Seth Hahn | Writer
April 2, 2021
Gordon Liddy, a mastermind behind the Watergate burglary, a war veteran and former FBI agent, died at age 90 on Tuesday. His son, Thomas Liddy, confirmed his death and that it had no correlation to Covid-19.
Liddy’s development in his earlier years led him down an interesting path. He had an interest in Adolf Hitler and often listened to his radio speeches. At the age of 11, to face his fear of rats, he roasted and ate one.
After serving in the army and graduating from law school, Liddy joined the FBI, later moving on to join President Nixon in the White House.
Liddy had a very outspoken, strong love for President Nixon. When talking of the Watergate scandal, he took pride in what he did, and even said, “I’d do it again for my president.”
He pushed for radical ideas that sometimes involved the assassination or kidnapping of opposing party leaders, or those who spoke out against Nixon. Happily, they never went through, but his fierce presence and radical ideas helped Nixon succeed.
“Liddy seemed like a very unstable person, although considering the environment he was raised in, the person he became makes sense,” said sophomore Samantha Jones.
Liddy originally came up with the Watergate plan: break into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate in Washington, tap the phones, and review files, photographs, and documents that could help Nixon. The first intrusion was a success and it wasn’t until the second break-in to install more microphones that they actually got caught.
During the Watergate investigation, he was the only accused to not comply with the prosecutors. He faced 20 years in prison and 100 days of confined solitude.
After leaving prison, he changed his license plate to H2OGATE, in other words Watergate. He became a prominent guest on radio and television. He often talked about the burglary openly as a public speaker, saying he would do it again with a better crew.
“I don’t think Liddy’s actions are justified, as his actions are immoral and illegal,” senior Grace Huynh said. “The fact that he was curious about Hitler and even ‘inspired’ by his radio speeches, raised a major red flag for me and says a lot about his beliefs and character.”
Liddy was the last surviving Watergate Seven member that went through with the burglary. He always took pride in his role in Watergate, once saying, “I am proud of the fact that I am the guy who did not talk.”
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