Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 550 › Conversation 550-002

Nixon & Haldeman on John S. Davies and Personnel policy

Wednesday, July 28, 1971 · 5:16 PM ET · Oval Office · 38 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")Conversation550-002 on Tape 550 (tape position 00:20:12–00:21:21)StartWednesday, July 28, 1971 at 5:16 PMEndWednesday, July 28, 1971 at 5:16 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 550-002 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and H.R. Haldeman briefly conferred regarding the removal of John S. Davies from a specific assignment or post. The discussion centered on confirming that Davies had been successfully removed and ensuring that he would not be permitted to carry weapons. This interaction serves as a follow-up to personnel decisions aimed at restricting Davies's official duties and access.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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taking Davies off of here.
They did that.
They told him he's not gonna have guns.

NARA Description

On July 28, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Oval Office of the White House at 5:16 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 550-002 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 550-2

Date: July 28, 1971
Time: 5:16 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with H.R. (“Bob”) Haldeman.

     Schedule

           -John S. Davies

Haldeman left at 5:16 pm.

Also recorded on July 28, 1971

  • 549-026 4:54 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:54 pm and 4:58 pm.
  • 550-001 4:58 PM · 19 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:58 pm to 5:16 pm.
  • 550-003 5:16 PM · 58 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Alexander P. Butterfield, John D. Ehrlichman, White House operator, John B. Connally, George P. Shultz, Manolo Sanchez, and William P. Rogers met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:16 pm to 6:22 pm.
  • 007-019 5:41 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally talked on the telephone from 5:41 pm to 5:43 pm.
  • 007-020 5:43 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:43 pm and 6:04 pm.
  • 007-021 6:04 PM · 15 min — President Richard M. Nixon, William P. Rogers, and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 6:04 pm to 6:19 pm.
  • 007-022 6:19 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:19 pm and 8:42 pm.
  • 550-004 6:21 PM · 2 min — United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 6:21 pm and 6:40 pm.

All 44 conversations from July 28, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 550-002, July 28, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/550-002 (accessed October 12, 2026).