Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 46 › Conversation 046-136

Nixon phone call with Haig on Watergate and Republican Party leadership

Monday, May 21, 1973 · 8:50 PM–8:51 PM ET · White House Telephone · 2 min

ParticipantsHaig, Alexander M., Jr.; Nixon, Richard M. (President)Conversation046-136 on Tape 46StartMonday, May 21, 1973 at 8:50 PMEndMonday, May 21, 1973 at 8:51 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 046-136 ↗

AI Summary

Alexander M. Haig, Jr. briefed President Nixon on his recent discussions with Republican congressional leaders, including Gerald Ford, Hugh Scott, and Robert Griffin. The leadership group expressed strong support for the President and sought to refute an Evans and Novak report that suggested a lack of professional party backing regarding the Watergate crisis. To address these concerns and maintain morale, they arranged a meeting with the President to reaffirm their commitment and requested more frequent consultations during the unfolding scandal.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Hello.
Mr. President, I have General Hague again.
Okay.
Thank you, sir.
On the line.
Hello.
Hello.
Hi, Al.
Mr. President, I talked to George.
There were two sides to this discussion.
It was Jerry and Les and Aaron's... All right, Les, Aaron's, Ford, Scott, and Griffin.
Right.
And they said, first, they were very concerned about a report in Evans and Novak that there was some lack of support
for the president in the professional party circles.
And they wanted to
to see you and to reassure you that there was no such thing.
They're coming down tomorrow at 5.30 on that deal.
Yeah, they don't know that yet.
Oh, I see.
They were scheduled to see you on Thursday, you say.
Yeah.
And they wanted to raise that issue.
And then second, they felt that you should know they had a concern that we ought to come out with something.
Come out with something?
And what did he tell them?
He told them the whole tough that we were very conscious of that and that there would be something for them.
But he didn't give them any details.
So it was all good and constructive.
But he said they did want to indicate that there was support despite Evans and Novak.
Despite that Evans and Novak report, they were concerned about it.
And they also made a subsidiary pitch that they hoped to be able to consult.
regularly during this crisis period.
So we've got no problems from them, except wanting to help.
Do you feel that?
I do feel that.
Sure, I do.
Of course, it happens in Novak.
They'll report whatever.
They'll pick all the loon that surround here and there, but the looners, I don't think.
They gave no indication of lack of support, in other words.
Not at all.
Just the opposite.
Just the opposite.
I'm concerned that you might think otherwise from newspaper reports.
Good.
Okay.
Good.
Fine.
Fine.
We'll see you tonight.
Yes, sir.

NARA Description

On May 21, 1973, Alexander M. Haig, Jr. and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone from 8:50 pm to 8:51 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 046-136 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 46-136

Date: May 21, 1973
Time: 8:50 pm - 8:51 pm
Location: White House Telephone

Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked with the President.

     Watergate
          -Haig’s conversation with George H. W. Bush
               -Leslie C. Arends, Gerald R. Ford, Hugh Scott and Robert P. Griffin
                     -Concern regarding Rowland Evans and Robert D. Novak report
                           -Support for the President
                     -President’s schedule
                           Meeting with Congressional leaders
                     -Need for White House statement
                     -Support for the President
                     -Consultation
                     -Evans and Novak
                     -Newspaper reports

Also recorded on May 22, 1973

  • 046-135 8:30 PM · 3 min — Alexander M. Haig, Jr. and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone from 8:30 pm to 8:32 pm.
  • 439-030 8:30 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 8:30 pm to 8:32 pm.
  • 439-031 8:32 PM · 16 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 8:32 pm and 8:44 pm.
  • 925-001 8:44 AM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:44 am and 8:50 am.
  • 925-002 8:44 AM · 19 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:44 am and 8:50 am.
  • 925-007 8:44 AM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, and Nellie L. Yates met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:44 am and 8:50 am.
  • 925-003 8:50 AM · 12 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald L. Ziegler, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:50 am to 9:06 am.
  • 046-137 9:06 AM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:06 am and 9:27 am.

All 80 conversations from May 22, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 046-136, May 22, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/046-136 (accessed October 12, 2026).