President Nixon and Robert Finch met to discuss the administration's response to the Watergate scandal and various political maneuvers. Nixon dismissed allegations that he had pressured the CIA to cover up the break-in, framing the scandal as a politically motivated attack by his opponents, and he sought Finch's reassurance that he should continue to govern rather than resign. The conversation also touched upon future political plans for Finch, including potential gubernatorial or Senate runs, and broader concerns regarding the national economy and public confusion over energy policy.
On May 18, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Robert H. Finch met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:15 am to 10:40 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 922-006 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding AidConversation No. 922-6 (cont’d)
Conversation No. 922-6
Date: May 18, 1973
Time: 10:15 am - 10:40 am
Location: Oval Office
President met with Robert H. Finch.
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Politics
-Finch
-Political plans
-Governorship
-Alan Cranston
-Incumbency
-Power
-Senate
-Ronald W. Reagan
-John B. Connally
-Nelson A. Rockefeller
-Spiro T. Agnew
-Connally
-Possible political activities
-Primaries
-Stumping
-New Hampshire
-Rockefeller and Reagan
-Southern states
-New Hampshire
-Wisconsin
-Indiana
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
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Conversation No. 922-6 (cont’d)
-Reagan
-California
-Political activities
-Effect of presidential candidacy focus on party at large
-Edward M. (“Ted”) Kennedy
-Possible political activities
-Watergate
-Chappaquiddick
-Democrats
-Possible candidates for president
-Kennedy
-California
-Finch
-Political plans
-President’s views
[End segment reviewed under deed of gift]
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Energy
-President’s perspective
-Popular confusion
-Vacations
-Gas
-Automobiles
National economy
-Booming prosperity
-Inflation
-Employment
-Compared with 1971
-Possible recession
-Combined with inflation
-Finch’s conversation with George P. Shultz, May 17
-Finch’s candidacy
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. August-2011)
Conversation No. 922-6 (cont’d)
Watergate
-John W. Dean III’s allegations
-Goal of President’s opponents
-John D. Ehrlichman, H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman and John N. Mitchell
-Possible White House response
-President’s resignation
-Dean
-Contacts with President
-Role
-Subornation of perjury
-Jeb S[tuart] Magruder
-Funds for defendants
-Central Intelligence Agency [CIA]
-CIA
-President’s beliefs
-Possible White House response
-Ervin Committee hearings
-Possible White House response
-President’s resignation
-Effects
-Foreign policy
-Agnew
-Don Budge
-Strategy
-President’s schedule
-Norfolk speech and Prisoner of War [POW] dinner
-Handling of domestic issues
-Henry A. Kissinger’s cables
-Soviet summit
-Leonid I. Brezhnev
-Ronald L. Ziegler’s press briefings
-Dean
-Contacts with Finch
-Relationship with Mitchell
-Arthur Krock’s statement
-Popular beliefs regarding President
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. August-2011)
Conversation No. 922-6 (cont’d)
Finch’s commencement speech at Rockford College
-1960s
-Difficulty
-President’s accomplishments
-Optimism
-Stronger system
-Crime
-Safety
-Arms control
-Middle East
-Foreign policy
Finch
-Political plans
-Timing
Watergate
-Effect on President
-Haldeman and Ehrlichman
-Possible legal action
-Mitchell
-Possible legal action
-Ervin Committee hearings
-Effects on possible defendants
-Bobby G. Seale case
-Hearsay
-Maurice H. Stans’s mind
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[Begin segment reviewed under deed of gift]
Finch
-Political future
-Relations with Reagan
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NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
(rev. August-2011)
Conversation No. 922-6 (cont’d)
[End segment reviewed under deed of gift]
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Finch left at 10:40 am.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.