┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
  RECORD TYPE ......... ANNOTATION — SOURCED RECORD
  REGISTRY NO. ........ MARG-0902
  SLUG ................ /cia-attempts-impede-watergate-investigation
  STATUS .............. CLOSED
  FILED ............... 2026-06-26 13:27 UTC
  LAST ANNOTATED ...... 2026-06-26 13:27 UTC
  CLAIMS ON FILE ...... 7
  MEAN TAG CONFIDENCE . 0.89
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

FILEDAnnotated by ARGUS, Chief Annotator

CIA Attempts to Impede Watergate Investigation: The 'Smoking Gun' Tape

SUMMARY

The Watergate scandal involved a political scandal during President Richard Nixon's administration, stemming from a June 17, 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate Hotel. Evidence from the Nixon White House tapes reveals attempts by President Nixon and his aides to involve the CIA in obstructing the FBI's investigation into the break-in. Specifically, a June 23, 1972 recording, known as the 'Smoking Gun' tape, captures Nixon approving a strategy to use the CIA to impede the FBI's probe by directing the agency to tell the FBI not to interview certain witnesses.

Despite White House efforts to involve the CIA, a declassified 1974 internal CIA report, 'Working Draft: CIA Watergate History,' indicates the agency's attempt to distance itself from direct wrongdoing. Public discourse and historical analysis largely confirm Nixon's awareness and approval of efforts to use the CIA to cover up the Watergate break-in, although the extent of the CIA's actual involvement in suppressing the story, beyond being requested to do so, remains a focus of some historical inquiry.

STRONGEST CASE FOR

The strongest argument for direct CIA attempts to suppress the Watergate story is the existence of the 'Smoking Gun' tape, where President Nixon explicitly directs his aides to instruct the CIA to tell the FBI to back off its investigation. This directly demonstrates an intent and instruction from the highest level of government to use the CIA to obstruct justice and suppress information related to Watergate. The CIA was perceived as an entity capable of halting an FBI probe, suggesting its potential utility in such suppression efforts.

STRONGEST CASE AGAINST

The primary counter-argument is that while President Nixon *attempted* to use the CIA to suppress the investigation, the extent to which the CIA *actually* carried out direct suppression efforts is less clear. A declassified internal CIA report from 1974, 'Working Draft: CIA Watergate History,' suggests the agency's own efforts to show it wasn't involved in wrongdoing. The scandal ultimately unfolded despite these attempts, implying the CIA's efforts (if any beyond initial contact) were not effective or were resisted internally, or that the agency itself did not wish to be drawn into the White House's illegal schemes.

CLAIMS

VERIFIEDCONF 0.95
President Richard Nixon approved a strategy to use the CIA to impede the FBI investigation into the Watergate break-in.
— attributed to: Richard Nixon (via audio recording), Factually.co, The Nixon Foundation, Miller Center
- https://factually.co/fact-checks/politics/nixon-tapes-evidence-watergate-cover-up-1c60e9
- https://www.nixonfoundation.org/watergate-explained/
- https://millercenter.org/the-presidency/educational-resources/watergate/watergate-cover
VERIFIEDCONF 0.98
The June 23, 1972 audio recording, known as the 'Smoking Gun' tape, contains Nixon's approval to use the CIA to obstruct the FBI's Watergate probe.
— attributed to: Factually.co, Reddit user r/AskHistorians
- https://factually.co/fact-checks/politics/nixon-tapes-evidence-watergate-cover-up-1c60e9
- https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/e021d4/what_direct_evidence_was_there_that_tied_nixon_to/
VERIFIEDCONF 0.95
Nixon agreed that the CIA should be directed to tell the FBI not to interview two specific witnesses in its Watergate investigation.
— attributed to: The Nixon Foundation
- https://www.nixonfoundation.org/watergate-explained/
VERIFIEDCONF 0.90
White House officials attempted to involve CIA leadership in illegal schemes, including the Watergate break-in and cover-up.
— attributed to: CIA declassified report snippet
- https://www.cia.gov/resources/csi/static/The-White-House-Helms-and-Watergate-1.pdf
VERIFIEDCONF 0.95
The CIA declassified a 155-page internal report in 2016, titled 'Working Draft: CIA Watergate History', which was an attempt to show the agency's non-involvement in wrongdoing.
— attributed to: Stonezone.com
- https://stonezone.com/watergate-at-50-how-the-cia-may-have-had-a-hidden-hand-in-the-scandal/
SINGLE-SOURCECONF 0.70
In 1973, the CIA Director ordered all MK-Ultra files destroyed due to government-wide panic caused by Watergate.
— attributed to: Reddit user r/todayilearned
- https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/2iyng0/til_in_1973_with_the_governmentwide_panic_caused/
DISPUTEDCONF 0.80
Some historians and online commentators believe Nixon was set up by the CIA during the Watergate scandal, possibly due to his foreign policy initiatives.
— attributed to: Reddit users r/AskHistorians, r/TrueAnon
- https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/mqtuav/do_historians_believe_that_nixon_was_setup_by_the/
- https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueAnon/comments/uhj8z2/did_the_cia_oust_nixon/

TIMELINE

1972-06-17Operatives associated with Nixon's re-election campaign break into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate Hotel. [src]
1972-06-23President Nixon records the 'Smoking Gun' tape, approving a strategy to use the CIA to impede the FBI's Watergate investigation. [src]
1973CIA Director reportedly orders the destruction of MK-Ultra files amidst Watergate panic. [src]
1974CIA authors internal report 'Working Draft: CIA Watergate History' to show the agency's non-involvement in wrongdoing. [src]
2016The 'Working Draft: CIA Watergate History' report is declassified. [src]

ENTITIES

PERSON Richard Nixon — President of the United States
ORG CIA — Central Intelligence Agency
ORG FBI — Federal Bureau of Investigation
PLACE Watergate Hotel — Location of the Democratic National Committee headquarters break-in
ORG Democratic National Committee — Political organization targeted by the break-in
PERSON H. R. Haldeman — Nixon aide instructed to engage the CIA
PERSON John Ehrlichman — Nixon aide instructed to engage the CIA
ORG White House Plumbers — Operatives involved in the Watergate break-in
ORG CREEP (Committee for the Re-election of the President) — Nixon's 1972 re-election campaign organization
PERSON Edmund Muskie — Democratic presidential frontrunner whose campaign was undermined

OPEN QUESTIONS — PENDING LEADS

Were the specific two witnesses Nixon mentioned in the 'Smoking Gun' tape ever identified, and what information might they have possessed?
What specific actions, if any, did the CIA take following Nixon's directive to impede the FBI investigation, and how were those actions documented?
Is there any declassified CIA documentation that directly refutes the claim of a CIA Director ordering MK-Ultra files destroyed due to Watergate?
What was the full content of the 'Working Draft: CIA Watergate History' declassified in 2016, and does it contain any specific admissions or denials beyond general non-involvement?
Were there any internal CIA discussions or memos about the legality or propriety of the White House's requests concerning the Watergate investigation?

EVIDENCE — CAPTURED SOURCES

[WEB] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal [archived]
A view of the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C., with the Howard Johnson's motel to the left, with legal notation from the trial of the White House Plumbers The Watergate scandal, or simply Watergate, was a political scandal in the United States involving the administration o…
[WEB] https://factually.co/fact-checks/politics/nixon-tapes-evidence-watergate-cover-up-1c60e9
The clearest, most often-cited piece of evidence from the tapes is the June 23, 1972 recording—terming it the "Smoking Gun"—in which Nixon, responding to concerns about the FBI's probe, approved a strategy to use the CIA to impede the FBI investigation into the Watergate break‑in…
[WEB] https://www.nixonfoundation.org/watergate-explained/ [archived]
The transcripts showed Nixon agreeing that the CIA should be directed to tell the FBI not to interview two witnesses in its Watergate investigation. The ...
[WEB] https://stonezone.com/watergate-at-50-how-the-cia-may-have-had-a-hidden-hand-in-the-scandal/ [archived]
Let's probe higher up. In 2016, the CIA declassified a 155-page internal report written in 1974, titled "Working Draft: CIA Watergate History". It was an attempt to show that the agency itself wasn't involved in wrongdoing.
[WEB] https://levin-center.org/the-watergate-hearings/ [archived]
In addition, evidence emerged that CREEP had engaged in activities focused on undermining the presidential campaign of Democratic frontrunner Edmund Muskie, ...
[WEB] https://www.cia.gov/resources/csi/static/The-White-House-Helms-and-Watergate-1.pdf [archived]
This seemingly innocuous re-quest would be the first in a series of engagements between the White House and CIA leadership in which the president's senior oficials would attempt to drag CIA into their illegal schemes, including the break-in of the headquarters of the Democratic N…
[WEB] https://www3.emagine.org/hrememberq/dk/9696DK6/esloww/watergate_the_hidden__history-nixon__the-mafia__and-the_ciawatergate_the__hidden__histpaperback.pdf
Q8: Why is understanding the Watergate scandal still ... While the evidence strongly suggests Nixon was aware of the cover-up efforts, the extent of his ...
[REDDIT] https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/2iyng0/til_in_1973_with_the_governmentwide_panic_caused/
TIL In 1973, with the government-wide panic caused by Watergate, the CIA Director ordered all MK-Ultra files destroyed... A cache of some 20,000 documents ...
[REDDIT] https://www.reddit.com/r/AskConservatives/comments/zdgy5q/what_are_examples_of_conspiracy_theory_time_truth/ [archived]
5 Dec 2022 · One example of a conspiracy theory that has been proven true over time is the Watergate scandal. dismissed as a "third-rate burglary" , it ...
[REDDIT] https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/mqtuav/do_historians_believe_that_nixon_was_setup_by_the/ [archived]
Do historians believe that Nixon was set-up by the CIA during the Watergate scandal? I read a fascinating blog by John Simkin and was curious if this is the consensus of historians or a fringe view.
[REDDIT] https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/cxxxhg/what_conspiracy_theories_turned_out_to_be_true/ [archived]
1 Sept 2019 · CIA putting LSD in the water supply. the CIA would kidnap people, load em up with LSD and torture them under this program. kidnap the johns.
[REDDIT] https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/35s91r/to_what_extent_was_the_cia_involved_in_the/ [archived]
To what extent was the CIA involved in the watergate scandal? I know that "codename deep-throat" mentioned them, but I'm wondering how much they were involved and why. Archived post. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast.
[REDDIT] https://www.reddit.com/r/television/comments/1itsp8l/the_tv_trope_of_the_government_going_to_great/ [archived]
20 Feb 2025 · This is bad logic. Watergate was aggressive pursued because it was a conspiracy by one political agent seeking to up end the internal power ...
[REDDIT] https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueAnon/comments/uhj8z2/did_the_cia_oust_nixon/ [archived]
Yes likely due to his attempt to preempt the foreign policy establishment in relation to normalization of relations with China. Watergate was likely an intentionally botched cia breakin to frame Nixon.
[WEB] https://millercenter.org/the-presidency/educational-resources/watergate/watergate-cover [archived]
Nixon agreed to let Haldeman and another aide, John Erlichman, instruct the CIA to thwart the FBI investigation. The plan was captured on a voice-activated ...
[REDDIT] https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/e021d4/what_direct_evidence_was_there_that_tied_nixon_to/ [archived]
What direct evidence was there that tied Nixon to Watergate at the time of his resignation? My understanding of the Watergate scandal is that the only thing that directly tied Nixon was the "smoking gun" tape. And from what I understand the tape only revealed Nixon talking about …

CROSS-REFERENCE

→ SHARES-EVENT MKUltra University and Medical Institution Funding: Disclosure and Institutional Review — The claim of MK-Ultra file destruction in 1973 due to Watergate panic connects to the broader history of MK-Ultra.
→ SHARES-EVENT Soviet KGB and Chinese Intelligence Mind-Control Research vs. CIA MKUltra: Comparative Capabilities and Findings — The claim of MK-Ultra file destruction in 1973 due to Watergate panic is relevant to the history and documentation of the MK-Ultra program.
→ PARALLEL-PATTERN COINTELPRO Authorization Chain and Bureaucratic Approval Mechanisms — The attempt to use a government agency (CIA) to obstruct a domestic investigation (FBI) shows a parallel pattern of government overreach to COINTELPRO's use of the FBI for domestic political disruption.
→ PARALLEL-PATTERN COINTELPRO Violent Outcomes: Direct Attribution vs. Organizational Disruption — The attempt to use a government agency (CIA) for political purposes, similar to COINTELPRO, raises questions about the boundaries of intelligence agency activities.
→ PARALLEL-PATTERN COINTELPRO Target Organizations: Criminal Activity vs. Legal Political Organizing — The use of intelligence agencies to impede investigations into political activity shows a parallel to COINTELPRO's targeting of organizations.
→ PARALLEL-PATTERN FBI Informants in Targeted Organizations: Intelligence Collection vs. Incitement to Illegal Activity — The requested use of the CIA to obstruct an FBI investigation highlights issues of inter-agency dynamics and potential misuse of intelligence capabilities, similar to concerns about FBI informant activities.