Nixon, Haldeman & Ehrlichman on White House Press Relations

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It's probably, it may be that I get a view of this way because of the way we can't compare it, but I don't know, it's very, many, you know,

I imagine for anybody who helps, for almost anybody who likes John, maybe John's not so much, but sort of maybe 50 or 60% of the things they've prepared for are really substantive and returning information.

And when you read through this, most of it is badgering.

And that's what it will be, badgering.

distorting, you know what I mean?

They don't want the press conference to bring information.

They get the goddamn information about Ziegler.

And we put up with a guy a few months ago.

And so I'm going to very hard line on the press conference.

I don't want to have any trouble on the press conference.

I may feel that it comforts you, that the pressure's a good thing, but look upon it solely that way.

But I think it's good to give them a mind to just defer to the master director of the Corps.

You know, the funny thing is, if they say they like us, you know, I don't think they do.

They say that because they've got the name.

Well, no, I tell you, I must say, Chuck Bailey, I mentioned, he's sort of a kind of a guy, I like that he's a good kind, that he only gives a chance to ask questions over.

But none of the television people like him.

I think a lot of those guys like to have the, be on television, and the confrontation.

Well, if you've got some guys, Bailey, and, you know, we've got Joe Patrick, and Carol Patrick, and the old pro, the old pro-life service guys, I think, would rather have them in the office, say that a few questions to one another.

Yeah.

I'm continually struck by that fact.

I read about that book.

I just keep trying.

I have questions.

Some of them are just causing me pressure.

I don't know.

I don't know how it's done.

I don't know.

People are good.

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

And like he says here, it's an ingenious question.

And there's been many things that you've learned in the past.

.

My question is, do you agree with me on not being repudiated?

Sir, once again, I don't agree with you on that.

I mean, if you were repudiated, I wouldn't have done so.

I'm urging you to apologize.

You have managed to horseshit question me, man.

I don't get it.

Well, we thought it was a good idea.

You intend not to let this charge be treated by one of your greatest fans without repudiating him.

Well, I'll tell you.

It's goddamn cold.

I don't think we should.

I shouldn't.

I think we, at first, I think that it's all right.

If you can advise to a lesson, you can advise.

Advice, of course, always is true.

to answer them and so forth.

And I, more and more, I think that's because they don't deserve an answer for a lot of the questions.

That's why I want to be very careful about doing all of my things.

It's pretty hard there.

You don't look good if you don't do questions.

There's no problem.

This ain't no problem.

TV, you've got to appear candid, open, you know every answer, and you don't dodge it.

And I have.

I mean, I answer, I dodge them.

And then on the other hand, it's a dangerous thing.

And difficult.

Very difficult.

I'm being bashered by a bunch of channels.

I'll dodge the question.

It comes with trouble.

We have to say we do this better.

It took a lot of footwork to handle it, some of the big traffic.

You know what I mean?

A hell of a lot of footwork.

He was one of them.

That's harder for the press conference to follow up.

But again, he's got his plan laid out there.

The press conference is haphazard.

He can do a circuit.

... ... ... ...

.

I respect all of my president-managed officials, my president-managed works, my president-managed policies.

I don't think that it's honest.

I'm impressed by it.

I think it's nice.

Not to ask information, but this gives you an embarrassed trip up from Badger, the president of the United States, which totally destroys their theory that this is such an essential thing in education.

I say, why don't we have a televised version?

And I said, there's no better.

I said, I read several columns.

As a matter of fact, I've been on television too much since November.

True.

Yeah, true, true.

I've been dominating it too much.

And I said, yeah.

You can't keep everybody happy.

I said, it's fine.

I'm surprised, though, when I'm not speaking.

It's supposed to be very much true.

He would be angry.

Oh, the most kind of a guy that is totally, you know, realistic.

He wouldn't be mad that she didn't tell him.

But he had rated all the figures, you know, and cleared everything.

That was the most important thing in the big, giant, nasty fuck.

He had a question on the governor.

Of course he's patriotic.

Who's the help?

They had a few of you that were very patriotic too, of course.

So, I mean, all they've done is to take the best thing and say, that means your field is a body of prison.

That means it was unpaid for.

McGovern must have aided and abetted the enemy, making him unpatriotic.

Not today's world, was it?

But it's no question that the study can pay a whole lot.

It can pay a whole lot.

Actually, we've been saying that all along.

We said that a couple of years ago.

We've not done it.

But this is what he says to me.

This is what he says to me.

to the same net flux because it highlights the issue as it now comes right.

I was looking at the Milbank thesis, which he started to develop as well.

He makes the point that Musty was trying to solve his problem by appearing to be in his reverie to be middle of the road, but in his substance to move to the left because the left looked at where you really are.

He made his speech about it, but it wasn't much noticed, and that's the way he wanted it.

And what he was after was to satisfy his left wing.

Yeah, critics.

Without alienating his middle-of-the-road people.

Yeah, so make it appear that basically Musk is sort of a good patriot supporting the president.

That's right.

But I'm sure he gets his baby's cousin now.

I don't know.

Maybe he gets a fine.

Absolutely.

That's a very good idea.

Thank you.

Novak then says that my move wasn't intentional.

In order to force Muskie's position so that he could have the best of both worlds, now he's in the position of either he's forced to the left, publicly, as well as with substance.

Or he has to move off of his position.

And Novak says that he makes this a diabolical clever move

Well, the point is that Muskie now is put in direct opposition.

But the whole point is whether people think he is more for peace than I am.

See, that's the thing, Bob.

I try to get across to other people.

You can't let him get away with that.

That's why I always say my peace plan is over.

I don't think that'll work.

Particularly, you want to remember, no matter how much they've had in the news, the notion of Muskie, this and that, and the other thing.

They didn't reach 70 million people with one shot.

And Hawkins and Sterling, it was out there.

Right.

Absolutely.

And so, I mean, this shot tonight is going to get more than Muskie.

Although, all the network commentators have been counting it for days.

Not his position.

I think his position.

I don't know.

If you ask people, they wouldn't know what it must be like.

Uh, it goes to Camp David.

How about these people?

No, I want to leave those here.

This is the second one.

The general is asking whether he had any conversation with you, Scott, during the past week on bus and train.

I guess that's not the answer.

With regard to your inquiry, Scott said that at breakfast, he sort of said that he'd probably just come off and your hope was good and so forth.

And I said, well, you know, I really figured it would all be good.

Got a hell of a lot of reasons why they were getting him going or something.

That was all.

Just a little stuff like that.

You mean we're going to try to get off the hook?

Oh.

Yeah.

Does Rizzo want it or not want it?

Dump the hands.

The thing for you to do, and you do this, say that you just talked to me, that the senator just mentioned to me at breakfast, you know, his interest in the thing.

But if you, at my request, are calling him and just say that the president wants to do whatever Mr. Rizzo wants us to do, and that they've really, they've come and come, and we will take his lead, if we want us to, we'll go ahead.

very strongly in that direction, money and so forth, but we want him to analyze it, do what is in his best interest, and that we'll play his game, that he's to call the signals.

Tell him, obviously, Scott and others will raise this with me because of him previously, but that I deliberately, that I've created information, finessed it, and I said, well, we're looking into it.

Just so he gets, he just knows who's got the horses, huh?

Yeah.

Maybe they don't want it.

Maybe we don't want to have it.

I think we'll screw it in having all 50 states.

Because I constantly emphasize 100 Wyoming.

And, uh, and that was that one on the rock.

I just blanked after all of them.

I mean, there are, he said, well, there's more emphasis in some places than others.

He had several states, but I don't know.

I don't know.

Maybe there's something better.

You know, what's the best?

I don't know.

so

Nixon, Haldeman & Ehrlichman on White House Press Relations

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Nixon Library Finding Aid

Also recorded on February 9, 1972

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