Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 920 › Conversation 920-011

Nixon & Haig on Huston Plan and Watergate

Wednesday, May 16, 1973 · 5:53 PM–6:11 PM ET · Oval Office · 17 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haig, Alexander M., Jr.Conversation920-011 on Tape 920StartWednesday, May 16, 1973 at 5:53 PMEndWednesday, May 16, 1973 at 6:11 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 920-011 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander Haig met to strategize a defense against potential political damage stemming from the Watergate investigation, specifically focusing on the 1970 Huston Plan. They debated how to frame the plan—which authorized aggressive domestic surveillance tactics like surreptitious entry—as a necessary, albeit unimplemented, contingency response to civil unrest by radical groups. The participants aimed to distance the President from any association between the Huston Plan and the Watergate burglary while planning to utilize J. Fred Buzhardt to coordinate with relevant figures like Robert Mardian and clarify that the program was superseded and never operational.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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We're, um, I bet he's trying to get Marty in our eyes.
We'll be good when we finish with that.
We'll take off, okay?
We all need to move up there.
Yeah, I think they're... We're our eyes.
We'll get Marty in the mail.
I don't know what we can make of it.
The thing is, it's about the rescission.
And Kirsten told me that he thought I had to rescind him.
He's looking for a figure.
DIA thinks it was recent, but they haven't been able to find it yet.
Uh, you know what I mean?
As long as the recollection of what was not posted in this camera.
There was definitely... Bob, uh, Alderman.
Well, he wasn't.
I thought so.
We're stuck with the son of a bitch.
Well, what'd you do?
Did you catch Bob?
I mean, he's tearing up a little.
Yeah, he's...
He, uh, he feels...
Hold on, he's in good shape.
But he wanted to be himself, wasn't he?
I don't know.
I think he was...
But look, look, don't you agree with me that this umbrella theory is just done away from us?
For us to put, for example, the probe operation and the that we can't get an umbrella operation.
That's mean.
See, I said, well, how is this a defense?
And he said, well, this would be a defense for the fact
He said, because this document says that we should, that they should look at groups in the chemistry and so forth and so on and so on, and burglarize it, et cetera.
And that means burglarage versus Houston.
It's an accurate word.
It's unfortunate, but it's, you know, it's an unfortunate word.
Nevertheless, when he says that, he said that would be a transfer of everything, including the wine game.
I said, well, Alfred, what's the thing about it?
The Watergate was not done for the day.
You see, my buddy didn't sell the fence for Watergate.
And so, so I don't see that as something that's, you know, that's been helping one god damn bit.
I mean, as far as his involvement with Watergate is concerned.
I think he was promising more than Martin.
In terms of embarrassing the church?
Just, you know, make the Virgin Mary splash and make it look like something that wasn't done.
Now it would have to be a real one.
Well, what we've got to find out about how the buzzard is working, is what the Christ was done for this whole addiction thing.
Okay.
And with a second, you know, I'm never confident.
And if it was rescinded, Christ would be lucky.
Probably it wasn't.
I mean, Bob doesn't recall it.
But then the other thing is, if it was, and there was a control mechanism,
As far as you were talking about it, I already think it was a corrupt policy.
It was a kind of policy that was considered.
Yeah, they were very loud.
Look who we're in charge.
You understand?
But then, case by case, the Federation was, you know, in the worst case, in the worst case, I think it was very manageable.
Except for this very preservitious actor.
I don't think it has to be.
I think we're going to have a better, that's the worst thing.
The case's idea was that this was a contingency plan prepared in a very bad climate.
I would never have meant it, but by now we had to be prepared to move.
It would have been effective if the situation was...
He's not being right.
He's the responsible man.
I think we should simply say this is a very, very bad climate that was unfortunately found unnecessary.
That's what we are on.
And prepared strictly above the norm by the efficient charge constitution with responsibility to the internal security of the country who agree with it.
And I approve it.
You know, they want to make a big issue of the burglary.
Yeah, whether or not this kind of thing would be off our minds.
If it was never done first, it was in our head.
If we get to do any of this, if we have to execute or get the consideration properly, it would probably work.
I mean, I'll just say a number of ways.
I mean, the main thing, just like I said, is to take it to the client.
The real thing is we've got an issue with a shut-off and a solid wall of logic and, in fact, the perpetrators.
Any of the perpetrators is effectively a danger to the political governance.
We've had, you know, the buggers, the rest of us, we might be able to run a game too.
So I'm not in that.
I'm trying to, you know, for anyone to distort that kind of thing and say that that game does what you need.
It's like everything else we're with here.
We're going to have these kind of game days.
We all just have surprises and we just can't do it.
You can't lose your balance.
I mean, you can lose your balance, but you can't ignore it.
You've got to fight it and work each problem.
It takes a little faith that you start to react, though, in a way that is too broad-based.
I mean, that's what I mean.
But, uh, you know, uh, Brad is obviously, I mean, he's a therapist, essentially, but I've heard of it.
You just hang up on this thing, all right?
I'd say we're in very, we're in very indelicate hands.
He says, Simon, it's, you know, they need to read it.
Simon's got a 24-hour delay.
Well, they look at it to see whether or not the doctor can shoot you in the turn.
But Simon, in fact, he'll never get it back from her.
I mean, Simon will need to let that out.
He'll probably leave it on himself.
Or will he?
I don't know.
City Intelligence Agency's got Simon in the same thing.
Maybe we can do it.
You know, he's a funny guy.
He's a chef, but he's very, very sensitive about intelligence, CIA, and community.
He considers himself their boy.
I think he would generally rely on them to be pretty responsible in this particular area.
Well, if he isn't, if he isn't, I don't understand.
They put it out.
They put it out.
And we just simply say this is a contingency plan to deal with mass riots and disruption and so forth and so on.
And it was only executed at the same time.
Period.
Cut.
It is no longer effective.
How do we say that there's no longer, in fact, how do we just say that?
I know the committee hasn't continued to meet, you know, to meet that Saturday.
I know, I know, see what I mean?
The committee, I didn't, this didn't even meet.
That's a critical point that you just have to check right away.
And, uh...
I really am as confident as I can be that this is
It was not a problem, because it never was affected.
I don't take any confidence in that.
That happened to be a shirt coming in on your university airport, sir.
No, it was a helmet.
I don't know any junky things.
I was waiting on a call or two.
I may have to do it.
Call him later.
Sullivan will probably know what the hell he did to the bureau or he may not.
That's right.
He's an astronaut.
Uber may have kept him out of this.
Come here.
We announced in 1971 the reorganization of the U.S. intelligence community.
But I don't think, you know what I mean, he was able to say, well, this man, he was, you know, he provided, what it was, Ronnie, I'll let Alex talk about it, so screw him.
There's something to get to in 1970 after the Catalonia riots.
We've got the CIA, the DIA, the NSA, the FBI, and the IRS in this room.
They said we must work in order to deal with the problems of internal disruption, the weatherman, the name of the race groups, the weatherman, the SPS, da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-
They're okay.
Absolutely.
They're okay.
They're entirely naked.
Huh?
Entirely naked.
They're entirely naked.
Huh?
Entirely naked.
But this group was an analysis group.
Yes.
It was a recent hit from a man.
But this group was an analysis group.
Yes.
It was a recent hit from a man from St. Washington.
Yeah.
He used to be on the court.
After he hit St. Washington.
Yeah.
He used to be on the court.
After he ended up in this analysis group, he went back to the Corp of Burning Wells to get over.
He said, let's get up in this analysis group.
He went back to the Corp of Burning Wells to get over.
He said, let's cure the poor aid function on the Aces.
To try to cure the poor aid function on the Aces.
Try to do analyses on the analysis bit.
If there were no more, try to do analyses on the analysis bit.
No collection, special collection, operations, whatsoever, from any description.
All this.
If there were no collection, special collection, operations, whatsoever.
You know, Deacon, this is none of this.
I'm telling you it's all wrong.
I'm telling you it's not Deacon.
From any description.
All this.
You know, Deacon, this is none of this.
Deacon's probably got a fight with Deacon.
I'm telling you it's all wrong.
I'm telling you it's not Deacon.
He told me he didn't know when Angel was going to get here so far.
Why didn't you tell me?
I think he probably got a heart attack.
He told me he didn't know when Angel was going to get here so far.
Why didn't you tell me?
He told me he didn't know when Angel was going to get here so far.
And Dean probably didn't realize that going through his papers, Dean, we don't, we think it's very that here was something, my God, this is something Irvin and all the rest of us didn't get to stand up until March 3rd, 1972.
That's a really embarrassing demonstration, and so he took it with him.
And it's a cover.
for all the sneaking things that, because he doesn't, he could be, when he got it from me, some guy in the mirror, you see, and these are the gentlemen, you see, but the part that I didn't, the part that I didn't, he may not have known, he probably was not, didn't do anything, probably didn't realize, he probably wasn't going there with speakers, saw this kind of thing, but it probably doesn't sound as hard as it sounds to me.
that here was something, my God, this is something urban, all of us, it's a really embarrassing demonstration, and so he took it with him.
And it's a cover for all those stinking things that, because he doesn't, because they, you see, you see, but the point of that, I mean, he hasn't, the point of that, I mean, he may not have known, but it was not, didn't do anything.
He probably wouldn't have come down to the South End Market and said, you know, we're being honest, and being, you know, he didn't, he didn't.
He said the deem was a form of contact for running weather.
Where they received their request for information.
They sent out and he told them we had broken some of these.
He said you saw most of this.
He said they couldn't have sent out and he told them we had done much more than they had broken some of these other uses.
Coordinated through.
Coordinated through.
He had a question.
He said they couldn't have done much more of the damn thing.
Nobody was really targeting.
They were using all the groups in that community.
And they were fighting among each other.
Coordinated through.
Coordinated through.
Now, in this group, I don't believe this officer.
He doesn't know who he called, so they went off being stopped.
We had a question about the Mexican toast.
Yeah.
But it was really targeted.
You go to all the groups and ask them, have you gotten any equipment?
I see.
And then get them to quit fighting among each other and put one individual place so they could all cooperate.
Yeah.
Now, I didn't believe this officer.
He doesn't know who he called, being stopped.
That was a different time.
That was a different time.
He claims that there was a charge issued for this analysis group, January 71.
He claims that there was a charge issued for this analysis group, January 71, which would be entirely temporary.
It would be entirely temporary.
So I'm going to run it well.
He said run it.
So I'm going to run it well.
He said run it.
Get up.
Get up.
That was before this was set up.
That was before this was set up.
That was before this was set up.
That was before this was set up.
That was before this was set up.
That was before this was set up.
That was before this was set up.
That was before this was set up.
But this was a coordinating group that tried to heighten the inconstancy.
That's right.
That was it.
I think we don't form our own funds, but they'll be never going to be as the verbal language and competition in there.
That's right.
Indicating that this is work together.
That's right.
That was it.
I think we don't form our own funds, but they'll be never going to be as the verbal language and competition in there.
indicating that the surreptitious entry is allowed.
But isn't surreptitious entry allowed?
Do you understand that if there is a new charter, that obviously supersedes the order.
And the order is basically a policy taker.
Yes, it is.
It's a good one.
It's a secure order.
It's a secure order.
Do you understand that there is a new charter that obviously supersedes the old one?
And the old one was basically a policy changer.
Yes, it is.

NARA Description

On May 16, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:53 pm to 6:11 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 920-011 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 920-11

Date: May 16, 1973
Time: 5:53 pm - 6:11 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Alexander M. Haig, Jr.

       Watergate
             -Huston Plan
                    -J. Fred Buzhardt, Jr.’s forthcoming call to Robert C. Mardian
                    -Termination
                            -H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman
             -Haig’s conversation with Haldeman
                    -Lt. Gen. Vernon A. Walters
                                           -14-

                  NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                           Conversation No. 920-13 (cont’d)

             -Possible White House response
                    -Umbrella theory
                           -[Plumbers]
                                    -Egil (“Bud”) Krogh
                           -President’s previous conversation with Buzhardt
                                    -John W. Dean III’s motive
             -Huston Plan
                    -Termination
                           -Haldeman
                           -J. Edgar Hoover
                    -Surreptitious entry
                           -Purpose
                                    -Weathermen

*****************************************************************

[Previous National Security (B) withdrawal reviewed under MDR guidelines case number
LPRN-T-MDR-2014-039. Segment declassified on 05/20/2019. Archivist: DR]
[National Security]
[920-011-w001]
[Duration: 7s]

      Watergate
            -Huston Plan
                   -Surreptitious entry
                          -Projected targets
                                   -Foreign embassies
                                   -Demonstration

*****************************************************************

      Watergate
            -Huston Plan
                   -Possible White House response
                          -Watergate burglars
            -White House response
                                              -15-

                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                              Conversation No. 920-13 (cont’d)

              -Huston Plan
                     -Ervin Committee
                             -Buzhardt
                     -[William] Stuart Symington
                             -Possible leak
                             -Attitude towards intelligence agencies
                     -Possible White House response
                     -Termination
                             -Intelligence committee
                             -Mardian
                             -William C. Sullivan
                                      -Hoover

Ronald L. Ziegler entered at 6:02 pm.

       Watergate
             -Huston Plan
                    -1971 announcement of intelligence reorganization
                    -Purpose
                           -Students for a Democratic Society [SDS] and Weathermen

Buzhardt entered at an unknown time after 6:02 pm.

       Watergate
             -Huston Plan
                    -Analysis group
                           -Bernie Welles
                           -Function
                           -Operations
                    -Dean
                           -Knowledge
                           -Motive
                           -Role
                    -Buzhardt’s previous conversation with Mardian
                           -Dean’s role
                           -Analysis group
                                  -1971 charter
                    -Huston’s phraseology
                                              -16-

                    NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                             Conversation No. 920-13 (cont’d)

                              -Surreptitious entry
                                     -Hoover’s activities
                                     -Weatherman
                       -Termination
                              -Buzhardt’s forthcoming conversations
                       -Coordinating group
                              -Charter
                                     -Buzhardt’s conversation with Mardian
                              -Meeting location
                              -Welles
                              -Judge in Washington State
                       -Implementation

The President et al. left at 6:11 pm.

Also recorded on May 16, 1973

  • 920-004 5:22 PM · 55 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:22 pm and 5:25 pm.
  • 920-005 5:22 PM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:22 pm and 5:25 pm.
  • 920-006 5:25 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 5:25 pm to 5:31 pm.
  • 920-007 5:31 PM · 45 sec — President Richard M. Nixon, Stephen B. Bull, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:31 pm and 5:39 pm.
  • 920-008 5:31 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 5:31 pm and 5:39 pm.
  • 920-009 5:39 PM · 12 min — President Richard M. Nixon and J. Fred Buzhardt, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:39 pm and 5:53 pm.
  • 920-010 5:39 PM · 37 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 5:39 pm and 5:53 pm.
  • 920-014 6:11 PM · 31 sec — United States Secret Service agents and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 6:11 pm and 8:40 pm.

All 73 conversations from May 16, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 920-011, May 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/920-011 (accessed October 12, 2026).