Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 169 › Conversation 169-026

Nixon phone call with Haig on Economic policy and Melvin Laird

Wednesday, June 20, 1973 · 12:29 PM–12:31 PM ET · Camp David Study Table · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haig, Alexander M., Jr.Conversation169-026 on Tape 169StartWednesday, June 20, 1973 at 12:29 PMEndWednesday, June 20, 1973 at 12:31 PMRecording deviceCamp David Study TableSourceNixon Library record for 169-026 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander Haig discussed the White House's economic messaging strategy, specifically praising Melvin Laird’s recent success in bolstering support among Congressmen. The conversation shifted to monitoring Attorney General Elliot Richardson and the ongoing investigation into Vice President Spiro Agnew. Haig confirmed he had tasked J. Fred Buzhardt with pressing Richardson for information regarding the Agnew probe to ensure the administration was not blindsided by potential legal or political crises.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Well, yes, but referring to Mel, I think it's one thing that I did mention yesterday in our conversation, which I know you'll follow up on.
Mel should just get himself steeped in this economic thing, and he should go out and make some statements.
Right, I've already talked to Connolly and Mel.
I mean, Mel, he's got a strong voice in this.
He'll see the opportunity to do it.
Yes, he's been doing it on the Hill, incidentally.
He just finished his last circuit.
He just got back.
He did a hell of a job yesterday.
Did he?
He got very good reports.
They called me and said, Christ, they stood up and applauded.
Right.
He did a very positive job.
Good, good, good.
Well, George, I expect any minute he's in the meeting with the Soviets so he can't step out.
Sure, sure.
Oh, sure.
Yeah, right.
So I'll get it.
Okay.
I talked to the other fellow, Elliot.
Oh, yeah, Elliot.
He said he really appreciated this, and he said that there's a get Richardson move around.
I said, well, you ought to know that this is coming to me from very reliable sources, and I hope that he'll move very quickly, and I'm available to talk to Elliot about it if he wants to.
And Moore denies it, huh?
Yes, he denies it.
Tell us just as well.
I'm going to deny it.
It keeps him a little bit on a tighter leash.
Right, exactly.
We just wanted to know.
We're watching.
Elliot, as you know...
He's a free martini man at night.
You never know what's looking at him.
And I imagine he just talks a little, you know, I think so, a little loosely.
That's right.
But the main thing is I do think Bazaar ought to go over there.
And Bazaar talked to him this morning about Agnew, right?
Yes.
And I haven't had a report yet, but he was to do it this morning.
And he's going to call me as soon as he gets a readout.
Right.
That'll be a good test for him.
But my point is that...
I sat down with Richard and said, now look here, do you know something we don't?
Exactly right.
We're entitled to know.
Well, I told this to Moore.
I said, you know, there may be truth to this.
I said, we have no way of knowing.
I said, God damn it, if there is something.
I expect to know this and not to be sitting on a keg of dynamite that you think is a keg of dynamite.
Yeah.
And he said that he was not aware of anything at all.
Well, you gave him the assurance that we thought there was no keg of dynamite.
That's right.
Absolutely.
Good.
Good.
Well, that's the way to play it.
I imagine Elliot is, you know, he runs around over there, and these little boys come in and worry him, and he runs with the social set, and they worry him.
Yeah, he's the one who reads all the dope stories, and they worry him, and so forth.
And he doesn't dig at them like we do.
I mean, we're just, it's just a whole mishmash, yeah, all of the stuff, you know, like the crap we went through this morning, and it's all precisely over and over again.
Okay, Pfizer.
Good.

NARA Description

On June 20, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked on the telephone at Camp David from 12:29 pm to 12:31 pm. The Camp David Study Table taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 169-026 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 169-26

Date: June 20, 1973
Time: 12:29 pm - 12:31 pm
Location: Camp David Study Table

The President talked with Alexander M. Haig, Jr.

     Melvin R. Laird
          -President’s conversation with Haig
          -Role on White House staff
                -Economic advising
                      -Statements
                -John B. Connally
          -Meetings with Congressmen
                -Congressional reaction
                -Reports

     George P. Shultz
          -Schedule
                -Meeting with Soviet Union officials

     Elliot L. Richardson
            -Haig’s conversation with Moore
            -President’s assessment
            -Conversation with J. Fred Buzhardt, Jr.
                  -Spiro T. Agnew
                  -Richardson’s knowledge of events

     Agnew investigation
         -Haig’s conversation with Moore
                                            -18-

                  NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                          Conversation No. 169-26 (cont’d)

     Richardson
          -Investigatory methods

Also recorded on June 20, 1973

  • 169-019 11:21 AM · 33 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 11:21 am and 11:24 am.
  • 169-020 11:24 AM · 23 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone at Camp David from 11:24 am to 11:25 am.
  • 169-021 11:25 AM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 11:25 am and 11:55 am.
  • 169-022 11:58 AM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler talked on the telephone at Camp David from 11:58 am to 12:02 pm.
  • 169-023 12:02 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 12:02 pm and 12:20 pm.
  • 169-024 12:20 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked on the telephone at Camp David from 12:20 pm to 12:22 pm.
  • 169-025 12:22 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 12:22 pm and 12:29 pm.
  • 169-027 12:31 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 12:31 pm and 12:51 pm.

All 31 conversations from June 20, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 169-026, June 20, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/169-026 (accessed October 9, 2026).