Spiro Agnew was the 39th Vice President, from 1969 to 1973 under President Nixon. After the watergate
scandal, Agnew resigned and then pled no content to a criminal charge of tax evasion, where he accepted
$29,500 in bribes during his time as governor of Maryland. Agnew had been expected to suceed Nixon as the
Republican Party's presidential nominee in the next election before the Watergate scandal broke out. Agnew
had always blamed Nixon for releasing the accusations of bribes and tax evasion in order to divert attention
from the growing Watergate scandal that was ruining Nixon's administration. Once Nixon was forced from
office, the two men never spoke to each other again.
On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the most likely), Spiro Agnew would be rated a 2
Jack Anderson was an American newspaper columnist and is considered to be one of the fathers of modern
investigative journalism. Anderson could be found on the master list of Nixon’s political enemies because he
exposed corruption between the Nixon administration and senator Thomas Dodd. Anderson’s motive for
killing Nixon would be that two Nixon administration conspirators admitted the attempt to poison Anderson
on orders from a White House Aide. Nixon also blamed Anderson for the loss of the 1960 election because
of an election-eve story about a secret loan from Howard Hughes to Nixon's brother. Anderson constantly
found and reported political corruption including things involving the Watergate scandal. (Rating 5)
Robert Bork - Robert Bork was involved in the Watergate scandal during President Nixon's term in
office. When special prosecutor Archibald Cox got a court order requiring Nixon to turn over tapes from Oval
Office conversations, Nixon ordered his attorney general (Elliot Richardson) and deputy attorney general
(William Ruckelshaus), respectively, to fire Cox, but they chose to resign instead. Instead, as acting Attorney
General, Bork fired Cox after being ordered by Nixon and persuaded by Richardson.
RATING: 2
Because of his envolvement in the Watergate scandal due to his firing of Archibald Cox, his chances of making
it to the Supreme Court were dampened. However, this was only one of the many things contributing to his
denial as one of the nine Justices, and I don't think he would want such drastic measures as to kill Nixon to
make it into the Supreme Court.
Leonid Brezhnev: In 1966, Brezhnev took the title General Secretary, which was previously Stalin's title.
Under Brezhnev, Soviet relations with China continued to deteriorate. At the same time, President Nixon was
trying to create a wedge between the Soviet Union and China. Brezhnev was confused by Nixon's actions, but
knew that he did not want both the U.S. and China against the Soviet Union, leaving fear and jealousy as
motives for the murder. This murder is highly unlikely (3) due to the positive relations between the U.S. and the
Soviet Union at this time. 2 years before Nixon's death, Nixon and Brezhnev had signed the SALT marking the
beginning of a "detente" era.
Leonid Brezhnev - It is true that Brezhnev has a history of assassination conspiracies, as he partook in the
plan to take out Khrushchev. However, one must ask what peronsal gains Brezhnev would have received
from assassinating Nixon. Brezhnev did support North Vietnam, but having Nixon gone would probably not
ensure Soviet victory or stability. Brezhnev was a logical man and was not as volatile as some other Soviet
leaders. He knew that China and the US were delicate items. On the other hand, he was not an elected
official and was in no way obligated to act civilly. Because Brezhnev was logical, but also non-conventional, his
score on the suspect scale is a 7.
Warren BurgerWarren Burger was the 15th Chief Justice of the United States. Burger was a conservative. While
he was a justice, the Supreme court made some conservative decisions, but also many liberal
decisions on abortion, desegregation in school, religious establishments, and capital punishment.
Burger was the first of four justices appointed to the Supreme Court by Richard Nixon. When Nixon
resigned from the white house, Burger was forced to turn over white house recordings that would
have helped with the ongoing Watergate investigations. Finally, Burger participated in all huge
cases, except he only put in a minor vote unless it was a topic that he believed very strongly about.
In conclusion, I rate Burger a 3/10 for how likely he was to murder Nixon because he was
appointed to be a justice by Nixon and there wasn’t any information to say otherwise.
Eldridge Cleaver. Cleaver was a prominent civil rights leader and activist as well as a member of the black
panthers. Cleaver left the country in 1968 after being charged for attempted murder and in his 1979 book
“Souls on Fire” he revealed that while he was in exile in Algeria he gained some support from North Vietnam.
Cleaver’s motives for killing President Nixon could have something to do with the Vietnam War and protest to
the prolonged conflict. His likelihood for killing Nixon is about a 5.
Archibald Cox - Archibald was the first Watergate special prosecutor. He discovered along with the rest of
America the secret tapes Nixon had with him. He battled with Nixon along with others for the tapes. Cox had
offered the President a compromise, but Nixon instead ordered him to be fired. Cox would probably be ranked
as a 7 considering he lost his job because of Nixon and his investigation on his secret tapes.
Angela Davis:
She is a Black Panther political activist who was on the FBI's most wanted list for being apart of a
conspiracy in which a prisoner escaped and a guard was murdered. However, she was acquitted due to false
charges. Angela Davis has been a civil rights, feminist rights, and prisoners' rights supporter. After the
assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., she turned to Communism. She later teaches at University Of
California at Santa Cruz as a highly respected teacher.
She has to do with Nixon because she joined the Communist Party. Nixon is known to be skeptical of
communism. In addition, she is apart of the Black Panthers who do sometimes cause upset in the balance of
daily life, thus causing Nixon to have to intervene.
Possible motives for killing Nixon would be anger for not acting upon civil and prisoners' rights as well as
support for the communist parties of US's rivals. The likelihood she killed Nixon would be a 5. This is because
she does not have a distinct reason, but is an activist who is very aggressive and has somewhat
violent/argumentative history.
John Dean was one of the most damaging witnesses to Richard Nixon in the Watergate trials. After
working his way through the White House to become an associate attorney general in 1968, Dean was
selected by Nixon to be White House Counsel in 1970. After the Watergate break in on June 17, 1972, Dean
began to confess what he knew to federal investigators. Nixon fired him on April 30, 1973. Dean then
testified publicly to reveal how White House officials, including the president, had obstructed justice in order
to cover up the scandal. John Dean had strong motive to kill Nixon. Nixon ha d fired Dean, and Dean’s role
in the Watergate scandal landed him in prison. Dean had a good motive for killing Nixon; it is about a seven
on the scale for conspiracy to kill.
Helen Gahagan Douglas Helen Gahagan Douglas entered the political field after an acting stint in theatre
and opera. During the 1930s, Douglas served as a volunteer during World War II and participated in relief
programs related to the New Deal. After serving in Congress in 1944 and on the House of Representatives
from 1944 to 1950, Douglas campaigned for a spot on the Senate. Her opponent was Republican Richard
Nixon, who had just indicted Alger Hiss. As a liberal Democrat, Douglas was targeted by Nixon during the
election as a pro-Communist candidate whose voting records resembled those of the alleged Communistfollower New York congressman Vito Marciantonio. Nixon portrayed this image of Douglas by distributing
nearly six hundred thousand pink flyers that claimed Douglas the “Pink Lady”. After losing to Nixon,
Douglas joined the Jane Addams Peace Association at the Soviet-American Women's Peace Conference in
Moscow in 1964. Douglas’s motives for killing Nixon would thus include his entitlement of her as the “Pink
Lady”, which implied she was pro-Communist. It would also stem from her defeat afterwards to Nixon
during her run for a seat in Congress. (motive rating 6)
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is a songwriter, whose greatest influence was predominantly in the 60s. He had a
profound impact on the counterculture that was present in throughout the 60s. Dylan has no direct
ties to Nixon, however his political views may have lead him to have an unfavorable opinion of the
president. Dylan was against the war in Vietnam, as seen through some of the music he produced in
the 60s. He was not an outright activist, though his songs were impactful and tended to pose a
political statement. Although likely not a fan of Richard Nixon, Bob Dylan would have had no clear
or logical motives to assassinate him, so the likelihood of him doing so would be around 2 out of
10.
Daniel Ellsberg released the Pentagon Papers which was a top-secret Pentagon study of government
decision-making about the Vietnam War. Ellsberg served in Vietnam, and later became an Anti War
advocate, only furthering himself from Nixon and he released the papers in order to show the public what
was really going on in Vietnam. Ellsberg’s office was broken into by Gordon Liddy in order to find
information that could discredit Ellsberg, as well as creating an assassination plot on Ellsberg. On a scale of
1-10, Ellsberg would be a 7 for motive to kill Nixon because Nixon had issued a plan where the plumbers
would break into his office and try to kill him at any costs, but Ellsberg would not have much to gain or hide
from Nixon.
John Erlichman, who worked for a Seattle law firm before entering politics, was influential in Nixon's 1960
presidential, 1962 gubernatorial (California), and 1968 presidential campaigns. After
Nixon's 1968 victory, he became a White House counsel and the Assistant to the President for Domestic
Affairs. Along with H.R. Haldeman, Erlichman fromed what was known as the "Berlin Wall" in the White House,
which served to isolate and alienate other advisors from Nixon. After the release of the Pentagon papers, he
and Haldeman created the "White House Plumbers" with the purpose of plugging any Administration leaks,
often by immoral or illegal means. After John Dean's testimony to the Senate Watergate Committee
(precipitated, Dean said, by the alienation of the "Berlin Wall"), Nixon requested Erlichman's resignation and
Erlichman complied. In 1975, John Erlichman was found guilty of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, perjury,
and other offenses and was sentenced to 18 months in jail. It is very unlikely that Mr. Erlichman had any
motive to kill President Nixon, as this would not help Erlichman's case (Nixon did not testify against him) and
would indeed rob him of a powerfdul ally in his struggle. On a scale of 1 to 10 of his motive, I would give
Erlichman a 2 at most.
Sam Ervin was a senator who was a "constitutional expert" who opposed civil rights but supported free
speech. He was chosen to chair the Watergate Committee and became a sort of TV icon to many people. His
only motive for killing Nixon would be that he was angry that Nixon resigned before he got
impeached. Likelihood (3)
Jane Fonda was an American actor and a political activist. She supported the Civil Rights movement and was
opposed to the war in Vietnam. Fonda was against the Nixon administration for the fact that they kept
Americans in Vietnam and she was even credited with publicly exposing Nixon's potential strategy of bombing
the borders(dikes) in Vietnam. Fonda spoke at VVAW, formed Free The Army, an antiwar road show, and she
even visited the POW in Vietnam. Therefore, Fonda was clearly not favorable of Nixon for his input of America
in the Vietnam war.
On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the most likely), Jane Fonda would be rated a 5
Gerald Ford- He became vice-president on October 10, 1973 after former vice-president Spiro Agnew
resigned. On August 1, 1974 Ford found out that "smoking gun" evidence would emerge that left little doubt
that Nixon participated in Watergate. Ford was told that he will probably become president because Nixon
would likely be impeached or resign. Nixon did resign and Ford became president. Ford later pardoned Nixon
for all crimes he might of committed while he was in office. Ford didn't really have any motives to kill Nixon.
He didn't need to murder Nixon to become president and he didn't have any major conflicts with Nixon. His
likelihood to kill Nixon would be a 1.
Betty Friedan - Betty Friedan was a feminist who believed in the complete social equality of women and
men. When she was trying to spread her feminist ideas to the Democratic Party, she became very frustrated
with Nixon for his landslide victory in the Election of 1972, since this meant that the Republicans were still in
control of the government. The Republicans were more reluctant about the womens' movement, so it would
be harder for women to gain their rights.
RATING: 2
Since Nixon and, consequentially, the Republicans still maintained in control over the American government,
Betty Friedan felt that this would hinder the womens' movement. If the Democrats were in power, she and the
rest of the feminists would have a better chance of gaining their rights. However, I don't think that she would
actually kill Nixon to bring the Democrats into power.
H.R. HALDERMAN
Nixon named Haldeman as his first White House Chief of Staff. Together with Ehrlichman they were called
"The Berlin Wall" by other White House staffers because of their penchant for keeping others away from Nixon
and serving as his "gatekeepers". They became Nixon's most loyal and trusted aides during his presidency.
Both were ruthless in protecting what they and Nixon saw as
the president's best interests; Haldeman referred to himself as Nixon's "son of a bitch".
Haldeman was a key figure in the Watergate scandal. The unexplained 18 1/2 minute gap in Nixon's Oval
Office recordings occurred during a discussion that included the President and Haldeman. After damning
testimony from White House Counsel John Dean, Nixon requested the resignations of Haldeman and
Ehrlichman in what has been described as a long and emotional meeting at Camp David. Dean was fired and
the resignations were announced on April 30,
1973. After Nixon announced the resignations Haldeman called Nixon and in an emotional exchange Nixon
ended it by saying, "I love you, as you know.....like a brother".On January 1, 1975, Haldeman was convicted of
conspiracy and obstruction of justice and sentenced to an 18-month prison sentence, which he served in
Lompoc Federal Prison. He went on to become a successful real estate developer and entrepreneur.
Tom Hayden is an American political and social activist who is most known for his civil rights and anti-war
movements of the 1960’s. Hayden and Nixon had different views. Hayden was against anti-communist
efforts and war in Vietnam. Hayden would have killed Nixon because Hayden was very anti-war. He made
several trips to North Vietnam and Cambodia in attempts to advocate peace and attempted to strategize with
Viet Cong forces on how to defeat American anti-communist forces. Also, Hayden lectured for an end to
anti-communist efforts in South Vietnam and supported Khmer Rouge guerrillas in Cambodia. These
policies were completely against Nixon, who was strongly against communism. Hayden was also part of the
Democratic Party, opposite of Nixon. He was involved with picking the democratic nominee for president in
the 1968 election. The 1968 election would be won by Richard Nixon. (Rating 5)
Alger Hiss was a U.S. state department official. In 1948, he was accused of being a communist spy for the
Soviets. After going through two trials, he was convicted of perjury in 1950. There was later discrepancy over
his conviction; there was evidence that led some to conclude that Hiss was fully innocent.
There is a big connection between Hiss and Nixon. Nixon played a huge role in Hiss’s accusations; he was
one of the firsts to suspect his bluffing. Being a skilled lawyer and politician, and a fierce communist fighter, he
played a significant role in bringing Hiss down.
The grudge Hiss held against Nixon is clear; his career was basically ruined due to Nixon’s accusations. On a
rating from 1-10, the likelihood of a Hiss conspiracy to kill is 8.
ABBIE HOFFMAN
He was a social and political activist in the United States, co-founder of the Youth International Party
("Yippies"), and later, a fugitive from the law, who lived under an alias following a conviction for dealing
cocaine. Hoffman came to prominence in the 1960s, but practiced most of his activism
in the 1970s, and has remained a symbol of the youth rebellion of that decade.
--"Avoid all needle drugs. The only dope worth shooting is Richard Nixon."
Ho Chi Minh was the founder and president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, Communist North. His
connection to Nixon is a bad one. After peace agreements go sour, President Nixon orders massive night-time
bombing raids on Hanoi and Haiphong to demonstrate the resolve of the US and appease the doubters in the
South. Eventually a peace agreement is signed, but Ho Chi Minh does not develop a friendly relationship with
President Nixon. (motive rating 8)
Hubert Humphrey was Johnson's vice president from 1964-1968. In 1968 he ran for president but was
defeated by Nixon. His motive for killing Nixon would be that he was angry that Nixon beat him. Likelihood (2)
Daniel Inouye
Likelihood of conspiracy to kill: 1
Inouye, a Japanese-American who has been a US Senator from Hawaii since 1963, was one of the
seven Senate members to serve on the Watergate Committee. The Committee investigated Nixon’s
involvement in the Watergate burglaries. With Inouye’s help, the Committee collected evidence to indict
forty members of Nixon’s administration, and triggered the House of Representatives’ introduction of the
articles of impeachment and Nixon’s subsequent resignation. Inouye’s motive for killing Nixon would be
that he was a Democrat who saw Nixon’s actions as wrong—he would want Nixon to face justice. However,
it is doubtful that Inouye, a patriotic and moral man who served in the esteemed 442nd Regimental Combat
Team during World War II, would murder Nixon. This is especially true considering how Inouye served the
Committee that led to Nixon’s resignation; the Watergate Committee essentially “beat” Nixon and forced
him out of office. Justice, therefore, was served.
Jesse Jackson
Democrat. The 1960s marked the start of Jackson's political career, one that involved fighting oppression and
unsuccessful presidential runs. He became a devotee of Martin Luther King Jr. while working for the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference, founded by King.
Barbara Jordan
The first black woman to serve in the US Congress from the south. Supported bills in favor of the oor, black,
and disadvantaged people. She voted to impeach Nixon at the 1974 Impeachment hearing. Ranking: 3
Robert F. Kennedy served as the U.S. attorney general from 1961 to 1964 and as a U.S.
senator from New York from 1965 to 1968. Brother to former President John F. Kennedy.
On June 5, 1968, while in Los Angeles campaigning for the Democratic presidential
nomination, Kennedy was shot. Robert F Kennedy was a possible rival if he won the
democratic vote but did not get to because he was assassinated. 0 motive to kill Nixon
because he was already dead before the Watergate Scandal
Henry Kissinger was the national security advisor to President Richard Nixon during his
administration, serving as his chief advisor on national security interests. Kissinger also served as Nixon’s
Secretary of State and was a proponent of realpolitik; practical politics dealing with bigger rather than
smaller issues in the nation. Kissinger also operated under a policy of détente with the Soviet Union, which
sought the relaxation of tensions between it and the United States. He negotiated the Strategic Arms
Limitation Talks and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty dealing with Soviet-U.S. military relations. Also,
Kissinger advised the idea of opening up to China and formalizing the United States’ relationship with it,
which was later coined the best move of his political career. Henry Kissinger would have no real motive for
assassinating President Nixon, especially since he was such a close aid to him during his administration. The
two of them worked tirelessly together aiding the United States throughout the Nixon Presidency.
Rating = 1/10
G. Gordon Liddy was the chief operative for the White House Plumbers unit that existed during several
years of Richard Nixon's Presidency. The Plumbers were the covert White House Special Investigations Unit
established by Nixon. Liddy masterminded the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters
in the Watergate building in 1972. Liddy served four and a half years in prison for his role in the burglary.
Besides Watergate, Liddy also came up with the plan to break-into Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist's office, in
order to find embarrassing information on Ellsberg. On a scale of 1-10, I would give Liddy a 9 for motive to
kill Nixon because Liddy was the chief plumber and took his orders directly from Nixon. Since Nixon knew
of everything that Liddy was doing and was a step below him, Nixon could easily blame the numerous
felonies such as burglary, trespassing, theft, conspiracy, witness intimidation, and illegal wire tapping on
him.
Motive rank: 7.
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong is the leader of Communist China. He has been the leader since the Chinese civil war in the 40’s.
He followed a different brand of communism that the Soviets. The Peoples’ Republic of China took control of
China in 1949, however, Communist China was not diplomatically recognized by the U.S. until the Nixon
administration. Mao and Nixon opened relations between the United States and Red China starting in 1972.
This helped Nixon’s diplomacy with the rest of the communist world.
Only motive for Mao could be that he was paranoid about a Soviet/American talks and feared a possible take
over of China. RATING 3
George McGovern
- He served in the U.S. Congress for 22 years
-He was the 1972 democratic candidate for the president. He ran on a platform of unilateral withdrawal of
troops from Vietnam in exchange for prisoners of war, amnesty for draft evaders who left the country, and a
reduction of defense spending
-He lost by a landslide to President Nixon
-He could have been upset about losing to Nixon
3
John N. Mitchell met and befriended Richard Nixon when their law firms merged in 1967. A year later,
Mitchell acted as his campaign manager for the presidential election. President Nixon, pleased with Mitchell's
work and organization during the campaign, appointed him as the US Attorney General. As the Attorney
General, Mitchell believed that the necessity for stability justified the curtailment of civil liberties, and said so to
the press. In 1972, he resigned as Attorney General to serve as campaign manager for Nixon's reelection. In
1975, after his involvement in the Watergate break-in was confirmed by President Nixon's tape recordings,
John Mitchell was found guilty of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and perjury and was sentenced to two and
a half to eight years in prison. Mitchell was a friend of the president and it would serve no purpose for him to
conspire against Nixon, even though he was forced to serev a lengthy prison sentence. On a scale of 1-10 of
his motive, I would give Mitchell a 2 or possibly 3.
Ed Muskie
-He was the governor of Maine (elected in 1954), and served 21 years in the Senate.
-He made a bid for the 1972 democratic nomination for the presidency, and was seen as the front-runner. He
was against the war in Vietnam and opposed President Nixon. He did not win the nomination, as his campaign
fell apart after he appeared to cry during a speech
-Historians believe that President Nixon's camp pulled "dirty tricks" to discredit any candidates that posed a
threat to President Nixon, and it is possible that Nixon's camp helped to bring Muskie down and lose the
nomination to George McGovern
5
Huey Newton: Huey Newton, along with Bobby Seale, was one of the creators of the Black Panther
Party. Although the group was ininitially established to protect civil liberties, it eventually turned into a
Communist revolutionary group. Newton was arrested numerous times throughout his life for various crimes
such as shootings and murder. Due to Nixon's anti-communist reputation, there may have been some disputes
between the two men. The activities of the Black Panthers had come to the attention of the U.S. government
and the FBI in previous situations. Revenge for imprisonment and unfair judicial cases are motives for this
case. The murder of Nixon by Huey Newton is unlikey (5) because there are not enough motives for the case.
In 1974, however, Newton was arrested and charged with murder and assault with a deadly weapon. He was
later released on bail, which would have been highly unlikely if he had assassinated the president of the United
States.
Pat Nixon’s marriage to Richard Nixon was often cold, and his attitude towards her was very condescending,
especially in public. When preparing for his trip to China, Nixon privately remarked, “If Pat goes, she goes
solely as a prop”. Pat, who had sacrificed her way of life to advance her husband’s political career, was often
ridiculed by the press and called “Plastic Pat”; she soon turned to alcohol and chain-smoking. Pat Nixon
clearly had reasons to be angry with her husband or to want a divorce, but would rate only around a three on a
scale of her likelihood of conspiracy to kill.
Larry O’Brien
O’Brien was primarily known for his political involvement, serving as Postmaster General in President
Johnson’s cabinet, but more importantly, was one of the leading electoral strategists for the Democratic
Party. As a strategist, he played an enormous role in John F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign. For his
campaign strategies, O’Brien was elected in 1968 and 1970 by the Democratic National Convention (DNC)
as its national chairman. A theory as to the motivation for the Watergate places O’Brien at the heart of the
scandal. Supposedly, Howard Hughes and his former business associate Hohn H. Meier, leaked to Nixon’s
brother, Donald, that O’Brien possessed proof of the President’s illicit dealings with Hughes. It is therefore
suspected that O’Brien’s office was the primary target of the break-in at DNC headquarters in 1972, because
Nixon wanted to know about O’Brien’s dealings in order to protect himself from the liability.
Rating: 3
Pol Pot
Pol Pot is the leader of the communist movement in Cambodia known as the Khmer Rouge. Starting
in the late 1960s, Pol Pot (then known as Saloth Sar) began and led the Khmer Rouge to power in Cambodia.
This means that he was in power when Nixon made the decision to go into Cambodia during the Vietnam
War. Since Pol Pot was a communist, he most likely did not approve of American soldiers coming into his
country to try and defeat another group of communists. He probably saw the US as the aggressor and wanted
the Americans to lose the war. However, during Nixon’s years as president, Cambodian people and land
were not harmed intentionally, and Pol Pot did not have enough reasons to dislike Nixon to the point of
murdering him. On a scale of one to ten, the likelihood of Pol Pot’s involvement in the murder of Nixon is a
three. He certainly had reasons to hate Nixon, but Nixon’s involvement in the communist movement in
Cambodia was minimal.
Rating: 2
Ronald ReaganAlthough he is most known for him time in the oval office as the 40th president of the United
States, Ronald Reagan was also and actor on broadway, a union leader, and California’s 33rd
governor. When Nixon’s political career was on the rise, he complimented a speech by Reagan
and made the news. Then, when Nixon returned to California from New York, Reagan offered him
public support. Finally, when they were both going to run for president and Nixon became the
Republican party’s candidate, Reagan told others to support Nixon. Therefore, I rate Reagan at a
2/10 for how likely he was to murder Nixon because they were “political allies.”
Bebe Rebozo: One of Nixon's close personal friends and advisors. He became a frequent visitor to the White
House, but often used a false name and was not logged in by the Secret Service, negotiated deals on behalf of
his business friends, and was heard of providing information to smear Nixon's political opponents. He was
eventually dragged into the Watergate Scandal, and it was discovered that before Nixon took office, his net
worth was about $673,000, but then jumped to $4.5 million during Nixon's presidency. Rebozo escaped
prosecution, but investigators discovered that Rebozo had a business relationship with two of the burglars in
the scandal. Likelihood of conspiracy to kill: 2
Peter Rodino
Representative from New Jersey; born in Newark, NJ, June 7, 1909.
Private practice lawyer and teacher. Served in the Army, 1941-1946.
Served in House of Representitives from 1949-1989. Conducted impeachment proceedings for
Harry E. Claiborne and Alcee Lamar Hastings.
Died May 7, 2005 in West Orange, NJ.
Jerry Rubin - Rubin had organized the Vietnam Day Committee which led some of the first protests against
the wat in Vietnam and was the cofounder of the Yippies. He also organized the first protest at Berkeley
College and put on trial for his interuption of the 1968 Democratic National Convention. He didnt have much to
do with Nixon, though he was part of the new generation that Nixon didnt support greatly. He would be ranked
low at a 3 since he argued against the war, but had little reason to attack Nixon.
John Sirica - a chief judge for the US District Court for Washington D.C. His nickname was Maximum John
because he liked to give the maximum sentence allowed. He was the judge that ordered Nixon to turn over his
recording of White House conversations. Sirica's involvement in the scandal began when he presided over the
trial of the Watergate burgulars. He didn't think that the burgulars had acted alone and asked James McCord
to implicate the men who had arranged the robbery. Sirica published To Set the Record Straight, about the
Watergate scandal.
Gloria Steinem was and still is an American feminist, journalist and lead spokeswomen for women’s rights.
She also founded Ms. Magazine in 1972, which is an American Feminist magazine. Throughout her career,
she traveled the nation giving many inspiring lectures.
During his presidency, Nixon received criticism from feminists that his administration lacked support
for women’s issues. As a result, Nixon increased the number of females in administration positions. Steinem
reported on Nixon numerous times but for the most part did not have any grudges against him. Her likelihood
of conspiracy to kill can be left at 2.
Nguyen Van Thieu- In 1967 he was elected President of South Vietnam. He was re-elected in 1971. He
resigned shortly before the fall of Saigon in 1975. The South Vietnamese were forced into signing the Paris
Peace Accords in 1973 due to pressure from the Nixon administration. The treaty limited aid to South Vietnam
and US forces needed to leave immediately. Thieu and many other South Vietnamese felt betrayed by the
US. Thieu thought that the US withdrawal would cripple the South Vietnam military. Thieu's motive for
murdering Nixon could be revenge over the Paris Peace Accords. His likelihood to kill Nixon would be a 6.
Jerry Vorhees
Vorhees was a politician who ran for congress in 1946 against Nixon. Nixon said that Vorhees was soft on
communism and a tool of organized labor. Nixon won by 15,592 votes. This was his first political steppingstone to becoming the president. Vorhees may be bitter about the election but 30 years after the incident is
kind of long time to hold a grudge. RATING 2
Woodward and Bernstein:
They were the two journalists who are famous for uncovering the system of political "tricks" which we now
know of as the Watergate Scandal. They were reporters on the Washington Post and were informed of such
information by an anonymous source named "Deep Throat." Woodward previously was an intelligence officer
of the Navy and therefore had possible connections with the CIA. Both won major journalism awards such as
the Pulitzer Prize and wrote books.
They are related to Nixon because it was their discovery that lead to his impeachment and resignation.
Possible motives for killing Nixon could be for fame since they received such fame from ruining his career
or pride in their country since Woodward was in the Navy and might have disagreed with ways Nixon handled
issues. However, typically reporters are just trying to earn a living, so there probably was not a personal attack
or hatred. Therefore, their likeliness to kill Nixon is about a 3.
General William Westmoreland
A. Bio- Commander US Military Assistance Command, Vietnam 1964-1968. Westmoreland helped to deploy
troops and develop strategies in Vietnam. He continually requested more troops but Johnson refused, and
recalled Westmoreland when he had successfully stopped the Vietnamese Tet Offensive. When
Westmoreland returned he was appointed Chief of Staff of the US Army. His job was to withdraw troops from
Vietnam, and transition the army into an all-volunteer force. He was successful at restructuring the army at a
difficult time, but his tactics in Vietnam had become unpopular with groups on the U.S.
B. Involvement with Nixon- Westmoreland had wanted to increase the number of troops in Vietnam, and when
Nixon was running for office he had called for a decrease in the amount of U.S. troops. Under Nixon's
administration the troops were reduced by 60,000.
C. Motives- Nixon decreased the number of troops in Vietnam while Westmoreland had requested an
increase in troops.
Rating- 3
Andrew Young
Andrew Young is a Civil Rights Activist, former mayor of Atlanta, Georgiam and the United State's ambassador
to the United Nations in the Jimmy Carter administration. He has also been the pastor of a church in Marion,
Albama. He was with Martin Luther King when he was shot.
Motive for killing Nixon: 0