President Nixon and John Ehrlichman met to discuss the growing political crisis surrounding the Watergate scandal, specifically focusing on the administration’s strategy for responding to Congressional inquiries and potential subpoenas. The two debated the merits of issuing a formal White House statement versus maintaining a policy of non-disclosure to manage damaging revelations, while also considering how to insulate the President from the emerging legal troubles of staff members and associates. Additionally, they reviewed potential strategies for handling the Ervin Committee, discussed the legal ramifications of executive privilege, and touched upon developments in the Vesco case involving campaign contribution allegations.
On March 20, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:09 pm and 5:39 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 885-001 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding AidConversation No. 885-1
Date: March 20, 1973
Time: Unknown between 4:09 pm and 5:39 pm
Location: Oval Office
The President met with John D. Ehrlichman. This recording began while the conversation was in
progress.
Watergate
-White House statement
-Judiciary Committee
-L. Patrick Gray, III
-Charges
-White House statement
-Treatment before Congress
-Double standard
-John W. Dean, III
-Republican Congressmen
-Edward J. Gurney
-Hugh Scott
-Gerald R. Ford
-Defense of administration
-Leadership meetings
-Discussion of Watergate
-Ronald L. Ziegler's view
-Dangers
-Advantages
-Dwight L. Chapin
-Gordon C. Strachan
-Charles W. Colson
-Ehrlichman
-Relationship with E. Howard Hunt, Jr.
-Revelations
-Claims
-Ehrlichman
-Dealings of Hunt
-Edward M. Kennedy
-Campaign funds
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
-Allegations of misuse
-Maurice H. Stans
-Statement
-Herbert W. Kalmbach
-Statement
-Use of funds
-Accountability
-Existing laws
-Kalmbach
-Use
-Polls, hiring of personnel
-Kalmbach
-Testimony
-Immunity
-Future problems
-Subpoenas of White House staff by Ervin Committee
-Confrontation
-Contempt citation
-Court fight
-Constitutional issues
-Administration's strategy
-Justification for immunity
-Research on legalities
-Court case
-Need to provide a record
-Status of advisors
-Formulation of administration's position
-Richard G. Kleindienst
-Preparation of administration's case
-Joseph T. Sneed
-Senate committee
-Scott's opinion
-Samuel J. Ervin, Jr.
-Criticism of colleagues
-Interview by Roger Mudd
-Questions
-Television [TV] appearances
-National Broadcasting Company [NBC]'s "Today Show",
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
Columbia Broadcast System [CBS] news
-“Meet the Press”
-Number
-Publicity
-Impact on Senate colleagues
-Colson's operation
-Effectiveness
-George S. McGovern's campaign
-Administration strategy
-Counterattack
-Effectiveness
-A statement from President
-White House investigation
-Results
-Show of concern for issue
-Dean's efforts
-Public relations exercise
-Written interrogatories
-Release of information
-Deficiencies of approach
-Disclosure of information
-Benefits
-Disadvantages
-White House statement
-Separation of power
-Ehrlichman's opinion
-Reasons for involvement by participants
-John N. Mitchell and Martha Mitchell
-Weak points
-Jeb Stuart Magruder
-Hugh W. Sloan, Jr.
-Defendants
-Hunt
-Knowledge of Committee to Re-elect the President [CRP]’s
activities
-CRP
-Stans
-President's knowledge of activities
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
-Hunt, H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman, Colson
-G. Gordon Liddy
-James W. McCord, Jr.
-Reliability
-Magruder
-Reliability
-Strachan
-Future job
-Chapin
-Effect on White House
-Dean
-Quality of work
-President's support
-Relationship with President
-Confidentiality of contacts and amount of information provided the
President
-President's involvement in case
-Ehrlichman's views on strategy
-Richard A. Moore's analysis
-Full disclosure
-Statement by President
-Other possibilities
-Reasons for withholding information
-1972 election
-Counterattack
-Problems
-Public concern about Watergate
-Growth
-Role of media
-Administration strategy
-Staff testimony before Ervin Committee
-Problems
-Ehrlichman's opposition
-Executive session testimony
-Press conference
-Dean
-Watergate as an issue
-Tenacity
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
-Effect on Presidency
-Staff testimony
-Mitchell
-Grand jury on Robert L. Vesco
-Mitchell's testimony
-Vesco campaign contributions
-New direction for investigation
-Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC]
-Involvement of Mitchell
-Allegations
-Culpable intent of contribution
-Intervention with SEC and Justice Department
-Administration handling of case
-Dean
-Public statements
-SEC investigation
-Ehrlichman's meeting with G. Bradford Cook, March 20
-Civil action
-Referral to Justice Department
-Vesco
-Costa Rica
-Extradition
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[Begin segment reviewed under deed of gift]
[Dwight] David Eisenhower, III
-Law school
-Other career opportunities
-Possible Congressional race
-Law school
-Age
-Possible Congressional race
-Qualifications
-Pennsylvania
-York
-Republicans
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
[End segment reviewed under deed of gift]
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President's schedule
-Meeting of counselors
-Cabinet
-Domestic Council
-Therapy
-John A. Volpe, Walter J. Hickel, George W. Romney
-Loyalty.
-Periodic meetings
-Value
-Congressional leadership meetings
-Value
-Ford, J. Burt L. Talcott [?]
-Cabinet meetings
-Groups of officers
-Value
-Topics of common interest
-James T. Lynn
-Community development
-Natural resources
-Meetings with agency heads
-Donald E. Johnson
-Lynn
-Community development
-Under Secretaries
-Floyd H. Hyde
-Claude S. Brinegar
-Peter J. Brennen
-John Pierce [?]
-Community Development Committee
-Support for counselors
-Value
-Scheduling
-Domestic topics
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
-Cost of living
-Lynn
-Caspar W. (“Cap”) Weinberger
-Earl L. Butz
Watergate
-Members of Cabinet Secretary's staff
-Boost for morale
-Watergate statement
-White House staff
-Involvement
-Ehrlichman
-Haldeman
-Magruder
-Dismissal of guilty
-Magruder
-Involvement in Watergate
-McCord's accusations
-Perjury
-Need to refute charge
-Colson
-Culpability
-Ehrlichman
-Targets
-Haldeman, Mitchell, Colson
-Chapin, Strachan
-Position in hierarchy
-St. Louis Post-Dispatch story
-Chapin's ties to Haldeman
-Haldeman
-Newsweek article
-Human interest element
-Neutral opinion
-Attacks on President
-Old establishment
-Harvard, Yale
-Motives
-Impact of Watergate on administration
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
-Briefing of Cabinet
-Spiro T. Agnew
-Dean briefing
-White House staff
-Need for assurance
-Skittishness
-George H. W. Bush
-A briefing on Watergate
-Dean
-Value, disadvantages
-Briefing of Cabinet, leaders
-Reassurance
-Problem of separation of powers
-Use of Patrick J. Buchanan
-Willingness to testify before Congressional committee
-Peter M. Flanigan
-Executive privilege
-Sherman Adams case
-Chapin
-Possible charges
-Haldeman
-Magruder charges
-Problems
-Accessory to case
-Possible sources of problems
-Flanigan's Congressional testimony in International Telephone and
Telegraph [ITT] case
-Attempt to differentiate between Watergate and ITT case
-George P. Shultz
-Role in White House
-Status
-Claim to executive privilege
-Kleindienst
-ITT case
-Charges against
-Colson
-Vesco case
-Executive privilege
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
-Adams
-Shield laws
-Precedents
-Testimony of journalists
-Adams case
-Charge of criminal actions
-Alger Hiss case
-"Five percenter" case
-Harry S Truman
-Administration's strategy
-Public statements
-Public denials
-Bush's concerns
-Contributors' responses
-Need for an explanation
-Past statements
-Ziegler
-Statements
-Timing
-Watergate sentencing
-Weaknesses
-Watergate burglars
-Sentences
-Anticipation of harshness
-John J. Sirica
-Sentences
-McCord
-Harshness
-Reaction of McCord
-McCord
-Dislike of jail
-Bail revocation
-Danger of statements
-Work with CRP
President's schedule
-Ehrlichman's schedule
-Trip to West
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
-Ehrlichman's plans
-Veto message
-President’s speech
-President's plans
-Andrews Air force Base
-Meeting with Shultz
-Arrangements
-Congressional relations
-Time, Length
-William Simon
Shultz
-Meeting with Ehrlichman
-Meeting with President
-Labor Management Advisory Board
-Meeting with Ehrlichman
-Phase III
-Taxes
-Trade
-Report for President
-Deadline
-Meeting with President
-Camp David
-Preparation
-Henry A. Kissinger's return from trip
-Georges J. R. Pompidou, Leonid I. Brezhnev
Watergate
-Dean
-Encouragement
-Recommendation of L. Patrick Gray, III
-Mitchell
-Kleindienst
-Kleindienst and Gray
-Problems
-Targets of attack
-Dean
-Haldeman, Colson
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. Sept. 2010)
Conversation No. 885-1 (cont’d)
-Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI] directorship
-Nominees
Ehrlichman left at 5:39 p.m.This transcript was generated automatically by AI and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite this transcript as authoritative. Consult the Finding Aid above for verified information.