Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 33 › Conversation 033-048

Nixon phone call with Haldeman on 1972 presidential election

Tuesday, November 7, 1972 · 8:21 PM–8:24 PM ET · White House Telephone · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")Conversation033-048 on Tape 33StartTuesday, November 7, 1972 at 8:21 PMEndTuesday, November 7, 1972 at 8:24 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 033-048 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman discuss early returns and network projections during the 1972 presidential election. The two analyze the validity of competing media projections for key states like Illinois, Ohio, and Tennessee, while acknowledging the defeat of specific Republican candidates such as Louie Nunn and S. Fletcher Thompson. Nixon expresses frustration with the networks' premature and inconsistent reporting, opting to maintain a close watch on the incoming results as the landslide victory takes shape.

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Transcript (AI-generated)

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V1, West Virginia.
Hello.
Mr. Haldeman's there.
Yeah, hi.
Well, I tried to get you, and then I got cold, and he gave me the sort of the rundown.
Chuck, they, I'm sure, nothing particularly new.
Got everything up to date.
They're obviously, you know, running the total landslide type thing.
CBS is projecting on the basis of 2% returns at 67.32, which is, yeah.
But Louie Nunn's lost, I guess.
Well, I wouldn't be sure of that until...
They're projecting.
Because...
They're projecting that Fletch Thompson lost.
Fletch Thompson, I know, is gone, yeah.
But Nunn, you never know about Kentucky.
They're a late return shot.
That's right.
You might have a call down to him, see if he thinks he's lost.
All right.
And we sure did everything we could.
Thank God we went in there, though.
Yeah, right.
I mean, we can't get really blamed for losing one.
Oh, I like that.
Scottville has a chance, they say.
Yeah.
Which is surprising.
Yeah.
But everything is holding up, and apparently Ohio is holding up, Illinois is holding up.
Well, they've given you Illinois, all the networks, on the basis of just the votes they have.
Yeah.
They've all run the Illinois projection, and ABC gives it at 55%.
55?
Yeah.
But I think it's higher than that.
Well, sure.
That's a projection at 750.
The polls haven't even closed.
I understood one projection was, I saw one here at 60.
Yeah, but that's not their closeout projection.
That was the current run.
That's right.
CBS closed out at 62 on Illinois.
What does that mean, closed out?
That's what they have.
That's what they're running as their projected vote.
In other words, they run the stuff through their computer and on the basis of what they've got in.
62.
They come out at 62.
ABC at 55.
Yeah.
That's too far apart.
Well, the problem is they're projecting too early.
They're into this, it really is a shameful operation.
Each trying to beat the other.
That's right.
And on a very invalid basis.
But Ohio, they projected at what, 57 now?
At least that's what I heard earlier.
58 on NBC and 60 on CBS.
Well, that's good.
And Tennessee, they're projecting 66, 68, and 71 on CBS.
Yeah.
CBS is running higher on their projections than the others.
They're going for the big win route.
They're giving Arch Moore a victory, but we've got a little credit for that.
And I think somebody said they gave Ogilvy too.
Well, one of them was talking about it, but another one's got him way behind.
They've got Walker at 66.
That's Chicago, for Christ's sakes, I'm sure.
They're in an area where they can't really tell at this point.
Illinois projections at this stage are much too early, much too early.
Okay.
Well, we'll see what happens.
Running pretty good so far.
All right.
Good.
We'll keep a running tally on it.
All right.
Okay.

NARA Description

On November 7, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 8:21 pm to 8:24 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 033-048 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 33-48

Date: November 7, 1972
Time: 8:21 pm - 8:24 pm
Location: White House Telephone

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

       1972 election
            -The President’s recent conversation with Charles W. Colson

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

[Previous PRMPA Personal Returnable (G) withdrawal reviewed under deed of gift during
                                          - 50 -

                          NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY

                                                            Conversation No. 33-114 (cont’d)

chronological review 2007-2013]

      1972 election
           -Landslide victory
           -Networks
                  -Columbia Broadcasting Company [CBS]
                        -Percentages
           -Louie B. Nunn
                  -Loss
           -S. Fletcher Thompson
           -Kentucky
                  -Possible call to Nunn
                  -The President's schedule
           -Virginia
                  -William L. Scott
           -Ohio
           -Illinois
                  -Projection for the President
                  -American Broadcasting Company [ABC] projection
                  -CBS Projection
           -Ohio
                  -Projections
                        -National Broadcasting Company [NBC]
                        -CBS
           -Tennessee
                  -CBS projection
           -West Virginia
                  -Arch A. Moore, Jr.
                        -CBS
           -Illinois
                  -CBS
                  -Richard B. Ogilvie
                  -Daniel Walker
                  -Chicago

An unknown person left at an unknown time before 8:24 pm.

*****************************************************************
                                            - 51 -

                           NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY

                                                           Conversation No. 33-114 (cont’d)

Also recorded on November 8, 1972

  • 033-039 7:41 PM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:41 pm and 7:50 pm.
  • 033-041 7:50 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and George H. Allen talked on the telephone from 7:50 pm to 7:52 pm.
  • 033-042 7:54 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and [Dwight] David Eisenhower, II talked on the telephone from 7:54 pm to 7:57 pm.
  • 033-043 7:57 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:57 pm and 8:01 pm.
  • 033-044 8:01 PM · 17 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods talked on the telephone from 8:01 pm to 8:02 pm.
  • 033-045 8:04 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:04 pm and 8:06 pm.
  • 033-046 8:04 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:04 pm and 8:06 pm.
  • 033-047 8:06 PM · 14 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 8:06 pm to 8:20 pm.

All 95 conversations from November 8, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 033-048, November 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/033-048 (accessed September 29, 2026).