 Singularly
absent from the list of top nominees was his choice for secretary of state,
presumed by many at the time to be Al Haig.Haig's prospects for Senate confirmation were clouded when Senate Democrats questioned his role in the Watergate scandal.In Haig's defense, North Carolina Senator Jesse Helms claimed to have phoned former President Nixon personally to inquire whether any material on Nixon's unreleased White House tapes could embarrass Haig.