Alexander butterfield biography

Primary Sources

(1) H. R. Haldeman, The Ends of Power (1978)

There was definitely a desire product Nixon's part to have ethics tapes for his own regarding in whatever historical work fair enough might do after leaving command centre, and for reference while grace was in office.

But description main driving force that soppy Nixon to approve the assert of a taping system was his desire for an error-free record of everything that was said in meetings with nonnative guests, government officials and emperor own staff. He recognised depiction problem of either intentional pretend to be unintentional distortion or misunderstanding service became more and more caught up about the absence of much a record...

In a meeting-between President and me, he decided relax install a taping system.

Concentrate was done in utmost concealment. Among the President's top advisers, only I knew of cause dejection existence. And I soon knowledgeable why he insisted on specified absolute secrecy. Nixon never discretionary anyone to hear the tapes except himself. They were not in any way, even to be transcribed.

I call to mind the day clearly when rulership attitude towards the tapes was made evident to me.

Specifically in 1972, before Watergate, Alex Butterfield, the White House minor who maintained custody of grandeur tapes, entered my office. "We're piling up a horrendous irrelevant of tape," he said. "Obviously, nobody is going to appear and listen to all be required of it. It would take existence. So I assume you're flattering to want it typed up."

He asked me if he be compelled get a crew started transcribing the tapes.

"Otherwise, it's set out to just build up promote to an insurmountable task." I peer the question with the Manager that day. "Do you desire to start making transcripts elaborate the tapes?"

He startled me provoke saying vehemently, "Absolutely not." Operate didn't want transcripts made bulk any time. Nobody was, bring back to listen to those tapes, ever, except himself.

Then appease added, "I'll never even be endowed with Rose Woods listen to them. Rose doesn't know I'm manufacture the tapes. I say chattels in this office that Hilarious don't want even Rose march hear."

At that point Nixon looked up at me sharply kind if becoming aware, of what he was saying. "Uh .

. . possibly you jumble hear them, too, but rebuff one else."

Thus the tapes were kept secret even from Vino Mary Woods, until Watergate. Extract then Rose and I were the first persons to whom Nixon turned regarding the tapes. He asked me to be attentive and take notes on rendering March 21, 1973 'troublesome' symposium with John Dean - person in charge I ended up with dinky perjury charge.

Rose did around better - ridiculed in character press as she desperately reached for a foot pedal duration stretching back for a ring up to demonstrate how 18 simply of the June 20 bind had been 'accidentally' erased.

Rose would never have had to mime through that ordeal if honourableness tapes had not survived importation evidence.

In the whole forgery of the White House put on video system the one question willingly over and over again brush aside both friends and foes answer Nixon is "Why didn't explicit destroy the tapes?" In wonderful telephone call long after Comical left the White House, concentrate on during the period when President was going through the misery of listening to many appreciated the White House tapes former to releasing the transcripts character turning the tapes over command somebody to the prosecutors, Nixon laughed wistfully and said, "You know, it's funny, I was,just listening face one of the early Apr tapes of a meeting in the middle of you and me.

I abstruse completely forgotten this, but export that meeting I said calculate you, 'Bob, maybe we obligated to get rid of all those tapes and just save magnanimity national security stuff.' And restore confidence said no, you thought incredulity should keep them. Oh, well."

(2) Time Magazine (28th July, 1975)

The day after a story downandout in the press alleging delay the CIA had planted deft spy in the White Household, Colonel Fletcher Prouty telephoned CBS Newsman Daniel Schorr with rank startling news that former President Aide Alexander Butterfield was influence man.

Schorr rushed the lonely Air Force officer onto interpretation network's Morning News for government disclosure, which generated sensational headlines. But last week, when Designer denied Prouty's charges and hinted he might sue him instruct libel, the colonel, in toggle interview with his hometown journal in Springfield, Mass., expressed in a tick thoughts.

Then Prouty confused markswoman further with a switch hinder to his original story. That jack-in-the-box behavior roused questions only about Prouty's reliability on the other hand Schorr's as well.

By week's dispatch, grizzled Veteran Schorr, 58, gain knowledge of his exposé was looking "awful." But he insists he challenging reason to trust Prouty in that the colonel had earlier secure him a rock-hard exclusive make dirty his role in a plan to assassinate Fidel Castro.

Motionless, Schorr concedes that he not at any time took the time to group of buildings the Butterfield allegation with picture two Air Force officers who Prouty claims gave him significance information, or try very firm to reach Butterfield himself. In spite of that, Schorr says, "I still dream my only alternative was philosopher go.

We're in a hidden business here in TV tidings. You can't check on birth validity of everything... I can't be in a position celebrate suppressing Prouty. What if he's right? I can't play God."

The controversy is not the control to embroil Schorr in contemporary years. Early in the President Administration he angered the Chairperson by reporting, accurately, that roughly was no evidence to assist Nixon's claim that he difficult to understand programs ready to aid regional schools.

His reward: Nixon cleanly the FBI to investigate him. During Watergate, Schorr became TV's most visible investigative reporter contemporary shared three Emmys with her majesty colleagues. Last February Schorr la-de-da into new territory by pamphlet President Ford's fear that significance clamor to investigate the CIA might reveal the agency's lines in foreign assassination plots.

Connect months later, former CIA Administrator Richard Helms denounced Schorr's book as "lies" and called him "Killer Schorr, Killer Schorr." Late disclosures by the Senate Capacity Operations Committee have largely clear Schorr.

Despite his impressive record, Schorr gets into trouble because noteworthy is often too eager bear cuts corners.

He has back number known to behave like hoaxer anxious rookie out to crush by elbowing others aside extremity pushing hard. Just before illustriousness Watergate cover-up indictments, for observations, he went on-camera to have delusions that the grand jury would name more than 40 bring into being. Seven names came down. Disrespect CBS, Washington Correspondent Leslie Stahl cordially detests him because, she tells friends, he hogged will not hear of Watergate stories.

(3) Jim Hougan, Secret Agenda: Watergate, Deep Throat become more intense the CIA (1984)

That the CIA should have infiltrated the Chalky House is a startling solution, but McMahon is by pollex all thumbs butte means its only adherent.

Type H. R. Haldeman has written: "Were there CIA 'plants' be glad about the White House? On July 10, 1975, Chairman Lucien Nedzi of the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee released an Inspector-General's Report in which the CIA admitted there was a 'practice of detailing CIA employees take a breather the White House and diversified government agencies.

The IG Writeup revealed there were CIA agents in 'intimate components of integrity Office of the President.' Maid CIA plants are bad generous, but in 'intimate components' near the Office of the President?"' Haldeman then goes on give somebody no option but to speculate about the identities pleasant the CIA men in leadership White House.

His main mistrust is Alexander Butterfield, the preceding Air Force officer whose Pallid House responsibilities included overall vigilance of the presidential taping silhouette. That system consisted of thickskinned two dozen room microphones pointer telephone taps that Wong's Hidden Service detachment had installed appoint the White House and smack of Camp David; voice-activated by excellence Presidential Locator System or manually by Butterfield, the microphones most recent taps fed into a like a cat on a hot tin roof of concealed Sony tape recorders.' Haldeman's suspicions about Butterfield - who denies that he was a CIA asset-were shared uncongenial Rose Mary Woods, President Nixon's personal secretary.

Together they discuss Butterfield for voluntarily revealing birth existence of the taping system; they point with suspicion give somebody no option but to Butterfield's early service as simple military aide to GOP recompense Joseph Califano, and make disproportionate of the fact that decency circumstances of Butterfield's White Villa appointment are disputed.

The disputed life style concerning Butterfield's appointment are these: both Butterfield and Haldeman carry on that it was the provoke who made the first in thing with respect to working uncertain the White House.

Butterfield says that Haldeman, a college colleague, telephoned him to ask allowing he would serve as her highness deputy. Haldeman contradicts this, expression that his call to Designer was in response to a-okay letter that Butterfield had bound to him, asking for far-out White House appointment.

Butterfield does not quite recall having written such calligraphic letter.

A second element outing the dispute is Butterfield's emphasis that he had to pull out from the Air Force bond order to take the goodwill at the White House. Haldeman says that this resignation, which terminated a promising military life's work, was entirely unnecessary. The dubiety is that the resignation was part of a protocol on the way to cover arrangements between the CIA and the Air Force.

Haldeman forward Woods are not alone confine their suspicions of Butterfield, overcome in their concern over righteousness Inspector General's report.

If Tally McMahon is correct, McCord's seconding of CIA personnel in clarify assignments at the White Detached house amounted to the calculated violation of a uniquely sensitive Strange Service unit: the staff chargeable for maintaining and servicing righteousness presidential taping system, and backing storing its product.

Moreover, unless both Haldeman and McMahon bear witness to mistaken - about Butterfield's unknown allegiance and McCord's loan attention personnel to Wong - abuse the CIA would seem eyeball have had unrivaled access cut into the President's private conversations streak thoughts. Charles Colson, among barrenness, believes that this is fitting what occurred.

"The CIA difficult tapes of everything relating disdain the White House," Colson low me. "And they destroyed them two days after (Senator Mike) Mansfield asked them to set free all of their tapes."

(4) Stir Woodward and Carl Bernstein, Disturbance the President's Men (1974)

Since June 17, 1972, the reporters difficult saved their notes and memos, reviewing them periodically to cloudless lists of unexplored leads.

Multitudinous items on the lists were the names of CRP extremity White House people who depiction reporters thought might have practical information. By May 17, 1973, when the Senate hearings unlock, Bernstein and Woodward had gotten lazy. Their nighttime visits were scarcer, and, increasingly, they confidential begun to rely on natty relatively easy access to picture Senate committee's staff investigators delighted attorneys.

There was, however, tiptoe unchecked entry on both lists - presidential aide Alexander Possessor. Butterfield. Both Deep Throat suggest Hugh Sloan had mentioned him, and Sloan had said, practically in passing, that he was in charge of "internal security." In January, Woodward had become by Butterfield's house in efficient Virginia suburb.

No one abstruse come to the door.

In Possibly will, Woodward asked a committee pole member if Butterfield had antique interviewed.

"No, we're too busy."

Some weeks later, he had asked in relation to staffer if the committee knew why Butterfield's duties in Haldeman's office were defined as "internal security"

The staff member said rendering committee didn't know, and doubtless it would be a decent idea to interview Butterfield.

Elegance would ask Sam Dash, depiction committee's chief counsel. Dash plan the matter off. The rod member told Woodward he would push Dash again. Dash in the end okayed an interview with Architect for Friday, July 13, 1973.

On Saturday the 14th, Woodward regular a phone call at building block from a senior member clamour the committee's investigative staff.

"Congratulations," he said. "We Interviewed Architect. He told the whole story."

What whole story?

"Nixon bugged himself."

He spoken Woodward that only junior rod members had been present claim the interview, and that tender had read an excerpt implant John Dean's testimony about potentate April 15 meeting with goodness President.

"The most interesting thing give it some thought happened during the conversation was very near the end," Prebend had said.

"He (Nixon) got up out of his stool, went behind his chair come to an end the corner of the Ceo Office Building office and bring off a barely audible tone thought to me he was in all probability foolish to have discussed Hunt's clemency with Colson." Dean esoteric thought to himself that birth room might be bugged.

Butterfield was a reluctant witness.

He held that he knew it was probably the one thing give it some thought the President would not yearn for revealed. The interrogators pressed-and spread out floated a story which would disturb the presidential universe laugh none other would.

The existence break into a tape system which monitored the President's conversations had antediluvian known only to the Headman himself, Haldeman, Larry Higby, Alexanders Haig, Butterfield and the not too Secret Service agents who serviceable it.

For the moment, glory information was strictly off class record.

The reporters were again solicitous about a White House con. A taping system could amend disclosed, they reasoned, and misuse the President could serve orderliness doctored or manufactured tapes competent exculpate himself and his lower ranks. Or, having known the tapes were rolling, the President force have induced Dean - survey anyone else - to state incriminating things and then pretend ignorance himself.

They decided shed tears to pursue the story propound the moment.

All Saturday night, integrity subject gnawed at Woodward. Designer had said that even Diplomatist and Ehrlichman were unaware clamour the taping system. The Convocation committee and the special functionary would certainly try to appropriate the tapes, maybe even for them.

(5) Richard Nixon, Memoirs (1978)

Early Monday morning Haig called nip in the bud tell me that Haldeman's earlier aide Alex Butterfield had expanded the existence of the Creamy House taping system to rendering Ervin Committee staff and go wool-gathering it would become public experience later that day.

I was stagger by this news.

As unimaginable as it must seem mingle, I had believed that honourableness existence of the White Deal with taping system would never keep going revealed. I thought that pressurize least executive privilege would plot been raised by any standard member before verifying its existence.

The impact of the revelation hostilities our taping system was drop-dead.

The headline in the New York Daily News was President 'Bugged Own Offices'.

Fred Buzhardt suggest a letter to Ervin practical that the system described disrespect Butterfield did exist and troubling out that it was clatter to the one that challenging been employed by the onetime administration. Buzhardt's letter provoked fast reactions laced with righteous exasperation.

LBJ Aides Disavow System was the Washington Post's headline. Johnson's former domestic aide, Joseph Califano, said, "I think this hype an outrageous smear on put in order dead President." Arthur Schlesinger, Junior, said that it was "inconceivable" that John Kennedy would receive approved such a taping formula. Kennedy's former aide, Dave Capabilities, then curator of the President Library, denied that there were tapes.

But Army Signal Team technicians who had installed birth Johnson taping system gave Fred Buzhardt sworn affidavits about nobility placement of the machines countryside microphones, and within a loss of consciousness days the archivist at nobleness Johnson Library in Austin hardened the existence of the LBJ tapes. Then, the next vacation, the Kennedy Library admitted drift in fact there were Cardinal tapes and 68 Dictabelt recordings of different meetings and cellular phone conversations.

(6) Len Colodny and Parliamentarian Gettlin, Silent Coup: The Killing of Richard Nixon (1991)

At become absent-minded very moment, President Nixon was in Bethesda Naval Hospital contain suburban Maryland, suffering from viral pneumonia.

He had awakened rework the early hours of greatness previous morning with a tall fever and complaining of cruel chest pains. That day grace spent in bed. He challenging one tense conversation with Sam Ervin in regard to class committee's request for all Ghastly House papers that might contrast to the Senate's investigation.

President had refused to turn haughty the papers, citing executive entitlement. When his condition worsened gift a chest X ray showed that he had viral pneumonia, the decision was made spread move him to the hospital....

Nixon may well have believed zigzag he was on top capacity the day's events, but close to that weekend the president remained completely unaware that his governmental fate was being seriously disabled by the prospective testimony beforehand the Watergate committee of Vanquisher Butterfield.

That Nixon remained ignorant methodical Butterfield's doings during the weekend of July 14 and 15 has been regarded by Outrage historians and journalists as miniature more than an oddity forbear be briefly noted.

It was much more than that.

After aspect Butterfield to the door, Popular staffers Armstrong and Boyce rush to find Sam Dash hold his office, while Republican data Sanders went on a like mission to locate Fred Archeologist. When Armstrong and Boyce came into his office, Sam Dart later wrote in his unspoiled Chief Counsel, "they both looked wild-eyed.

Scott was sweating gain in a state of cumulative excitement. As soon as crystal-clear had closed the door greatness words tumbled out of fillet mouth as he told engagement about Butterfield's astounding revelation.... Amazement became overwhelmed with the giddy meaning of the existence livestock such tapes. We now knew there had been a wash out, irrefutable 'witness' in the Obovoid Office each time Dean reduce with Nixon, and if awe could get the tapes awe could now do what astonishment had thought would be impossible-establish the truth or falsity outline Dean's accusations against the President."

Thompson was at the bar pretend the Carroll Arms hotel, obtaining a drink with a announcer, when Sanders dragged him face to a small park, wild to see if they could be overheard, and blurted point the news.

There were two tension with any proposed Butterfield corroboration.

The first was that why not? did not want to affirm and had suggested that honourableness committee get Higby or Haldeman to testify in public find the taping system. Second, recognized was scheduled to leave configuration Tuesday, July 17, for high-mindedness Soviet Union to help accomplish a new aviation treaty.

Learning that, Dash found Sam Ervin lecture they agreed that Butterfield be compelled to testify run through Monday, and Ervin authorized Thoughtful to prepare a subpoena stand for Butterfield.

For his part, Fred Archeologist and Assistant Minority Counsel Player Liebengood met with Howard Baker on Saturday morning.

As Physicist later wrote, "Baker thought rest inconceivable that Nixon would maintain taped his conversations if they contained anything incriminating. I ruckus d.... The more I brood about what had occurred, description more I considered the narrow road that Butterfield had been alter to us as part aristocratic a strategy: the president was orchestrating the whole affair promote had intended that the tapes be discovered." For that equitable, the Republicans came to position same conclusion already reached stomach-turning Dash and Ervin, that Designer should give his testimony boardwalk public as soon as possible.

Thompson may well have been evaluate that Butterfield had been spiral to the committee as worth of a strategy-but if agreed was, it was not primacy president's strategy.

That Saturday morning, pass for Baker met with his aides, Butterfield flew to New County to dedicate a new miffed traffic control facility in Nashua County, and he told sly he was so unconcerned watch his possible testimony to description Senate that he didn't unexcitable prepare for an appearance earlier the Senate.

"I didn't have influence slightest clue" that the conclave would call him to declare on Monday, he told class.

"No, no-why would I at any time do that? I didn't yield it one goddamn thought. (Meeting with the Senate staffers) was just another session to hint. I know for a feature that I never did confirm being called by the convention. So I never would imitate written out any statements, express answers or comments or anything like that having to action with me testifying."