The Mysterious Life and Death of James McCord

[Douglas Caddy]

This Guardian article repeats the same error found in the original New York Times article that said McCord and the four Cuban-Americans pleaded guilty at the first Watergate trial.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/apr/28/james-mccord-obituary?CMP=share_btn_fb&fbclid=IwAR22XAYIBTz8YV0TqTwpFoXcE1pPJdm9H436FBpZkde-GrGSi_fIYvbTOOg

Here is my letter to the editor of the Times calling attention to the error in their original obituary article on McCord. It took a week for the Times to correct its original article after I provided it what actually transpired. The Times did not correct its error about when Hunt and Liddy were arrested. Three months after the break-in is not "soon."

Doug <>
To:	letters <letters@nytimes.com>
Date:	Sat, Apr 20, 2019 3:49 pm

The obituary inaccurately states: "But in January 1973, Mr. McCord and the burglars pleaded guilty, and Mr. Hunt and Mr. Liddy were convicted in a federal trial, all seven on charges of burglary, wiretapping and conspiracy."

I testified as a (voluntary) witness for the defense and an (involuntary) witness for the prosecution at this first Watergate trial, having been retained by Howard Hunt and Gordon Liddy as the original attorney for the Watergate seven a few hours after the arrests of McCord and the four Cuban-American burglars at Watergate.

Hunt and the four Cuban-Americans pleaded guilty at the start of the trial. Hunt's wife, Dorothy, had been killed in a plane crash in Chicago the month before. Hunt was a broken man and feared one or more of his four children would be killed next if he did not plead guilty.

McCord and Liddy stood trial and were found guilty.

The article also states that "E. Howard Hunt, a former C.I.A. agent, and G. Gordon Liddy, the re-election committee’s general counsel, who ran the break-in from a nearby hotel room, fled but were soon arrested."

My memory is that although the five burglars were arrested on June 17, 1972, Hunt and Liddy who fled the scene remained free from arrest until they were indicted along with the five arrested burglars in September, three months later. Some persons at the time accused the three prosecutors of delaying the indictment until September so that the trial of the seven defendants would take place after the November presidential election. I personally believe the indictment was delayed for this reason.

Douglas Caddy
Houston, Texas

 

 

[Douglas Caddy]

 

The New York Times obituary of Watergate attorney William Bittman contains an error of omission.

https://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/03/us/william-bittman-69-won-hoffa-conviction.html

The obituary fails to note that William Bittman was an unindicted co-conspirator in the Watergate coverup. He took the “hush” money from Anthony Ulasewicz after I turned it down.

Strangely, there is another Times article that notes that Bittman was an unindicted co-conspirator.

https://www.nytimes.com/1974/06/22/archives/prosecutor-reported-to-find-26-in-coverup-plot-others-reportedly.html

From the article:  Other persons on the Jaworski list, the sources said, were Frederick C. LaRue, a former White House and campaign aide, who has pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice; Paul L. O'Brien, attorney for the re‐election committee; William 0. Bittman, attorney for one of the original defendants; John J. Caulfield, an investigator for the campaign committee, and Anthony T. Ulasewicz, who worked for Mr. Caulfield

[Ron Bulman]

On 4/22/2019 at 12:59 PM, Ron Bulman said:

http://feralhouse.com/what-do-prostitutes-have-to-do-with-watergate/

https://www.amazon.com/White-House-Call-Girl-Watergate/dp/1936239906

I'm reading the Whitehouse Call Girl book at the moment and boy howdy is it a doozy.  I don't mean that in a derogatory sense.  It's well footnoted.

A private eye working for McCord was in charge of secretly filming the "meetings" between clients referred from the DNC at the Watergate and ladies at a three bedroom apartment at the Columbia Plaza apartments a block away from the Watergate.

Ulasewicz was the first to case the DNC offices regarding security of them in relation for the potential for a break in for Caufield whose orders to do so came from John Dean.

[Stephanie Goldberg]

I'm nearly done with Secret Agenda by Jim Hougan.  Wow!  What an incredible book!  It has given me so much more appreciation for the events of that era.

[James DiEugenio]

If you buy the MSM version of Watergate, reading Secret Agenda is, like taking a magic carpet ride.

Its amazing what Bradlee and Woodward and that country bumpkin Sam Ervin did. 

[Rob Couteau]

Just now, Stephanie Goldberg said:

Secret Agenda by Jim Hougan

Hi Stephanie,

I also loved "Secret Agenda." It reads better than any detective novel. Hougan's book "Spooks" is pretty good too. He also has an active web site with some great articles.

Edited May 3, 2019 by Rob Couteau

[Stephanie Goldberg]

33 minutes ago, Rob Couteau said:

Hi Stephanie,

I also loved "Secret Agenda." It reads better than any detective novel. Hougan's book "Spooks" is pretty good too. He also has an active web site with some great articles.

Rob,

I'll have to check out his other book & the website.  Thanks!! 

[Rob Couteau]

Just now, Stephanie Goldberg said:

the website

http://www.jimhougan.com

enjoy!

 

[Rob Couteau]

1 hour ago, Ron Bulman said:

the Whitehouse Call Girl book

Ron, Does he cite Hougan in the index? Just curious. Sounds like a great read. Thanks for posting.

[Ron Bulman]

18 hours ago, Rob Couteau said:

Ron, Does he cite Hougan in the index? Just curious. Sounds like a great read. Thanks for posting.

Yes.  Hougan is mentioned on 11 pages, Secret Agenda on 7.  Len Colodny and Robert Gettlin's Silent Coup is mentioned on 12 and 8 respectively.  On the back cover Hougan says "A Parapolitical diamond mine… A major contribution to the Watergate narrative."

[Rob Couteau]

2 hours ago, Ron Bulman said:

Len Colodny and Robert Gettlin's Silent Coup

I read "Silent Coup" years ago. I remember it being very good, with some excellent material on Bob Woodward's long-term ties to the Agency. Thanks for this info, I'll have to add this to my book list. 

[David Andrews]

Maybe Doug Caddy can weigh in with an opinion here.

I'm watching a documentary on Watergate, not particularly revealing, when I hear John Dean's taped interview with Nixon, where Dean says [paraphrase], "We're not pros at this, laundering money.  This is what the Mafia does." 

Nixon, famously, responds that he knows where the seven-figure hush money for the plumbers can be gotten.

Of course, this would have been from Mob-connected sources, such as Bebe Rebozo.

Question: In mentioning the Mafia, was attorney Dean doing a variation on leading the witness, for the benefit of the tape recorders?

Dean: We're not criminals, we're not used to dealing --

Nixon: You could get a million dollars, and you could get it in cash.  I know where it could be gotten.

Dean apparently did not mention allusions to the Mob in this conversation when he discussed it before the Senate committee.

Edited May 5, 2019 by David Andrews

[Ron Bulman]

I was skeptical but curious and didn't support the author and bought a used copy for four bucks and four bucks shipping.  The work is worthy of the extra five bucks if you have amazon prime and he should be rewarded for his effort.

It's a small book, 151 pages of "text" and 41 pages of end notes, index and photo credits.  I say "text" because many of the short 1-2-3 page chapters end with a sentence or two on the next page or pictures (which are important).  But the text is quite interesting from McCord to Mo and John Dean regarding Watergate as well as leading.  Like maybe Dean finally married Mo  to keep her from having to testify against him?

[Michael Clark]

31 minutes ago, David Andrews said:

Of course, this would have been from Mob-connected sources, such as Bebe Rebozo.

 

Or the Hughes/Smathers connection.

[Michael Clark]

7 minutes ago, Ron Bulman said:

But the text is quite interesting from McCord to Mo and John Dean regarding Watergate as well as Leading

Do you mean Liddy?