A Watergate Mastermind Has Died at 90

'I'd do it again for my president,' G. Gordon Liddy once said
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Mar 31, 2021 12:31 AM CDT
Watergate Mastermind G. Gordon Liddy Dead at 90
In this Saturday, April 12, 2003, file photo, talk radio host G. Gordon Liddy speaks at a rally for troops in Washington. In Washington, 10 blocks from an anti-war demonstration, supporters of the war effort drew thousands to their own rally.   (AP Photo/Lisa Nipp, File)

G. Gordon Liddy, a mastermind of the Watergate burglary and a radio talk show host after emerging from prison, died Tuesday at age 90 at his daughter's home in Virginia. His son, Thomas Liddy, confirmed the death but did not reveal the cause, other than to say it was not related to COVID-19, the AP reports. Liddy, a former FBI agent and Army veteran, was convicted of conspiracy, burglary, and illegal wiretapping for his role in the Watergate burglary, which led to the resignation of President Nixon in 1974. He spent four years and four months in prison, including more than 100 days in solitary confinement. “I’d do it again for my president,” he said years later. Liddy always took pride in his role in Watergate. He once said: “I am proud of the fact that I am the guy who did not talk.”

Liddy learned to market his reputation as a fearless, if sometimes overzealous, advocate of conservative causes. After his release from prison, Liddy became a popular, provocative, and controversial radio talk show host. His appearance—piercing dark eyes, bushy moustache, and shaved head—made him a recognizable spokesman for products and TV guest; he also acted in shows including Miami Vice. On air, he offered tips on how to kill federal firearms agents, rode around with car tags saying “H20GATE” (Watergate) and scorned people who cooperated with prosecutors. He also wrote best-selling books, was a frequent guest lecturer on college campuses, started a private-eye franchise, and worked as a security consultant. For a time, he teamed on the lecture circuit with an unlikely partner, 1960s LSD guru Timothy Leary. (Much more on Liddy, who had an interest in Adolf Hitler, here.)

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