Editing Alexander Haig (section)

===Nixon administration===
[[File:President Richard Nixon seated at his Oval Office desk during a meeting with Henry Kissinger, Alexander Haig, and Gerald Ford.jpg|thumb|[[Henry Kissinger]], [[Richard Nixon]], [[Gerald Ford]], and Haig meeting on Ford's forthcoming appointment as vice president in 1973]]
In May 1973, after only four months as VCSA, Haig returned to the [[Presidency of Richard Nixon|Nixon administration]] at the height of the [[Watergate scandal|Watergate affair]] as [[White House Chief of Staff]]. During the [[Saturday Night Massacre]], Haig attempted to make acting-Attorney General [[William Ruckelshaus]] fire special prosecutor [[Archibald Cox]]. Haig's coercion failed, and Ruckelshaus resigned.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Frank |first=Jeffrey |date=2017-05-09 |title=Comey's Firing Is—and Isn't—Like Nixon's Saturday Night Massacre |url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/comeys-firing-is-and-isnt-like-nixons-saturday-night-massacre |access-date=2024-07-19 |magazine=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}</ref> Retaining his Army commission, he remained in the position until 21 September 1974, ultimately overseeing the transition to the [[presidency of Gerald Ford]] following [[Richard Nixon's resignation speech|Nixon's resignation]] on 9 August 1974.

Haig has been largely credited with keeping the government running while President Nixon was preoccupied with Watergate<ref name="encarta">{{cite encyclopedia |title=Alexander Haig |url=http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.aspx?refid=761585441 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080310041006/http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.aspx?refid=761585441 |archive-date=March 10, 2008 |encyclopedia=[[MSN Encarta]] |df=mdy}}</ref> and was essentially seen as the "acting president" during Nixon's last few months in office.<ref name = Weiner /> During July and early August 1974, Haig played an instrumental role in persuading Nixon to resign. Haig presented several pardon options to Ford a few days before Nixon resigned. In this regard, in his 1999 book ''[[Shadow (Woodward book)|Shadow]]'', author [[Bob Woodward]] describes Haig's role as the point man between Nixon and Ford during the final days of Nixon's presidency. According to Woodward, Haig played a major behind-the-scenes role in the delicate negotiations of the transfer of power from Nixon to Ford.<ref>''The Final Days'', by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, 1976, New York, Simon & Schuster; ''Shadow'', by Bob Woodward, 1999, New York, Simon  Schuster, pp. 4–38.</ref> Indeed, about one month after taking office, Ford did pardon Nixon, resulting in much controversy.

However, Haig denied the allegation that he played a key role in arbitrating Nixon's resignation by offering Ford's pardon to Nixon. One of the most crucial moments occurred a day before Haig's departure to Europe to begin his tenure as NATO Supreme Allied Commander. Haig was telephoned by [[J. Fred Buzhardt]], who once served as special White House counsel for Watergate matters.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Haig|first=Alexander M.|title=Inner Circles: How America Changed the World: A Memoir|date=September 1, 1992|publisher=Grand Central Publisher|isbn=978-0446515719}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Woodward|first=Robert Upshur|title=Shadow: Five Presidents And The Legacy Of Watergate|publisher=Simon & Schuster|date=June 16, 1999|isbn=978-0684852638}}</ref> In the call, Buzhardt discussed with Haig President Ford's upcoming speech to the nation about pardoning Nixon, informing Haig that the speech contained something indicating Haig's role in Nixon's resignation and Ford's pardon of Nixon. According to Haig's autobiography (''Inner Circles: How America Changed the World''), Haig was furious and immediately drove straight to the White House to determine the veracity of Buzhardt's claims. This was due to his concern that Ford's speech would expose Haig's role in negotiating Nixon's resignation supposedly in exchange for a pardon issued by the new president.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

On 7 August 1974, two days before Nixon's resignation, Haig met with Nixon in the Oval Office to discuss the transition. Following their conversation, Nixon told Haig "You fellows, in your business, have a way of handling problems like this. Give them a pistol and leave the room. I don't have a pistol, Al."<ref>{{Cite book|last=Woodward|first=Bob|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1975233|title=The final days|date=1976|others=Carl Bernstein|isbn=0-671-22298-8|location=New York|oclc=1975233}}</ref>