W. Mark Felt

William Mark Felt, Sr. (born August 17, 1913) is a former agent and top official of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). He was revealed in 2005 to be the Watergate scandal informant nicknamed "Deep Throat."

Watergate

As associate director, Felt saw everything compiled on Watergate before it went to Gray. The agent in charge, Charles Nuzum, sent his findings to Investigative Division head Robert Gebhardt, who then passed the information on to Felt. From the day of the break-in, June 17, 1972, until the FBI investigation was mostly completed in June 1973, Felt was the key control point for FBI information. He had been among the first to learn of the investigation, being informed at 7:00 on the morning of June 17.{{ref|FeltLearnsAboutWatergate}} Ronald Kessler, who had spoken to former Bureau agents, reported that throughout the investigation they "were amazed to see material in Woodward and Bernstein's stories lifted almost verbatim from their reports of interviews a few days or weeks earlier."{{ref|KesslerAmazed}}

Related Topics:
Watergate - June 17 - 1972 - 1973

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Bob Woodward first describes Deep Throat in All the President's Men as "a source in the Executive Branch who had access to information at CRP , as well as at the White House." {{ref|BernsteinSourceInExecutive}} The book also calls him "an incurable gossip" who was "in a unique position to observe the Executive Branch," a man "whose fight had been worn out in too many battles."{{ref|BernsteinOnFelt}} Woodward had known the source before Watergate and had discussed politics and government with him.

Related Topics:
Bob Woodward - All the President's Men - Committee to Re-elect the President

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Woodward in 2005 wrote that he met Felt at the White House in 1969 or 1970 when Woodward was an aide to Admiral Thomas Moorer, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, delivering papers to the White House Situation Room. In his book The Secret Man, Woodward described Felt as "a tall man with perfectly combed gray hair . . . distinguished looking" with "a studied air of confidence, even what might be called a command presence."{{ref|HowWoodwardMetFelt}} They stayed in touch and spoke on the telephone several times. When Woodward started working at the Washington Post, he phoned Felt on several occasions to ask for information for articles in the Post. Felt's information, taken on a promise that Woodward would never reveal their origin, was a source for a few stories, notably for an article on May 18 1972, about Arthur H. Bremer, who shot George Wallace. When the Watergate story broke, Woodward called on his friend. Felt advised Woodward on 19 June that Howard Hunt was involved; the telephone number of his White House office had been listed in the address book of one of the burglars. Initially, Woodward's source was known at the Post as "My Friend," but was tagged "Deep Throat" after the pornographic movie by Post editor Howard Simons. Woodward has written that idea for the nickname first came to Simons because Felt had been providing the information on a "deep background" basis. Deep background is a journalistic term meaning information provided to a reporter on the condition that the source be neither identified nor quoted directly.

Related Topics:
2005 - White House - 1969 - 1970 - Thomas Moorer - Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff - May 18 - 1972 - Arthur H. Bremer - George Wallace - 19 June - Howard Hunt - The pornographic movie - Howard Simons

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When Felt's name was revealed, it was noted that "My Friend" has the same initial letters as "Mark Felt." Woodward has said this was a coincidence, but in looking back at some of his notes, interviews with Felt during the earliest days of the story were marked with "M.F."

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Woodward claimed that when he wanted to meet Deep Throat, he would move a flowerpot with a red flag on the balcony of his apartment, number 617, at the Webster House at 1718 P Street, Northwest, and when Deep Throat wanted a meeting, he would circle the page number on page twenty of Woodward's copy of The New York Times and draw clock hands to signal the hour.{{ref|DeepThroatSignal}} Adrian Havill questioned these claims in his 1993 biography of Woodward and Bernstein, stating Woodward's balcony faced an interior courtyard and was not visible from the street, but Woodward responded that it has been bricked in since he lived there. Havill also claimed that copies of The Times were not delivered marked by apartment, but Woodward and a former neighbor disputed this claim.{{ref|HavillOnSignalStory}} Woodward has stated

Related Topics:
The New York Times - 1993

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:How could have made a daily observation of my balcony is still a mystery to me. At the time, the back of my building was not enclosed so anyone could have driven in the back alley to observe my balcony. In addition, my balcony and the back of the apartment complex faced onto a courtyard or back area that was shared with a number of other apartment or office buildings in the area. My balcony could have been seen from dozens of apartment or offices.

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:There were several embassies in the area. The Iraqi embassy was down the street, and I thought it possible that the FBI had surveillance or listening posts nearby. Could Felt have had the counterintelligence agents regularly report on the status of my flag and flowerpot? That seems unlikely, if not impossible.{{ref|WoodwardSurveillanceSpeculation}}

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Days after the break-in, Nixon and Bob Haldeman talked about putting pressure on the FBI to slow down the investigation. The FBI had been called in by the District of Columbia police because the burglars had been found with wiretapping equipment, and wiretapping is a crime investigated by the FBI. Haldeman told President Nixon on 23 June 1972, "Mark Felt wants to cooperate because he's ambitious."{{ref|HadlemanOnFeltCooperation}}

Related Topics:
Bob Haldeman - District of Columbia - Wiretapping - 23 June - 1972

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Nixon was told Felt was leaking information. In a taped conversation on 19 October 1972, Haldeman said he had sources, which he declined to name, confirming Felt was speaking to the press. "You can't say anything about this because it will screw up our source and there's a real concern. Mitchell is the only one who knows about this and he feels strongly that we better not do anything because . . . If we move on him, he'll go out and unload everything. He knows everything that's to be known in the FBI. He has access to absolutely everything." {{ref|HaldemanOnFeltUnloading}} Haldeman also reported that he had spoken to White House counsel John W. Dean about punishing Felt, but Dean said Felt had committed no crime and could not be prosecuted.

Related Topics:
19 October - 1972 - Mitchell - John W. Dean

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When Gray returned from his sick leave in January 1973, he confronted Felt about being the source for Woodward and Bernstein. Gray said he had defended Felt to Attorney General Richard Kleindienst: "You know, Mark, Dick Kleindienst told me I ought to get rid of you. He says White House staff members are concerned that you are the FBI source of leaks to Woodward and Bernstein,"{{ref|GrayRevealsSuspOfFeltLeak}} to which Felt replied, "Pat, I haven't leaked anything to anybody."{{ref|FeltDeniesLeaking}} Gray told Felt, "I told Kleindienst that you've worked with me on a very competent manner and I'm convinced that you are completely loyal. I told him I was not going to move you out. Kleindienst told me, 'Pat, I love you for that.'"

Related Topics:
1973 - Attorney General - Richard Kleindienst

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Felt called "obvious" the reasons why he was suspected by the White House as the reporters' source:

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:I was supposed to be jealous of Gray for having received the appointment as Acting Director instead of myself. They felt that my high position in the FBI gave me access to all the Watergate information and that I was releasing it to Woodward and Bernstein in an effort to discredit Gray so that he would be removed and I would have another chance at the job. Then there were those frequent instances when I had been much less than cooperative in responding to requests from the White House which I felt were improper. I suppose the White House staff had me tagged as an insubordinate.{{ref|FeltOnAllegedGrayJealousy}}

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Felt wrote, "it is true I would like to have been appointed FBI director," but "I never leaked information to Woodward and Bernstein or anyone else!"

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On February 17, 1973, Nixon nominated Gray as Hoover's permanent replacement as director.{{ref|GrayNominated}} Until then, Gray had been in limbo as acting director. In another taped conversation on 28 February 1973, Nixon spoke to Dean about Felt acting as an informant, and mentioned that he had never met him. Gray was forced to resign on 27 April 1973, after it was revealed Gray had destroyed a file on the Kennedy family that had been in the White House safe of E. Howard Hunt.{{ref|GrayResigns}} Gray told his superiors that Felt should be named as his successor.

Related Topics:
February 17 - 1973 - 28 February - 27 April

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The day Gray resigned, Kleindienst spoke to Nixon, who urged that Felt be appointed as Gray's replacement, but Nixon instead appointed William Ruckelshaus. Stanley Kutler reported that Nixon said, "I don't want him. I can't have him. I just talked to Bill Ruckelshaus and Bill is a Mr. Clean and I want a fellow in there that is not part of the old guard and that is not part of that infighting in there."{{ref|MrClean}} On another White House tape, from 11 May 1973, Nixon and White House Chief of Staff Alexander M. Haig spoke of Felt leaking material to The New York Times. Nixon said, "he's a bad guy, you see," and that William Sullivan had told him Felt's ambition was to be director of the Bureau.{{ref|FeltNixonsBadGuy}}

Related Topics:
William Ruckelshaus - 11 May - 1973 - Alexander M. Haig - The New York Times

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Felt called his relationship with Ruckelshaus "stormy".{{ref|FeltOnRuckelshausRelStormy}} He said in his memoir Ruckelshaus was a "security guard sent to see that the FBI did nothing which would displease Mr. Nixon."{{ref|FeltOnRuckelshausAsSecurityGuard}} Felt retired from the Bureau on June 22, 1973, ending a thirty-one-year career.

Related Topics:
June 22 - 1973

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