Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 869 › Conversation 869-004

Nixon & Haldeman on Congressional Relations and Public Outreach

Tuesday, March 6, 1973 · 8:20 AM–8:24 AM ET · Oval Office · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob"); [Unknown person(s)]Conversation869-004 on Tape 869StartTuesday, March 6, 1973 at 8:20 AMEndTuesday, March 6, 1973 at 8:24 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 869-004 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman met to coordinate upcoming engagements with congressional leadership and refine the administration's outreach strategy. They evaluated the effectiveness of traditional White House meetings versus direct appeals to the public, expressing skepticism regarding the political utility of recent receptions for special interest groups. The discussion included preparations for William E. Timmons to manage scheduling requests from legislative figures like Hugh Scott and Gerald R. Ford while prioritizing a shift toward broader public engagement.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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for more personal conduct, public members, and the U.S. government.
Scott Maybach to address the Senate GOP conference
I'm not sure.
I don't know.
Yeah.
Because I didn't.
I didn't just throw him in the city.
It got to the point where he was right at Scott's face.
about that house, but I did want to start going and got to cancel the mayor, and got to cancel a whole lot of what they were talking about was the need to peddle our own apples rather than going through the numbers that we are making or working with them.
I mean, I don't know, to be honest, after a certain operations and the whole thing going into the country, going to the people and creating a survey rather than trying to sit down and work that out here.
So we've had these people now and said this is a great community and we've had them for a reception and security.
And they don't, it doesn't do any good, that's my point.
I mean, I don't, or does it?
No, it doesn't so far.
I don't know, but that's just amazing to believe that it will happen.
Well, I don't know, but...
Okay, we have.

NARA Description

On March 6, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:20 am and 8:24 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 869-004 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 869-4

Date: March 6, 1973
Time: 8:20 am - 8:24 am
Location: Oval Office

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

       President's meeting with William E. Timmons
             -Items for discussion
                   -Congressional leaders
                          -Meetings with President
                          -Hugh Scott’s request
             -President's availability for meetings with Congress members
             -Haldeman’s guidance for Timmons

       John D. Ehrlichman's meeting with Hugh Scott and Gerald R. Ford
            -Desire for meetings with President
            -Ehrlichman's opinion of meeting

An unknown man entered at an unknown time after 8:20 am.
                                            -3-

                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                      Tape Subject Log
                                       (rev. May-2010)
                                                            Conversation No. 869-4 (cont’d)




       John W. Dean, III
            -Arrival
            -Meeting with President
                  -Time

The unknown man left at an unknown time before 8:24 am.

       Congressional relations
            -Chowder and Marching Club, policy group luncheon
                  -Desirability
            -Ehrlichman
            -Problems in scheduling
                  -Meeting with mayors’ group
            -Surrogate operation
                  -Administration’s appeal to people

       President's meetings with Congress members
             -Benefits
             -Capitol compared with White House

Haldeman left at 8:24 am.

Also recorded on March 6, 1973

  • 869-001 8:06 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:06 am and 8:20 am.
  • 869-002 8:06 AM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:06 am and 8:20 am.
  • 869-003 8:06 AM · 35 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:06 am and 8:20 am.
  • 869-005 8:25 AM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon, William E. Timmons, and John D. Ehrlichman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:25 am to 8:30 am.
  • 869-006 8:30 AM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:30 am and 8:35 am.
  • 116-003 8:35 AM — a White House tour group met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 8:35 am and 10:00 am.
  • 116-010 8:35 AM — unknown person(s) met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 8:35 am and 10:00 am.
  • 869-007 8:35 AM · 1 hr 22 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Hugh Scott, Gerald R. Ford, Roy L. Ash, Kenneth R. Cole, Jr., Thomas C. Korologos, Richard K. Cook, William E. Timmons, John D. Ehrlichman, and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:35 am to 9:57 am.

All 45 conversations from March 6, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 869-004, March 6, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/869-004 (accessed October 1, 2026).