The Politician and the Goblins

The Fifth Year of the Nixon Watch By John Osborne Liveright, 167 pp., $6.95

On January 20, 1973 John Osborne reported in “The Nixon Watch”—his column for The New Republic—that President Nixon “was still fulfilling his promise to change ‘some of the players’ on his team and thus combat what he called ‘the tendency… for an Administration to run out of steam after the first four years and then to coast, and usually down hill.’ “ The following December, 11 months and uncountable players later, Osborne recalled in the same forum the President’s remark—made to a conference of newspaper editors meeting the previous month in Florida—-that if Air Force One goes down “it goes down and then they don’t have to impeach,” for which remark the President was applauded. If anything is more gorgeously dramatic than the juxtaposition of these two statements, it is the recounting of the events, seriatim, of the intervening year.

CW

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Chilton Williamson Jr.

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The Fifth Year of the Nixon Watch By John Osborne Liveright, 167 pp., $6.95

On January 20, 1973 John Osborne reported in “The Nixon Watch”—his column for The New Republic—that President Nixon “was still fulfilling his promise to change ‘some of the players’ on his team and thus combat what he called ‘the tendency… for an Administration to run out of steam after the first four years and then to coast, and usually down hill.’ “ The following December, 11 months and uncountable players later, Osborne recalled in the same forum the President’s remark—made to a conference of newspaper editors meeting the previous month in Florida—-that if Air Force One goes down “it goes down and then they don’t have to impeach,” for which remark the President was applauded. If anything is more gorgeously dramatic than the juxtaposition of these two statements, it is the recounting of the events, seriatim, of the intervening year.