Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 20 › Conversation 020-125

Nixon phone call with Haig on People's Republic of China and William P. Rogers

Tuesday, February 29, 1972 · 8:49 PM–8:52 PM ET · White House Telephone · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haig, Alexander M., Jr.; Nixon, Richard M. (President); Haig, Alexander M., Jr.Conversation020-125 on Tape 20 (tape position 04:16:41–04:19:42)StartTuesday, February 29, 1972 at 8:49 PMEndTuesday, February 29, 1972 at 8:52 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 020-125 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander Haig discuss the aftermath of Nixon's historic trip to the People's Republic of China, specifically focusing on Secretary of State William P. Rogers's critical reaction to the visit. The conversation highlights friction regarding the administration's policy toward Taiwan and the PRC, with Nixon expressing frustration over Rogers's perceived lack of understanding of the geopolitical nuances. Haig affirms his support for the trip's success before Nixon requests a briefing call with Henry Kissinger.

Audio

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Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 1 minute of this recording (about 45% of it) is represented by only a few words. Listen to the audio rather than relying on the text below; a corrected transcript is queued.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
Hello.
Get on with Rogers.
Yes, I understand.
Oh shit, shit.
Where are you taking that?
Yeah, the differences are very, very great.
For him to talk about differences, for Christ's sake, he's less understandable of the differences than I am.
I know, I know.
But you did say, for Christ's sake, don't I want to see it.
How do you feel, Al, about the trip generally?
I thought we did a pretty good job.
Okay, Al, well, thank you for going over.
I think it was good to talk to you.
It was good to talk to you.
It was pretty close, wasn't it?
No, it wasn't very close, but I did it.
I'm glad you should.
Got you Chinese.
Would you have Henry give me a call?

NARA Description

On February 29, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked on the telephone from 8:49 pm to 8:52 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 020-125 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 20-125

Date: February 29, 1972
Time: 8:49 pm - 8:52 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with Alexander M. Haig, Jr.

     Haig’s schedule
          -William P. Rogers meeting
                -The President’s recent trip to the People’s Republic of China [PRC]
                     -Rogers’s view
                           -The President and Henry A. Kissinger
                           -US-PRC differences
                     -Taiwan, Republic of China

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

[Previous archivists categorized this section as unintelligible. It has been rereviewed and
released 04/30/2019.]
[Unintelligible]
[020-125-w001]
[Duration: 26s]

       Alexander M. Haig, Jr.’s schedule
             -William P. Rogers meeting
                    -Taiwan as compared to People’s Republic of China [PRC]
                    -Potential damage to White House of unknown event

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

     PRC trip
         -Haig’s view
              -Kissinger

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

[Previous archivists categorized this section as unintelligible. It has been rereviewed and
released 04/30/2019.]
[Unintelligible]
[020-125-w002]
[Duration: 34s]

     People’s Republic of China [PRC] trip
          -Alexander M. Haig’s view
               -President’s accompaniment on trip by General [first name unknown] Sharp [?]
               -President’s handling of trip

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

     Haig’s meeting with Rogers
          -Results

     Request for Kissinger call
         -Kissinger's schedule

Also recorded on March 1, 1972

  • 020-123 8:40 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 8:40 pm to 8:47 pm.
  • 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.
  • 020-126 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.

All 40 conversations from March 1, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 020-125, 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/020-125 (accessed October 2, 2026).