Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 858 › Conversation 858-002

Nixon, Haldeman & Bull on White House scheduling and POWs

Friday, February 16, 1973 · 8:50 AM–9:08 AM ET · Oval Office · 17 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob"); [Unknown person(s)]; Bull, Stephen B.Conversation858-002 on Tape 858StartFriday, February 16, 1973 at 8:50 AMEndFriday, February 16, 1973 at 9:08 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 858-002 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon met with H. R. Haldeman and Stephen B. Bull to coordinate his upcoming travel schedule, including a trip to Florida, and to manage White House social outreach to key congressional members and political contributors. They also discussed public relations regarding Prisoners of War (POWs), specifically highlighting the positive public statements made by Col. Robinson Risner in support of the administration. Additionally, the group reviewed logistics for upcoming meetings with labor leaders George Meany and Peter J. Brennan, and solidified plans for announcing these engagements.

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I thought we'd stop down at that base and see what they got to do with it later.
Maybe you and him are a good match.
I bet I will stop.
We might get out and drive to their house and we'll have a break.
In fact, we'll be about half on our stuff when we get there.
Base personnel and any personnel that you want.
Base personnel and any others that would be welcome to come out.
What do you think?
Sure.
Like we do at the other place over there?
Absolutely.
It's definitely going to stop.
Yeah, yeah, Steve said you weren't sure about the, uh, inside that company, so we'll leave you quick.
And we'll leave here at, uh, 12.
Yeah.
I said, hey, we'll leave here at 4 to 12.
4 to 12.
Why?
12 now.
Okay.
What is it?
That's right at 12 now.
You know, they're just elated.
He has such a rapport with those guys that he has a great...
I'm sure he's been here so long that we couldn't whack him in one of those things.
I don't know.
I mean, the Congress is so good.
I guess he has everybody just saying he's old.
I just kind of think people are dependent on him.
That's all.
He has, and he had a...
I'm just thinking, if all these things go away, that church thing, what other people could we possibly have?
Since I'm going to Florida this week, I don't want to be going there.
So, that's the way it is.
the way it adds up we can cover it all with the
What do you think?
200 contributors, the top 200, you'll get at the state centers.
Right.
Then you follow up later on with them at state centers.
Then you've got the next 100 contributors at evenings at the White House, 58 each.
So you're going to, in a two-week period, you're going to have cleaned up the top 300 contributors, which puts you in damn good shape.
Then I would shift on the next
Contributors.
Oh well, I'll do the usual.
You, which Julie wants to do.
And a good plan.
And contributors.
Right.
And I have a hundred, well, fifty contributors.
Fifty contributors.
Two hundred you.
And then we might go to another one and do a hundred contributors and fifty Congress, and that would pretty much, I think, clean up the whole shot.
Perfect.
We don't need the Congress, and let's have another church and get them all in.
I know they get the Congress all done.
I think you'll have them all done.
Bill says you'll have them all done with these four events.
Four we've got.
And then of course you've got the good guys next Thursday in addition.
And you've done the new ones already in addition.
You've done the leadership to a very long time.
And we've covered the leadership and a pretty good batch of Congress in the dinners that he goes in on.
Well, you know, that gives me the courage to go around as well as I can do wherever I want to.
We've made it better today than ever.
It gets better all the time.
It wasn't today.
Ah, Jesus.
You got more Nixon stuff today because that guy, uh...
went out and really did it.
And Jesus, he, well, it was, you know, your friend, Reisner.
And there's been some story that he was critical of the U.S. involvement in the war, critical of the war.
So while he was in prison, his answer to that is beautiful.
He just says, consider where I came from.
That's all he'll say.
But he says, there was never a minute when I didn't support my country, when I didn't support President Nixon.
And, you know, what he's doing
I always look at him, he just goes on and he's... That might be it.
The point is that that overlooks the giant that was ashamed of the war.
of this country had total opportunity to serve this country without fighting the war.
How's that?
Absolutely.
Well, that's my point.
He sure did.
He said, I hope that it wasn't wrong to get a little emotional, but he said, I can't.
And it just seemed like a good idea.
He said, I don't think I can fool myself.
And I said, hell no.
I said, everybody in this country is emotional about that whole thing.
And you're right on the right way.
Oh, the trip over to the Pentagon.
Sure did.
We got deployed there.
Did Sea Grace, if you have a question, take Brandon down?
No, I haven't had a chance.
Brandon's going to Florida at 3 o'clock today.
Sure he should.
You ought to take him on your plane.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, I'll do it.
Yeah, yeah, sure.
Did it work out with me?
He did not go down.
He's going down now, but Shultz had a good session with me, and Shultz has had some very good sessions with Brenda.
They've gone through.
George says they're on a very positive level.
I mean, did it work out with me?
Did we do his thing with you?
Oh, yeah.
He's expecting us.
Well, I don't know that it's locked, but it's...
In fact, I got him some before they came in.
I wanted that announced when we announced the trip.
Okay.
Yes.
Very good idea.
They are in session.
They would be ecstatic.
As Terry Dent says, I don't think if you called the entire state, it would be wildly for the president.
Well, let's go ahead and end it now.
I don't think they did.
We won't announce that.
No.
Today.
We'll announce that maybe tomorrow or something.
They heard we were down there.
Probably around the latest one here, right?
Yeah, I don't know.
Yeah.
The original price...
The original price...
The original price...
The original price...
The original price...
Probably the way he should do it.
Well, you know, if he doesn't, that's the way.
Don't try to cover it up.
Just blow up it.
Maybe he's better off not doing it.
He would have been better off not doing it.
I can see the conversation coming in.
He had worked at Pierce-Hughert, you know, couldn't vote.
He had to go to high school, much of his career, I should get over that.
That's what the old, that's what the right used to say about him.
It's 180 degrees, 180 degrees, we all put my interest in it.
Buck said, no, it's not my interest.
And all those guys said, by God, I'm not going to vote for a determined inch.
We can't help our own country.
Building land all around her, we can't put her sources, you know.
Either of these guys is taking this totally different line.
Well, we'll have to work on it.
I'm going to have to make the first crack.
I really do.
I think it's got to take the pattern cameras back.
When a parent's viewpoint, it's got to be, you've got to do it.
It's not a fight that you've got the option.
You got it.
Slipped the other way somewhere along the line.
I found it.
One of the women.
They can't call.
It was one of me yesterday.
One of the men.
Of course, I... Did you put out the several that called?
I think none of them did that.
Well, that should be put out.
That's the kind of thing.
You've got to get around and understand it.
That's the sort of thing that's good.
that they had and that I had marked and so forth.
What did you follow through with?
Yes, sir, that they got it down there.
What did you want to be doing?
Well, Senator and Secretary, Secretary Reynolds spoke with you on the meeting last night.
Fine.
And also, I was exactly invited, ready to go with this plan, of course.
Okay.
Okay.
And we'll announce, we will announce the appearance of the NLCA on
Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
All right, sir.
Now, Secretary Shultz may raise the question of taxation, and the Secretary is being told that really you don't have time to discuss that this morning, and you'd like to work that out at another time next week, sir.
Yeah, well, I'm sure he knows that he's going to need to .
At this point, he doesn't want to hear about it.
I'm sure he does.
No, I just want to discuss it.
Discuss it.
Right.
Yeah, you should.
But Brennan, he does have, he's done a hell of a good job on it.
We've got an undersecretary candidate.
He should.
Yes.
He should.
Maybe.
I don't know.
I don't know.

NARA Description

On February 16, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, unknown person(s), and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:50 am to 9:08 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 858-002 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 858-002

Date: February 16, 1973
Time: 8:50 am - 9:08 am
Location: Oval Office

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

       The President's schedule
              -Trip to Florida
                      -Julie Nixon Eisenhower
                      -[Dwight] David Eisenhower, II
                      -Stephen B. Bull
                      -Julie Nixon Eisenhower

       The President's call to Leslie T. (“Bob”) Hope
              -New York

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

                      -Cavalcade
               -Reaction to Vietnam settlement
                      -Relations with soldiers
               -Compared with Congressional reactions

       White House social events
             -Church services
                    -Florida trip
             -Congress members and contributors
                    -State dinners
                    -Evening at the White House
                    -Youth
                            -Julie Nixon Eisenhower
                            -William E. Timmons's views
                            -Edward R. G. Heath and Gold Meir dinners

       Prisoners of War [POWs]
              -Col. Robinson Risner's statement
              -Support for President and the country
              -Conscientious objectors
                     -William P. Rogers's statement
                             -Risner

       President's schedule
              -Pentagon visit
              -Peter J. Brennan
                      -Stephen B. Bull
                      -Trip to Florida

       George Meany
             -George P. Shultz
                    -Brennan
             -President to attend meeting
                    -Announcement

       President’s speech to South Carolina Legislature

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

               -Harry S. Dent
               -Timing
               -President’s reception

Unknown person entered at an unknown time after 8:50 am.

       Transmitter
             -Location

Unknown person left at an unknown time before 9:08 am.

       Frank L. Rizzo
              -Political future
              -Home
                      -Inquiry

       Aid for Vietnam
              -Hubert H. Humphrey
              -Congressional relations
                     -Domestic programs
                     -President’s role
                     -Henry A. Kissinger’s role

       Prisoners of War [POWs]

Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 8:50 am.

               -Statement
                       -Wives
               -Corsages
               -Calls to President
                       -Publicity
               -Press relations
                       -Ronald L. Ziegler

       President's schedule

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

               -Brennan and Meany
               -Florida trip
                       -Brennan
               -American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations [AFL-CIO]
               Council meeting
                       -Announcement
                       -Ziegler
               -L. Patrick Gray, John D. Ehrlichman
               -Shultz
                       -Cabinet meeting
                       -Meany
                       -Brennan
                              -Taxation
               -Brennan
                       -Under secretary
                              -Candidate

Haldeman and Bull left at 9:08 am.

Also recorded on February 16, 1973

  • 858-001 8:50 AM · 19 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:50 am and 11:59 pm.
  • 858-003 9:08 AM · 30 min — President Richard M. Nixon, John D. Ehrlichman, and L[ouis] Patrick Gray, III met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:08 am to 9:36 am.
  • 114-001 9:39 AM · 1 hr 36 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, and Cabinet officers and staffers, including William P. Rogers, George P. Shultz, Elliot L. Richardson, Richard G. Kleindienst, Rogers C. B. Morton, J. Philip Campbell, Frederick B. Dent, Peter J. Brennan, Caspar W. ("Cap") Weinberger, James T. Lynn, Claude S. Brinegar, Roy L. Ash, John A. Scali, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, John D. Ehrlichman, Peter M. Flanigan, William E. Timmons, Ronald L. Ziegler, Raymond K. Price, Jr., Gen. Brent G. Scowcroft, George H. W. Bush, Bryce N. Harlow, and Arthur J. Sohmer, met in the Cabinet Room of the White House from 9:39 am to 11:59 am.
  • 858-004 9:46 AM · 45 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Peter M. Flanigan, Helmut ("Hal") Sonnenfeldt, Sir Christopher Soames, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:46 am to 10:32 am.
  • 115-001 11:59 AM — Unknown persons [likely maintenance] met in the Cabinet Room of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 11:59 am on February 16, 1973 and 10:00 am on March 6, 1973.
  • 115-002 11:59 AM — a White House tour group met in the Cabinet Room of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 11:59 am on February 16, 1973 and 10:00 am on March 6, 1973.
  • 115-003 11:59 AM — a White House tour group met in the Cabinet Room of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 11:59 am on February 16, 1973 and 10:00 am on March 6, 1973.
  • 115-004 11:59 AM — Unknown persons (likely maintenance) met in the Cabinet Room of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 11:59 am on February 16, 1973 and 10:00 am on March 6, 1973.

All 15 conversations from February 16, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 858-002, February 16, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/858-002 (accessed October 11, 2026).