Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 190 › Conversation 190-003

Nixon phone call with an unidentified caller on Vietnam War and Alexander Haig

Wednesday, May 17, 1972 · 5:30 PM–5:48 PM ET · Camp David Hard Wire

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President)Conversation190-003 on Tape 190 (tape position 00:02:07–00:03:40)StartWednesday, May 17, 1972 at 5:30 PMEndWednesday, May 17, 1972 at 5:48 PMRecording deviceCamp David Hard WireSourceNixon Library record for 190-003 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon recorded a brief diary entry while at Camp David, which included a request for a status report from General Alexander Haig. The discussion focused on military developments in Vietnam, specifically questioning the intent behind troop movements and the intensity of airstrikes in the canton area. The exchange reflects the President’s close monitoring of tactical operations during a critical phase of the Vietnam War.

Audio

Download MP3 · 106.1 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. It begins about 00:02:07 into the tape and ends around 00:03:40.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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

2:14May Mr. Higg please, General Higg.
4:00Well, what's the report?
4:01No intention to get them there, though, are we?
4:13Yeah.
4:14And they're hitting that canton area hard, too, aren't they?

NARA Description

On May 17, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:30 pm and 5:48 pm. The Camp David Hard Wire taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 190-003 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 190-3

Date: May 17, 1972
Time: Unknown between 5:30 and 5:48 pm
Location: Camp David Hard Wire

The President dictated a diary entry.

[This conversation is a continuation of Conversation No. 190-1]

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BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1
[Personal Returnable]
[Duration: 9s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 1

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Also recorded on May 17, 1972

  • 131-042 5:30 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:30 pm and 5:48 pm.
  • 190-001 5:30 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:30 pm and 5:48 pm.
  • 190-002 5:30 PM · 22 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:30 pm and 5:48 pm.
  • 131-014 5:48 PM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked on the telephone at Camp David from 5:48 pm to 5:57 pm.
  • 190-004 5:48 PM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 5:48 pm and 5:57 pm.
  • 131-015 5:57 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at 5:57 pm.
  • 190-005 5:57 PM · 11 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at 5:57 pm.
  • 190-006 6:40 PM · 10 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Beverly J. Kaye, and unknown person(s) met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 6:40 pm and 7:33 pm.

All 63 conversations from May 17, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 190-003, May 17, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/190-003 (accessed October 10, 2026).