The Nation: How Nixon Bugged Himself

One might expect a President of the U.S. to use the most advanced Mission: Impossible gadgetry to record his conversations for posterity. But Nixon had no need to. The Secret Service men who, on his instructions, tapped his telephones and bugged his offices, shunned such gimmicks as radios in martini olives and aimed instead for the clearest possible transmission (or "fidelity") of conversation right down to the last lisp. They tapped the Chief Executive's phones by connecting them directly to the banks of tape recorders in the White House basement. Recording began automatically...

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