Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 104 › Conversation 104-012

Cole & Haig on White House administration and Staffing

Tuesday, July 25, 1972 · 5:13 PM–1:50 PM ET · Cabinet Room

ParticipantsCole, Kenneth R., Jr.;  Haig, Alexander M., Jr.;  [Unknown person(s)]Conversation104-012 onTape 104StartTuesday, July 25, 1972 at 5:13 PMEndFriday, July 28, 1972 at 1:50 PMRecording deviceCabinet RoomSourceNixon Library record for 104-012 ↗

AI Summary

Kenneth R. Cole, Jr., Alexander M. Haig, Jr., and others met to discuss administrative staff duties, specifically concerning Lewis A. Engman. The participants also addressed logistics for an upcoming group photo session, expressing frustration regarding previous failed photography attempts. They ultimately decided to reschedule a photographer to ensure successful commemorative images.

Audio

Download MP3 (part 1) · 110.8 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 115.0 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 22.1 MB

This conversation has not yet been cut into its own clip, so the player above contains the full tape segment shared with neighbouring conversations.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

Download transcript (.txt) ·JSON data · Timestamps are positions within the full tape recording.

3:24:10Well, for all you guys who are here to get your picture taken, I want you to know that the picture doesn't come out.
3:24:15Are you serious?
3:24:19Well, it's hard to get.
3:24:21I've got seven pictures upstairs, but you are not looking at any walls.
3:24:24I think we'll have the photographer back again.
3:24:29Then you can try to swap.
3:24:31Would you get lost?

NARA Description

Kenneth R. Cole, Jr., Alexander M. Haig, Jr., and unknown person(s) met in the Cabinet Room of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 5:13 pm on July 25, 1972 and 1:50 pm on July 28, 1972. The Cabinet Room taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 104-012 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 104-12

Date: Unknown between July 25 and July 28, 1972
Time: Unknown between 5:13 pm, July 25 and 1:50 pm, July 28, 1972
Location: Cabinet Room

Kenneth R. Cole, Jr. met with unknown men

     Staff duties
           -Lewis A. Engman

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

BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[Personal Returnable]
[Duration: 16s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2

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

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

BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 3
[Non-historical]
[Duration: 4m 11s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 3

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

General Alexander M. Haig, Jr. entered at an unknown time after 5:13 pm, July 25, 1972

     [Unintelligible]

     Photographs
          -Outcome
          -Arrangements
          -Photographer

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

BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
[Personal Returnable]
[Duration: 36m 4s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1

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

Cole, et al. left at an unknown time before 1:50 pm, July 28, 1972

Also recorded on July 25, 1972

  • 104-013 5:13 PM — Unknown person(s) met in the Cabinet Room of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 5:13 pm on July 25, 1972 and 1:50 pm on July 28, 1972.
  • 753-001 5:13 PM · 29 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:13 pm and 5:14 pm.
  • 753-002 5:13 PM · 39 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:13 pm to 5:14 pm.
  • 027-051 5:14 PM · 33 sec — President Richard M. Nixon, James H. Rademacher, and unknown person(s) talked on the telephone from 5:14 pm to 5:17 pm.
  • 753-003 5:14 PM · 31 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and James H. Rademacher met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:14 pm to 5:17 pm.
  • 753-004 5:17 PM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:17 pm and 5:19 pm.
  • 027-052 5:18 PM · 25 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 5:18 pm.
  • 027-053 5:19 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Vito Marzullo talked on the telephone from 5:19 pm to 5:21 pm.

All 50 conversations from July 25, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 104-012, July 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/104-012 (accessed September 18, 2026).