Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 917 › Conversation 917-029
Nixon & Haig on Watergate and John W. Dean III
Monday, May 14, 1973 · 12:35 PM–12:53 PM ET · Oval Office · 23 min
AI Summary
President Nixon and Alexander Haig met to strategize the administration's response to the Watergate scandal, specifically focusing on managing the public statements of William Ruckelshaus and mitigating the impact of documents held by John Dean. They discussed the necessity of distancing the President from specific FBI and White House activities involving J. Edgar Hoover and William C. Sullivan. Nixon expressed relief after a review of his own files and private memoranda confirmed that no evidence existed linking him directly to the controversial actions under scrutiny.
- Watergate
- John W. Dean III
- William D. Ruckelshaus
- FBI
- J. Edgar Hoover
- White House files
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 1 minute of this recording (about 5% of it) is represented by only a few words. Listen to the audio rather than relying on the text below; a corrected transcript is queued.
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data
Each line starts with a timestamp button; press it to play the audio from that point.
NARA Description
On May 14, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:35 pm to 12:53 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 917-029 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 917-029
Date: May 14, 1973
Time: 12:35 pm - 12:53 pm
Location: Oval Office
The President met with Alexander M. Haig, Jr.
Watergate
-Search for President’s files
-President’s memo to John W. Dean, III, March 12
-Campaign violence
-William D. Ruckelshaus’s forthcoming statement
-Dean’s documents
-President’s search of White House files
-Rose Mary Woods
-Possible memos from the President
-Ruckelshaus’s forthcoming statement
-Phraseology
-Henry A. Kissinger
-J. Edgar Hoover
-William C. Sullivan
-Files
-Timing
-Sullivan
-Hoover
-Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI]
-John N. Mitchell
-Phraseology
-Hoover and Mitchell
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542
-Sullivan’s statement regarding Hoover’s possible blackmail
-Dean
-Documents
-Memoranda [Memos]
-President, H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman and John D.
Ehrlichman
-Lt. Gen. Vernon A. Walters
-Search of the President’s files
-News summary
-Staff Secretary’s procedures
-Ruckelshaus’s statement
-President’s assessment
-Hoover
Haig left at 12:53 pm.Also recorded on May 14, 1973
- 917-026 12:19 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:19 pm and 12:24 pm.
- 917-027 12:19 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:19 pm and 12:24 pm.
- 917-028 12:25 PM · 25 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Lawrence M. Higby, and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:25 pm to 12:35 pm.
- 917-030 12:53 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:53 pm and 12:59 pm.
- 917-031 12:53 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:53 pm and 12:59 pm.
- 917-032 12:53 PM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:53 pm and 12:59 pm.
- 436-001 12:59 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:59 pm and 1:15 pm.
- 436-002 12:59 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:59 pm and 1:15 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 917-029, May 14, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/917-029 (accessed October 1, 2026).