Deep Throat revealed?

May 31, 2005

Word from CNN is that Ex-FBI official W. Mark Felt has told Vanity Fair that he was the secret Watergate source for Woodward and Bernstein known as “Deep Throat.” Interesting.

Felt was the #3 man at the FBI at the time and has always been a leading Deep Throat suspect. In fact, in 1992, the Atlantic Monthly ran a lengthy feature on Felt as the most likely person to have been Deep Throat.

Indeed, Nixon strongly suspected Felt was responsible for the leaks.

Nixon: Well, if they’ve got a leak down at the FBI, why the hell can’t Gray tell us what the hell is left? You know what I mean?…

Haldeman: We know what’s left, and we know who leaked it.

Nixon: Somebody in the FBI?

Haldeman: Yes, sir. Mark Felt. You can’t say anything about this because it will screw up our source and there’s a real concern. Mitchell is the only one who knows about this and he feels strongly that we better not do anything because–

Nixon: Do anything? Never.

Haldeman: If we move on him, he’ll go out and unload everything. He knows everything that’s to be known in the FBI. He has access to absolutely everything …

Nixon: What would you do with Felt?

Haldeman: Well, I asked Dean …

Nixon: You know what I’d do with him, the bastard? Well that’s all I want to hear about it.

Haldeman: I think he wants to be in the top spot.

Nixon: That’s a hell of a way for him to get to the top.

Haldeman: You can figure a lot of–maybe he thought–first of all, he has to figure that if you stay in as president there’s a possibility or probability Gray will stay on. If McGovern comes in, then you know Gray’s going to be out …

Nixon: Is he Catholic?

Haldeman: (unintelligible) Jewish.

Nixon: Christ, put a Jew in there?

Haldeman: Well, that could explain it too.

Felt always denied being Deep Throat, of course, but now that he’s 91, maybe he’s tired of keeping the secret.

Update: Here’s a .pdf of the Vanity Fair article. Looks like the best political mystery of the 20th century is a done deal.

It was Felt? Felt? Are they sure? How could an FBI guy get all the financial dirt from the Creep offices? (Or is that a hopelessly naive question?) I’ve been totally convince that it was Fred Fielding (just like the good folks at the Deepthroat Uncovered website) who was the main Deep Throat source–although the multiple sources theory on Throat makes sense if Felt is the guy. Fielding’s been associated with organizations that leak info to Woodward in the Nixon, Reagan, and Dubya administrations, and only Fielding as Dean’s deputy had access to all the info needed to account for Throat’s depth of knowledge of both campaign finances and campaign strategies.

I won’t be stubborn if this business about Felt pans out to be true. But I also won’t be surprised if it turns out to be a red herring following Dean’s assertion earlier this year that DT is terminally ill. How’s 91 year old Felt’s health, by the way?

  • Where is today’s Deep Throat, and the equivelant of Woodward and Bernstein?

    I keep hoping that someone inside the Bush administration will say enough is enough and spill the beans.

  • Where is today’s Deep Throat, and the equivelant of Woodward and Bernstein?

    The latter part of that question is the better one. Every administration has a Deep Throat, but with no independent media for them to go to…

  • Alas, the Bush Administration spit out their Deep Throat– it was Powell.

    Since he’s been gone, leaks seem to have dried up from the WH.

    As for Woodward, he gave Bush a big fucking rectal tongue-kiss with that book of his. Dunno what Bernstein is up to; getting laid maybe?

    The younger generation of reporters? What, you mean Tucker Carlson? Gimme a break. Investigative journalism is dead; it costs too much and takes too long, and infotainment gets ratings now.

    Profits uber alles!

  • You left wingers kill me. You ask for another DT to rise out of the Bush administration. Nixon played dirty political tricks and was stupid by trying to cover them up. This disgruntled, because he did not get Hoovers job, FBI employee brought down a president you think he was a hero. Instead of taking the information to a prosecutor like a “Law Enforcement Officerâ€? should do he went to the press where he could hide like a coward behind the reporters. He was the same type of “good doerâ€? as the “unnamed sourceâ€? on the Koran story. The only difference is the Koran story got real people killed, this coward got us Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, the two most inept presidents of the 20th century. In addition, he fostered the concept that the US is an evil place and anything a Republican does can only be for self-advancement. My solace is that W is winning the war on terrorism and the hearts and minds of the majority of clear thinking Americans.
    OUR SIDE IS WINNING!!!!

  • Monroe you couldn’t be further from the truth! George W. Bush is the most inept president the US has ever seen in this generation and he does everything for his own self-advancement. He is loosing the war on terrorism; he is failing on all his so-called domestic policies for this second term thus far, and he is only winning the right-wing nutcrakers of the repubs. He ain’t winning my mind! I pity you and the rest of your type. Felt is a hero. Eat your heart out!

  • Marve,
    At lease the American public re-elected W to a second term, a feat that the Carter could not accomplish. As for Ford he was not even capable of being elected to a first term. To list all of the reasons that Carter & Ford were the two most inept former presidents of the 20th century would take up too much space and time but the Nixon pardon, the Iran hostage situation, the botched rescue, interest rates in the 20’s are a few.
    As for your comments, “George W. Bush is the most inept president the US has ever seen in this generation…” (what do you consider this generation? since 2000 or the last twenty years neither would include Ford & Carter) “…and he does everything for his own self-advancement.” Where is your proof? Regarding his second term we will have to wait till it is over and history will be his judge the magnitude of his success.
    As I tell my children don’t think with your emotions think with you brain.

  • Do you tell your children to break into the school office if they want to see other kids records?

    What else can you teach us Mr. Monroe?

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