Nixon advisor who uncovered the existence of secret tapes during the Watergate scandal dies at 99

Butterfield, an American Air Force officer, served as deputy assistant to the Republican president between 1969 and 1973 and he was one of the most trusted men of the chief of staff HR Haldeman, so he had direct access to the president’s day-to-day life.

Butterfield’s historical relevance came in the summer of 1973, when he appeared before the special Senate committee investigating the Watergate scandal. In one of the sessions, when questioned about the internal procedures of the White House, revealed that a secret automatic recording system existed in the Oval Office and other key spaces which recorded the president’s conversations and calls whenever Nixon was present.

Esa confessionwhich he himself assured that he would do if he was asked directly, transformed the investigation: suddenly the existence of tapes was revealed that could demonstrate what Nixon knew and how long ago about the cover-up.

He watergate scandal was a major political-institutional crisis in the United States in the early 1970s, caused by the assault by a group linked to Nixon’s re-election committee on the Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate complex, in Washington, DC.

Those “plumbers” entered to steal documents and place microphones, but they were arrested, which gave rise to an increasingly extensive journalistic and judicial investigation.

As the case progressed, It was discovered that the White House had attempted to stop the FBI investigations, pay for the silence of those involved and use intelligence agencies to obstruct justice.

Butterfield’s revelation about the recordings was the turning point: the Senate and then The Supreme Court forced Nixon to hand over the tapes, and in them there was clear evidence that the president had participated in the cover-up from the first days after the raid.

These recordings were considered irrefutable evidence demonstrating his direct responsibility.

Faced with the almost certain prospect of impeachment in Congress, Nixon decided to resign in August 1974, becoming the first president of the United States who was resigning from office.

Therefore, many historians They consider Butterfield “the man who brought down a president”, although he himself did not participate in the robbery or the cover-up, but ended up being the witness who uncovered the key piece of the case.