Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 21 › Conversation 021-021
Haldeman phone call on Congressional dinner and William P. Rogers
Wednesday, March 8, 1972 · 10:25 AM–11:49 AM ET · White House Telephone · 7 min
AI Summary
H. R. Haldeman and John Mitchell consulted on administrative and political matters, specifically advising President Nixon to decline an invitation to a Congressional dinner to maintain his nonpolitical posture. They agreed the President should send a note to Lane Dwinell rather than calling him, and briefly touched upon Mitchell’s upcoming testimony and the labor-related outreach to George Meany. Additionally, they discussed John Connally’s concerns regarding Secretary of State William P. Rogers, with both men agreeing that replacing Rogers with Henry Kissinger was not a viable solution.
- Congressional dinner
- William P. Rogers
- John N. Mitchell
- Political strategy
- Presidential schedule
- International Telephone and Telegraph
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
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Uh, your secretary says at 1025, they've returned your call.
Okay, uh, uh, hang on.
Would you get in for me?
Yes, sir.
Mr. Mitchell, please, for Mr. Haldeman.
Thank you.
He's on the line.
A couple quick points.
One, on this Congressional House-Senate dinner tonight, we had long ago firmly turned down the President attending that on the standard ground that he's not doing any political things or any fundraising things this year.
We now have a very strong appeal in from McGregor to reconsider and for him to do a drop-by there tonight on the basis that not showing up will create problems with our Republicans in the Congress and make things difficult and all.
I haven't heard anything to that effect.
I haven't even heard the subject matter mentioned.
Well, I haven't heard it from any place except Clark, and I think he's under great pressure from Pete Dominick, and that's probably where it's coming from.
I would believe that because Dominic has been raising hell with Maury's fans about going out and getting all this money and drying up their sources.
Of course, the president going won't add any money because they've sold their tickets now.
Whatever they've got, they've got.
Whatever they don't have, they aren't going to get.
And the problem is, if the president goes, he's going to be tied in.
They're going to analyze who the contributors are and point out that IT&T had six tables and all this kind of crap.
Also, he's...
just for your own information, planning to have a press conference in the office tomorrow, an announced one.
And it poses two problems there.
One, if he goes, he's got to take time out to prepare for the speech tonight rather than working on the press conference.
And secondly, if he goes tonight, they're going to ask him at the press conference tomorrow, what the hell were you doing at a political thing last night?
You said you weren't going.
The other problem is it sets the precedent.
If we go to this, how do we turn down the fundraising, you know, testimonial dinner for Jerry Ford and all that stuff?
I would just opt against it.
Would you?
Yep.
Okay.
I don't see how we can go there and have any credibility with respect to his... Nonpolitical posture.
Political posture.
Oh, boy, that's my feeling, but...
But he wanted to get your view on it.
Yes, sir.
The other question he wanted to get a view on is there's a recommendation in that he should call Wayne Dwinell this morning.
Should he do that?
Or should he drop him a note?
Or what should he do?
I think he should just drop him a note rather than a phone call.
Okay.
I suggested that yesterday.
I'll call Dwinell.
And, of course, Frank Dale is going to call him and so forth.
Well, those are the only...
I'll catch you later on some other things.
I wanted to get the recommendation on tonight, though, mainly because he was concerned about that and the phone call.
You think he ought to just drop him a note?
Drop him a note.
I think we're doing that.
I'll appreciate that more anyway.
Okay.
Bob, I had about 45 minutes with Conley this morning.
A number of things.
One, he feels that the president ought to be nice to Meany because of all the negotiations he's carrying on for the coalition with labor.
He's going to be.
He's having him for breakfast.
And secondly, he has a very strong opinion about the Rogers situation to the point that the thing is going to deteriorate.
It's going to be a terrible impediment and that the president ought to get him the hell out of there now.
What's your view on that?
I think it ought to be reassessed and thought out because I don't know what the alternatives are.
He says, Kissinger, I can't see that under any circumstances.
Well, I can't either.
That's ridiculous.
But is that situation the same as the last time you explained it to me?
It's worse.
Is it?
Yeah.
It's the same.
I mean, it follows that same line.
It's in that same...
Bill was in to see him yesterday afternoon and was going through his, you know, what are you going to do to make me look good stuff.
And the president's reaction to that is to quietly throw up in his desk drawer.
Well, Connelly's got some backup for this, really.
Maybe sometime we'll sit down and talk about it.
Okay.
Find out when the hell I'm going up on the hill and testify.
Okay.
You're just sitting on salvo, huh?
Mm-hmm.
That's about it.
You never know what they're going to do up there.
Eastland doesn't control things very well.
Right.
Let's run.
Let's run with all the leaders.
But if you have an idea for a new Secretary of State, well, it'll be great.
Okay.
Okay.
See you later.
Right on.
NARA Description
On March 8, 1972, the White House operator and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:25 am and 11:49 am. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 021-021 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 21-21
Date: March 8, 1972
Time: Unknown between 10:25 am and 11:49 am
Location: White House Telephone
The White House operator talked with John N. Mitchell’s secretary.
H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman talked with Mitchell.
Congressional dinner
-The President’s possible attendance
-Clark MacGregor
-Republicans
-Mitchell’s view
-MacGregor
-Haldeman’s view
-Peter H. Dominick
-Dominick
-Maurice Stans
-Haldeman’s view
-Effect of President’s attendance
-Press reaction
-Contributors
-International Telephone and Telegraph [ITT]
-The President’s schedule
-Forthcoming press conference
-Preparation time
-Dinner questions
-Future political events
-Testimonial dinner for Gerald R. Ford
-The President’s possible appearance
-Mitchell’s view
Lane Dwinell
-The President’s possible telephone call
-Possible note
-Mitchell’s view
-Frank Dale
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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
[Personal Returnable]
[Duration: 51s ]
END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
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Congressional dinner
Dwinnell call
-Note
Mitchell’s previous meeting with John B. Connally
-George Meany
-Forthcoming breakfast with the President
-William P. Rogers
-Connally’s view
-Secretary of State
-Henry A. Kissinger
-Mitchell’s view
-Haldeman’s view
-Relations with the President
-Haldeman’s view
-Rogers’s previous meeting with the President
Mitchell’s forthcoming testimony
-Capitol Hill
--James O. Eastland
-Mitchell’s view
New secretary of stateAlso recorded on March 8, 1972
- 021-025 9:00 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:00 am and 9:59 am.
- 021-026 9:00 AM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:00 am and 9:59 am.
- 021-027 9:59 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Richard ("Red") Skelton talked on the telephone from 9:59 am to 10:00 am.
- 021-028 10:00 AM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:00 am and 12:31 pm.
- 021-020 10:25 AM · 28 sec — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, Henry A. Kissinger, and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:25 am and 11:49 am.
- 021-022 11:50 AM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:50 am and 4:40 pm.
- 321-018 12:29 PM · 14 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 12:29 pm to 12:45 pm.
- 021-029 12:31 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Tricia Nixon Cox talked on the telephone from 12:31 pm to 12:34 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 021-021, March 8, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/021-021 (accessed October 12, 2026).