Nixon & Buzhardt on Huston Plan and Watergate

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I was dealing with the Solomon column.

I was going to get you in the next.

My feeling is, I guess you'd rather check with, uh, I guess Marty.

Uh, 50.

I think, Fred, that that thing was rescinded.

That's the problem.

I think I borrowed a dial for it and there's something.

I mean, I cannot recall, but there's something there.

Uh, Houston seems to be looking.

Is that correct?

That's correct.

Also, it's the IAEA they have.

So I think that thing was rescinded.

They think it was.

They can't find the paper.

They are now looking.

I've got them looking.

I can find one piece of paper.

My business.

Where else would I want to do it?

The CIA?

The CIA.

I haven't gotten to Lexington yet.

Somewhere they can't reach, which is unusual.

Maybe Walters.

That's true, but Walters didn't know anything about this.

Lexington knows nothing about it, but if he can find the right people to inquire of, we might be a little better.

Since Walters is a witness.

I agree, I agree.

Walters is a witness.

I think we shouldn't.

We know it's going to be a witness.

I'm going to take Al and let's get him something to eat and get him out of this house.

And we'll call you perhaps when that works.

You've got to go too, don't you?

I'll be here.

But I think if we can detain us, then we can handle this.

I think there's a, I have recollection that the goddamn thing is a, look, I know it's not an operation.

It hasn't been an operation for two years.

I don't know how it went out of business.

That's my point.

I'm sure it has been operating legitimately.

Ain't quite a while.

I feel that's true.

Without it, it hasn't operated as a group.

It hasn't operated with an original authorization.

And then, the question is...

It was terminated, but we can't find a record of the termination.

That would be our best bet to find the records of termination.

But you can't still say it was terminated.

We'll still have to say it was terminated.

It was terminated.

Right.

And all the agencies would then say that, but they can't back it up.

That's right.

Well, that is the recollection of DI.

They're looking for the papers.

I believe we'll find the papers.

DI says they think it was terminated.

They think it was terminated.

They think that the mountain, and they told me independently from Houston,

that they think the approval was recalled.

And that's what Justin said.

He thought he recalled the approval he gave them.

Now, we're going to have to check this thoroughly with the NSA.

And the reason it's important is because, if you remember, that was the most aggressive group to go forward.

NSA.

And I suspect they're the only ones that did totally reach them.

They're on the way in here, man.

It's a traffic car.

It takes a while to get four feet in here.

But they'll be here shortly.

Well, I've got to tell them.

So, I'm going to find out.

I'm just confident that I never heard of them ever doing anything on this.

You know what I mean?

Whatever their operations are, there's no problem with that.

NSA, DIA, and so forth and so on.

DIA says they did absolutely nothing.

Yeah, NSA probably did something.

We'll defend that.

We can defend it.

The problem with the memorandum is what it says with regard to the break-in.

That's our problem.

Because it says a break-in.

I was asking if it says surreptitious entry.

What?

In the accompanying memorandum, it says this is a forced burglary.

That's our problem.

The accompanying memorandum is from me.

From Houston.

For Christ's sake, it's his characterization of the thing.

But the way we will have to answer that is to say that it's his characterization of the service and crew you command.

Electron, he's...

He's my service president in my brand.

This one's spelled out.

This one is spelled out in my brand, so there's no...

how they're finding out what are the domestic disturbances.

And with respect to the selected internal security targets, to find out what's the same thing, what they're doing, what they're planning.

The Weatherman, things like that.

They name them.

The Weatherman, the SDS, the Black Panthers.

And all of these organizations that describe their capabilities of killing, all it's laid out.

And they're to find out there what they're doing.

That's right.

Well, I don't do, but I still think the threat is to place it in a separable instance.

I know that the groves are separate.

I know what it was that this grove... Oh, yeah, but so is the case.

The operating computer...

And, uh, with my toilet room, my toilet room, my pergury, big pergury, but I thought it was a stupid, but nevertheless, Pergury's a great guy, and I'm good here.

I was totally aware of him.

That was everybody else in the shop.

But when you get down to the chapel, to the break-in, the killing, that was, that thing was a part of the burglars' time as a cover.

Those assholes were trying to have a cover.

or a CIA cover.

I didn't mean to talk about that.

I'm just saying that he conducted, and it might come out that he conducted more than what we now know about this person.

All the indications are now that the thing got badly askew, and by the sake of this document, I can only assume that he wasn't aware of evidence

of the turn-off of this thing, or the withdrawal of approval.

If there was one.

And that... he thought he had a cover.

A cover for everything he had done.

Everything he had done, in the form of a document that would give him color of presidential approval.

And I can't help but feel, you know... No, but I don't...

I don't think he needed it for that, because I don't... because he wouldn't have followed us off the water table.

He says...

I really think what happened is horrible.

You mean to say that the water gang was a group because of this?

I anticipate it might be.

Because you know, we've heard the stories of the reason.

We've read the paper that their court has said the reason they were going in was to find out their connections with the distant groups and to demonstrate.

If Dean is using this as a cover, particularly if we can find a memorandum of withdrawal or something of this, it cuts him off to water.

I suspect, looking at the date, see, Dean didn't get this document back until the summer or spring of 72.

He probably didn't recognize the utility of it in terms of his activities until much later.

And it's an afterthought, right?

He didn't even know the document existed.

He probably knew it existed, but he didn't have this copy of it, probably.

When?

Until when?

Until 72.

I don't know.

You see, it's not clear how much of the material was sent to him by Saul Landenbaum.

But when did that happen?

March of 72.

He probably didn't even think about this document, the cover, until long after the incident occurred and he got on.

I suspect that he really didn't think of it as a cover, perhaps, until the week.

He really made the break when he was looking desperately for something to cover with.

He may have come apart in a while.

He sent him a memorandum which said, I am enclosing documents.

I don't know how many of those documents were enclosed.

How many of these documents were actually enclosed with lemon bombs and memorandums?

But I suspect that sometime around the time he went to Camp David, he was desperate.

He looked in the files and found this document, thought he needed a cover, and took it on the outside.

And from there on in, probably thought he'd get a smug out.

Let me say, this, however, document is not authorized.

Not for a metal detector.

No, sir.

Now that, sir, he has no cover for that.

Yeah.

He thinks it was.

Huh?

I told you he brought it here.

Yes.

Huh?

Yes, he brought it here.

Is there anybody else you can check with?

I mean, I don't know.

He's looking at his own files.

I think we'll find a key on one of the agencies.

One of the agencies.

You got it.

That's one time.

We're going to look.

We can cut these boys right off in the past.

Then we can really lay in the woods.

Lay in the woods and cut them off in the past.

Okay.

We'll call you when we get back.

All right.

I'll go and dig in the hotel for you.

I'll tell you, I've got another check, man.

So who else do you got to call that did not agree to get with you?

Marty Sullivan.

Wait a minute.

Why did Marty... Is Marty going to be available now?

Yes.

Why did Marty...

I'll ask about this.

Because Marty worked with Danes.

this thing was turned over to dean according to houston yeah and they had an intelligence committee i think probably all that committee did was analyze yes but don't you call me

All that committee did was analyze...

Yes, but don't you call them.

I can try to call outside your office if you want me involved.

Amen.

Nixon & Buzhardt on Huston Plan and Watergate

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Nixon Library Finding Aid

Also recorded on May 16, 1973

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