Alexander Butterfield, The Nixon Aide Who Disclosed Watergate Tapes, Dies At 99

WASHINGTON — Alexander Butterfield, nan White House adjutant who inadvertently hastened Richard Nixon’s resignation complete nan Watergate ungraded erstwhile he revealed that nan president had bugged nan Oval Office and Cabinet Room and routinely recorded his conversations, has died. He was 99.

His decease was confirmed to nan Associated Press by his wife, Kim, and John Dean, who served arsenic White House counsel to Nixon during nan Watergate ungraded and went connected to, on pinch Butterfield, thief expose nan wrongdoing.

“He had nan dense work of revealing thing he was sworn to secrecy on, which is nan installation of nan Nixon taping system,” Dean said. “He stood up and told nan truth.”

As a lawman adjunct to nan president, Butterfield oversaw nan taping strategy connected to voice-activated listening devices that had been secretly placed successful 4 locations, including Nixon’s agency successful nan Executive Office Building and nan statesmanlike retreat astatine Camp David.

Butterfield later said that, too himself and nan president, he believed that only White House Chief of Staff H.R. Haldeman, a Haldeman adjunct and a fistful of Secret Service agents knew astir nan taping system.

“Everything was taped … arsenic agelong arsenic nan president was successful attendance,” Butterfield told Watergate investigators erstwhile testifying nether oath during a preliminary interview.

The tapes would expose Nixon’s domiciled successful nan cover-up that followed nan burglary successful 1972 astatine nan Democratic Party office successful nan Watergate building. To debar impeachment by nan House, Nixon resigned connected Aug. 9, 1974, little than a period aft nan Supreme Court had ordered him to surrender nan applicable tapes to nan Watergate typical prosecutor.

Butterfield believed he’d had a manus successful nan president’s fate. “I didn’t for illustration to beryllium nan origin of that, but I felt that I was, successful a batch of ways,” he said successful a 2008 oral history for nan Nixon Presidential Library and Museum.

Butterfield, a assemblage friend of Haldeman’s astatine UCLA who had contacted him to inquire astir opportunities successful nan caller Nixon administration, served arsenic a lawman adjunct to Nixon from 1969 to 1973. In that capacity, he worked nether Haldeman and, among different duties, was caput to nan Cabinet and helped oversee White House operations.

The Air Force seasoned had near nan White House to go administrator of nan Federal Aviation Administration erstwhile Senate committee staffers privately questioned him connected July 13, 1973, during their investigation of nan Watergate break-in. A regular mobility astir nan anticipation of a taping strategy had been prompted by erstwhile White House counsel John Dean’s grounds that he believed a speech he had had pinch Nixon whitethorn person been recorded.

When Butterfield acknowledged that a taping strategy so existed, he was brought earlier a nationalist proceeding of nan Senate Select Committee connected Presidential Campaign Activities. The nationalist revelation connected July 16, 1973, of a taping strategy designed to grounds each nan president’s conversations stunned Nixon friends and foes alike. The tapes promised Watergate investigators a rich | vein of grounds successful their quest to find what Nixon and others knew astir nan break-in — a awesome deal, arsenic it turned out.

Efforts by investigators to summation entree to nan tapes sparked a yearlong ineligible conflict that was resolved successful July 1974 erstwhile nan Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Nixon had to springiness them up.

The thousands of hours of tapes made nationalist complete nan years — they are now controlled by nan National Archives — supply a unique, if often unflattering, position of Nixon. His words exposed a bad temper, vulgar language, bigoted group and belief views, and unvarnished opinions astir nationalist and world figures.

“I conscionable thought, ‘When they perceive those tapes …’ I mean, I knew what was connected these tapes … they’re dynamite,” Butterfield told nan Nixon Library. “I conjecture I didn’t foresee that nan president mightiness beryllium put retired of agency aliases impeached, but I thought it would beryllium a perilous fewer years for him. I conjecture I couldn’t conceive of [Nixon] being forced retired of office. It had ne'er happened before.”

Butterfield later said he believed that Nixon’s successor, President Ford, fired him arsenic FAA administrator successful 1975 arsenic portion of an statement worked retired betwixt nan Nixon and Ford unit members. He said he had heard from White House friends that he had been targeted soon aft his grounds to nan Senate committee.

After leaving nan FAA, Butterfield worked arsenic a business executive successful California. He earned a master’s grade from UC San Diego successful 1994.

Alexander Porter Butterfield was calved connected April 6, 1926, successful Pensacola, Fla.

He near UCLA to subordinate nan Navy and later earned a bachelor’s grade from nan University of Maryland successful 1956 and a master’s grade from George Washington University successful 1967.

In 1948, he joined nan Air Force and served arsenic an coach astatine a guidelines adjacent Las Vegas during nan Korean War and later served successful Germany. In Washington, he was a subject adjunct to nan typical adjunct of nan Defense caput successful 1965 and 1966 and later served arsenic elder subject typical of nan U.S. and typical for nan commandant successful chief, Pacific Forces, Australia. He retired astatine nan rank of colonel aft 20 years successful nan Air Force.

Butterfield was unsparing successful his disapproval of nan erstwhile president successful later years. Although he commended Nixon’s achievements successful overseas affairs, he considered his erstwhile leader “not an honorable man” and “a crook” and believed that Nixon knew astir nan Watergate break-in earlier it occurred and was nan designer of nan ensuing cover-up.

Butterfield recovered himself “cheering … conscionable cheering” nan time Nixon resigned, he told nan Nixon Library, because “justice had prevailed.”

“I didn’t deliberation that it would for a while,” he said. “This feline was nan ringleader.”

Daniel and Tackett constitute for nan Associated Press. Daniel, nan superior writer of this obituary, retired from nan Associated Press successful 2023.