Deep Throat: Friend or foe? Who is Mark Felt? (Black World Today)

[struggle4progress]

<snip> While he was dispensing information to bring down the Nixon regime, he was also apparently involved in a disinformation campaign against Black radicals, Puerto Rican nationalists and the American Indian Movement. Even more deceitful and nefarious, he was an associate director at the FBI when the agency formulated its counter intelligence program (COINTELPRO) to eradicate dissent in the United States.

An FBI memorandum dated 5/9/68, on the disruption of the New Left, Mr. Felt’s name is at the top of those informed of the measure to initiate a plan to neutralize key leaders on the Left. The recommendations attached to the memo stated “that the Domestic Intelligence Division be authorized to immediately initiate a coordinated Counter Intelligence Program directed at exposing, disrupting, and otherwise neutralizing the New Left and Key Activists.”

This memo can be found in The COINTELPRO Papers, edited by Jim Vander Hall and Ward Churchill, who was recently in the news for his controversial remarks about 9/11. Later in the book, they offer detailed information about the role of these counter-intelligence agents in breaking and entering the homes of people suspected of ties to the Weather Underground, an armed resistance group opposed to the war in Vietnam.

In 1978, Mr. Felt, along with other FBI officials, was indicted for using such illegal tactics to break the Weather Underground. Two years later, he and Edward Miller were found guilty, but were later pardoned, by then-president Ronald Reagan before serving any lengthy jail term. <snip>

http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/article_2061.shtml

[TripAndFall]

1. Guess it depends

If you look at only his actions in Watergate, he's a hero.

If you look at his other actions, he's not.

And let's not forget his motive was anger at not getting the Director's job.

I'd say he's not a hero, but he did one thing right.

Damned If I Know

[struggle4progress]

2. I don't think his motive was "anger at not getting the Director's job" --

that's just a rightwing slur. While I don't really know, I'm inclined to consider his motives, for blowing the whistle on Nixon, entirely honorable ...

[DURHAM D]

3. His motive was "the spooks won". The spooks took absolute

power over the Executive Brand when they brought down Nixon. eos