Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 022-036
Date: Tuesday, March 28, 1972 at 10:30 AM
Participants: Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob"); White House operator; MacGregor, Clark; Colson, Charles W.
Recording device: White House Telephone
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/022-036

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:02] McGregor, please.
[0:03] Thank you, Mr. President.
[0:04] Ms. Haldeman.
[0:12] Oh, I'm sorry.
[0:21] Hello.
[0:23] Hi, Clark.
[0:24] Hi, Bob.
[0:24] Things have gone well.
[0:27] Bob Byrd has told me, he said, please don't advise anybody, but I will vote with you to terminate the hearings.
[0:34] We have five Republicans, Scott, Bernie, Cook, and Thurmond.
[0:44] We'll vote to terminate the hearings.
[0:45] Those are seven votes.
[0:47] Fong is in Hawaii.
[0:48] We haven't communicated with Fong as yet.
[0:50] Mathias is on route back from Reno, Nevada.
[0:53] He'll be here 11 o'clock tonight.
[0:54] I have a date to see him at 11.30 tonight.
[0:57] He'll go with you, won't he?
[0:58] I think he will.
[0:59] I think he will.
[1:00] We'll put maximum pressure on McComb.
[1:06] We'll give his proxy to Eastland.
[1:07] It may cost us a Veterans Hospital in Fort Roots, but I understand we need a new one there anyway.
[1:12] John Mitchell called me again and wants me to go back and see Eastland and kind of talk to him again about the two witnesses that Eastland wants to call.
[1:24] I told John that I'd visit with him later.
[1:26] I didn't want to talk to him too much in Scott's office.
[1:29] But I must tell John that we have got to pursue this strategy.
[1:34] You mean Mitchell wants to have him hear the witnesses?
[1:37] Well, John said, if you can hear the witnesses on Thursday, why don't you just defer 24 hours and try and close the hearings as of Thursday?
[1:46] And the trouble with that is that Wednesday night is breakaway night for the senators.
[1:51] We won't have our troops there on Thursday.
[1:52] And then John finally said, well, if...
[1:54] If having these additional two witnesses means you have to go over to them next week, then I'd agree with the strategy of closing it off.
[2:00] Oh, good.
[2:02] But John wants me to go back to Eastland with Martian.
[2:07] Goddamn Martian's in it again.
[2:08] Yeah, I don't know that that's the best strategy.
[2:10] We're here now in my office, Wally Johnson, John Dean, Chuck Colson.
[2:14] Hang tight.
[2:15] Yeah, I think we should just hang tight.
[2:17] Irvin's vote might be obtainable on a motion to terminate if we had a statement from Flanagan before the committee.
[2:26] John Dean and Chuck Colson are here and we're raising the issue.
[2:28] The Republican Senators feel that it would be very helpful, without breaching the wall of executive privilege, we could have some expression from Flanagan.
[2:38] John Dean raises the question of whether an exchange of letters, Ruska to Flanagan and Flanagan in response,
[2:43] would be appropriate.
[2:46] I just wanted you to know we're discussing this issue.
[2:51] We appreciate it.
[2:52] It's fraught with all sorts of problems.
[2:55] You sure should talk to Ehrlichman on that, because he's the guy that's been fighting that whole... Yeah.
[2:59] Is John reachable?
[3:00] Yeah.
[3:00] All right.
[3:01] Fort can reach him.
[3:02] All right.
[3:02] I just wanted you to know that we're discussing this.
[3:05] Chuck Holston is here, John's here, and we'll discuss this, and then we'll keep you posted.
[3:09] Okay.
[3:09] Just a minute.
[3:10] Chuck wants me to say something.
[3:13] No, they're going ahead.
[3:14] They'd just be a lot happier.
[3:15] The Republican Senators don't demand that the Flanagan expression be on the record before they go ahead.
[3:25] They're prepared to go ahead.
[3:28] And as I say, as far as I know, Eastland's pledge to me, his word to me, is still just as good as it was when he gave it.
[3:34] And Bob Bird, I know, is stalling Teddy Kennedy, who's trying to get him committed to vote against him.
[3:40] termination, and he gave me his word that he'd vote for termination.
[3:44] So we've got a close situation, and the question is whether we bring Fong back, but we'll be wrestling with that one.
[3:51] And as I say, I'll see him with us tonight.
[3:53] Just wanted to keep you posted so that when he inquires, tell him where we are.
[3:57] Okay.
[3:58] Thank you.
[3:58] Thanks, Claire.