Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 20 › Conversation 020-123

Nixon phone call with Haldeman on Florida trip and China visit

Tuesday, February 29, 1972 · 8:40 PM–8:47 PM ET · White House Telephone · 7 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")Conversation020-123 on Tape 20 (tape position 04:09:45–04:16:35)StartTuesday, February 29, 1972 at 8:40 PMEndTuesday, February 29, 1972 at 8:47 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 020-123 ↗

President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman coordinate logistical arrangements for an upcoming trip to Florida, specifically discussing the scheduling and passenger manifests for the presidential and staff aircraft. The conversation also addresses media coverage regarding the President's recent visit to the People’s Republic of China, including reactions from political leaders and editorial columnists. Additionally, they touch upon the President's immediate schedule, which includes planned bill signings and meetings with various administration officials.

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Hello, hello, sir.
The guard at the eye departure department...
What I would like for you to do is to set up two nightclubs.
So that any staffs that are on the nightclubs.
And so the staffs that are on the nightclubs.
Do you have a new one?
Yeah, we have one.
We've got up to about three or four or five.
That's the staffs that are on the nightclubs.
I will go myself.
I'll go with you.
Thank you.
Stay here, stay here.
Okay, okay.
I don't want anybody, I don't want anybody, I don't want anybody.
I don't want to talk to them.
Put them on later.
I don't know.
I don't know.
I don't know.
I don't know.
I really, really thought that we should go tomorrow.
That's a great, great issue.
But I don't want to have to talk to you now.
So don't leave the people on the line.
Put them on the phone.
I don't know.
I don't think you're hearing it, Jerry.
I don't know.
I don't know.
I don't know if that's it, but after that, I heard about it.
I worked on it.
I think he should go.
Go.
He might.
He might.
He might.
No.
No.
He ought to.
He ought to.
But let him assume that I'm not in trouble.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Let him assume that I'm not in trouble.
I don't want him to feel that I'm not in trouble.
Four days.
Four days.
Fair enough.
Fair enough.
Yeah.
What else?
What else?
I don't know.
I don't know.
I don't know.
Yes, yes.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Not true.
Not true.
Not true.
but i think two things
Okay, okay, good.
Five, five, five.

On February 29, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 8:40 pm to 8:47 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 020-123 of the White House Tapes.

Conversation No. 20-123

Date: February 29, 1972
Time: 8:40 pm - 8:47 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman.

The President’s schedule
     -Forthcoming trip to Florida
           -Henry A. Kissinger's schedule
                 -Anatoliy F. Dobrynin lunch
           -Use of two planes
                 -Staff plane
                       -Timing of departure
                 -President's plane
                       -Timing of departure
                       -Passengers
                             -Julie Nixon Eisenhower
                             -Rose Mary Woods
                                   -Conversation with Haldeman
                             -George P. Shultz
                             -John D. Ehrlichman
                             -Julie Nixon Eisenhower
                       -President's schedule
                             -Bill signing
                                   -Alexander P. Butterfield
                             -Richard G. Kleindienst
                             -Julie Nixon Eisenhower's view
                       -Passengers
                             -Ehrlichman
                                   -Attendance
                                   -Jeanne Ehrlichman
                             -Meeting with President
                             -Kissinger
                 -Helicopters
                 -Staff plane
                       -Timing
                             -Kissinger
                                   -Dobrynin
                 -President's plane
                       -Timing
           -President's schedule
                 -Bill signing
                 -Meeting with John B. Connally

Hugh Scott and Michael J. Mansfield remarks from leadership conference
    -Media coverage
          -Los Angeles Times
               -Editorial

                     -Robert Elegant column
                     -Ernest Ferguson's column
                          -Outlook for Soviet Union trip

     Media relations
         -General tone
         -The President’s recent trip to the People’s Republic of China [PRC]
                -Kissinger
                     -William F. Buckley, Jr.’s view
                           -Patrick J. Buchanan awareness

     Departure
         -Woods
               -Talk with Haldeman
                     -Trip
                     -Lawrence H. Higby
                     -Effect of reaction to trip
         -Timing
               -Julie Nixon Eisenhower's view
         -Camp David
         -Benefits of trip
         -President's schedule
               -Bill signing
  • 020-124 8:47 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:47 pm and 8:49 pm.
  • 020-125 8:49 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked on the telephone from 8:49 pm to 8:52 pm.
  • 020-126 8:52 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:52 pm and 8:57 pm.
  • 020-127 8:57 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:57 pm and 9:05 pm.
  • 020-128 8:57 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:57 pm and 9:05 pm.
  • 020-129 9:05 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Hobart D. Lewis talked on the telephone from 9:05 pm to 9:08 pm.
  • 020-130 9:08 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:08 pm and 9:13 pm.
  • 020-131 9:13 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Hugh Scott talked on the telephone from 9:13 pm to 9:17 pm.

Conversation 020-123, March 1, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/020-123 (accessed October 2, 2026).