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Watergate: from the break-in to the resignation (1972–1974)

Case overview ·Updated 1 Oct 2026

From a burglary at the Watergate to a President’s resignation

Senate and prosecutors’ reports, the White House tapes and court records trace a June 1972 break-in, cash paid to the defendants, and the events that ended in Nixon’s resignation.

3 min read · 53 source notes · What changed: Cites a new claim carrying Nixon’s exact Aug. 5, 1974 wording in place of the looser paraphrase; no other text changes.

Early on June 17, 1972, Washington police arrested five men inside the Democratic National Committee’s offices at the Watergate. One was James McCord, security chief of President Nixon’s re-election committee. 1 2

What the records show

G. Gordon Liddy’s intelligence plan was put to John Mitchell three times in early 1972. 3 4 5 Jeb Magruder testified that Mitchell approved it at Key Biscayne on March 30. 6 7 Mitchell testified that he rejected it. 8

A $25,000 check from Kenneth Dahlberg and $89,000 in Mexican checks, all given to Nixon’s campaign, had been deposited in burglar Bernard Barker’s Miami account, and serial numbers tied the burglars’ $100 bills to that cash. 9 10

On June 23, 1972, a recorded conversation captured H. R. Haldeman proposing that the CIA tell the FBI to “stay the hell out of this,” and Nixon agreeing. 11 12

Cash then went to the defendants. Maurice Stans testified he gave Nixon’s lawyer Herbert Kalmbach $75,000 on June 29, 1972. 13 Kalmbach distributed it through Tony Ulasewicz; $25,000 in cash was left in a phone booth for Hunt’s lawyer, and $40,000 in an airport locker for Hunt’s wife. 14 15 16 The Senate committee reported that Fred LaRue then took over raising and distributing funds for the defendants. Hunt testified he received $75,000 in cash in March 1973, and LaRue admitted making the payment after approval from Mitchell. 17 18 19

Chart

Cash delivered to the Watergate defendants, July 1972 – March 1973

Cash deliveries recorded in the Senate report, by recipient. It shows only deliveries with a stated amount: money Kalmbach collected is left out so nothing is counted twice, and later payments by LaRue other than the March 1973 one are not yet on the board. Two July 1972 dates are approximate.

Computed from 6 published items · View data· dataset transactions
DateAmountCurrencyTitlePayerPayee
1972-06-2975,000USDStans gives Kalmbach $75,000 in cash (June 29, 1972)——
1972-0725,000USDUlasewicz leaves $25,000 in a telephone booth for Hunt’s lawyer, William Bittman (summer 1972)Herbert W. KalmbachWilliam O. Bittman
1972-0740,000USDUlasewicz leaves $40,000 for [Unnamed private individual] in a National Airport locker (summer 1972)Herbert W. KalmbachDorothy Hunt
1972-0875,000USDKalmbach raises $75,000 in cash from Northrop chairman Thomas V. Jones (summer 1972)——
1972-09-1953,000USDUlasewicz delivers $53,000 to [Unnamed private individual] and returns $29,000 to LaRue (Sept. 19, 1972)Herbert W. KalmbachDorothy Hunt
1973-03-2175,000USDLaRue pays $75,000 in cash for Hunt (March 20 or 21, 1973)Frederick C. LaRueE. Howard Hunt

In January 1973, five defendants pleaded guilty and McCord and Liddy were convicted. 20 21 On March 23, Judge Sirica read McCord’s letter saying the defendants had been pressured to stay silent. 22

On March 21, 1973, counsel John Dean told Nixon, “We have a cancer … close to the Presidency,” and Nixon said a million dollars could be had “in cash.” 23 24 Alexander Butterfield disclosed the taping system on July 16. 25 The special prosecutor’s report says that on October 20 Attorney General Richardson resigned, his deputy William Ruckelshaus was fired for refusing to dismiss Archibald Cox, and Solicitor General Robert Bork then dismissed Cox. 26 A federal judge later ruled the firing illegal. 27

Gordon Strachan testified that Haldeman told him to “make sure our files are clean” and that he then shredded a political matters memorandum and related files. Haldeman said he did not recall giving that instruction. 28 29 30

In February 1974 the House voted 410 to 4 for an impeachment inquiry. 31 On April 16 the special prosecutor subpoenaed 64 taped White House conversations. 32 The Supreme Court ruled that Nixon’s claim of privilege must yield to a criminal trial’s need for evidence. 33 The Judiciary Committee approved three articles of impeachment by votes of 27-11, 28-10 and 21-17. 34 35 36

On August 5 Nixon released the June 23 transcripts and acknowledged he “was aware of the advantages this course of action would have with respect to limiting possible public exposure of involvement by persons connected with the reelection committee,” while maintaining that impeachment was not justified. 37 38 He announced his resignation three days later, and President Ford pardoned him on September 8. 39 40

In the trial of United States v. Mitchell, Mitchell, Haldeman, John Ehrlichman and Robert Mardian were convicted, and the first three were sentenced to 2½ to 8 years. 41 42 In 1976 the Court of Appeals affirmed the first three convictions and reversed Mardian’s; a 2006 obituary reported the special prosecutor announced Mardian would not be tried again. 43 44 45 Ehrlichman left prison in April 1978, Haldeman in December 1978 and Mitchell on January 19, 1979. 46 47 48 49 Dean, Magruder and Charles Colson pleaded guilty and were sentenced to prison. 50 51 52 53

What remains unproven

Whether Mitchell approved Liddy’s plan rests on conflicting sworn testimony: Magruder said yes and Mitchell said no. The board does not show what Nixon knew of the payments.

What’s next

What do the remaining Senate witnesses say about the payments?

Source notes

  1. 1

    The Senate Watergate Committee’s final report states that James W. McCord, the security chief of John Mitchell’s re-election committee, and four Miami residents were arrested by Washington police early on June 17, 1972 while burglarizing the Democratic National Committee offices in the Watergate complex. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report PDF, scan page n1117

  2. 2

    The Senate Watergate Committee reported that a police unit led by Sergeant Paul Leeper discovered and arrested the five burglars. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report PDF, scan page n33

  3. 3

    The Senate report states that Liddy presented the first Gemstone plan to Attorney General Mitchell at the Justice Department on January 27, 1972, with Magruder and Dean present. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 21 (scan n52)

  4. 4

    The Senate report states that Liddy’s plan was presented to Mitchell a third and final time on March 30, 1972 in Key Biscayne. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 24 (scan n55)

  5. 5

    The Senate report states that by the time of the March 30, 1972 meeting the budget of Liddy’s plan had been reduced to $250,000. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 24 (scan n55)

  6. 6

    Magruder testified that the last item discussed at Key Biscayne was Liddy’s proposal for about $250,000 and that Mitchell agreed to approve it. Alleged

    Presidential Campaign Activities of 1972, Senate Select Committee Hearings, Book 2: Watergate Investigation (June 5–14, 1973), incl. testimony of Jeb Stuart Magruder · 2 Hearings p. 794 (scan n343); testimony of June 14, 1973

  7. 7

    Magruder testified that the project was approved for an initial entry into the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington. Alleged

    Presidential Campaign Activities of 1972, Senate Select Committee Hearings, Book 2: Watergate Investigation (June 5–14, 1973), incl. testimony of Jeb Stuart Magruder · 2 Hearings p. 795 (scan n344); testimony of June 14, 1973

  8. 8

    Mitchell testified that his decision on Liddy’s plan at Key Biscayne was a rejection, in words to the effect of “We don’t need this, I am tired of hearing it, out, let’s not discuss it any further.” Disputed

    Presidential Campaign Activities of 1972, Senate Select Committee Hearings, Book 4: Watergate Investigation (June 27 – July 10, 1973), incl. testimony of John N. Mitchell · 4 Hearings p. 1614 (scan n271); testimony of July 10, 1973

  9. 9

    The Senate Watergate Committee reported that four Mexican checks totaling $89,000 and a $25,000 check from Kenneth Dahlberg, originally contributed to Nixon’s campaign, had been deposited in Bernard Barker’s Miami bank account. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report PDF, scan page n68

  10. 10

    The Senate committee reported that serial numbers on the $100 bills found on the burglars showed the money was what Barker gave Liddy when he cashed the Mexican and Dahlberg checks. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report PDF, scan page n68

  11. 11

    In the June 23, 1972 Oval Office conversation, Haldeman proposed having CIA deputy director Vernon Walters call acting FBI director Pat Gray and tell him to stay out of the investigation. Documented

    Transcript of a recording of a meeting between the President and H.R. Haldeman in the Oval Office, June 23, 1972, 10:04-11:39 a.m. (conversation 741-2, the "smoking gun" tape) · Conversation 741-2, transcript p. 3 (PDF p. 4), verified against page image

  12. 12

    In the June 23, 1972 Oval Office conversation, Nixon told Haldeman to have the CIA officials call the FBI in and say, for the country, not to go any further into the case. Documented

    Transcript of a recording of a meeting between the President and H.R. Haldeman in the Oval Office, June 23, 1972, 10:04-11:39 a.m. (conversation 741-2, the "smoking gun" tape) · Conversation 741-2, transcript p. 16 (PDF p. 17)

  13. 13

    Stans testified he gave Kalmbach $75,000 on June 29, 1972 after being informed the money was needed for a special White House project. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 52 (scan n83)

  14. 14

    The report states that Kalmbach distributed the money through Tony Ulasewicz. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 52 (scan n83)

  15. 15

    The Senate report states that Bittman, after first refusing, accepted $25,000 in cash in a brown envelope left in a telephone booth in his office building. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 52 (scan n83)

  16. 16

    The Senate report states that Ulasewicz placed $40,000 for Mrs. Hunt in a locker at National Airport. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 53 (scan n84)

  17. 17

    The Senate report states that LaRue took over raising funds and distributing them to the Watergate defendants, with Hunt’s attorney William Bittman as his contact. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 55 (scan n86)

  18. 18

    The Senate report states that Hunt testified he received $75,000 in cash on March 20 or 21, just before his sentencing. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 57 (scan n88)

  19. 19

    The report states that LaRue admitted making the payment after approval from Mitchell. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 57 (scan n88)

  20. 20

    The Senate report states that as the trial opened in early January 1973, Hunt, Barker, Sturgis, Martinez and Gonzales changed their pleas to guilty. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 2 (scan n33)

  21. 21

    The WSPF report’s chronology records that Liddy and McCord were convicted on all counts on Jan. 30, 1973. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · WSPF Report, chronology appendix p. 253 (scan n256)

  22. 22

    The Senate report states that on March 23, 1973 Chief Judge Sirica read aloud McCord’s sealed letter charging pressure on the defendants to plead guilty and remain silent, perjury at the trial, and participation by others. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report p. 70 (scan n101)

  23. 23

    Dean told Nixon, “We have a cancer--within, close to the Presidency, that’s growing.” Documented

    Transcript of a recording of a meeting among the President, John Dean and H.R. Haldeman in the Oval Office, March 21, 1973, 10:12-11:55 a.m. (conversation 886-008; trial Exhibit 12, U.S. v. Mitchell et al.) · Exhibit 12, transcript p. 5 (verified against page image)

  24. 24

    After Dean estimated the defendants would cost a million dollars over two years, Nixon said a million dollars could be obtained in cash. Documented

    Transcript of a recording of a meeting among the President, John Dean and H.R. Haldeman in the Oval Office, March 21, 1973, 10:12-11:55 a.m. (conversation 886-008; trial Exhibit 12, U.S. v. Mitchell et al.) · Exhibit 12, transcript p. 33 (verified against page image)

  25. 25

    The Senate Watergate Committee’s report states that the existence of the White House tapes was revealed to the public on July 16, 1973 through Butterfield’s testimony to the committee. Documented

    Final Report of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Ervin Committee), S. Rept. 93-981 (June 1974) · Final report PDF, scan page n1099

  26. 26

    The WSPF report states that on the evening of Oct. 20 the White House announced that Nixon had ordered Richardson to dismiss Cox, that Richardson resigned rather than do so, that Ruckelshaus was fired for refusing, and that Solicitor General Robert Bork dismissed Cox. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · WSPF Report p. 9 (scan n12), transcribed from page image

  27. 27

    On November 14, 1973, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia declared that Archibald Cox had been illegally discharged as Watergate Special Prosecutor. Documented

    Nader v. Bork, 366 F. Supp. 104 (D.D.C. 1973), Memorandum and Final Order and Declaratory Judgment (Gesell, J.) · Final Order and Declaratory Judgment, para. (5)

  28. 28

    Strachan testified that after he showed Haldeman the political matters memorandum on June 20, 1972, Haldeman told him “Well, make sure our files are clean.” Disputed

    Presidential Campaign Activities of 1972, Senate Select Committee Hearings, Book 6: Watergate Investigation (July 18–25, 1973), incl. testimony of Frederick C. LaRue · 6 Hearings p. 2458 (scan n240); testimony of July 23, 1973

  29. 29

    Strachan testified that he then shredded the memorandum and related documents, believing he was following Haldeman’s orders, and that this included all of political matters memorandum #18. Disputed

    Presidential Campaign Activities of 1972, Senate Select Committee Hearings, Book 6: Watergate Investigation (July 18–25, 1973), incl. testimony of Frederick C. LaRue · 6 Hearings p. 2458 (scan n240); testimony of July 23, 1973

  30. 30

    Haldeman testified that he did not recall the conversation Strachan described and did not recall giving Strachan an instruction to see that the file would be clean. Disputed

    Presidential Campaign Activities of 1972, Senate Select Committee Hearings, Book 8: Watergate Investigation (July 31 – Aug. 2, 1973), incl. testimony of H. R. Haldeman · 8 Hearings p. 3038 (scan n25); testimony of July 31, 1973

  31. 31

    The Judiciary Committee’s report records that on Feb. 6, 1974 the House adopted H. Res. 803 by a vote of 410 to 4. Documented

    Impeachment of Richard M. Nixon, President of the United States: the final report of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives (H. Rept. 93-1305, Aug. 1974; Viking reprint 1975) · Report p. 10

  32. 32

    The WSPF report’s chronology records that the Special Prosecutor issued a trial subpoena for 64 White House taped conversations on April 16, 1974. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · WSPF Report, chronology appendix p. 259 (scan n262)

  33. 33

    The Court held that the President’s generalized assertion of privilege must yield to the demonstrated, specific need for evidence in a pending criminal trial. Documented

    United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683 (1974), decided July 24, 1974 (opinion of the Court by Chief Justice Burger) · 418 U.S. 683, syllabus para. 5 (opinion pp. 707-713)

  34. 34

    The Judiciary Committee’s report records that on July 27, 1974 the committee adopted Article I by a vote of 27 to 11. Documented

    Impeachment of Richard M. Nixon, President of the United States: the final report of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives (H. Rept. 93-1305, Aug. 1974; Viking reprint 1975) · Report p. 16 (scan leaf 48)

  35. 35

    The report records that on July 29, 1974 the committee adopted Article II by a vote of 28 to 10. Documented

    Impeachment of Richard M. Nixon, President of the United States: the final report of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives (H. Rept. 93-1305, Aug. 1974; Viking reprint 1975) · Report p. 16 (scan leaf 48)

  36. 36

    The report records that on July 30, 1974 an additional article was adopted 21 to 17 and became Article III. Documented

    Impeachment of Richard M. Nixon, President of the United States: the final report of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives (H. Rept. 93-1305, Aug. 1974; Viking reprint 1975) · Report p. 17 (scan leaf 49); the article was offered on July 30 per the preceding sentence

  37. 37

    In his Aug. 5, 1974 statement Nixon said the June 23 tapes show he “was aware of the advantages this course of action would have with respect to limiting possible public exposure of involvement by persons connected with the reelection committee.” Documented

    Richard Nixon, Statement Announcing Availability of Additional Transcripts of Presidential Tape Recordings (Aug. 5, 1974) · Statement of Aug. 5, 1974, paragraph 8

  38. 38

    In the same statement Nixon maintained that the full record did not justify impeachment and removal. Documented

    Richard Nixon, Statement Announcing Availability of Additional Transcripts of Presidential Tape Recordings (Aug. 5, 1974) · Statement of Aug. 5, 1974, final paragraph

  39. 39

    Nixon said he would resign the presidency effective at noon the next day and that Vice President Ford would be sworn in at that hour. Documented

    Richard Nixon, Address to the Nation Announcing Decision To Resign the Office of President of the United States (Aug. 8, 1974) · Address of Aug. 8, 1974, paragraph 9

  40. 40

    Ford’s Proclamation 4311 granted Nixon a full, free and absolute pardon for all offenses against the United States committed or possibly committed from Jan. 20, 1969 through Aug. 9, 1974. Documented

    Proclamation 4311, Granting Pardon to Richard Nixon (Gerald R. Ford, Sept. 8, 1974) · Proclamation 4311, operative paragraph

  41. 41

    The WSPF report states that the three-month trial of the five remaining defendants resulted in the convictions of Ehrlichman, Haldeman, Mardian and Mitchell and the acquittal of Parkinson. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · WSPF Report p. 52 (scan n55)

  42. 42

    The report states that Mitchell, Haldeman and Ehrlichman were each sentenced to 2½ to 8 years and Mardian to 10 months to 3 years. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · WSPF Report p. 52 (scan n55), transcribed from page image

  43. 43

    The D.C. Circuit affirmed the convictions of Haldeman, Ehrlichman and Mitchell for conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Documented

    United States v. Haldeman, 559 F.2d 31 (D.C. Cir. 1976) (per curiam), opinion affirming the convictions of Haldeman, Ehrlichman and Mitchell · United States v. Haldeman, 559 F.2d 31 (D.C. Cir. 1976), Part XIII (Conclusion)

  44. 44

    In United States v. Mardian the D.C. Circuit held that Mardian’s trial should have been severed and reversed his conspiracy conviction, remanding for a new trial. Documented

    United States v. Mardian, 546 F.2d 973 (D.C. Cir. 1976) (J. Skelly Wright, J.), opinion reversing Robert Mardian's conviction and remanding for a new trial · United States v. Mardian, 546 F.2d 973 (D.C. Cir. 1976), Part I (Severance)

  45. 45

    A San Francisco Chronicle obituary reports that three months after the October 1976 reversal, Special Prosecutor Charles Ruff announced that Mardian would not be required to stand trial a second time. Reported

    "Robert Mardian -- Watergate scandal figure" (obituary), San Francisco Chronicle / SFGate, July 21, 2006 · SFGate, July 21, 2006, obituary by Dennis McLellan

  46. 46

    The Associated Press reported on April 27, 1978 that John Ehrlichman walked out of Swift Trail Federal Prison Camp that morning, 18 months after he was imprisoned there for his role in the Watergate affair. Reported

    Ehrlichman released (AP) · p. 2

  47. 47

    The same obituary states that Haldeman was released from prison in December 1978. Reported

    "Watergate figure Haldeman dies" (The New York Times), as reprinted in The Roanoke Times, Nov. 13, 1993, p. A1 · The Roanoke Times, Nov. 13, 1993, p. A1 (reprinting The New York Times)

  48. 48

    The Associated Press reported from Lompoc, Calif. in the Dec. 20, 1978 Daily Sentinel that H. R. Haldeman walked out of prison shortly after dawn that day as a parolee. Reported

    Haldeman released (AP) · p. 1

  49. 49

    UPI reported on Jan. 19, 1979 that John Mitchell was freed on parole that day, becoming the last convicted Watergate defendant to be released from prison. Reported

    John Mitchell freed; Watergate era over (UPI) · p. 1

  50. 50

    The WSPF report records that Dean pleaded guilty on Oct. 19, 1973 to one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, was sentenced on Aug. 2, 1974 to one to four years, and was released on Jan. 8, 1975 when his sentence was reduced to time served. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · WSPF Report, Appendix A, p. 155 (scan n158), verified against page image

  51. 51

    The WSPF report records that Magruder pleaded guilty on Aug. 16, 1973 to conspiracy to unlawfully intercept communications, obstruct justice and defraud the United States, and was sentenced on May 21, 1974 to 10 months to four years. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · WSPF Report, Appendix A, p. 156 (scan n159)

  52. 52

    On June 3, 1974, Charles Colson pleaded guilty to an information charging one count of obstruction of justice, and his previous indictments were dismissed. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · Appendix, chronology, entry for June 3, 1974, p. 260 (scan n263)

  53. 53

    On June 21, 1974, Colson was sentenced to one to three years in prison and fined $5,000. Documented

    Watergate Special Prosecution Force Report (October 1975) · Appendix, chronology, entry for June 21, 1974, p. 260 (scan n263)

Revision history (8)
  1. 1 Oct 2026 Cites a new claim carrying Nixon’s exact Aug. 5, 1974 wording in place of the looser paraphrase; no other text changes.
  2. 30 Sept 2026 Quotes Nixon’s Aug. 5 wording exactly, attributes the LaRue, Mardian and Ruckelshaus points, drops a one-sided Ehrlichman sentence, Sloan’s $199,000 and a weak question.
  3. 30 Sept 2026 Ties each sentence to its claim, attributes the Mardian point, adds release dates and a new What’s next; drops the Hunt and Liddy escape paragraph.
  4. 30 Sept 2026 Adds the 1976 appeals ruling that reversed Mardian’s conviction; drops the lede’s last sentence and “The money pointed the other way” for length.
  5. 30 Sept 2026 Adds the April 16, 1974 tapes subpoena; drops Liddy’s sentence for length.
  6. 30 Sept 2026 Adds the shredded-memo testimony and Ehrlichman’s denial; drops Mitchell’s June 1972 denial, the July 19 payment dispute and Hunt’s sentence for length.
  7. 30 Sept 2026 Adds sworn Senate testimony on Liddy’s plan and payments; drops the tape-gap, noon and address-book details; shortens June 23; rewrites unproven and next.
  8. 30 Sept 2026 First overview: break-in, money trail, the June 23 and March 21 tapes, the legal endgame, resignation and pardon, from primary records.

Case journal17 sessions

Session notes

The working record behind the overview: what each research session looked at, found and ruled out. Only items an editor has reviewed appear on the board.

Research session · AI agent1 Oct 2026

Watergate session 17: close #189 (owner: drop) and fill the largest remaining gaps from primary records: April 30, 1973 resignations and Dean’s firing; the Senate Watergate Committee’s creation and opening hearings; the 1971 Plumbers and the Ellsberg psychiatrist break-in; FBI acting director Gray and the press reporting.

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent1 Oct 2026

Watergate session 17: close #189 (owner: drop) and fill the largest remaining gaps from primary records: April 30, 1973 resignations and Dean’s firing; the Senate Watergate Committee’s creation and opening hearings; the 1971 Plumbers and the Ellsberg psychiatrist break-in; FBI acting director Gray and the press reporting.

What we looked at

Closing the Watergate investigation at the owner’s direction. Ended early: the board is a worked example, so no further leads are being created.

What the records show

The six entities that had no connections are now linked with sourced relationships: the Howard Johnson lodge to the Watergate complex (National Park Service registration form); Hunt to the complex as supervisor of the operation (Senate final report, p. 1); Nixon to Butterfield, who served as a deputy assistant to the President (Senate report); Ford to Nixon, the pardon (Proclamation 4311); Porter to Magruder, an account they agreed to give the FBI (Senate report p. 45, per Porter’s testimony); and Patman to Dean, whose role in hindering Patman’s inquiry the Senate report describes (p. 74).

What we could not confirm

Nothing further is being pursued.

Changes proposed for review

Six relationships, each with one sourced claim. Items begun earlier this session (April 30, 1973; the Senate committee; the Ellsberg break-in; Gray) were withdrawn and deleted before review.

Findings

  • The six unconnected entities are linked to the main graph by sourced relationships.

Research session · AI agent1 Oct 2026

Watergate session 16: act on the owner’s GitHub comments: use exact wording for Nixon’s Aug. 5 statement (#185) and re-propose the Watergate photos with the checker’s fixes (#187).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent1 Oct 2026

Watergate session 16: act on the owner’s GitHub comments: use exact wording for Nixon’s Aug. 5 statement (#185) and re-propose the Watergate photos with the checker’s fixes (#187).

What we looked at

The owner’s GitHub comments: use exact wording for the Nixon claim (#185) and re-propose the photos (#187). Ended early: both are done and nothing else is workable.

What the records show

Nixon’s Aug. 5, 1974 statement is now carried by a claim with his exact words (“was aware of the advantages this course of action would have with respect to limiting possible public exposure of involvement by persons connected with the reelection committee”), and the overview cites it.

What we could not confirm

Agents cannot retire the older loose claim 4a380117 or fix two off-by-one locators on published claims; an editor must.

Changes proposed for review

A new exact-wording claim, a revised overview (596 words), and 19 photographs re-proposed with the people flag set. Bork’s painted portrait is replaced by a 1987 White House photo; Stans’s caption states it is an official, apparently painted, portrait; Sirica’s caption no longer calls him chief judge; the Library of Congress press photos (Mitchell, Cox) remain public records on the owner’s approval of public-use images.

Findings

  • Overview now cites Nixon’s exact words; photos re-proposed with accurate captions and flags.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 15: work and close the open leads (#179 official records for release dates, #181 Hunt/Liddy sentence, #183 remaining photos), leaving owner-decision lead #185 open.

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 15: work and close the open leads (#179 official records for release dates, #181 Hunt/Liddy sentence, #183 remaining photos), leaving owner-decision lead #185 open.

What we looked at

The open leads at the owner’s request: #179 (official records for release dates), #181 (Hunt/Liddy sentence in the overview), #183 (more public-domain photos). Ended early: each was worked or assessed.

What the records show

Nothing new. A National Archives catalog search (Watergate Special Prosecution Force and District Court files) and a CourtListener search returned no parole, release or sentence-reduction record for Mitchell, Haldeman or Ehrlichman.

What we could not confirm

Official records of the three release dates; they rest on wire reporting (AP, UPI).

Changes proposed for review

None. No new proposals this session.

Findings

  • No official record of the defendants’ release dates was found in NARA’s catalog or CourtListener.

Dead ends

  • NARA catalog and CourtListener searches for parole or sentence-reduction records in U.S. v. Mitchell returned nothing relevant.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 14: correction pass on the published overview so its wording matches the cited sources (Nixon’s Aug. 5 statement, LaRue, Mardian, Ruckelshaus/Bork attribution, the one-sided Ehrlichman/Kalmbach sentence).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 14: correction pass on the published overview so its wording matches the cited sources (Nixon’s Aug. 5 statement, LaRue, Mardian, Ruckelshaus/Bork attribution, the one-sided Ehrlichman/Kalmbach sentence).

What we looked at

The published overview, against the checker’s report that several sentences were looser than their sources. Ended early: the correction pass is complete.

What the records show

No new records. The overview now quotes Nixon’s Aug. 5, 1974 words exactly (“aware of the advantages this course of action would have with respect to limiting possible public exposure…”), attributes LaRue’s role to the Senate committee, attributes the Mardian non-retrial to a 2006 obituary that quotes the special prosecutor, and attributes the Ruckelshaus/Bork sequence to the special prosecutor’s report.

What we could not confirm

Agents cannot correct published claims. Claim 4a380117’s statement still paraphrases loosely (its quote is exact), and the locators on claims 92817aeb and abb9fef9 are each off by a page.

Changes proposed for review

A revised case overview (596 words). Dropped for accuracy or length: the one-sided Ehrlichman/Kalmbach sentence, Sloan’s $199,000 line and a weak question in What’s next.

Findings

  • Overview wording now matches its sources.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 13: add public-domain photos to the published people and places (official portraits and government photographs from Wikimedia Commons, NARA, Library of Congress), each attached to its entity with credit, rights and a factual caption.

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 13: add public-domain photos to the published people and places (official portraits and government photographs from Wikimedia Commons, NARA, Library of Congress), each attached to its entity with credit, rights and a factual caption.

What we looked at

At the owner’s request, public-domain photographs for the board’s published people and places. Ended early: every person and place with a clearly public-domain photograph is done; the rest need another source.

What the records show

Nineteen photographs are proposed, each attached to its entity with a factual caption and credit, from White House, National Archives, FBI, Library of Congress, NOAA and court sources (via Wikimedia Commons). The Watergate complex photo is Government Exhibit 1 from the first burglars’ trial, a court record. Identification comes from each file’s own caption, never from faces.

What we could not confirm

No public-domain photo was found for Hunt, McCord, Barker, Martinez, Sturgis, Gonzalez, LaRue, Porter, Kalmbach, Sloan, Ulasewicz, Bittman, Jaworski or the Howard Johnson lodge. Newsday-credited mugshots and a fair-use file were skipped because their public-domain status is unclear.

Changes proposed for review

Nineteen images on the published entities listed above.

Findings

  • Government and court photographs exist in the public domain for most principals; burglars’ and mid-level figures lack clearly public-domain images.

Dead ends

  • Newsday mugshots (McCord, Martinez, Sturgis) are labelled public domain on Commons but the source is a newspaper; not used.
  • The Library of Congress watercolor of McCord’s testimony is a copyrighted artwork; not used.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 12: fix the case overview sent back in review so every sentence matches its cited claim (Ruckelshaus/Bork order, Strachan memo wording, Nixon’s acknowledgement, Kalmbach, Mardian attribution, What’s next).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 12: fix the case overview sent back in review so every sentence matches its cited claim (Ruckelshaus/Bork order, Strachan memo wording, Nixon’s acknowledgement, Kalmbach, Mardian attribution, What’s next).

What we looked at

The case overview sent back in review, where several sentences went beyond their cited claims. Ended early: single-purpose fix session.

What the records show

No new records. Sentences now follow the claims: Richardson resigned, Ruckelshaus was fired for refusing, Bork then dismissed Cox; Strachan shredded a political matters memorandum and related files; Nixon acknowledged awareness that the course of action would limit exposure of people connected with the committee; the Mardian non-retrial is attributed to a 2006 obituary.

What we could not confirm

Official records for the defendants’ release dates (#179).

Changes proposed for review

A revised case overview (599 words). The Hunt and Liddy escape paragraph was cut for length.

Findings

  • Overview sentences now match their cited claims.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 11: restore the two dropped overview sentences and re-propose the overview; close lead #177 (Haldeman’s exact release date) and finish any remaining Watergate work.

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 11: restore the two dropped overview sentences and re-propose the overview; close lead #177 (Haldeman’s exact release date) and finish any remaining Watergate work.

What we looked at

The overview sent back in review (two sentences dropped without explanation) and lead #177 (Haldeman’s exact release date). Ended early because no workable Watergate leads remain.

What the records show

An AP report from Lompoc, Calif. (Daily Sentinel, Rome, N.Y., Dec. 20, 1978, p. 1) says Haldeman walked out of prison shortly after dawn that day as a parolee (reported). It is added as a second-source claim on the published Haldeman release event.

What we could not confirm

No Bureau of Prisons record was reached for any release date; all three rest on wire reporting.

Changes proposed for review

One claim on the published Haldeman release event, and a revised case overview restoring the firing-ruling and LaRue sentences.

Findings

  • Haldeman walked out of Lompoc prison on Dec. 20, 1978 (AP, Daily Sentinel p. 1).

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 10: fix the two items sent back from session 9 (Mitchell’s release event and the overview sentence) with a source confirming the release, and find Ehrlichman’s release date (#175).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 10: fix the two items sent back from session 9 (Mitchell’s release event and the overview sentence) with a source confirming the release, and find Ehrlichman’s release date (#175).

What we looked at

The two items the checker sent back from session 9 (Mitchell’s release event and the overview sentence on release dates), and Ehrlichman’s release date (#175). Ended early by design: a targeted fix session with no other workable Watergate leads.

What the records show

  • Mitchell: UPI reported from Montgomery, Ala. in The Californian of Jan. 19, 1979 (p. 1) that he was freed on parole that day, the last convicted Watergate defendant to leave prison (reported). The earlier AP forecast is kept as a second claim.
  • Ehrlichman: AP (Springfield Leader and Press, Apr. 27, 1978, p. 2) and a UPI photo caption both date his release to April 27, 1978, 18 months after he entered the Safford, Ariz. camp (reported).

What we could not confirm

No Bureau of Prisons record was reached; release dates rest on press reports. Haldeman’s exact December 1978 day is not pinned down.

Changes proposed for review

A corrected Mitchell release event, a new Ehrlichman release event, and a revised case overview naming all three release dates.

Findings

  • Mitchell was freed on parole Jan. 19, 1979 per a same-day UPI report.
  • Ehrlichman was released April 27, 1978 after 18 months (AP; UPI photo caption).

Dead ends

  • Michigan Daily (Bentley) text pages now return 403 to the fetch tool, so the AP quotes there could not be re-verified this session.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 9: close the last three leads: Mardian after the 1976 remand and the release dates (#172), the digitized trial transcripts and exhibits in the National Archives Watergate case files (#173), and Martha Mitchell’s public statements and treatment (#133), using primary records and free archives only.

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 9: close the last three leads: Mardian after the 1976 remand and the release dates (#172), the digitized trial transcripts and exhibits in the National Archives Watergate case files (#173), and Martha Mitchell’s public statements and treatment (#133), using primary records and free archives only.

What we looked at

The last three open leads: what followed Robert Mardian’s 1976 reversal and when the defendants left prison (#172), the National Archives’ digitized trial transcripts (#173), and Martha Mitchell’s statements in June 1972 (#133).

What the records show

  • Prosecutors did not retry Mardian; the special prosecutor dropped the case about three months after the October 1976 reversal (San Francisco Chronicle obituary, reported).
  • Haldeman was released in December 1978 (New York Times, Roanoke Times) and Mitchell about January 19, 1979 (AP, January 14, 1979); both served about 18 months.
  • Trial transcripts: the four Miami defendants answered yes to withdrawing not-guilty pleas and pleading guilty to Counts One through Seven (Tr. 422, Jan. 15, 1973); Alfred Baldwin described watching the DNC offices from Room 723 (Tr. 948, Jan. 17, 1973).
  • Martha Mitchell: the Washington Daily News of June 26, 1972 reported her account to UPI’s Helen Thomas that she had left her husband and that guards used a needle on her at Newport Beach (reported, her statement). John Mitchell testified on July 10, 1973 that the President spent time on the telephone with her on July 1, 1972 (4 Hearings p. 1675). A Library of Congress blog describes her calls to Thomas as an early signal.

What we could not confirm

Ehrlichman’s exact release date. Whether her California account was later confirmed in a primary record; the board records only what she said and what was reported.

Changes proposed for review

Three release and non-retrial events, two trial-transcript claims on published items, two Martha Mitchell statement events with three claims, and a revised case overview.

Findings

  • Mardian was not retried after the Oct. 12, 1976 reversal.
  • Haldeman was released Dec. 1978 and Mitchell about Jan. 19, 1979, each after roughly 18 months.
  • Digitized NARA trial transcripts are citable primary records (Tr. 422 pleas; Tr. 948 Baldwin).
  • Martha Mitchell’s June 1972 account is documented in contemporaneous press; the July 1, 1972 presidential call is confirmed in sworn testimony.

Dead ends

  • Ehrlichman’s exact release date is not in the sources reached (AP Jan. 1979 gives only the 18-month term).
  • The Newspapers.com clipping page returned 403 to the fetch tool, so the source cites the page image id.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 8: re-propose the rejected Watergate photo with the National Archives record as its source, document the appeals of the burglars and the cover-up trial defendants (#170), and look for the Howard Johnson lodge’s address (#169).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 8: re-propose the rejected Watergate photo with the National Archives record as its source, document the appeals of the burglars and the cover-up trial defendants (#170), and look for the Howard Johnson lodge’s address (#169).

Ended early under the owner’s standing permission to push a batch for review mid-session: the appeals are documented, the Howard Johnson lodge has an address, and the rejected photo is re-proposed with a stronger source.

What we looked at

  • Batch 7: approved, except the Watergate aerial photo, which was rejected without a note.
  • The National Archives catalog: its own JSON record for the photo (NARA 546673, use restriction Unrestricted) and the NARA-hosted image.
  • Appeals opinions: United States v. Liddy (509 F.2d 428), McCord (509 F.2d 334), Haldeman (559 F.2d 31) and Mardian (546 F.2d 973), from the Caselaw Access Project.
  • WSPF report: Appendix A pp. 164–166 (scans n167–n169), read on the page images.
  • National Park Service: the registration form for the Watergate (NRHP 05000540), which gives the lodge’s address.

What the records show

  • The photo: the National Archives’ own record names Yoichi Okamoto, May 1973, and the EPA’s DOCUMERICA series, so the photo is now sourced to the archive itself rather than a third-party copy.
  • Appeals of the original defendants:
    • Liddy’s conviction was affirmed on Nov. 8, 1974 and McCord’s on Dec. 12, 1974.
    • The appeals of Hunt, Barker, Martinez, Sturgis and Gonzalez, who had pleaded guilty, were denied on Feb. 25, 1975.
    • The Supreme Court denied certiorari to Liddy (Jan. 27, 1975), McCord (April 21) and Barker (June 9).
  • Cover-up trial appeals: on Oct. 12, 1976 the D.C. Circuit affirmed the convictions of Haldeman, Ehrlichman and Mitchell. The same day it reversed Robert Mardian’s conviction, holding his trial should have been severed, and remanded for a new trial.
  • Lodge address: the National Park Service’s registration form says the Howard Johnson hotel, where a lookout kept watch from room 723, “was located across from the Watergate office complex at 2601 Virginia Avenue, N.W.” and is now part of George Washington University. The lodge now has a location.

What we could not confirm

  • Why the photo was rejected: no note was given.
  • What happened to Mardian after the remand: the opinion sends the case back for a new trial and this session did not check the outcome.
  • The form is a modern government description, not a 1972 record.

Changes proposed for review

  • 5 events: Liddy and McCord affirmances, the Feb. 1975 appeals and certiorari denials, and the Oct. 1976 rulings.
  • 1 entity (Robert C. Mardian) and 6 sources (4 court opinions, the NPS form, the NARA record).
  • A claim and map location for the Howard Johnson lodge.
  • The re-proposed photo and a revised case overview.

Findings

  • On Oct. 12, 1976 the D.C. Circuit affirmed the convictions of Haldeman, Ehrlichman and Mitchell (559 F.2d 31) and reversed Mardian’s conviction for a new trial (546 F.2d 973).
  • The Howard Johnson hotel used as the lookout was at 2601 Virginia Avenue NW, per the National Park Service’s registration form for the Watergate.
  • The WSPF report prints United States v. Liddy as 509 F.2d 482; the court reporter cites it as 509 F.2d 428.

Dead ends

  • The National Archives catalog web pages cannot be opened, but the catalog’s own JSON proxy (catalog.archives.gov/proxy/records/search?naId=...) works and returns records and image links.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 7: the path from the tapes subpoenas to U.S. v. Nixon (#167), and public-domain photos and the Howard Johnson address for the map (#166/#138).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 7: the path from the tapes subpoenas to U.S. v. Nixon (#167), and public-domain photos and the Howard Johnson address for the map (#166/#138).

Ended early under the owner’s standing permission to push a batch for review mid-session: the path from the tapes subpoenas to U.S. v. Nixon is documented and a public-domain photo of the Watergate complex is attached. The lodge address was not found.

What we looked at

  • Prosecutors’ report (WSPF) chronology, pp. 258–260 (scans n261–n263), read on the page images.
  • United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683, from the Caselaw Access Project copy (archived).
  • Nader v. Bork p. 106 note 3 (page image).
  • A National Archives EPA DOCUMERICA photograph (record 546673) through its Wikimedia Commons copy, which cites the catalog record and marks it public domain. The National Archives catalog itself could not be opened from this session.
  • Batch 6 was approved in full before this session began.

What the records show

  • March 1, 1974: the prosecutors’ chronology records an indictment charging Colson, Ehrlichman, Haldeman, Mardian, Mitchell, Parkinson and Strachan with offenses stemming from events after the June 17, 1972 break-in.
  • March 15–29, 1974: Special Prosecutor Jaworski subpoenaed specified documents for the grand jury, and the President complied on March 29.
  • April 16, 1974: the Special Prosecutor issued a trial subpoena for 64 White House taped conversations.
  • May 20, 1974: Judge Sirica enforced it. The Supreme Court granted certiorari on May 31 and heard argument on July 8.
  • Date conflict: the prosecutors’ chronology dates the subpoena April 16, while the Supreme Court’s opinion says a subpoena issued from the district court on April 18 on the Special Prosecutor’s motion, returnable May 2. The two accounts are recorded side by side.
  • The photograph: an aerial view of the Watergate complex, the Kennedy Center and the Potomac, May 1973, by Yoichi Okamoto. It is attached to the Watergate complex entity with a caption that says it does not show which building held the DNC offices.

What we could not confirm

  • The Howard Johnson Motor Lodge’s 1972 address: none of the records read gives one, so the place still has no map pin.
  • Whether the May 20 district court order also set the delivery date: the opinion says so in the next sentence, which I did not quote.

Changes proposed for review

  • 5 events: the March 1 indictment, the March 15–29 subpoena, the April 16 subpoena, Sirica’s May 20 enforcement (with the May 31 and July 8 steps), and 2 added claims from the Supreme Court opinion.
  • 2 entities (Leon Jaworski, John J. Sirica), 3 sources, 1 attached image, and a revised case overview.

Findings

  • The prosecutors’ chronology dates the Special Prosecutor’s trial subpoena April 16, 1974; the Supreme Court’s opinion says it issued April 18 on the Special Prosecutor’s motion.
  • A public-domain EPA DOCUMERICA photograph of the Watergate complex (NARA 546673, May 1973) is available and is now attached to the complex’s entity.

Dead ends

  • The National Archives catalog (catalog.archives.gov) could not be opened from the browser in this session; the Commons copy with the NARA record number was used instead.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 6: Ehrlichman’s Senate testimony (#163/#154), the shredded memo dispute between Strachan and Haldeman (#164), and places and public-domain images for the map (#138).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 6: Ehrlichman’s Senate testimony (#163/#154), the shredded memo dispute between Strachan and Haldeman (#164), and places and public-domain images for the map (#138).

Ended early under the owner’s standing permission to push a batch for review mid-session: Ehrlichman’s testimony and the shredded-memo dispute are documented, and three leads are answered.

What we looked at

  • Senate committee hearing books (same archive.org item as the final report), quotes read on the page images:
    • Book 6 pp. 2458 (Strachan, July 23, 1973) and 2571–2572 (Ehrlichman, July 24).
    • Book 8 p. 3038 (Haldeman, July 31).
  • Final report pp. 1 and 29 (scans n32, n60) for the Howard Johnson Motor Lodge.
  • Batch 5 was approved in full before this session began.

What the records show

  • Ehrlichman (#163, #154): he testified that Kalmbach did not ask him whether the defendants’ fund was proper and that he would have been “terribly slow” to reassure Kalmbach without checking first. He said they did discuss secrecy, because Kalmbach said Ulasewicz was carrying money back and forth, and that he had nothing to do with the delivery details. The Senate report records Kalmbach’s account that Ehrlichman reassured him on July 26, 1972, and Ehrlichman’s denial.
  • The shredded memo (#164):
    • Strachan testified Haldeman told him “Well, make sure our files are clean” on June 20, 1972. He said he shredded the political matters memo and related documents, believing he was following Haldeman’s orders.
    • Haldeman testified he did not recall the conversation or giving Strachan such an instruction. He added that, by Strachan’s own statement, Strachan destroyed material he thought politically embarrassing, not evidence of illegal activities.
  • Places (#138, partly): the Howard Johnson Motor Lodge is proposed as a place. The final report says Baldwin was a lookout and monitored intercepted calls there, across the street from the Watergate. The Watergate complex already has coordinates.

What we could not confirm

  • The lodge’s street address: none of the records I opened gives one, so it has no map pin.
  • I did not search National Archives or Nixon Library public-domain photos this session.
  • Whether Kalmbach’s “reassurance” account can be cited directly: it is on the board through the published July 1972 event description and the Senate report.

Changes proposed for review

  • 4 events: Ehrlichman (July 24), Strachan (July 23), Haldeman (July 31) and one place entity, the Howard Johnson Motor Lodge.
  • A revised case overview.

Findings

  • Ehrlichman testified Kalmbach did not ask him about the propriety of the defendants’ fund, but that they discussed secrecy because Ulasewicz was carrying money (6 Hearings pp. 2571-2572).
  • Strachan (July 23, 1973) said Haldeman told him to make sure the files were clean and he shredded memo #18; Haldeman (July 31) said he does not recall giving that instruction (6 Hearings p. 2458; 8 Hearings p. 3038).

Dead ends

  • The Howard Johnson Motor Lodge’s street address is in none of the records read so far, so it cannot be geocoded without an outside source.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 5: re-propose the four sent-back items from session 4, then close leads: Strachan/Haldeman and memo #18 (#160), Sloan/Stans testimony and Liddy’s payments (#161, #158), Dean’s Senate testimony (#154, #134), and the money-trail and Saturday Night Massacre leads (#130, #135).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 5: re-propose the four sent-back items from session 4, then close leads: Strachan/Haldeman and memo #18 (#160), Sloan/Stans testimony and Liddy’s payments (#161, #158), Dean’s Senate testimony (#154, #134), and the money-trail and Saturday Night Massacre leads (#130, #135).

Ended early under the owner’s standing permission to push a batch for review mid-session: the four sent-back items are re-proposed and six leads are answered from primary records.

What we looked at

Five volumes of the Senate committee’s hearings (same archive.org item as the final report), each quote read on the page image:

  • Book 2 pp. 538–539 and 574 (Sloan, June 6, 1973) and p. 727 (Stans, June 13).
  • Book 3 pp. 930 and 998 (Dean, June 25).
  • Book 6 p. 2441 (Strachan, July 20).
  • Book 8 p. 3036 (Haldeman, July 31).
  • Book 4 p. 1614 (Mitchell) and Book 6 p. 2281 (LaRue), re-read for the two testimony events sent back.

What the records show

  • Liddy’s pay (#158, #161): Sloan testified Liddy received about $199,000 in cash, came with a $250,000 budget near April 7, 1972 and said the first item would be $83,000. Magruder told Sloan to pay it, and Stans told Sloan, after checking with Mitchell, “I do not want to know and you don’t want to know.” Stans testified it was “the substance of what was said” but part of a broader frustration with the campaign’s spending.
  • The money trail (#130): Sloan testified that on the evening of April 5, 1972 Roy Winchester brought the Mexican cashier’s checks to his office in a briefcase that, with cash, came to about $700,000. Sloan said the Mexican checks and the Dahlberg check were treated as pre-April 7 funds.
  • What the White House was told (#160): Strachan testified Magruder reported after the March 30 meeting that a “sophisticated political intelligence-gathering system has been approved with a budget of 300”, and that he passed a three-line paragraph to Haldeman in an early-April memo. Haldeman testified he did not recall it and that such an item would not have struck his attention.
  • Dean (#134): On June 25 Dean described Liddy’s Jan. 27 and Feb. 4 presentations: Mitchell found the plan out of the question, and Haldeman agreed the White House should have nothing to do with it. Dean also gave his account of telling the President on March 21, 1973 that there was a cancer growing on the Presidency.
  • Saturday Night Massacre (#135): the dismissal event and the Nader v. Bork ruling are on the board, so the lead is answered.

What we could not confirm

  • Whether Mitchell approved Liddy’s plan: Magruder, Mitchell and LaRue still conflict.
  • Ehrlichman’s Senate testimony is not yet read, so #154 stays open.
  • The Sloan claims say the Mexican checks reached the office on April 5, but the transcript leaves it unclear whether Sloan’s “both” meant the Dahlberg check or the two Mexican checks.

Changes proposed for review

  • Re-proposed: Mitchell and LaRue testimony events, and the $83,000 event with Sloan’s words inside the quote.
  • New events: Sloan, Stans, Strachan, Haldeman, two Dean statements (Liddy’s plan; March 21), and the Winchester delivery.
  • New: one entity (Strachan) and sources for hearing Books 3 and 8.
  • A revised case overview with the checker’s edits.

Findings

  • Sloan testified Liddy received about $199,000 in cash and that the first request was $83,000, cleared with Magruder and Stans (2 Hearings pp. 538-539).
  • Strachan (July 20, 1973) and Haldeman (July 31, 1973) gave different sworn accounts of the early-April 1972 memo reporting an approved intelligence system with a budget of 300.
  • Hearing-book page offsets: Book 3 printed page = scan + 905; Book 8 = scan + 3013.

Dead ends

  • None this session beyond the hearing-book offsets, which are now recorded.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 4: apply the checker’s six quote-scope fixes from batch 26f8900e, then read the Senate hearing transcripts on the Key Biscayne meeting and how Liddy was paid.

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 4: apply the checker’s six quote-scope fixes from batch 26f8900e, then read the Senate hearing transcripts on the Key Biscayne meeting and how Liddy was paid.

Ended early under the owner’s standing permission to push a batch for review mid-session: the four sent-back items are re-proposed, two planned leads are done, and the overview is revised.

What we looked at

  • The Senate Select Committee’s final report, pp. 21–26 (scans n52–n57), read on page images.
  • The committee’s hearing books (same archive.org item), page images read for each quote:
    • Book 2, pp. 794–795: Magruder, June 14, 1973.
    • Book 4, p. 1614: Mitchell, July 10, 1973.
    • Book 6, pp. 2281–2282: LaRue, July 18, 1973.
  • WSPF report, Appendix A p. 165 (Sturgis).

What the records show

  • Sworn testimony on the March 30, 1972 Key Biscayne meeting:
    • Magruder said the last item was Liddy’s roughly $250,000 proposal, that Mitchell agreed to approve it, and that it covered an entry into the DNC headquarters.
    • Mitchell testified his decision was a rejection: “We don’t need this, I am tired of hearing it, out, let’s not discuss it any further.”
    • LaRue, who was present, testified he told Mitchell it was not worth the risk and Mitchell said it was not something that would have to be decided at that meeting. LaRue said Mitchell did not reject it out of hand to his recollection.
  • How Liddy was paid (Final report p. 26): Liddy asked Hugh Sloan for $83,000. Sloan checked with Magruder, then with Stans, who checked with Mitchell and confirmed Magruder’s authority. Sloan testified Stans said “I do not want to know and you don’t want to know”; Stans disputed the context but agreed it was the substance of what was said. Mitchell testified he told Stans only that Magruder had authority to pay Liddy.
  • Re-proposed: Sturgis (with the indictment date inside the quote), the January 1973 trial (full trial-theory quote; Sturgis, Martinez and Gonzalez now participants), the Jan. 27 meeting (Mitchell’s and Hunt’s accounts in one quote), and the March 30 meeting (the $250,000 budget as its own claim).

What we could not confirm

  • Whether Mitchell approved the plan: three sworn accounts conflict and each is recorded as given.
  • When the $83,000 was actually paid: the report records the request and the clearance, not the payment date.
  • The hearing dates come from each volume’s day headings, not from the page image.

Changes proposed for review

  • 1 entity (Sturgis, re-proposed) and 1 new entity (Hugh Sloan).
  • 7 events: the four re-proposed plus three sworn-testimony events and the $83,000 request, which are new.
  • 3 new sources (hearing Books 2, 4 and 6) and a revised case overview.

Findings

  • Magruder (June 14, 1973), Mitchell (July 10, 1973) and LaRue (July 18, 1973) gave three different sworn accounts of the March 30, 1972 Key Biscayne meeting.
  • Liddy’s $83,000 request to Sloan was cleared through Stans and Mitchell a few days after March 30, 1972 (Final report p. 26).
  • Hearing-book page offsets on archive.org: Book 2 printed page = scan + 451; Book 4 = scan + 1343; Book 6 = scan + 2218.

Dead ends

  • The hearing books’ djvu text has no page breaks, so printed pages must be matched by fetching scan images; a few test fetches per book fix the offset.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 3: fix and re-propose the items sent back from session 2, then document who approved Liddy’s plan (January–March 1972 meetings).

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 3: fix and re-propose the items sent back from session 2, then document who approved Liddy’s plan (January–March 1972 meetings).

Ended early under the owner’s standing permission to push a batch for review mid-session: every sent-back item is re-proposed and the two planned leads are done.

What we looked at

  • The Senate Select Committee’s final report (1974), pp. 2, 12, 21–25, 44, 52–57, 66, 70 and 107, read on the Final Report’s own page images. Printed page = scan number − 31.
  • The Watergate Special Prosecution Force report (1975), Appendix A pp. 156 and 164–165 and the chronology p. 259.
  • Nader v. Bork, 366 F. Supp. 104, at 107–108, on the page images of the reported opinion.

What the records show

  • Liddy’s plan (Senate report pp. 21–25):
    • Jan. 27, 1972: Liddy presented a $1 million plan in Attorney General Mitchell’s office, with Magruder and Dean present. It was not approved.
    • Feb. 4, 1972: a reduced $500,000 plan was presented to the same group. Magruder testified it was postponed.
    • March 30, 1972, Key Biscayne: Magruder testified Mitchell approved a $250,000 plan that included an entry into the DNC headquarters. Mitchell denied approving it. LaRue testified Mitchell said it did not have to be decided at that meeting.
  • Colson (p. 23): Magruder testified that Colson, special counsel to the President, called urging approval of the Liddy project. Colson told staff he called Magruder to ask him to hear the plan.
  • Corrected session-2 items: the hush-money chain, the indictment, the trial, the McCord letter, the Plumbers, and Nader v. Bork, now with the right printed page numbers.
  • Added roles: Kalmbach as the President’s personal attorney and Ulasewicz as a former New York City policeman (p. 107); Magruder as deputy director (p. 44); Dorothy Hunt’s first name (p. 66).
  • Remaining defendants (WSPF Appendix A): Sturgis, Martinez and Gonzalez each pleaded guilty on Jan. 15, 1973 and were sentenced to one to four years. Porter pleaded guilty on Jan. 28, 1974 and was sentenced on April 11, 1974.

What we could not confirm

  • Whether Mitchell approved the plan: the record is three conflicting accounts, and each is recorded as given.
  • The chronology’s date for Porter’s sentence: the entry carries no date of its own and follows the April 5, 1974 entries; Appendix A says April 11.
  • Stans’s title: his summary now states only what the cited page shows.

Changes proposed for review

  • 13 entities: nine re-proposed (Kalmbach, Ulasewicz, LaRue, Stans, Bittman, Dorothy Hunt, Magruder, the Plumbers, Bork) and four new (Sturgis, Martinez, Gonzalez, Porter).
  • 14 events: eleven re-proposed and three new meetings.
  • 3 relationships, a deliveries-only chart, two claims on Colson, and a revised case overview.

Findings

  • The Senate report records three conflicting accounts of the March 30, 1972 Key Biscayne meeting: Magruder said Mitchell approved Liddy’s plan, Mitchell denied it, and LaRue recalled no decision.
  • In the Senate final report, printed page = scan number − 31, confirmed on the Final Report’s own page images.
  • The archive.org Senate item also holds Hearings Books 1–25, including the Phase I testimony volumes.

Dead ends

  • The archive.org shortcut page/nNN.jpg opens the wrong volume for the multi-file Senate item; page images must be requested from the Final Report jp2 zip.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 2: hush money and the burglars’ trial from primary records, plus corrections from the checker’s session-1 notes.

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

Watergate session 2: hush money and the burglars’ trial from primary records, plus corrections from the checker’s session-1 notes.

Ended early under the owner’s standing permission to push a batch for review mid-session. All four planned leads were finished at about 30 minutes, with about 55 claims in the batch.

What we looked at

  • The Senate Select Committee’s final report (1974), pp. 3, 13 and 52–58, on the break-in trial, the Plumbers and the payments to the defendants.
  • The Watergate Special Prosecution Force report (1975):
    • Appendix A case summaries, pp. 155–156 and 164–165.
    • The chronology, pp. 253–254 and 259–260.
    • Page images were checked for every quote.
  • Nader v. Bork, 366 F. Supp. 104 (D.D.C. Nov. 14, 1973), from the Harvard Caselaw Access Project copy (archived). CourtListener and Justia were blocked.

What the records show

  • Payments to the defendants (Senate report pp. 52–58):
    • Maurice Stans testified he gave Herbert Kalmbach $75,000 on June 29, 1972.
    • Tony Ulasewicz delivered cash: $25,000 to Hunt’s lawyer William Bittman in a phone booth, $40,000 to Dorothy Hunt in an airport locker, and on Sept. 19 $53,000 to Mrs. Hunt and $29,000 to Fred LaRue.
    • Kalmbach raised $75,000 from Northrop’s Thomas V. Jones.
    • LaRue admitted a $75,000 payment for Hunt in March 1973 after Mitchell approved it.
    • Seven dated transaction events and a transactions chart on Kalmbach were proposed.
  • Break-in case (Senate report; WSPF chronology):
    • The indictment was on Sept. 15, 1972.
    • Five defendants pleaded guilty in January 1973, and McCord and Liddy were convicted on Jan. 30.
    • Judge Sirica read McCord’s letter on March 23, 1973.
  • Sentences (WSPF Appendix A and chronology):
    • Hunt: 30 months to 8 years and $10,000.
    • Liddy: 6 years 8 months to 20 years and $40,000.
    • McCord: 1 to 5 years, later reduced to time served.
    • Barker: 18 months to 6 years, later reduced to time served.
    • Magruder: 10 months to 4 years.
    • Colson: pleaded guilty June 3, 1974; sentenced to 1 to 3 years and $5,000.
    • Dean, LaRue and Mitchell: sentences also added.
  • Nader v. Bork: Judge Gesell declared that Cox was illegally discharged, because the regulation allowed removal only for “extraordinary improprieties”. He denied reinstatement and dismissed Nader as a plaintiff for lack of standing. The opinion also records that Bork rescinded the regulation on Oct. 23, 1973, retroactive to Oct. 21.

What we could not confirm

  • The amount of LaRue’s July 19, 1972 payment to Kalmbach: the accounts differ, so no amount was set.
  • Porter’s sentencing date: the WSPF chronology lists it among April 5, 1974 entries, while Appendix A says April 11.
  • The page image for the Senate report’s description of Colson as “special counsel to the President”, because scan offsets differ in that part of the volume.

Changes proposed for review

  • 10 entities: Kalmbach, Ulasewicz, LaRue, Stans, Bittman, Dorothy Hunt, Magruder, the Plumbers, Bork and Colson.
  • 11 events: 7 transactions, the indictment, the burglars’ trial, McCord’s letter and Nader v. Bork.
  • 4 relationships and one transactions chart.
  • Claims added to the published Hunt, Liddy, McCord, Barker, Dean, Mitchell, cover-up trial and Saturday Night Massacre items.
  • A revised case overview.

Findings

  • The Senate report (pp. 52–58) documents the chain of cash from Stans and Kalmbach through Ulasewicz and LaRue to the Watergate defendants, June 1972 – March 1973.
  • Nader v. Bork (D.D.C. Nov. 14, 1973) declared Cox’s dismissal illegal under the Justice Department regulation then in force.
  • WSPF Appendix A gives the plea or verdict date and the sentence for each original Watergate defendant.

Dead ends

  • CourtListener and Justia were blocked for Nader v. Bork; the Caselaw Access Project static copy worked.
  • Archive.org search-inside for the WSPF report returned ‘No hOCR or Abbyy file present’ with the /30/items path; use page images with the n = printed page + 3 offset instead.

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

First Watergate session: build the core record from Slow Burn transcripts and primary sources for the break-in, the money trail, the June 23, 1972 tape and U.S. v. Nixon / impeachment.

Read session notes ↓

Research session · AI agent30 Sept 2026

First Watergate session: build the core record from Slow Burn transcripts and primary sources for the break-in, the money trail, the June 23, 1972 tape and U.S. v. Nixon / impeachment.

What we looked at

This first Watergate session built the case’s core timeline from primary records, using Slow Burn season 1 (episodes 1 and 2) as a map. Records read: the Senate Watergate Committee’s final report (1974), the Nixon Library transcripts of the June 23, 1972 and March 21, 1973 Oval Office conversations, United States v. Nixon (418 U.S. 683), the House Judiciary Committee’s impeachment report (H. Rept. 93-1305), the Watergate Special Prosecution Force report (1975), Nixon’s Aug. 5 and Aug. 8, 1974 statements, and Proclamation 4311. The session closed at about 55 minutes, at a natural checkpoint, to push the batch for review (the owner allows mid-session pushes).

What the records show

  • The break-in. Police arrested five men in the DNC offices on June 17, 1972, including McCord, security chief of the re-election committee; Hunt and Liddy escaped, and FBI agents found their White House phone numbers in the burglars’ address books (Senate report).
  • The money. The $25,000 Dahlberg check and $89,000 in Mexican checks, given to Nixon’s campaign, passed through Barker’s Miami account, and serial numbers tied the burglars’ cash to it (Senate report; June 23 tape).
  • The tapes. On June 23, 1972 Haldeman proposed having the CIA’s Walters tell the FBI to “stay the hell out of this,” and Nixon agreed (conversation 741-2). On March 21, 1973 Dean spoke of “a cancer … close to the Presidency” and Nixon said a million dollars could be had in cash (886-008). On Aug. 5, 1974 Nixon acknowledged what the June 23 tapes showed (his statement).
  • The endgame. House vote of 410-4 for the inquiry; committee votes of 27-11, 28-10 and 21-17 (H. Rept. 93-1305); U.S. v. Nixon, decided July 24, 1974; the resignation address; the pardon (Proclamation 4311).
  • Also recorded: Butterfield’s disclosure (Senate report); the Saturday Night Massacre, the 18½-minute gap, Dean’s plea, and the convictions and sentences in U.S. v. Mitchell (WSPF report).

What we could not confirm

  • The text of Nader v. Bork (CourtListener and Justia were blocked to the tools).
  • Hunt’s and Liddy’s exact positions, from a primary record.
  • The Patman committee vote and Martha Mitchell’s account, which rest on Slow Burn only (reported).

Changes proposed for review

16 entities, 16 events, 4 relationships and about 61 claims from 12 sources, and the board’s first case overview.

Findings

  • June 23, 1972 tape (741-2): Haldeman proposes Walters tell Gray ‘Stay the hell out of this’; Nixon: ‘don’t go any further into this case’
  • March 21, 1973 tape (886-008): Dean ‘We have a cancer--within, close to the Presidency’; Nixon ‘you could get a million dollars. And you could get it in cash’
  • Senate final report: $25,000 Dahlberg and $89,000 Mexican checks deposited in Barker’s Miami account; serial numbers tied burglars’ $100 bills to the cash (scan n68)
  • H. Rept. 93-1305: Articles I-III adopted 27-11 (July 27), 28-10 (July 29), 21-17 (July 30); H. Res. 803 passed 410-4 on Feb. 6, 1974
  • WSPF report: Mitchell, Haldeman, Ehrlichman sentenced 2½ to 8 years; Mardian 10 months to 3 years; Parkinson acquitted
  • Nixon Aug. 5, 1974 statement admits June 23 tapes conflict with earlier statements

Dead ends

  • govinfo has no copy of the 1974 Senate final report or H. Rept. 93-1305; used Internet Archive scans
  • Senate final report PDF is 61 MB (too large for the tools); quotes checked against its OCR text with scan-page positions from the Archive’s search-inside index
  • Nader v. Bork (366 F. Supp. 104): CourtListener opinion page unreadable by tools and blocked in the browser; Justia 403
  • Slow Burn ep. 2 has no Dahlberg detail (Patman / Mexican checks only)