One Last Mystery

Charles Paul Freund | June 6, 2005

Author David Greenberg reminds us that there are some Watergate mysteries still unsolved. The major unanswered question: What was the purpose of the break-in? Of course, everybody knows the conspiracy theories; the most notorious involves an appointment book and a prostitution ring just up Virginia Avenue.

Greenberg leaves that sort of stuff alone, however. Among the other questions he notes: Did Nixon order the break-in? What was on the erased 18 minutes of tape? And, why didn't Nixon destroy the tapes?

Comments

|6.6.05 @ 2:18PM|#

Who knows,
who knows,
and who knows.

Can we please get back to the 21st century now?

|6.6.05 @ 2:20PM|#

Yeah, let's get back to discussing John Kerry's Vietnam record.

The Owner's Manual|6.6.05 @ 4:35PM|#

The prostitution theory fits the facts. The rest are 'conspiracies.'

|6.7.05 @ 11:31AM|#

The conspiracy theory I like the best was related by Alexander Cockburn (I think) in The Nation back in the early 80s. It is somewhat similar to the book in the link.

It started with John Dean using the CREEPs to try to get back incriminating evidence of his wife's former life as a call girl (some DNC functionary had someone's "little black book" or something) and ended with Adm Moorer (Chairman of the JCS) using the scandal in a coup to overthrow Nixon who was just getting to friendly with the Russkies (detente and all, ya know) and threatening the well being of the MIC (Military-Industrial Complex). Moorer, who had already succeeded in getting Al Haig installed as his inside man as Nixon's Chief of Staff, was aided in his nefarious plot by Bob Woodward while supposedly an ex-naval officer was still active in Naval Intelligence.

It was told with a perfectly straight face and made fascinating reading, but like most conspiracy theories started to fall apart in its own implausibilities.