The Arrogance of Power: The Secret World of Richard Nixon

by Anthony Summers

Summers' biography of Richard Nixon reveals a troubled figure whose criminal behavior didn't begin with Watergate. Drawing on over 1000 interviews & 5 years of research, he reveals a man driven by an addiction to intrigue & power, whose subversion of democracy during Watergate was the culmination of years of cynical political manipulation. New evidence suggests the former president had problems with alcohol & prescription drugs, was at times mentally unstable & was abusive to his wife Pat. He discloses previously unrevealed facts about Nixon's role in the plots to topple Fidel Castro & Salvador Allende, his sabotage of the Vietnam peace talks in 1968 & his acceptance of funds from dubious sources. The Arrogance of Power shows how the actions of one tormented man influenced 50 years of American history, in ways still reverberating today.

Genres: History, Biography, Politics, Nonfiction, Presidents, American, Americana

640 pages, Hardcover

First published August 28, 2000

About the author

Anthony Summers is the bestselling author of eight nonfiction books. His investigative books include Not in Your Lifetime, the critically acclaimed book about the assassination of John F. Kennedy; Official & Confidential: The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover; and most recently The Eleventh Day, on the 9/11 attacks—a finalist for the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for History.

Reviews

[Erik Graff]

Having previously read Summer's book about J. Edgar Hoover I shouldn't have been as surprised as I was about the muck-raking quality of thie 'biography' of Richard M. Nixon. I write 'biography' because this isn't quite that. Very little mention is made of Nixon's achievements, much attention is paid to his character flaws and criminal activities--all of it documented, though much by means of hearsay, albeit some multiply-sourced.

The Nixon emerging from this study is a morally uncentered person who would stop at nothing to ensure his own success in politics and who was capable of extremes of self delusion in order to believe his own lies. Personally, based on what I've read elsewhere about the man, I think the picture is basically accurate.

[Brett C]

Did this guy know Richard Nixon personally? Did Tricky Dick do something to this guy when they were growing up or something?

This was an incoherent, rambling, and nonlinear narrative. It was hard for me to follow—Anthony Summers pulled from random events, dates, & allegations and injected them into the narrative. This was the entire book. There were allegations of mob connections, corruption, financial scandal, and demonizing Richard Nixon.

I gave this two-stars because there were moments of logical commentary following his biography but it would lunge into a different direction. This information was helpful and clear but would become muddied with other overshadowing points of allegation.

I'll read other commentaries and biographies about Nixon before I make my owned informed decisions. Thanks!

[Pete daPixie]

A stunning history book that is the size and weight of the Holy Bible, that appears to contain just as many profound accounts of past events and extraordinary revelations as the good book itself.
'The Arrogance of Power:The Secret World of Richard Nixon' is a startling, incredible, almost unbelievable and frightening political biography, written by the ex BBC correspondent Anthony Summers.
In almost five hundred pages of text, one hundred and twenty pages of Notes, a seven page Bibliography and Index that takes the total content to some six hundred and forty pages, this, just like it's subject, is a political monster. As the author acknowledges, more than a thousand people were interviewed by Summers and Swan in the research for this 2000 publication.
Having previously read 'Conspiracy' and 'Official and Confidential' by this writer, the high standard of research comes as no surprise. Yet, I have to admit that the alarming content of 'The Secret World of Richard Nixon' has raised my eyebrows so often I may now require medical attention to get my forehead lowered. There are authentic historical scenarios revealed here that could be taken from Kubric's Dr.Strangelove. As Defcon levels rise, the psychotic Chief Exec is incoherent and unable to function, with similarities to Hitler on D.Day. The culmination of Watergate is just the tip of the berg as the ship of state steams on at full speed.
For those who are depressed and feeling down, read this book. You are likely to learn how lucky you are to be alive!

[Khayer Chowdhury]

Picked this up in a charity shop for around a quid after I thought what the hell. Despite doing IR degrees for around 5 years, I rarely paid any attention to Nixon and his presidency despite him being at the centre of major global events at that time. Summers really exposes Nixon's character and flaws. The detail is alarmingly intricate and at times, scary. E.g. Nixon's Madman Theory.

This is definitely worth a read if you are interested in America's most psychopathic president who also was a pathological liar.

I should also point out that Summers does humanise the president delving into his greatest insecurities and fears. Nixon was a good father and in his eyes, he felt he was always doing the right thing.

[Alex Robinson]

First off, I will confess I didn't complete this book. I find Nixon a fascinating figure but I found the style to be somewhat hysterical, along the lines of biographers like Albert Goldman. The author is so determined to show that Nixon was a sleazebag in every way possible that he winds up relying on a lot of hearsay ("Joe Smith said Nixon once kicked a dog, according to his valet Chet Jones") and makes some bold claims with little evidence (the fact that Nixon beat his wife, for instance). Nixon did so much awful stuff which is on the record it got a little tiresome seeing him strain to find new dirt.

[Aaron]

This is a difficult book to categorize. It is not a full-fledged biography, as it neither covers Nixon completely from birth to death, nor does it discuss much of the policy side of his presidency. It is not presidential history as the focus is solely on Nixon and, again, the actual accomplishments of his presidency are skimmed over at best. It is also not a history of Watergate - the act actually does not occur until about 100 pages from the end.

Instead, this is more of an indictment of Richard Nixon: how he behaved, what he said, who he surrounded himself with, how he treated his family, the influence of his parents, his mental state, and most of all, his deceitfulness. Summers writes in a tabloid-esque manner, quoting anyone and everyone about anything and everything. Does that mean that some of the things that he documents are false, or that some of the things that were supposedly said were not actually said? Not necessarily. But when you have an author quoting from the maid of a call girl (p. 422), you can't help but question if that is really a strong enough source to cite in a book. Also, there is no table of contents, and no chapter titles. He also makes a mistake when he writes that Nixon was the first president in almost a century to work with an opposition Congress. Dwight Eisenhower had to deal with a Democratic congress for most of his presidency.

Yet, on the other hand, Summers has extensive footnotes and then chapter notes beyond that. He clearly has a goal in writing this book; the title of the book belies that. Thus, to make an argument that Summers was impartial in his treatment of Nixon would be difficult to make. However, with him sourcing everything as well as he does, he is able to present a convincing case for some of the allegations that he makes about Nixon.

Summers ably paints a picture of an out of control Nixon during the presidency. Utilizing the tapes that were then available, as well as numerous interviewers with people who were there at the time, he demonstrates how Nixon, at best, frequently acted irrationally and at worst, was a danger to the nation. It seems clear that Nixon had long had a drinking problem, and that he may very well have mixed pills with the alcohol. Too many people observed him behaving in a bizarre manner too many times for anyone to not at least seriously entertain the possibility that Nixon had a drinking problem and he allowed it to interfere in the carrying out of his duties.

Yet other times, Summers just seems to be out to smear Nixon as much as possible. One area where he was not entirely convincing was in asserting that he abused his wife, Pat. Sadly, is it quite possible that this occurred? Yes. But is there any proof? No, there is not. Summers goes off of, in part, what Nixon's daughters said about the atmosphere changing between their parents. He also cites several other people as having been told of abuse. But there is no conclusive proof. Although Summers definitely makes a case that Nixon could have abused Pat (and, again, he may very well have - there are too many rumors about it happening to casually dismiss the possibility, as horrible as it is), but in the end the reader must determine if that really occurred or not. As Summers himself states in a different part of the book (p. 282), while discussing Nixon's involvement with Howard Hughes: "In this gallery of corrupters and corrupted, men who suffered convenient memory lapses or simply lied, whose account can be deemed reliable?"

One thing does seem certain: Nixon had a lot of secrets, and they were not pretty ones. Nixon was a damaged man from childhood, struggled with trusting people, and was obsessed with having power. He mistreated his friends, his family, his staff, the country, and ultimately himself. One wonders if the man ever allowed himself a truly happy moment.

Grade: D+

[Peter Black]

A disturbing and insightful account of corruption and abuses of power during the Nixon presidency, including secret overseas accounts, mafia connections, illegal payments and dirty tricks. And Nixon at the very heart of it. Well worth a read.

[Steve]

I've been on a Richard Nixon kick, having read a couple of books regarding "Watergate" from Ben Bradlee's bio, the Woodward and Bernstein book "All the President's Men" and now this book by Anthony Summers. The detail (along with 125 pages of end notes documenting his research) was tremendous and painted a very detailed picture that leaves people to wonder how Richard Nixon got away with what he did for as long as he did.



It sometime felt like you were reading biographical fiction at times and that bothered me a bit. If it weren't for the citations, you would think that all money, the mob connections, the dirty politics and Nixon's drinking and health issues were part of a fictional horror story that could not happen in a non-fictional, historical profile. But Summers' descriptions of the events leading to Watergate and the resignation were superbly presented and in collaboration with a number of other Nixon books and periodicals I've read over the years. It's very detailed, very eye-opening and provides a wonderful perspective on Nixon and what led to his fall from the world stage.

[Matt]

I enjoyed the history aspect and the tales of Nixon's younger days. Often, though, the author seemed bogged down in the intense details of certain monetary transactions and proof Nixon lied or covered things up. I would rather read more colorful stuff than those dry facts. Nevertheless, it's a pretty authoritative and compelling biography with one exception: There is next to nothing about the last 20 years of his life (1974-94). Surely details were to be had of his visits to the White House under the Clinton Administration and information written about him at the time of Pat Nixon's death. The photo pages were literally more informative about that period than the text. It essentially ends with Watergate.

[Bronwen]

This book amazed me. I actually couldn't put it down which was a bummer because it's a big, heavy book and bringing it with me everywhere was a pain. I am fascinated by Nixon - corrupt to the bone, totally ruthless and also brilliant. His psychiatrist thought he was insane and there are unsettling descriptions of the Secret Service chasing him through the White House trying to tackle him mid-freakout. Of course, after GW Bush, he doesn't seem so damaging to the country but he was, obviously. A bizarre character.

[Carly]

"actually couldn't put it down which was a bummer because it's a big, heavy book and bringing it with me everywhere was a pain" >>> oh how I feel you with that one, I had exactly the same problem! Hence its taken me longer to read than I would have liked, but I think the depth of research is amazing and there were so many new facets of Nixon's character revealed that I haven't seen examined elsewhere. I have really enjoyed it, other than the seminal "All the President's Men" and sequel this is my favourite Watergate-related book ever.

[F.C. Schaefer]

It seems like we shall never run out of books on Richard Nixon, nearly a quarter of a century after his death, the life of the disgraced 37th President still reverberates in the 21st Century. Walk into any bookstore and you will find at least one recently written book with him as the subject on the shelf in the biography section. THE ARROGANCE OF POWER: THE SECRET WORLD OF RICHARD NIXON by Anthony Summers was written in the early 2000’s and had sat on my own shelf for a few years and I only recently pulled it out to read. As the title implies, this is not a balanced “warts and all” look at Nixon’s career, but basically a “warts is all” deep dive into Nixon’s “secret life.” Summers treats us to accounts of heavy drinking, violent rages, bribes, slush funds, assassination plots, illegal financial deals, treason, epic rudeness, and lies, lies and even more lies. A lot of this stuff could easily be dismissed as rumor and innuendo, except that Summers backs it up with more than a hundred pages of notes on sources and interviews; which is good, because many of the things alleged in this book are incendiary.

My hardback copy comes in at nearly 500 pages not counting the notes, and it covers Nixon’s life from the early days in California to his resignation from the Presidency. That is a an easy read for a history and biography buff like myself, though others might find the going tedious, but I must say, Summers always has something interesting happening in every chapter. The book spends enough time on Nixon’s childhood to give us a picture of a young man scared by poverty and the emotional repression that came from living with two difficult parents, and the death of two brothers at a young age. Summers lets us know where Nixon’s will to succeed no matter what the cost mentality came from, along with a resentful sense of inferiority. Over and over throughout his career, we see Nixon painfully strive to fit in, yet there is always something off, an inability to simply be himself, because it is clear that Nixon never trusted himself, and he certainly never trusted others. He becomes a lawyer with little real interest in practicing law, serves as a junior officer in the Navy during World War II, and jumps at an opportunity to run for Congress as soon as the war is over. Nixon’s peculiar skills and driving ambition find a natural outlet in a political career, one that takes from the House, where he was one of the earliest Red baiters, to the Senate after a bruising and bitter campaign against a liberal Democrat, to the Vice Presidency, and on after to the defeats, comebacks, victories, and to the final political apocalypse that was the Watergate scandal.

And as bad as Watergate was, I found Nixon’s actions in the last days of the 1968 Presidential election to be far more reprehensible. That is when he sabotaged an opportunity to obtain a settlement in the Vietnam War by sending an emissary form his campaign to Saigon with a message for the South Vietnamese President to stall until after the election, to not send representatives to the Paris peace talks because Nixon would give them better terms than the outgoing administration of Lyndon Johnson. So fearful was Nixon that a last minute deal on Vietnam might elect Democrat Hubert Humphrey, and rob him of the Presidency, that he committed an act that could be considered treason. Though it is impossible to know what might have ultimately come out of the deal that never was, what we do know is that many more American boys, along with countless Vietnamese civilians, would continue to die in Southeast Asia over the next four years, as President Richard Nixon sought that elusive “peace with honor.”

I liked Summers account of Watergate, a complicated piece of history that he makes very comprehensible to the reader. Keeping track of who is who, and who knew what and when is no easy thing. We get a picture of a paranoid President plotting in the Oval Office from the get go, more than capable of approving of every breakin and every illegal wire tap, shredding the excuse that Nixon apologists have made over the years that the President was mislead by his subordinates into Watergate, and only covered it up out of loyalty. What is even more frightening are the accounts Summers relates of Nixon’s mental state as the scandal engulfed him; not only that, but the drinking that put him out of action at critical moments, as when American military forces were put on worldwide alert during the Yom Kippur War in October 1973 when the Soviets threatened to intervene in the Middle East. This was a decision made by Alexander Haig and Henry Kissinger while the President was asleep in the family quarters of the White House. Equally telling is the worries of members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the summer of ’74 that the Commander in Chief might actually use the military to stay in power as Congress made moves to impeach him. Some of the accounts seem extreme, but they all have a similar ring to them, and they come from many different witnesses.

What I think is a bridge too far is Summers’ allegation that Nixon physically abused his wife, Pat, on more than one occasion. Most of the evidence he sites is hearsay long after the fact, and I couldn’t help but feel that spousal abuse was such a heinous thing to accuse anyone of, that it should demand a higher level of proof. Still, Summers more than makes the case that Richard Nixon was capable of such actions.

What we almost never see in the pages of Summers’ book is what made Richard Nixon the most formidable political figure in American politics of the mid 20th Century: missing is the master political skills that allowed him to manage his own Presidential campaign in 1968 (John Mitchell was a figurehead); the grasp of foreign affairs the led him to détente with the Soviets and the opening of relations with Mao’s China; the drive and perseverance that took him from a meager beginning in California to a being a giant on the world stage; the opportunistic politician who realigned the American electoral landscape by making the Republican Party the spokesman for “The Silent Majority.” What we do get a real sense of is the Jekyll/Hyde nature of Nixon’s personality, the sanctimonious and pious public persona he projected in public for more than a quarter of century on the political stage, never once letting slip the foul mouthed, angry, paranoid, and bigoted man that raged behind closed doors.

The book was written nearly 20 years ago now, and some things date it; there is a fleeting mention of Mark Felt, then another one of Deep Throat, the famous leaker to Woodward and Bernstein, with no acknowledgement that they are the same person. And the massive dysfunction in the White House that Summers describes was certainly seen in a different light when it was read more than a decade ago, it all takes on a much different color when read today in the Trump era. In the end, the book is well titled, for THE ARROGANCE OF POWER makes for a damning case against Richard Nixon, one he spent his years in retirement trying to make the public forget. This is justice of a kind.

[TheReadingSamuel]

The Arrogance of Power: The Secret World of Richard Nixon by Anthony Summers. Book Rating: 8/10. Highly Recommended. Through the pages of this monumental book, Anthony Summers has given President Richard Nixon that final kick into history, showcasing a long history of criminal activity connected to one of the most controversial and polarizing political figures who also remains one of the most brilliant. Summers has written one of the most brutal and raw books on the former vice president and president who’s struggling for power is shown in ways that are both tragic and deeply troubling in a truly fascinating and profound book. From Nixon's role in attacks against Fidel Castro and peace deals in Vietnam to his alcohol and medication abuse and many more ignored aspects of his long, influential life Summers has given a book for those who stood against Nixon even at his most popular times to relish in. Love or Hate Nixon, this book remains extraordinary and profound and lives up to its ideas and arguments in all ways. The vengeful Nixon, the brilliant Nixon, the tragic Nixon, and the criminal Nixon are all here in its highest highs and lowest lows.

[Alexander Santiago]

This is probably the most disturbing read on an American president that I have ever come across. I thought I knew most things about Nixon, but this meticulously and carefully researched book blew me away! Nixon definitely did not earn the sobriquet 'Tricky Dick' for nothing, as the underhanded, Machiavellian tactics he employed not only during his run for the senate, but during his run for the presidency was absolutely mind boggling! And that is just the tip of the iceberg when you learn about his intake of large sums of (unreported) cash from the mafia as well as foreign governments and nationals during his run for the presidency made me wonder it was nothing short of a miracle (and expert people on his team) that he was able to get away with such blatant disregard for the rules. His stance on Vietnam (and how he played politics with aspect of peace with Vietnam to get in order to be elected), the secret recordings in the White House, in addition to his secret bombing (and lying) of Cambodia, had all the makings of am American despot who dared anyone to defy (and those who did were recipients of his wrath in many ways). What was most revealing and surprising was his problem with alcohol and pills, and the devolution of his mental state which became very apparent during his presidency. Yet, even up until his death, he had insisted he did nothing wrong during his term as Presidency (talk about chutzpah and hubris!). Fascinating, if not infuriating, read about one man's almost abosolute, unchecked power in the highest office of this country. Highly recommended.

[Maryellen]

This was a fascinating, well-written and researched book. It helped explain some of the conspiracy theories surrounding JFK's assassination. It explained a great deal about Cuba and Nixon's involvement. Watergate is presented in a clear and logical manner. It also covered all the political corruption in a presidential campaign. The spying, the counter-propaganda, digging for dirt, and sometimes making it up. All the nasty dirty tricks politicians use on each other. This book was quite an eye-opener.

[Jason Hillenburg]

Far more salacious than substantive and, besides, there wasn't anything especially secret about Summers' "revelations" at the time of writing. Summers is a compelling writer, however, and his narrative of Nixon's personal and public journey makes for an involving reading experience. There is no extended analysis underpinning Summers' observations, though there are scattershot attempts. Nixon remains an enticing target for biographers because so few writers have penetrated his remaining mysteries.

[Rich]

So far, so very good. Much better, I have to say, than Richard Reeves' work on Nixon. But for sure this is more of a polemic than anything else---Nixon for the non-historian, Nixon for the true-crime book reader, with all the salacious details.

[Quinn]

This was an awesome book. I've been reading a bunch of Nixon related books recently and this was a great addition to the mix. I've read a bunch by Woodward and Bernstein, but this is a book all its own.

[Dave Hofer]

This was almost too dense but I haven't read a lot of political books. The author was very proud of interviews he conducted. No mention of Nixon meeting Elvis.

[Amanda Fay]

Although this book took forever to read it was really good!

[Lewis Weinstein]

This book does not pretend to be a completer biography of Richard Nixon or even a complete record of his years as President ... there are many other fine books which do that ... what Summers does is to present a view of Nixon the man, a few of his strengths and far more of his weaknesses ... it is tempting to say it is an unsupported political hit job until you look at he extensive footnotes and other references ... Summers has done his research and my conclusion is that he has presented a fair picture of the man's often disgusting personality ... for my current novel-in-progress I am left with the belief that Nixon did not do all he could have to end the Vietnam War as soon as he could, and is thus responsible for many deaths which should never have happened.

a few selected excerpts ...

... New research strengthens the suspicion that in 1968, on the eve of the election that brought him to the White House, Nixon manipulated the Vietnam War for selfish political ends. Did he, fearful that impending peace negotiations would swing vital votes to his Democratic opponent, covertly urge Thieu to boycott the talks? ... Anna Chennault, who met secretly with Nixon and acted as a go-between with the South Vietnamese, claims he did. She eventually came to despise Nixon

... During the presidency, much more seriously, there had been times when he had seemed uncoordinated, rendered unstable by fatigue, alcohol, and medication.

... Haldeman had an odd nonrelationship with Nixon in human terms. In the thirteen years of their association, the two men dined informally together, with their wives, only once. “He didn’t see me as a person, or even, I believe, as a human being,” Haldeman said years later. “To this day he doesn’t know how many children I have or anything else about my personal life. He never asked. . . .

... in 1969, when the North Koreans shot down a U.S. spy plane, “Nixon became incensed and ordered a tactical nuclear strike. . . . The Joint Chiefs were alerted and asked to recommend targets, but Kissinger got on the phone to them. They agreed not to do anything until Nixon sobered up in the morning.”8 As reported earlier, Kissinger has written of Nixon “suppressing his instinct for a jugular response” after North Korea downed the spy plane but without mentioning drink as a factor in the incident. Kissinger’s close associate Lawrence Eagleburger, however, told a friend the following week. “Here’s the president,” he said, visibly upset, “ranting and raving, drunk in the middle of a crisis.” This particular allegation of flirting with nuclear weaponry is not an isolated one. Nixon had been open to the use of tactical nuclear weapons in Vietnam as early as 1954 and as president-elect considered striking “a blow that would both end the war and win it.” A Kissinger aide who moved over to the White House, David Young, told a colleague “of the time he was on the phone [listening] when Nixon and Kissinger were talking. Nixon was drunk, and he said, ‘Henry, we’ve got to nuke them.’ ”

[Nelda Zamir]

As the title suggests, this book has one purpose - to convince the reader that Nixon was arrogant, an abuser of power, a low-down sneaky weasel. There is no attempt at a balanced view. I have no defense of Nixon, but this book pushed the line with me by going beyond "proven facts" and including pages of whispered stories and conjecture. There are several paragraphs suggesting that Pat Nixon MAY have been married before, although conceding that there are NO records proving this. Of course, she MIGHT have been a bank robber or call girl. There were disturbing quotes from Nixon's "psychiatrist", Hutschnecker, that seem to breach ethical limits of medical privacy. I believe this book would have been improved by editing out about half the pages and focusing on provable allegations and definite documented facts of which there are many.

[Dan Bartfield]

A really well-researched and well-presented (but very biased) look at Richard Nixon's rise and fall from power.

I learned a lot from this book that I did not know about him.

Honestly I feel reading this and Evan Thomas' book Being Nixon is a good idea because you get two very different (but still accurate) perspectives on President Nixon.

One thing that annoyed me about this book is that a few of the criticisms against Nixon were a bit weak, especially that he assaulted his wife. The author built that up so much, but only offered a few sentences to what might have happened.

Overall very much worth the read.

[F.]

An interesting read but very dense and takes a very long time to get through, even for someone passionate about the topic. I do find it admirable to see so many footnotes and use of primary sources and research, yet the bulk of this book is stylised like a sensationalist piece of journalism. The writing style, thus, causes this book to lose some credibility, especially when a lot of assumptions are made about Nixon's personality and behaviours in his private life. I'm not sure if I would reread or recommend it.

[Adam Swift]

Someone heard something from someone a long time ago, and is it true? Maybe, as long as we note that we're not sure and that other people didn't want to print it, we'll print it. There's enough Tricky Dick did on the record that this collection of oddly sourced maybe crimes and unseemly behavior quickly gets tedious.

[Badr]

I decided not to finish this book about ~100 pages in. I have an interest in Nixon, but there is so much material in this book and no table of contents. The writing and material are not interesting enough for me to wade through all of it. I would rather jump to sections of interest, but alas, no table of contents.

[Tanya Hurst]

It took me forever to get through this one since I tend to have several books going at the same time, but I thought this book was great. It's probably one of the better Nixon bios I've read, and I've read several.

[Luke Matteson]

Excellent piece on a truly awful president.

[David Holtan]

A must read.

[Pelvis Resley]

“There was ‘turmoil in the room,’ Nixon’s chief of staff [Bob Haldeman] recalled, ‘[CIA Director Richard] Helms gripping the arms of his chair, leaning forward and shouting, “The Bay of Pigs had nothing to do with this. I have no concern about the Bay of Pigs.”...I just sat there. I was absolutely shocked by Helms’ violent reaction. Again I wondered, what was such dynamite in the Bay of Pigs story?’” (p. 178)

Pelvis Resley has two burning questions for Arrogance of Power author Anthony Summers regarding The Secret Life of Richard Nixon: What did our 37th president know about the plot(s) to kill JFK, and when did he know it?

Nixon’s right hand Haldeman, in a passage in his memoirs that, Summers sniffs, has been “pored over…as though it were a newfound parchment in the Dead Sea Scrolls,” explosively deciphers his boss’ obsessive references to “the Cuba thing” or “the Bay of Pigs thing” as veiled allusions to JFK’s assassination. Summers does dismiss the notion as “probably…speculation,” but he develops Haldeman’s theory that homegrown plots against Fidel Castro “may have triggered the Kennedy tragedy” and the CIA “desperately wanted to hide that possibility” (p. 198-199). Stated explicitly: that the embattled Cuban leader retaliated against Kennedy-approved murder schemes with some of his own, and thus under the nose of American intelligence Havana-laid chickens came home to roost with a vengeance in Texas.

But Haldeman’s theory of mutual antagonization implicating Kennedy and Castro will ring doubly false to readers of James Douglass’ magisterial JFK and the Unspeakable (2008), which documents the bourgeoning trust and intricate back-channel peace-making between the two. Nevertheless, Summers repeats the ridiculous “blowback” premise, albeit in a hedged manner: “Many now accept [sic] that the Kennedy brothers, both doomed to be assassinated, authorized later plotting to kill Castro. There has been enduring speculation that President Kennedy’s murder was somehow linked to the Castro plots” (p. 502n). Somehow linked, indeed!

More provocatively, Haldeman suggests “Nixon may have been goading the agency [CIA] over the fact that after, Kennedy was killed, it failed to inform the Warren Commission about the Castro plots” (p. 198-199). At the very least! Given that the agency also withheld its pre-assassination attempts to frame Oswald and Castro for the historic tragedy in ‘63, astute readers are left to wonder what other nefarious nuggets Nixon might have possessed with which to “goad the agency”–and, for that matter, what the CIA had to goad Nixon. John Ehrlichman, acknowledging until his death that he couldn’t understand his boss’s Cuban fixation, notes that Nixon had pushed him to obtain CIA studies on “the Cuba project” but, after a “long secret conversation” with CIA director Helms in 1969, told Ehrlichman to forget about it. As Summers inquires, “What made him retreat so suddenly?” (p. 177) What did Richard Helms know, and when did he know it?

Although frequently mentioning Nixon’s consuming hatred for JFK (and the Kennedys generally), Summers tries to downplay the strange fact that his presidentially "usurped," assassination-happy subject just happened to be in Dallas the day JFK, ahem, lost his mind. It seems Dick was in town for a PepsiCo bottling convention and left the morning of November 22nd, a detail he later failed to mention. “It was a curious Nixonian obfuscation,” writes Summers blandly, “inviting black humor when the facts came out and, to those with a paranoid turn of mind, suspicion” (pp. 262-263, 513n).

How paranoid does one’s turn of mind have to be, however, in light of Nixon ally Len Garment’s conclusion that “John Kennedy’s death had the ironic consequence [sic] of restoring Richard Nixon to life as a national political figure” (p. 263)? Is one “paranoid” to be suspicious of the “coincidental” overlap of a bottling convention in Dallas with the assassination of JFK, especially when PepsiCo president and Nixon booster Donald Kendall was a major player behind the 1973 coup against Salvador Allende in Chile (p. 335) and a likely co-conspirator in attempts against Castro (p. 504n)?

Haldeman “recalled how Nixon reacted, on their arrival in the White House, when he suggested using the power of the presidency to reopen the investigation into Kennedy’s death. ‘I felt we would be in a position to get all the facts,’ Haldeman wrote. ‘But Nixon turned me down’” (p. 199). Was Nixon indeed, as Summers wonders, “weighed down by ‘survivor’s guilt’” given his own attempts to take out Castro?

Oh, Nixon was weighed down by “guilt,” all right. But “survivor’s guilt?”

More like, “conniver's guilt!”