WATERGATE THEORY & CONJECTURE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91-00901R000500150032-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 20, 2005
• Sequence Number: 32
• Publication Date: June 23, 1982
• Content Type: MAGAZINE

Approved For.Release 2006/01/12: CIA-RDP91
ARTICLE APPEARED
THE NEW REPUBLIC
ON PAGw1_____ 23 June 1982
Ford's hand on the pardon by threat-
WATERGATE THEORY & CONJECTURE ening to cause constitutional chaos
with self-pardon power. On August
[A COMPENDIUM] 1, 1974, one week before resignation,
Fred Buzhardt tells Haig (see The Fi-
BIG BRIBE THEORY: The only explana- planning for related plots. By the nal Days) that he's researched the
tion for the disproportion between time RN fired Helms in 1973, the question and the President has the
the cover-up and the third-rate bur- agency had already engineered his power to pardon himself. RN writes
glary is that RN was concealing- downfall by using its plants to ex- out pardon and puts it in sealed en-
and still conceals-an even more pose "White House horrors" and velope, then tells Haig if he gets
brazen and corrupt act than any re- sowing confusion with false black- guarantee of pardon from Ford he'll
ported. RN's professed fear that LBJ mail demands. (Ehrlichman, Halde- forget about self-pardon, resign, and
bugged his '68 contacts with Dragon man, Colson, RN, and others) go quietly. Otherwise, even if he's
Lady Claire Chennault is a clue to out of office, he'll produce envelope,
the possibility that a big "gift" to RN COLORED SHIRTS AT THE FBI THEORY: revealing that while still President
by South Vietnamese diehards to en- Rebellious deputies at FBI headquar- he pardoned himself and everyone else
courage him to continue the war is ters, angry at RN appointee Pat Gray in the Watergate case. Checkmate. Ford
the real "White House horror." (Re- for liberalizing Hoover's white- accepts, agrees never to discuss the
nata Adler) shirts-only formality, leaked Water- negotiation. (R. R.)
gate details to the press to show RN
BIG CABAL THEORY: During "vaca- Gray couldn't control the Bureau, THE CAIN AND ABEL THEORY: Some-
tions" in South Florida in the 1940s hoping thereby to get Gray fired and thing more than a big bribe or con-
and 1950s, RN became part of nexus replaced by a no-colored-shirt tradi- ventional corruption is necessary to
of gamblers, gangsters, and Cuban tionalist. (Edward Jay Epstein) explain RN's guilt-ridden response
casino interests that included Meyer to almost everything-including
Lansky, Howard Hughes, Bebe Re- GRASSY KNOLL CONNECTION THE- things of which he's not guilty. A
bozo, and the CIA. Watergate was ORY: Howard Hunt and Frank Stur- shocking and disturbing suggestion
fallout of falling out among these gis were the "mystery tramps" pho- about the "mysterious death" of
factions in aftermath of JFK and Cas- tographed being arrested near the RN's younger brother Arthur by RN
tro assassination plots. (Howard grassy knoll a few minutes after JFK biographer Fawn Brodie is her effort
Kohn) was shot. (A. J. Weberman) to explain it all. Brodie cites RN's
changing recollections of the cause
BIG DEAL ON ROMAINE STREET THE- JAMES McCORD DOUBLE AGENT THE- of young Arthur's death (when RN
ORY: RN was obsessed by fear that ORY: The break-in and bugging were was just a lad). In one version, Ar-
defeated Hughes deputy Robert Ma- so thoroughly bungled it had to be thur was struck by a rock "thrown by
heu would feed damaging info about deliberate. CIA loyalist McCord must another boy," according to RN.
the Hughes loan and the secret Re- have been acting under Company Could the "other boy" be RN? Only
bozo money channel to RN enemies instructions to sabotage RN's intelli- evidence Brodie offers to support
such as Larry O'Brien. The damaging gence operation and later, in post- this are characteristic RN denials ("I
Hughes/Maheu documents which arrest communications, kept the am confident that if the rock throw-
RN feared were stored in O'Brien's Company apprised of the cover-up. ing story is in fact true, it did not
Watergate office or Hank Green- (Jim Hougan, Frank Sturgis) produce a fatal concussion and it had
spun's Las Vegas safe were actually nothing to do with Arthur's death
stashed in Hughes's old Romaine OCCULT CURSE THEORY: Gordon which was from tubercular menin-
Street headquarters in L.A. Two Liddy won his spurs as law-and-or- gitis," an RN spokesman told Brodie
months before RN resigned, burglars der toughie by spying on and raiding after consulting with RN). In addi-
broke into the Romaine Street place. Timothy Leary's Millbrook, N.Y., tion, Brodie cites RN description of
They stole a huge treasury of hand- commune. Watergate is RN's punish- the devious nature of the Commu-
written Hughes memos which has ment for cosmic bad karma incurred nist mind in Six Crises: "If we accuse
reportedly ended up in the hands of by bringing Liddy into the White X of having killed his mother, two
investigative reporter Michael Dros- House. (Timothy Leary) brothers, and five friends, X's friends
nin whose forthcoming book will re- would shout back, 'That's a lie! X
veal the material RN feared most. REVENGE OF HO CHI MINH THEORY: only wounded one brother.' The
(Published reports) Almost all the "White House hor- counterattack would be on, with at-
rors" can be traced to secret conduct tention diverted from the five friends
CIA VENGEANCE THEORY: From the of the war and secret persecution of and the other brother X had indeed,
beginning of his first term RN had war protestors such as Ellsberg. Im- actually killed." (Haldeman's notes
been pestering CIA Director Richard morality of the war led to immoral on what was said during the 18-
Helms to deliver the dirt implicating domestic actions exposed and pun- minute gap cite RN calling for a "p.r.
JFK in CastrA a fttF- IL-as4s~A &)OYll~$tI>~- D 01 R0~'$' ~M6323~d demanding "di-
Helms held ou , threatening to ex- version." Could the gap contain the
pose RN's own role in Eisenhower SELF-PARDON THEORY: RN forced smoking gun on the Arthur case?)
 STAT
Approved For Release 2006/01/12: CIA-RDP91-0q
The AsrCic ated Pr e. s, ~ru!3c 1 1, I
CIA Files Sought can Ties With Stud`eni: Association
'E(y MATT YANCEY,
E'ATELflJE: WASHIN(iTON
`-Jhe U.S. Student A!;5ociation asked b federal court Thursday to furce' 1hrr CIA
to release files on th spy agency's covert relations,hap nit i the 5'i:i~lt.den`: t;raup
from, 1947 through 19',7.
In a 1.~~i-asuit filed in U.S. District Court here, the orc;aaniz.;:= ion Form r e-:L
kn ,a wi a the U.S. National Student As uciation said the CM had not cc,-io'it c
with a Freedom of Infort?ation Act request for the files that first nas
The student groiup and the CIA severed their relationship in tu:at,as~ 19 7 Lt -er
it ; as disclosed in a magazine article. As part of that +c rc, rac r~ L, the s y
! ~t ncy g ;?.Vu the association the CIA-o,:1inet'd hullldinq in Washingtcrr th E;3.?
lirsta ; ir;r_ the 7rtlep s he'aciqu irtersi at the Li tile
1(a .~,;. J. 4 3 `/M.-1 tF~t1~6, it~~ C f"'1T I'f F?
Kate i?ztl , a C:~A r said the a ncy had not bei4n i
suit rnd did not have any :inforia:?;ation about it. E;ut she said the CII. h:e; nrt
t`.',i :'cted the ::sc,c t i c;r's request for the f Y es
"'Ihjur ' s bean a I- crirj riur;r'ota tine p '(1 ess," Miss 11 :. aid. ' T11eiu gi.
in gi.ieu , aiti.nc( it:a turn t0 bt_ _s 'rviced'
David L. Sahel, the staid ent a ; 'oc1atioia' a,ttorrfney, ac;cuiall,'d the Lq` icy of
dra C,gin u its f eat on thc, 4 102 . year-old rt_'qucs t, iayanq 'Cli` Chas yet c
to ea e ~;ta r, ;: ri:t~ concern?r~n qtr 2:7. - ,, {-,
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to t^ alt has i.oo than 'a Phi t.:. t;iluse aI.a0, on the studii t or`Ca~ril.trration s _;r ~'c't'ed
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Approved For Release 2006/01/12 : CIA-RDP91-00901R000500150632.:t !r