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Nixon's Gamble by Ray Locker


Douglas Caddy

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“Ray Locker has assembled a masterful study that asks a question no one else has – was the Nixon White House flawed by design? A deep dive of government documents and primary sources, Locker examines the very foundations of the Nixon administration and finds something very troubling. A must read for anyone wanting a better understanding of the time period.”--Luke A. Nichter, co-author of New York Times bestselling series The Nixon Tapes: 1971-1972 and The Nixon Tapes: 1973

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Ed Gray, son of former acting FBI director, L. Patrick Gray III, stripped away much of the myth surrounding Deep Throat. That's what makes In Nixon's Web such an important book. It's one of the many reasons why I'm honored to have his endorsement for Nixon's Gamble.

"In the wars of Watergate one of the principal combatants stayed almost perfectly hidden, stealthy and opportunistic as a sniper, taking out his competitors one at a time while taking great care not to reveal himself. In “Nixon’s Gamble” Ray Locker’s brilliant digging uncovers him, shows how and why he took his shots, and names the major figures, some of them still very much in the public eye, who used and helped him.
Even more impressive, that’s not the most important part of this richly illuminating history of Richard Nixon’s many layered attempt to govern by secret. In uncovering the huge hidden wager that Nixon took, playing for his place in world history and going all in with nothing less than the presidency itself, Ray Locker shows us Nixon’s hole cards and how badly he misplayed them. We’re all still trying to recoup the loss."

Ed Gray, co-author with his father L. Patrick Gray III of In Nixon’s Web: A Year in the Crosshairs of Watergate

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Library Journal Review:

Locker, Ray. Nixons Gamble: How a Presidents Own Secret Government Destroyed His Administration. Lyons: Globe Pequot. Oct. 2015. 352p. notes. bibliog. index. ISBN 9781493009312. $29.95;
ebk. ISBN 9781493019458. BIOG

Richard Nixon (191394) remains a fascinating subject for historians of all stripes. Locker, an investigative reporter for USA Today, applies his ample research skills to exploring Nixons penchant for secrecy and deception during his six years as president. The focus centers on Nixons three primary foreign policy goals: ending the Vietnam War, restoring diplomatic relations with China, and reducing Cold War tensions with the Soviet Union. In order to accomplish these disparate objectives, Locker maintains, Nixon created a complex secretive network so extensive that even his closest advisors, such as Henry Kissinger, didnt know the whole truth behind his actions. The author utilizes a wide range of primary and secondary resources to spin his tale, and at times the facts are indeed stranger than fiction as he lists the consequences of the National Security Decision Memoranda 2 and concludes that Nixons climate of secrecy continues to impact politics today. VERDICT A well-told, detailed account that will satisfy even the most dedicated Nixon scholar. ­Recommended for most collections.­
Ed Goedeken, Iowa State Univ. Lib., Ames

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Legendary investigative journalist and author Steve Weinberg had these words about Nixon's Gamble on his Facebook page today:

"For book authors, Richard Nixon is a former U.S. president who just keeps on giving. Every time I believe nothing new is left to be written about Nixon's demise, another professional historian or another skilled journalist surprises me. Ray Locker, a Washington correspondent for USA Today, is one of those skilled journalists. His sophisticated theory about how Nixon's instincts for secrecy sabotaged some admirable foreign policy initiatives got me thinking along new pathways.

"Personal note: As a young newspaper correspondent in Washington, I covered some of the Nixon impeachment proceedings for outlets in Missouri and Kansas. Books about Nixon fire my memories from my youthful experiences as a D.C.-based reporter. I departed in 1976, then returned in 1978 and worked as a journalist there five more years."

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