Anything?
Woodward's onto a new wrinkle with the break-in thing--absolute page one stuff--
In other words, you got nothing, you're thumbsucking.
Bob Woodward
Robert Redford · 34 quotes
Carl Bernstein
Dustin Hoffman · 20 quotes
Ben Bradlee
Jason Robards · 16 quotes
Harry Rosenfeld
Jack Warden · 10 quotes
Deep Throat
Hal Holbrook · 8 quotes
Simons
Martin Balsam · 6 quotes
Most scenes together: Bob Woodward & Carl Bernstein (12), Bob Woodward & Deep Throat (8), Ben Bradlee & Simons (4)
All the President's Men quotes
Page 3 of 5
Sloan Try and understand this. I'm a decent Republican. I believe in Richard Nixon. I worked in the White House four years--so did my wife. What happened on June 17 I don't think the President knew anything about. Some of his men I'm not so sure of.
Do you think the truth will come out at the trial?
Sloan That's another of the things I'm not so sure of.
Because people at the Committee were told to lie to the prosecutors?
Sloan We were never told flat out "Don't talk." But the message was clear.
To cover up?
Sloan Well, they sure didn't ask us to come forward and tell the truth.
Does "they" mean the White House?
Sloan As opposed to the Committee? The Committee's not an independent operation. Everything is cleared with the White House. I don't think that the FBI or the prosecutors understand that.
A friend at the Committee told us to contact you.
Woman Who was it?
We never reveal our sources, which is why you can talk to us.
It's safe, try it, you'll see.
We understand your problem...
You believe in the President, you wouldn't ever want to do anything disloyal.
We appreciate your position--really.
Woman You people--you think that you can come into someone's life, squeeze what you want, then get out. [to Bernstein] You don't appreciate a goddamn thing, mister. [to Woodward] And you don't understand nothing. But the Committee's briefed us on you--so get the hell out of here. Do you like scaring the life out of decent people?--'cause if you don't, in the name of God--stop it!
According to White House personnel, Hunt definitely works there as a consultant for Colson. But when I called the White House Press office, they said he hadn't worked there for three months. Then the P.R. guy said the weirdest thing to me. [reading] "I am convinced that neither Mr. Colson nor anyone else at the White House had any knowledge of, or participation in, this deplorable incident at the Democratic National Committee."
Isn't that what you'd expect them to say?
Absolutely.
So?
I never asked them about Watergate. I only said what were Hunt's duties at the White House. They volunteered that he was innocent when nobody asked was he guilty.
Carl?
Yeah?
**** you, Carl.
Mr. Caddy? My name's Bob Woodward, I'm from the Post and I wanted to ask about how you happened to come on this case--
Caddy
I'm not here.
OK. Douglas Caddy, the attorney of record, when questioned about his presence in the courtroom, denied he was in the courtroom, "I'm not here," Mr. Caddy said.
Caddy
Clearly, I am here, but only as an individual, I'm not the attorney of record. Mr. Rafferty has that position. Whatever you want, you'll have to get from him, I have nothing more to say.
Segretti crisscrossed the country, at least a dozen times. And always stayed in cities where there were Democratic primaries.
So if the break-in was just one incident in a campaign of sabotage that began a whole year before Watergate...
Then for the first time the break-in makes sense.
This isn't so crazy. This whole thing didn't start with the bugging of the headquarters.
Segretti was doing this a year before the bugging.
And a year before, Nixon wasn't slaughtering Muskie, he was running behind Muskie, before Muskie self-destructed.
If he self-destructed!
This man Gordon Liddy--he's going to be tried along with Hunt and the five burglars--we know he knows a lot, we just don't know what.
You changed cabs? You're sure no one followed you?
I did everything you said, but it all seemed--
Melodramatic? Things are past that--remember, these are men with switchblade mentalities who run the world as if it were Dodge City.
What's the whole thing about--do you know?
What I know, you'll have to find out on your own.
Liddy--you think there's a chance he'll talk?
Talk? Once, at a gathering, he put his hand over a candle. And he kept it there. He kept it right in the flame until his flesh seared. A woman who was watching asked, "What's the trick?" And he replied. "The trick is not minding."
This should take only a minute, Mr. Dahlberg, but we're doing a follow-up on the break-in...and I was kind of curious about your check.
Dahlberg
Check?
The twenty-five thousand dollar one....The one with your name on it...In Bernard Barker's Florida account...Bernard Barker, the Watergate burglar.
Dahlberg
You're definitely doing a story?
Yes, sir.
Dahlberg
I'm a proper citizen, I'm a decent man, I don't do anything that isn't decent or proper. [pause] I know I shouldn't tell you this...That twenty-five thousand dollars is money I collected for Nixon in this year's campaign.
I see. And how do you think it reached Miami?
dahlberg
I don't know; I really don't. The last time I saw it was when I was in Washington. I gave it to the Finance department of the Committee to Re-Elect the President. How it got to that burglar, your guess is as good as mine.
What the hell were you doing rewriting my story?
I sure couldn't hurt it, could I?
It was fine the way it was.
It was bullshit the way it was.
I have to stand here and listen to the staff correspondent from Virginia?
What have you been here, nine months? I been in this business since I was sixteen.
And you've had some **** meteoric rise, that's for sure. By the time you turn forty you might be the head of the Montana bureau.
You only got the job because both you and Bradlee went to Yale.
Bradlee went to Harvard.
They're all the same, all those Ivy League places. They teach you about striped ties and suddenly you're smart.
I'm smart enough to know my story was solid.
Mine's better.
No way.
Read 'em both and you'll see.
Is mine better?
Mainly it has to do with your choice of words.
Who told them not to investigate the break-in?
Don't you understand what you're on to?
Mitchell knew?
Of course Mitchell knew. You think something this size just happens?
Halderman had to know too.
You'll hear nothing from me about Haldeman.
Segretti told me and Bernstein that...
The letter that destroyed the Muskie candidates... did that come from inside the White House?
You're missing the overall.
What overall?
The people behind all of this were frightened of Muskie and that's what got him destroyed. They wanted to run against McGovern. Look who they're running against. They bugged offices, they followed people, planted false press leaks, passed fake letters... they canceled Democratic campaign rallies, they investigated Democratic private lives, they planted spies, they stole documents... and now don't tell me that all of this was the work of one Donald Segretti.
Do your associates in the FBI and the Justice Department know about this?
[Woodward turns when a lone car passes by, when he turns back, Deep Throat is gone]
Who's Charles Colson?
I would liken your query to being in Russia half a century ago and asking someone, "I understand who Lenin is and Trotsky I got too, but who's this yokel Stalin?"
Who's Colson, Harry?
The most powerful man in America is President Nixon, probably you've heard his name. The second most powerful man is Robert Haldeman. Just below him are a trio: Mr. Erlichman is Haldeman's friend, and they protect the President from everybody which is why they are referred to as either The German Shepherds or the Berlin Wall. Mr. Mitchell we've already discussed. Mr. Colson is the President's special counsel.
Thanks, Harry. Know anything about Colson?
Just that on his office wall there's a cartoon with a caption reading, "When you've got them by the balls, their hearts and minds will follow."
[Woodward has just finished writing his first article on the Watergate break-in, and puts it in the pile to be submitted. Bernstein walks to the desk, sees the story, then takes it and starts working on it himself. Woodward goes to him]
How's it going?
What're you doing?
I'm polishing it a little.
You're what?
Polishing.
What's wrong with it?
Nothing, nothing, it's good.
Then what are you doing with it?
I'm helping it, it's a little fuzzy.
May I have it?
I don't think you're saying what you mean.
I know exactly what I mean.
Not here. I can't tell from this whether Hunt works for Coulson or Coulson works for Hunt-
May I have it, please?
-so many conclusions to this-
May I have it?
Yes, I'm not looking for a fight.
I'm not looking for a fight either.
I'm just aware of the fact that you've only been here nine months.
What's that got to do with anything?
Well, I've been in the business since I was 16.
What're you saying?
Look, I'm trying to tell you that if you'd read mine, and then read yours-
Can I read yours?
Yeah. [Woodward takes Bernstein's version and reads them side-by-side] I walked by, gave yours a glance, it didn't look right, so I figured I'd just refine it a little. The first paragraph has to have more clarity, the readers gotta understand. You don't mention Coulson's name till the third paragraph. I think mine's better, but you go ahead and read. If you think yours is better, we'll give yours to the desk. I've got Coulson's name up front. He's a White House consultant and nobody knows-
You're right. Yours is better. [Goes to his desk, comes back with a bunch of papers] If you're gonna do it, do it right, here are my notes. If you're gonna hype it, hype it with the facts. I don't mind what you did, I mind the way you did it.
[about Martha Mitchell]
I just don't get it; a CREEP secretary being scared, that's one thing. But what does the wife of one of the most powerful men in America have to be afraid of?
[to Ben Bradlee]
Benjy, we got a present for you. Above the fold on page one for sure. It may not change our lives one way or the other. Just a good, solid piece of American Journalism that The New York Times doesn't have.