there are other reasons you would lose his own.
He split his party.
Why not?
I would keep the spoiler on.
He will not be at Walter Reed, so it would have to be at the other place.
If you checked it out, you'd have to see... Also, if you land at Walter Reed, you cut down the White House press.
I don't like to go to the White House and have a caravan of 35, 40 press cars following me.
I think the best thing to do, frankly, is rather than landing in the hospital, is to land right up on a reef.
All right, let's sort of plan that penny away.
Don't tell anybody what to plan.
We started the greening this morning.
And we're wrestling with it again now.
We've got to control it.
just for my own planning, the situation on Friday afternoon, it was at the present time, 4 o'clock for the leaders and later, and 5 o'clock for the press or the men of the press, 5.30.
I don't know if we should bother with those damn pictures or not.
Just give it, yeah.
Well, I just don't think I need to shake their hands.
When you come right down here, let's just do it.
I'll just go ahead and say a word to them.
The only problem is the name was a bit, but, well, I can do that.
I can do that.
It's all right.
It's all right.
It's all right.
It's all right.
It's all right.
I'm hauling over the silverware the rest of this time, right?
That's good.
Just right.
We are, I suppose, hauling in some food, I suppose.
That's perfectly all right, too.
I don't think we bother.
It's just good.
Well, I agree, but I think it could be insoluble, provided it's the exchange of the two things.
In other words, that's the way you put it.
Absolutely.
We present that to the Soviet government.
They present a hydrofoil to the American government.
Absolutely.
That's what I mean.
Not a gift to the man.
We want to present this to the Soviet government.
They're presenting a hydrofoil to the American government.
That's the way I'd handle it.
I think that could be a soluble.
Don't say they were getting a Cadillac depression out of it.
Get in the back of the French, give it a car.
Get the relevant costs, I'm sure the hydrofoil is more expensive than the cattle.
for less than $4,000 or $5,000.
So, you know, a damn lot of things are going to cost that.
So, that's another thing.
Are people going out to see those damn things?
It's another thing.
Okay.
Okay.

NARA Description

On May 18, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David from 10:58 am to 11:08 am. The Camp David Hard Wire taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 191-005 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 191-5

Date: May 18, 1972
Time: 10:58-11:08 am
Location: Camp David Hard Wire
The President talked with H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman.

[See Conversation No. 131-27]

******************************************************************************
[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift 11/06/2017.
Segment cleared for release.]
[Personal Returnable]
[191-005-w001]
[Duration: 38s]

[See Conversation No. 131-27-w001]

******************************************************************************

[End of telephone conversation]

Also recorded on May 18, 1972

  • 131-026 10:33 AM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:33 am and 10:58 am.
  • 191-004 10:33 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 10:33 am and 10:58 am.
  • 131-027 10:58 AM · 10 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone at Camp David from 10:58 am to 11:08 am.
  • 131-028 11:08 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 11:08 am and 11:22 am.
  • 191-006 11:08 AM · 52 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 11:08 am and 11:22 am.
  • 191-007 11:08 AM · 3 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 11:08 am and 11:22 am.
  • 131-029 11:22 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone at Camp David from 11:22 am to 11:23 am.
  • 191-008 11:22 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David from 11:22 am to 11:23 am.

All 90 conversations from May 18, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 191-005, May 18, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/191-005 (accessed September 29, 2026).