May 31, 2005
Deep Throat Revealed (This time for real...)
Well, so much for my super-sleuthing.
Today, May 31st, 2005, Bob Woodward has confirmed that "Deep Throat" was, indeed, none other than W.Mark Felt, former Deputy Director of the FBI.
I guess I can admit to being disappointed that my research led me to Fred LaRue and none other. Matter of fact, I'm a bit humiliated because I think I ruled out any FBI man out of hand.
For yeeeeeears I've been almost 100% certain that it was LaRue. After Fred died last July and no word from Woodward and Bernstein came (even after the August 9th 30th anniversary of Nixon's resignation), I started to wonder if they were holding out for a book or television special/documentary to make the announcement.
Even after nearly a year, I figured they were just biding time so as not to make it obvious by timing too close to LaRue's passing. And now it's confirmed. It was Felt, not Fred.
I will say this, though: Based on the bits of information that Deep Throat told Woodward -- and when he told them (especially the goings on at Key Biscayne) -- I believe that Fred LaRue was a source for the FBI. It was well-known that he was a co-operating witness. If Deep Throat wasn't Fred, then Fred was the ultimate source for the FBI and Mark Felt.
UPDATE: Tim Noah of Slate magazine, in a Washington Post online chat:
"When I spoke to Felt a few years ago, he said in no uncertain terms that for an FBI employee to leak details of a criminal investigation to a newspaper would be a terrible betrayal. Felt was a company man....I did think [Deep Throat] was Felt for a long time."
Harry Smith, at cbsnews.com:
“As for Deep Throat being an FBI guy -- Nixon's response would not have been printable.”
I have very mixed emotions about this, myself. Then again, eh, water under the bridge. Time to put the pork chops in...
Somebody on the news today, I can't remember who since I was working out pretty hard at that point, said that he didn't believe it because Felt wouldn't have had access to the White House to get this information. Interesting thought. Maybe there was another guy out there. Maybe Deep Throat was a composite.
Posted by: RP at June 1, 2005 09:13 AMAnd the MSM is falling all over itself reliving its glory days when it "got" a president. Felt is journalism's equivalent of a comb-over and a Corvette.
Posted by: Stephen Macklin at June 1, 2005 06:38 PMLOL Steve, that's hilarious!
RP, I don't think so. I re-read my Fred LaRue expose and it's plausable that Felt had all of the info that Deep Throat had when he revealed it to Woodward. It's just that he got it from cooperating inside sources (LaRue, Sloan, etc). He may even have had the ear of Judge Sirica. The problem is that he would have had to have come on to them as a sympathetic guy who could keep a secret. He betrayed people's trust, imo, for the sake of getting more info that he could leak.
Posted by: Tuning Spork at June 1, 2005 10:20 PMOk, that makes sense to me. More sense, frankly, as a plausible explanation than the one being pushed by the guy on the morning news.
Posted by: RP at June 2, 2005 08:17 AM