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The Watergate Plumbers - Timeline: Late 1972

21 August 1972
Houston noted a telephone call from Howard Hunt who explained that his attorney was with him and had a question about a friend's past affiliation with the Agency. [...] DD/Sec has reviewed the employment, and Houston reported that he replied directly to Hunt's friend, Mr. [...] that this old affiliation should create no problems in connection with his appearance before a grand jury.

18 October 1972
Maury noted his response to a request from CSC General Counsel Anthony Mondello, who was reacting to a request for the personnel files of those former Agency officers involved in the Watergate incident from Senator Kennedy's Subcommittee on Administrative Practices and Procedures. He added that we are exempted from related CSC regulations, and the Director endorsed his plan to provide only the dates of their departure from the Agency in the event the Senator's office calls us on this matter.

3 November 1972
Houston recalled that last August he reported on a call from Howard Hunt and his subsequent guidance to [...] on how to handle affiliation with the Agency, [...]

The Director highlighted his conversation with David Kraslow of the Washington Star News and his flat denial of a proposed story that the Agency was asked to report on the Democratic Party which led to the Watergate incident and others. The Director noted his plans to issue a statement of denial if such a story were to appear and suggested that Thuermer consider drafting one for contingency use.

15 November 1972
DDP noted a report from Chief, WH Division that on 9 October a Mr. Harper of the New York Times was working on a story which tries to link the Agency with Cuban emigres, the break-in at the Chilean Embassy, action against Daniel Ellsberg, and the Watergate case. Thuermer observed that this is the first he has heard about this topic, and the DDP concluded that such a story would have no basis in fact and it would be inadvisable to try to straighten out Mr. Harper.

22 November 1972
Warner related that according to Assistant Attorney General Henry Peterson, U.S. Attorney Earl Silbert has several questions on the Watergate case. The Director indicated he will review this matter later.

13 December 1972
The Director noted the article by Thomas B. Ross in yesterday's Evening Star-News, "New Watergate Dimension?" and the impression left therein that the Agency was involved in the Watergate incident because a passport bearing the name Edward Hamilton was found on Frank Sturgis. Any inquiries from the press or elsewhere are to be met with a "this is nonsense" reply. The Executive Director noted work under way to identify the genesis of the passport story.

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