Low Crimes and Misdemeanors in High Places: John Mitchell and Watergate

This thoroughly-researched reexamination and retelling of the Watergate scandal focuses on the role of John Mitchell, President Nixon's former law partner, his attorney general, and manager of his 1972 re-election campaign. Mitchell became the fall-guy, eventually convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury, and served 19 months in prison. But that didn't save Nixon, who was forced to resign for the attempted cover-up. Mitchell comes across as a somewhat different person than his image in the press, as confirmed by one of his defense attorneys, Plato Cacheris. It was Mitchell's unwavering loyalty to Nixon that did him in, in contrast with Nixon's attempt to escape responsibility by placing the blame on Mitchell. The last sentence of this account wonders if in the end Mitchell still considered Nixon one of his friends.