All the President's Men

An excellent description of the Watergate-era crimes of Richard Nixon's presidency. Sufficiently apropos to the current Trump administration, where they're being accused of similar crimes. It's easy to get lost in all of the names though, so it's not necessarily an easy read. There were dozens and dozens of people who were involved in the Watergate break-in, the pay off and the cover-up, and 20 people went to jail for this; However, the theme is essential: that President Nixon ordered Haldeman and Ehrlichman to pay the "Plumbers" to break in to the DNC and collect information to undermine the McGovern campaign, and then chose to cover up the event- even trying to force John Dean to become the scapegoat.

How can this book ever be anything but 5 stars? It details the key initial journalism which brought down a president who was acting not as a king, but head of an organized crime family, and all those who participated. If ever there was a more corrupt and infected presidential administration, then that story hasn't been written yet. But this one was. And this is it.

This to me - is the ultimate crime thriller! I purchased this wonderful work as an ebook to add to my library which has become a trove of investigative journalism and of politically related misbehaviour. I feel so grateful to those who expose corruption, whether whistleblowers and/or journalists. They are the conscience which alerts, stokes societal reaction, informs and motivates action by justice and government officials. Cover up attempts are ubiquitous. Smear campaigns are common strategies and tactics . Denials and defensive umbrage are classic responses. And yet, in the end, the puzzle pieces produced by dogged investigation and patient research form and lay out the truth for all to see. And this then becomes posterity and then history. Yes, I am so appreciative to have whistleblowers and investigative journalists - and what they reveal and share with the rest of us. When their story is well told - it becomes: anthropology; sociology; educational writing, and true entertainment.