Page 65 - All About History - Issue 11-14

Watergate

Bob Woodward
Woodward covered the trial of the
five Watergate burglars, initially
unaware of the significance. With
coaxing from his editor and help
from Carl Bernstein he was able to
piece together a paper trail that was Robert Bork
instrumental in exposing the White Bork was solicitor
House’s campaign of dirty tricks. general when both the
attorney general and
Journalist deputy attorney general
resigned over a refusal
to sack Watergate Special
Prosecutor Cox. Bork later
claimed that Nixon promised
him a Supreme Court position
Solicitor if he carried out this order.
general He complied but Nixon didn’t
fulfil his part of the deal.
White House aide
HR Haldeman
Haldeman was a tough White
House aide who acted to block Lawyer
access to the president and Charles Colson
protect his interests. Alongside A lawyer who worked for
Ehrlichman, he formed an Nixon, one of the Watergate
impassable shield: as a result Seven found guilty of
the pair became known as the obstruction of justice and Deputy assistant
‘Berlin Wall’ – a reference to their who sentenced to seven
activities and Germanic names. months in prison. Following to the president
his release Colson found
God, donating all his Judge Alexander
subsequent fees to charity. Butterfield
John Sirica Butterfield was responsible
John Sirica’s presided over the trial of for the operation of the secret
the Watergate burglars – handing out taping system, which Nixon had
tough sentences in order to coerce installed in the White House.
admissions from them that they acted His deposition was crucial in
in concert with others. He later ordered establishing the existence of
Nixon to hand over tapes of White the system – and the tapes that
House conversations to Archibald Cox. sealed Nixon’s fate.

White House counsel CIA agent FBI director
John Dean Howard Hunt Patrick Gray
Dean was referred to as the ‘master Hunt had been drafted Gray was nominated to succeed
manipulator of the cover-up’ by the into Nixon’s unofficial Hoover as head of the FBI but
FBI. He turned on Nixon and became investigations unit – the resigned after less than a year on the
the star witness for the prosecution White House Plumbers – job. Underestimating its significance,
at the Senate Watergate Committee charged with fixing ‘leaks’ Gray had destroyed evidence from
hearings and pleaded guilty to a single to the media. He was a safe belonging to E Howard Hunt.
felony count after suspecting that he involved in the planning of When the scale of the conspiracy
was being set up as a scapegoat. Dean the Watergate burglaries became clear to him he resigned and
had destroyed evidence following and sentenced to over 30 spent years trying to clear his name.
the Watergate burglary arrests and months in prison.
received a prison sentence, despite his
co-operation. In later life he became a
critic of the Republican Party.

Chief domestic advisor
John Ehrlichman
Ehrlichman ensured that Nixon was protected
from unnecessary attention and worked as CRP chairman
White House counsel before moving to a role Maurice Stans
as chief domestic advisor. From this position Stans was allegedly responsible
Ehrlichman launched vicious assaults on the for raising large amounts of cash
president’s enemies and created the White in donations that Nixon kept in a
House Plumbers. He had worked with Nixon White House safe. Stans denied
for over a decade – initially on his unsuccessful Director of CRP any knowledge of Watergate and,
1960 presidential bid – and never forgave though indicted for perjury and
Nixon for the lack of a presidential pardon. He Jeb Magruder obstruction of justice, he was
served 18 months in prison and died in 1999. Magruder served as a special acquitted the following year.
assistant to the president
until the spring of 1971, when
he left to manage the CRP.
Archibald Cox He was heavily involved in
A respected lawman, Cox was Watergate and alleged that Hugh Sloan
appointed as the first special Nixon had prior knowledge Sloan was unwittingly responsible
prosecutor in the Watergate of the affair. He served seven for endorsing cheques that
case. Learning of the existence of months in prison. went to pay the White House
secret tapes recorded at the White Plumbers. Once Sloan discovered
Watergate House, Cox pressed for their release. the activities of the plumbers he
resigned and became a source for
Cox was eventually fired but left
prosecutor with his reputation enhanced. CRP treasurer Woodward and Bernstein.
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