Watergate, page 86
“thought they had seen it all”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 126.
“Cleveland insure that this case”: “George Steinbrenner: Part 02 of 12,” FBI Records: The Vault, 1, https://vault.fbi.gov/george-steinbrenner/george-steinbrenner-part-02-of-12.
The subpoenas and interview requests came: Ibid.
“I got taken”: James R. Polk, “Secret Nixon Donation by Shipbuilder Probed,” Washington Star-News, September 6, 1973, https://vault.fbi.gov/george-steinbrenner/george-steinbrenner-part-07-of-12.
“Steinbrenner had been the first”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 130.
Soon, eight employees were granted immunity: Ibid., 127. Doyle recounts this story anonymously, in keeping with the secrecy of grand jury proceedings; however, the timeline, questions, and circumstances strongly suggest it focused on Steinbrenner.
“We must not throw to the winds”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 111.
“There is not merely accusation”: Maddow and Yarvitz, Bag Man, 142.
“Getting to the truth”: Ibid.
“I think this is a matter”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 112–13.
John Sirica had long understood: Sirica, To Set the Record Straight, 158–59.
Over fifty minutes, Nixon said he accepted: Richard Nixon, “The President’s News Conference,” August 22, 1973, American Presidency Project, https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/the-presidents-news-conference-87.
“It is hard to imagine any Presidential statement”: “ ‘Everybody Does It,’ ” New York Times, August 25, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/08/25/90470586.html?pageNumber=22.
“Watergate-style operations”: United Press, “Martha Mitchell Says President Lied, Washington Post, August 26, 1973, http://jfk.hood.edu/Collection/Weisberg%20Subject%20Index%20Files/N%20Disk/Nixon%20Richard%20M%20President%20Watergate%20Files/73–08–22%20Press%20Conference%20San%20Clemente/Item%2013.pdf.
“Tennessee Williams on Fifth Avenue”: McLendon, Martha, 251.
“The court, however, cannot agree”: “Text of Chief Judge Sirica’s Opinion in Ordering the President to Submit Tapes,” New York Times, August 30, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/08/30/106108857.html?pageNumber=20.
“It’s a disaster”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 113.
Chapter 37 “An Upheaval in Washington”
“Watergate has been hard”: Drew, Washington Journal, 22.
“an upheaval in Washington officialdom”: Ibid., 35.
“[Agnew] has never said, ‘I want to do’ ”: Haig, Inner Circles, 360.
a new report that a California grand jury: “Grand Jury Acts in Coast Break-In,” New York Times, September 5, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/09/05/90475682.html?pageNumber=1.
Despite the president’s efforts to focus: Richard Nixon, “The President’s News Conference,” September 5, 1973, https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/the-presidents-news-conference-89.
“Barring some new sensational revelations”: O’Neill, Man of the House, 345.
On Monday, September 10, Nixon sat: President Richard Nixon’s Daily Diary, September 1–15, 1973, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/sites/default/files/virtuallibrary/documents/PDD/1973/107%20September%201-15%201973.pdf.
“the first faint stirrings”: Hugh Sidey, “Of Reconciliation and Detachment,” TIME, September 24, 1973, http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,907925,00.html.
A photo of the breakfast: New York Times, September 11, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/09/11/issue.html.
“we get on with the business”: Richard Nixon, “Radio Address About a Special Message to the Congress on National Legislative Goals,” September 9, 1973, American Presidency Project, https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/radio-address-about-special-message-the-congress-national-legislative-goals.
In a meeting with Spiro Agnew, they announced: Spiro T. Agnew, Go Quietly… Or Else (New York: Morrow, 1980), 142.
For Charles Alan Wright’s forty-sixth birthday: Warren Weaver, Jr., “Charles Alan Wright: Special Case, Special Client, Special Lawyer,” New York Times, September 9, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/09/09/90478495.html?pageNumber=204.
“There was, sad to say, not a single”: Garment, Crazy Rhythm, 264.
“hunched over and skinny”: Ibid.
“tall and slender, and [who] looked like a Texas sheriff”: Ibid., 265.
“ground out of my typewriter”: Weaver, “Charles Alan Wright.”
“recognizing the unique character”: Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents: Monday, July 2, 1973, Vol. 9, No. 26, 1162, https://books.google.com/books?id=yTNSe9rk6hUC.
“had been complicated enough”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 122.
“I’m afraid that there is going to be an explosion”: Ibid., 125.
“Don’t I get a presumption”: Jules Witcover, Very Strange Bedfellows: The Short and Unhappy Marriage of Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew (New York: PublicAffairs, 2007), 326.
“The man is the goddamn vice president”: Richard M. Cohen and Jules Witcover, A Heartbeat Away: The Investigation and Resignation of Vice President Spiro T. Agnew (New York: Viking, 1974), 234.
On September 25, Agnew went to the Hill: O’Neill, Man of the House, 258.
Tip O’Neill resisted any effort: Ibid., 349.
“The Vice President’s letter”: Richard L. Madden, “Albert Bars House Inquiry on Agnew Now Because of ‘Matters Before the Courts’: A Speedy Decision,” New York Times, September 27, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/09/27/issue.html.
“Small and fearful men”: Cohen and Witcover, A Heartbeat Away, 266.
“The vice president was tough”: Haig, Inner Circles, 365.
“might want to look”: Ibid., 366.
Once Agnew was gone, he intended: “Richardson Affidavit on Nixon’s Concern Over Cox,” New York Times, July 2, 1974, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1974/07/21/93278029.html?pageNumber=37.
On Monday, Woods continued the work: “The Crisis: A Telltale Tape Deepens Nixon’s Dilemma,” TIME, January 28, 1974, http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,911049,00.html.
Through the rest of the week, Woods continued: “Tape Hearings Before Sirica—November 8, 1973: Summary,” 9/25 Exhibits folder, 2 of 3, National Archives and Records Administration, https://nara-media-001.s3.amazonaws.com/arcmedia/research/nixon-grand-jury/9–25/9–25-Exhibits-2of3-Part1.pdf.
Chapter 38 Mud-Wrestling
“mud-wrestling”: Garment, Crazy Rhythm, 266.
Donald Segretti pleaded guilty: Anthony Ripley, “Segretti Agrees to Plead Guilty,” New York Times, September 18, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/09/18/90969525.html?pageNumber=1.
“If you like Hitler, you’ll love Wallace”: David E. Rosenbaum, “Segretti Describes Chapin as Boss of ‘Dirty Tricks,’ ” New York Times, October 4, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/10/04/90994652.html?pageNumber=1.
Two days later, Segretti testified: Ibid.
“highly important evidence tending to show”: Ervin, The Whole Truth, 217–19.
It was one of a series of unprecedented moments: Ben Bradlee, A Good Life: Newspapering and Other Adventures (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995), 370.
“The clock is running”: Agnew, Go Quietly, 159.
“He would resign only if he could do so”: Maddow and Yarvitz, Bag Man, 158.
On October 8 the judge summoned: Cohen and Witcover, A Heartbeat Away, 304.
In a later interview with Rachel Maddow’s team: Maddow and Yarvitz, Bag Man, 200.
“had to do with the top-priority importance”: Ibid.
“I am in a lonely spot”: Haig, Inner Circles, 366.
That night, prosecutors stayed up: Cohen and Witcover, A Heartbeat Away, 336.
Henry Kissinger had begun his shared role: Isaacson, Kissinger, 505.
“We had a lot of trouble finding Henry”: O’Neill, Man of the House, 254.
Scribbling in his notes: Breslin, How the Good Guys Finally Won, 67.
“He’s in real trouble”: O’Neill, Man of the House, 255; Farrell, Tip O’Neill, 357. O’Neill dates this to a later October 25 White House briefing, whereas Farrell dates it to this October 10 briefing. A review of the Presidential Daily Diary shows that Morgan only attended the October 10 briefing.
“I’m worried about him”: O’Neill, Man of the House, 254–55.
At 2:01 p.m. on the afternoon of October 10: Cohen and Witcover, A Heartbeat Away, 342.
US marshals then sealed: Loye Miller, Jr., “Shocked, Packed Courtroom Watches Agnew’s Demise,” Detroit Free Press, October 11, 1973, https://www.newspapers.com/image/98296171/.
“You fully understand”: Maddow and Yarvitz, Bag Man, 211.
“I’m keenly aware first of the historic magnitude”: “Transcript of the Attorney General’s News Conference on Agnew Resignation,” New York Times, October 12, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/10/12/91007819.html?pageNumber=26.
“[Agnew] was forgotten instantaneously”: Haig, Inner Circles, 367.
The resulting 718-page collection: Associated Press, “Book Explaining Impeachment Published by House Committee,” New York Times, October 21, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/10/21/91014964.html?pageNumber=52.
“I don’t think anybody on Capitol Hill”: O’Neill, Man of the House, 253.
Chapter 39 “He Is Essentially Alone”
As the week ended, Elliot Richardson: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 133; “Transcript of the Attorney General’s News Conference.”
Cox and his second grand jury had indicted: William Robbins, “Krogh Is Indicted for Lies to Panel on Ellsberg Case,” New York Times, October 12, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/10/12/91007691.html?pageNumber=1.
It was the first indictment to come out: Ibid.; Doyle, Not Above the Law, 133.
Krogh had been asked if he knew of Hunt and Liddy’s travels: Robbins, “Krogh Is Indicted.”
“As Israel began to fall apart”: Isaacson, Kissinger, 521.
“Nixon had high respect for Connally”: Thompson, The Nixon Presidency, 45.
“He would be the easiest man”: O’Neill, Man of the House, 352.
“If you want easy sledding”: Ibid.
Nixon began to drink: Locker, Haig’s Coup, 178.
“Virtually every conceivable name”: Philip Shabecoff, “A Setting for Speculation and Suspense,” New York Times, October 14, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/10/14/119455243.html?pageNumber=46.
“I just had the most Byzantine discussion”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 135.
“Jerry, I want you to be the vice president”: James Cannon, Time and Chance: Gerald Ford’s Appointment with History (New York: HarperCollins, 1994), 212.
“Ford is a clubman”: Drew, Washington Journal, 41.
“History is being made tonight”: O’Neill, Man of the House, 261.
“The peace of the world was gravely threatened”: Haig, Inner Circles, 409.
“It’s got to be the works”: Nina Howland and Craig Daigle, eds., Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Vol. 25 (Washington: Government Printing Office, 2011), Document 180, https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1969–76v25/d180.
“After a week spent dithering”: Haig, Inner Circles, 522.
“Though the President is elected by nationwide ballot”: Lesley Oelsner, “Judges Rule 5–2: Historic Decision Finds President Not Above Law’s Commands,” New York Times, October 13, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/10/13/91009388.html?pageNumber=1.
“feeling presidential; he was feeling his oats”: Gormley, Archibald Cox, 325.
“Al, I’m ready to go”: Ibid., 323.
“We’ve got a problem”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 143.
John Stennis was one of the body’s most powerful: Reuben Keith Green, “The Case for Renaming the USS John C. Stennis,” Proceedings (US Naval Institute) 146, no. 6 (June 2020), https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2020/june/case-renaming-uss-john-c-stennis.
“Blacks had come down from the trees”: Ibid.
In January of 1973, Stennis had been mugged: James T. Wooten, “Stennis Is Shot in Robbery in Front of Home in Capital,” New York Times, January 31, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/01/31/79837188.html?pageNumber=1.
“Stennis was left with the impression”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 145.
“Have Fred there”: Gormley, Archibald Cox, 375.
a White House dinner he was set to attend: President Richard Nixon’s Daily Diary, October 1–15, 1973, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/sites/default/files/virtuallibrary/documents/PDD/1973/109%20October%201–15%201973.pdf.
“look[ed] like he had just been told”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 148.
Across town, Cox, clad in his signature bow tie: Lesley Oelsner, “3 Concerns Plead Guilty on Gifts to ’72 Nixon Drive,” New York Times, October 18, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/10/18/91013071.html?pageNumber=1.
Ervin, Baker, and the rest of the committee: Ervin, The Whole Truth, 221.
entitled only “A Proposal”: Statement of Information, 9:778–85.
“There is no reason to believe that an edited transcript”: Gormley, Archibald Cox, 329.
“It seemed to me that it would be hard”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 151.
“He must really want to get rid”: Ibid., 152; President Richard Nixon’s Daily Diary, October 16–31, 1973, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/sites/default/files/virtuallibrary/documents/PDD/1973/110%20October%2016–31%201973.pdf.
“What the hell was going on”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 153.
“Archie Cox was particularly firm”: Ben-Veniste and Frampton, Stonewall, 107.
“If everything else goes down the drain”: Ibid.
“The chances are that Porter”: Ibid., 66.
Now, even amid the showdown: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 128.
“When Charlie came back in”: Ibid., 153.
“warning signal from the White House”: Anthony Lewis, “The Pressure on Cox,” New York Times, October 18, 1973, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1973/10/18/issue.html.
“He is essentially alone”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 155.
“I can hardly be expected”: Ibid., 156.
“I wondered whether I was”: Sussman, The Great Cover-Up, 268.
“You catch me in a difficult”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 158.
Richardson sat at home: Ibid., 143.
“Why I Must Resign”: Statement of Information, 9:785.
Chapter 40 The Mahogany Coffin
“stipulations”: Kleindienst, Justice, 182.
“Very clever lies”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 161.
“These points should be borne in mind”: Statement of Information, 9:791.
At 9 a.m., one of the prosecutors: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 161.
Other key files were spirited: Ben-Veniste and Frampton, Stonewall, 141.
“If you reach an impasse”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 160.
“Charlie, I’m not supposed to talk”: Ibid., 162.
Judge Sirica, looking at the president’s former counsel: Sirica, To Set the Record Straight, 15.
“A prosecutor has to be a guy”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 162.
“The need to believe a solution existed”: Garment, Crazy Rhythm, 285.
“I had no inkling”: Ervin, The Whole Truth, 235.
On Friday, Cox was surprised: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 168.
“This puts Cuba to shame”: Haig, Inner Circles, 414.
“only in the interest of historical accuracy”: Statement of Information, 9:795.
“Within ninety minutes”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 171.
“It might be a good idea”: Ibid.
“I can’t fight with the President of the United States”: Gormley, Archibald Cox, 346.
“I have reluctantly”: Ibid., 342.
“You can tell the press”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 174.
“strain imposed on the American people”: Richard Nixon, “Statement Announcing Procedures for Providing Information from Presidential Tape Recordings,” October 19, 1973, American Presidency Project, https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/statement-announcing-procedures-for-providing-information-from-presidential-tape.
“In my judgment”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 176.
“Bryce, I have been treated shabbily”: Ibid., 175.
“The Mahogany Coffin”: Richardson, The Creative Balance, 43.
Chapter 41 The Massacre
“Temporary Employee”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 176.
“It was the first time in my memory”: Ibid., 177.
“We should try to reach”: Ibid., 180.
“I read in one of the newspapers”: Gormley, Archibald Cox, 351.
“Eventually, a president”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 182.
“folksy, tentative, Jimmy Stewart-like character”: Drew, Washington Journal, 49.
“Sir, you are rather unique”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 184–85.
“I know there is a regulation”: Ibid., 189.
“What the hell can I do?”: Ibid., 187.
As Richardson filled him in: Robert H. Bork, Saving Justice: Watergate, the Sunday Night Massacre and Other Adventures of a Solicitor General (New York: Encounter Books, 2013), 3.
“[Haig] was great at waving the flag”: Ibid., 40.
I don’t want to appear to be an apparatchik: Ibid., 82.
“C’mon, Al”: Gormley, Archibald Cox, 355.
“Brezhnev would never”: Doyle, Not Above the Law, 190.
“Your commander-in-chief”: Ibid., 191–92.
“My assessment, having spent three months”: Gormley, Archibald Cox, 365.
As expected, Bork was next summoned: Bork, Saving Justice, 83.
