I also think Felt is a 'fall guy'. ::just my opinion::
What is interesting, on this thread that bringbackmyhuac posted:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1415461/posts
Nixon Horrified Jew Could Head FBI
Is this transcript true?
On the tape of a February 1972 conversation with evangelist Billy Graham – made public in February 2002 – Nixon complained that a number of major news publications were "dominated” by Jews, and Graham responded: "The stranglehold has got to be broken, or the country’s going to go down the drain.”
Nixon said: "You believe that?”
Graham: "Yes sir.”
Nixon: "So do I. I can’t ever say that, but I believe it.”
Graham: "No, but if you get elected a second time, then we might be able to do something.”
Later on the tape, after Graham left, Nixon told Haldeman: "The Jews are irreligious, atheistic, immoral bunch of bastards.”
The tape citing Felt as a leak mentions FBI Director L. Patrick Gray, whom Nixon had appointed after J. Edgar Hoover died – passing over Felt, who was expected to get the top job.
Here are excerpts from the tape:
Nixon: "Well, if they’ve got a leak down at the FBI, why the hell can’t Gray tell us what the hell is left . . . ?”
Haldeman: "We know what’s left, and we know who leaked it.”
Nixon: "Somebody in the FBI?”
Haldeman: "Yes, sir. Mark Felt. You can’t say anything about this because it will screw up our source and there’s a real concern. [Attorney General John] Mitchell is the only one who knows about this and he feels strongly that we better not do anything because . . .”
Nixon: "Do anything? Never.”
Haldeman: "If we move on him, he’ll go out and unload everything. He knows everything that’s to be known in the FBI. He has access to absolutely everything . . .”
Nixon: "You know what I’d do with him, the bastard? Well that’s all I want to hear about it.”
Haldeman: "I think he wants to be in the top spot.”
Nixon: "That’s a hell of a way for him to get to the top ... Is he Catholic?”
Haldeman: "Jewish.”
Nixon: "Christ, put a Jew in there?”
Haldeman: "Well, that could explain it, too.”
Thanks for the ping!
"If we move on him, he’ll go out and unload everything. He knows everything that’s to be known in the FBI. He has access to absolutely everything . . .”
Clinton would have 'moved" on him. Arkanside wasn't in wide use in Nixon's day apparently.
I think it would help to have a timeline of what Woodward says Deep Throat told him and when, as well as a list of descriptions Woodward used for Deep Throat, to see how consistently the results fit with Felt=DT equation. I've been putting something like this together but won't be done for a bit yet. In any case, whether Felt was Deep Throat or not, some key questions about Watergate remain unanswered, particularly about the burglary itself and about the role of John Dean.
Regarding the transcript, I've seen pieces of that before, but not read the whole thing in context, which I'd want to do before trying to interpret it.
I might be wrong, but just now, on the Larry King rerun, the transcript seemed to say...
Was Nixon expressing surprise because he thought Hoover was an anti-Semite?