Conversation 945-005

TapeTape 945StartTuesday, June 19, 1973 at 11:04 AMEndTuesday, June 19, 1973 at 11:17 AMParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Woods, Rose Mary;  Haig, Alexander M., Jr.;  [Unknown person(s)]Recording deviceOval Office

On June 19, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, Alexander M. Haig, Jr., and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:04 am to 11:17 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 945-005 of the White House Tapes.

Conversation No. 945-5

Date: June 19, 1973
Time: 11:04 am - 11:17 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Rose Mary Woods.

      Leonid I. Brezhnev’s visit
           -State dinner
                  -After dinner guests
                  -Receiving line
                        -Brezhnev’s demeanor
                        -Duration
                  -Entertainment

      President’s schedule
            -After-dinner guests
                                    -21-

            NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                              (rev. July-2011)

                                                    Conversation No. 945-5 (cont’d)

          -Rose Mary Wood’s forthcoming conversation with Lucy A. Winchester, Max
           Friedersdorf [?]
          -President’s conversation with Julie Nixon Eisenhower, Thelma C. (“Pat”)
           Nixon
          -Timing
          -Guest list
          -President’s conversation with Rex W. Scouten
          -Timing
          -Entertainment for guests
                -Champagne
     -Congressmen
          -William E. Timmons
                -Guest lists

Watergate
     -Dwayne F. Andreas
           -Forthcoming conversation with Rose Mary Woods
     -Hobart D. (“Hobe”) Lewis
           -Money
                 -Return by Woods
                       -Charles W. Colson
     -Andreas
           -Hubert H. Humphrey
           -Use in campaign
           -Contact with Woods
     -Howard H. Baker, Jr.
           -Woods’s forthcoming call to John Mitchell[?]
                 -Trip on plane with President
           -Statement concerning Ervin Committee hearings
                 -White House response
     -Ervin Committee
           -Lowell P. Weicker, Jr.
           -Edward J. Gurney
     -Woods’s forthcoming conversation with Mitchell[?]
           -Baker
     -Martha (Beall) Mitchell
                                                  -22-

                    NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                        (rev. July-2011)

                                                            Conversation No. 945-5 (cont’d)

Alexander M. Haig entered at 11:15 am.

      Watergate
           -Martha (Beall) Mitchell
                -Helen A. Thomas’s story
                      -Mitchell
                -Telephone calls to Betty Beale

Woods left at an unknown time before 11:17 am.

      Watergate
           -Elliot L. Richardson
                 -Previous conversation with Haig
                        -Archibald Cox’s jurisdiction
                 -Conversation with J. Fred Buzhardt, Jr.
                 -Forthcoming conversation with Cox
                        -Cox’s jurisdiction

An unknown man entered at an unknown time after 11:15 am.

      President’s schedule

      Buzhardt
           -Bill Thomas

The President, Haig and the unknown man left at 11:17 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.

Rose, I had a couple of bites.
You know, uh, this column of the active dinner guests plays a hell of a time because we never, never can get those finished over by 10 o'clock.
Last time it was 11.
Now if that is longer than usual, it's probably going to run a hell of a long time at the receiving line with everybody else.
Which was great, but yeah, I mean, yes, of course.
And he was terribly tired, and that's why I couldn't put up with that line to shake their head.
I understand the pressure to get that through there.
You know, we went out at 11 o'clock.
Those people have been down since 10 o'clock, and I think their humans were hurt right now.
That's what we have to grade it.
Yes.
I know.
They were lucky to come there.
I'm not going to be apologetic about that.
They were lucky to be here.
After the entertainment, I got a pressure from him.
He spoke to him in a while, which gave me a hell of a thrill.
So it was all right when I was back.
But the thing was, can't you make it after dinner?
It gets 10.30 rather than 10.
I don't know.
I have no memory of any dinner where we never got through before 10.20.
You see what I mean?
I don't understand.
I don't ever set the times.
I'll talk to Lucy and Matt.
All right.
Sire.
I've had a message to Julie last night, and I have to say, I can both agree with you.
We cannot get there and have these four days after dinner.
I was standing around downstairs for an hour.
What did we get invited for?
I don't know.
I still have to check.
Well, I suppose they have the four check, so they're probably trying to be there to order other stuff.
But let me suggest this.
For all the other dinners, make it 1030.
I'll feel a lot happier that way.
See?
I'll feel a lot happier.
So I'm not pushing it all the time.
I'm worried about those poor guests tonight.
I got a scalper or something.
I'll need to go down and tell them to be a half hour late when I saw that.
Well, they have a good time.
I'll take some music down there for them.
I think they give them some champagne.
That's all right.
I wouldn't talk too much about it.
I know, I know.
But last night was just one of those occasions.
You can cut them out.
I think if you cut them out and have them...
It's hard to get all the people who really ought to see certain individuals then.
Let me talk to them about making a 1030.
At least 1030.
Or, if I may compromise, at least 1050.
There is no way I don't understand a 1030 or a 1030 before 1020.
You know what I mean?
And I've got to just go in and have a cup of coffee with the guy before I leave.
So maybe 1030 would be good enough.
All right, let's just have a lot of evenings at the White House.
We don't have to.
We don't have to.
We don't have to do it then.
Well, it's not that far.
It's over here.
Yes, sir.
I mean, we've done them all.
They've all been in action before.
These congressmen are... Well, the congressmen have.
And I'm not going to give congressmen names.
We've kept them down by 10%.
We've kept down about 50% on the vaccine.
And the United States sort of has it.
They can't get them to go off the same way.
Unless you know the people and you know that they really do, uh...
I'm trying, Mom.
Let's see.
Hope, it's 5.30 today.
Oh, good.
I don't want that guy to put on and ask whether he has talked to me or anything.
You know, that's an issue, too.
That's what I want to try to do.
You know, just, just, just take her back.
Tell her that you don't want to embarrass her.
I put her back.
That doesn't even count.
That doesn't even count.
That doesn't even count.
That doesn't even count.
That doesn't even count.
That doesn't even count.
That doesn't even count.
That doesn't even count.
That doesn't even count.
Yeah, he'll probably want to talk with you.
But I think that's all right.
But I don't want him to get on the chair and say that he's talking to me.
You just say, well, something wrong with it.
Tell them you're planning to use it for the 74th campaign at the present time, but right now, it's just hard to get it to these people, you know, with the new laws and so forth.
You think it's better to have to get it to the back of the house.
Well, it's a good thing.
It's a good crash, but... Well, we've got to get it to the back of the house.
We've got to get it to the back of the house.
We've got to get it to the back of the house.
We've got to get it to the back of the house.
We've got to get it to the back of the house.
Uh, I think so.
Uh, let's... Also, I think, uh, you could have called our friend, uh, Brother Bader.
He's, uh, pretty, pretty bad.
He's, uh...
But I was sure after we were going out there complaining that he hadn't made it a point he made a point that we'd be alone with the president.
And he was practically on a call with us with his camera and was taking pictures and the rest of it.
And to make such a point like that was probably insulting.
Well, it was insulting.
Well, it's tempting to protect yourself from the other people saying it's not fair.
And that last thing that he makes a point that the, uh, said at Higgins is the very cancellation which should not be
Well, that's not what he just said.
We're watching him.
Well, he refused not to be able to talk to me.
I just, I just think that it's hard for him to know.
As far as I know, I don't see what the hell he does.
I don't know what he does.
I don't know what he does.
I don't know what he does.
I don't know what he does.
I don't know what he does.
I don't know what he does.
I don't know what he does.
I don't mean it like that.
I mean the insurance.
A white boy won't help us at all.
He'll see you and then he'll kick you in the ass.
That's fine, buddy.
He was the only one.
I'll talk to you when you get back.
Uh, fine.
Oh, sorry.
Have a good one.
You know she doesn't have that phone, sir.
No, he hasn't passed.
But he can work.
He can work.
He's the only street man.
He's got to be safe.
Long, he's got to be on total discretion.
On what he has.
Why not?
Why not?
Well, that's why.
Just ask him what he thinks.
Just get a date in the middle, please.
I hope so.
That's what I told you.
And that's my objective.
Anyway, go over to the back seat and tell them to sit down.
You know what she did?
What happened to her?
She invented John.
She said that John told the president, well for God's sakes, John's denying it.
Denying something at all.
I believe it.
Well, she didn't, she didn't, she didn't know.
Well, she didn't know.
Oh, Tom, so bad.
Oh, Tom, but she didn't ask me for it.
Yeah, yeah, where?
I don't get it.
Well, because she didn't, because that is a brown bird book.
Yeah, yeah.
I talked to Elliot.
He's meeting with Cox to go over his charter.
He said, God damn it, that was bad.
And he said the other things on the subpoena and what have you was,
that Cox was sort of taken out of context.
But I said, you go over that transcript.
It is just blatant partisanship.
And if that is what this man's done and what the trade has, we've lost a great deal in terms of objectivity and the kind of
I'll say this one.
He was very responsive this morning.
He said, I've already requested an appointment with Cox, and I'm going to have a talk with him.
I took you out of it.
I said that I've had calls from objective Republicans all over this morning about those statements.
And I said, if we get him vulnerable to partisanship, we're not going to have the kind of treatment of this thing that is so essential.
He said, I agree.
It was a very unfortunate thing.
And I said, he acts like he has a hunting license.
He says, well, he does not, and I'm going to talk to him.
I guess we should get our ballots uprooted about 9 o'clock p.m. or about 2 p.m. No, no.
I must say that the crowd is just full of some mob shit.
I don't know.
I mean, there just comes a point where people are going to say, well, the President's here to kill you.
I don't know what we can do about it.
We don't do anything.
We're just going to work our way out of this.
We're going to work our way out of this.
Okay, sir.