Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 23 › Conversation 023-059

Nixon, Haldeman & Ziegler on Press relations and Presidential credibility

Tuesday, April 25, 1972 · 11:20 AM–12:00 PM ET · White House Telephone · 2 min

ParticipantsHaldeman, H. R. ("Bob"); White House operator; Nixon, Richard M. (President); Ziegler, Ronald L.; Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob"); White House operator; Nixon, Richard M. (President); Ziegler, Ronald L.Conversation023-059 on Tape 23StartTuesday, April 25, 1972 at 11:20 AMEndTuesday, April 25, 1972 at 12:00 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 023-059 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon, H. R. Haldeman, and Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler discuss the aftermath of a press briefing conducted by Ziegler and Henry Kissinger regarding the President's recent activities. Nixon probes the media's reaction and specific questioning concerning his recent stay at Camp David and his overall credibility. To debrief on the session's tone and effectiveness, the President instructs Ziegler to bring Kissinger to the Oval Office for a meeting.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Bring Ziegler's office, please.
This is Haldeman.
Thank you.
Did you want him or just anybody?
I'll just ring his office.
Yeah.
Thank you.
Office of the Press Secretary.
This is Bob Haldeman.
Is Ziegler still briefing?
No, sir.
He's finished.
Would you like to speak to him?
Okay.
Yeah.
Is Ron there?
Yes, there he is.
Ron?
Hello, I'll take it.
Yeah.
Hello, Ron?
Yeah.
Yes, sir, Mr. President.
They said it was Bob Haldeman.
Yes, sir.
Well, why do you treat him with that kind of disrespect?
I'm sorry, Mr. President.
I apologize, sir.
Did your little assholes, were they surprised?
Right.
They ran out of the room on clock schedule, broke down a couple of the walls.
Did they whine?
No, they didn't.
They really didn't at all.
We got one question about, you know, well, you said, what does this do to your credibility when you said you were at Camp David?
Well, Henry answered it.
Oh, is Henry finished already?
Yes, sir.
We did it very quick.
He made a couple points, and we got out.
He didn't go any more than three, four minutes.
Why don't you and Henry come over and tell me about it?
Okay, fine, sir.
You pick him up and bring him over.
Okay, I'm going to read this just briefly.
We'll be there in about five minutes.
Is that okay, sir?
Yeah, sure.
Fine.

NARA Description

On April 25, 1972, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, President Richard M. Nixon, and Ronald L. Ziegler talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:20 am and 12:00 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 023-059 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 23-59

Date: April 25, 1972
Time: Unknown between 11:20 am and 12:00 pm
Location: White House Telephone
H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman talked with the White House operator.

[See also Conversation No. 332-35C]

     Request for a call to Ronald L. Ziegler's office

Haldeman talked with an unknown woman at an unknown time.

     Ziegler's location

Haldeman talked with an unknown woman at an unknown time.

     Ziegler's location

The President talked with Ziegler at an unknown time.

     Haldeman's call

     Press briefing
           -Press reaction
           -The President's location
                 -Question
                       -The President's credibility
           -Henry A. Kissinger's briefing
           -The President's meeting with Ziegler and Kissinger
                 -Time

Also recorded on April 25, 1972

  • 332-023 10:05 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 10:05 am and 10:40 am.
  • 332-029 10:40 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 10:40 am to 10:45 am.
  • 332-030 10:45 AM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 10:45 am and 10:50 am.
  • 332-031 10:45 AM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 10:45 am and 10:50 am.
  • 332-032 10:45 AM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 10:45 am and 10:50 am.
  • 332-033 10:45 AM · 30 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 10:45 am and 10:50 am.
  • 332-034 10:45 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 10:45 am and 10:50 am.
  • 332-035 10:50 AM · 1 hr 47 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Ronald L. Ziegler, Manolo Sanchez, unknown person(s), White House operator, Henry A. Kissinger, and John K. Andrews, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 10:50 am to 12:50 pm.

All 54 conversations from April 25, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 023-059, April 25, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/023-059 (accessed October 12, 2026).