One of the most Poignant moments in the Senate Watergate hearing came when Herbert Porter, a CREEP worker, explained in emotional terms to Senator Howard Baker that he had known Mr. Nixon since he was eight years old, that Mr. Nixon was a family friend. One of the best indices of Mr. Nixon’s distraction: March 21 transcript, Mr. Dean is recounting events: “All right now, we have gone through the trial. I don’t know if Mitchell has perjured himself in the grand jury or not.” Mr. Nixon: “Who?” Mr. Dean: “Mitchell. I don’t know how much knowledge he actually had. I know that Magruder has perjured himself in the grand jury. I know that Porter has perjured himself in the grand jury.” Mr. Nixon: “Who is Porter?”
Will interest continue in Watergate? The White House position today is what it has always been. Mr. Nixon, February 28, 1973: “You see the Baker theory is that he wants to have a big slambang thing for a whole week and then he thinks interest in the whole thing will fall off. And he is right about that.” Mr. Dean, February 28: “It confuses the public. The public is bored with this thing already.” Mr. Nixon: “Yeah.” Mr. Dean. March 13: “Well one thing, the saturation level of the American people on this story is cracking. The saturation level in this city is getting pretty high now, and they can’t take too much more of this stuff.” Mr. Nixon: “Think not?” Mr. Dean: “There is nothing really new coming out.” Mr. Nixon: “ITT went longer, but that was a different thing, and it seemed more important.” Mr. Dean: “several months ago . . . [Haldeman] said the way they could have those hearings and do a masterful job on it, would be to hold one hearing a week on Thursdays, Thursday mornings, they cover it live. That way, you get live coverage that day; you get the networks that night; the national magazines that week; get
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