Murray Chotiner
Encyclopedia
Murray M Chotiner was an American political strategist
, attorney, government official, and close associate and friend of President
Richard Nixon
during much of the 37th President's political career. He served as campaign manager
for the future president's successful runs for the United States Senate
in 1950 and for the vice presidency
in 1952, and managed the campaigns of other California
Republicans
. He was active in each of Nixon's two successful runs for the White House
in low-profile positions.
Chotiner was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
; his father moved the family to California and then abandoned his wife and children. Murray Chotiner attended UCLA
, and graduated from the Southwestern School of Law. He practiced law in Los Angeles, and branched out into public relations. Involving himself in Republican politics, he played an active part in several political campaigns and made an unsuccessful run for the California State Assembly
in 1938.
Nixon retained Chotiner as a consultant
to his first congressional campaign
in 1946. In an era when the perceived threat of communism
was a major domestic issue, Chotiner advised the future president to link his liberal opponent, Representative Jerry Voorhis
, to a political organization which was believed to be communist-dominated. Nixon was elected, and hired Chotiner to run his 1950 Senate campaign against Representative Helen Gahagan Douglas
. Chotiner used a similar strategy in that campaign
, stressing Douglas' liberal voting record and printing the accusations on pink paper to hint at communist sympathy. Congressman Nixon easily defeated Douglas, and Chotiner next managed Nixon's 1952 vice presidential campaign and counseled Nixon through allegations of antisemitism and revelations that there was a privately run fund to pay Nixon's political expenses—revelations that the candidate decisively overcame with his televised Checkers speech
.
After Congress investigated Chotiner in 1956, suspecting he was using his connections to Nixon for influence peddling
to benefit his private legal clients, the vice president and his former campaign manager temporarily parted ways. Nixon recalled him to work on his unsuccessful 1962 campaign for Governor of California
, and again for his successful 1968 presidential bid
. After Nixon was inaugurated in 1969, Chotiner received a political appointment to a government position and, in 1970, became a member of the White House staff
. He returned to private practice a year later, but was involved in Nixon's 1972 re-election campaign
. Chotiner described the Watergate break-in
that occurred during Nixon's 1972 campaign and that eventually brought down the Nixon administration as "stupid", and when a newspaper accused him of organizing it, he sued for libel and won a substantial settlement. He remained an informal adviser to Nixon until he died in Washington, D.C.
, following an auto accident in January 1974, and Nixon mourned the loss of a man he described as a counselor and friend.
Chotiner was born on October 4, 1909, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, the son of Albert Hyman Chotiner and Sarah Chotiner. The family moved to Columbus
, Ohio
, soon after Murray's birth, and relocated to California
in 1920. Albert Chotiner, a cigar maker by trade, managed a chain of movie theaters in California, and soon abandoned his wife and children.
After attending the University of California
, Los Angeles, Chotiner enrolled at the Southwestern School of Law, graduating at age 20, the youngest graduate in the school's history. However, he had to wait until he was 21 to be eligible to take the bar exam. He initially practiced law with his older brother, Jack—they had a general practice in which they defended a number of bookmaker
s—but eventually the Chotiners dissolved the partnership, and Murray Chotiner opened a law practice on his own in Los Angeles. He later described many of his clients as "unsavory, to say the least". In the early 1940s, he branched out into public relations.
Chotiner initially registered to vote as a Democrat
, but soon switched parties, joining the Republicans
. He involved himself in Republican politics, working on Herbert Hoover
's unsuccessful presidential re-election campaign in 1932. In 1938, the young attorney ran against longtime Republican incumbent Charles W. Lyon
for the California State Assembly. Lyon cross-filed
and secured his re-election by winning both primaries
, defeating Chotiner in the Republican poll, and narrowly beating Robert A. Heinlein
(who subsequently turned to writing science fiction
) in the Democratic contest.
When Earl Warren
successfully ran for Governor of California
in 1942, Chotiner served as his field director. However, he alienated Warren when, hoping for a favor in light of his 1942 support, he asked the newly inaugurated governor to decline to approve the extradition of one of his clients to another state. Warren had Chotiner thrown out of his office, and the future chief justice
refused to let him have anything to do with his re-election campaign in 1946. According to Nixon biographer Earl Mazo, Chotiner stated that while people remembered him for "making" Richard Nixon, "the real man I created was Earl Warren".
Chotiner served as counsel to state committees investigating violence in motion picture strikes and conditions in children's boarding homes and in homes for the elderly. In 1944, Chotiner was elected president of the conservative California Republican Assembly
, a grassroots
organization of party activists; he had previously served as president of the Los Angeles Republican Assembly. In addition to his political involvement, he was active in the Los Angeles Jewish Community Relations Committee.
s; Chotiner was retained as a political consultant by Nixon's 1946 campaign for Congress against incumbent Representative Jerry Voorhis. He advised linking Voorhis with a political action committee
, believed to be communist-dominated, run by the Congress of Industrial Organizations
. The consultant was only able to devote a limited amount of time to the Nixon campaign since he was the Southern California
campaign manager for the successful re-election bid of Republican Senator William F. Knowland
. Chotiner coined the campaign slogan, "We will not surrender" for Knowland, implying that Democratic challenger Will Rogers, Jr.
would permit communism to take over the country. Both Republican candidates defeated their opponents. Two years later, Chotiner served as Southern California campaign manager for the unsuccessful 1948 presidential bid of New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey.
In September 1949, Nixon hired Chotiner as campaign manager for his upcoming 1950 run for the United States Senate. Helen Gahagan Douglas defeated Manchester Boddy for the Democratic nomination in a primary that badly splintered the Democratic Party, while Nixon had little effective competition for the Republican slot. Chotiner realized that Nixon could not beat Douglas by advocating more social welfare programs, so he advised his candidate to attack Douglas on the issue of communism, seen as a Democratic vulnerability. Echoing a theme used by Boddy in the primary, Chotiner linked Representative Douglas with leftist Congressman Vito Marcantonio
of the socialist American Labor Party
, listing the matters in which the two had voted the same way in a leaflet printed on pink paper—the "Pink Sheet"—and popularizing a label for Douglas which had been first coined by Boddy—the "Pink Lady". However, the Northern California campaign chairman for Nixon, John Dinkenspiel, and his paid assistant, Harvey Hancock
, declined to use the Pink Sheet in their territory. With the Korean War
raging, Douglas also tried to depict Nixon as soft on communism, stating this in her first speech of the general election campaign, but that strategy was not successful, and Chotiner noted, "She made the fatal mistake of attacking our strength instead of sticking to attacking our weakness."
Chotiner had parted ways with Governor Warren, and the popular governor, who was running for a third term, "wanted no part" of the Nixon campaign. Nonetheless, Chotiner sought to maneuver the future chief justice into an endorsement of Representative Nixon. Chotiner instructed Young Republicans
head and future congressman Joseph F. Holt
to follow Douglas from appearance to appearance and demand to know who she was supporting for governor. Douglas repeatedly avoided the question, but with four days to go before the election and the Democratic candidate "close to collapse" from the bitter campaign, she responded to the latest Holt needle with her "hope and pray[er] " that Democratic gubernatorial candidate James Roosevelt
would be elected. A delighted Chotiner had a reporter ask Warren about Douglas's reply, and the governor commented, "In view of her statement, I might ask her how she expects I will vote when I mark my ballot for United States senator on Tuesday." Chotiner publicized this response as an endorsement of Nixon, which Warren could not deny". Both Warren and Nixon won overwhelming victories on Election Day.
Chotiner's strategy in the Nixon congressional races remains controversial. Former congressman Voorhis dubbed himself "the first victim of the Nixon-Chotiner formula for political success". Democrats labeled him a master of dirty tricks who ruthlessly destroyed Douglas's political career by intimating that she was soft on communism. Chotiner's son Kenneth later stated, "I think he really believed [Douglas] was evil ... He would equate a liberal or a Democrat with a communist." Chotiner himself said of the campaign against Douglas, "We only stated the facts. The interpretation of the facts was the prerogative of the electorate."
Republican primary. Senator Nixon endorsed Holt over State Senator Jack Tenney
, and Chotiner asked Nixon to supply him with Tenney's House Un-American Activities Committee
file—the state senator had once had communist leanings, though he had long renounced them. Nixon arranged for Chotiner to get the file, which was supposed to be for Congressional use only, though he apparently made no public use of the file in the campaign. Holt defeated Tenney in the primary, and went on to win the general election.
With the primary completed, Chotiner's attention turned to the 1952 Republican National Convention
in Chicago. While the California delegation was pledged to Governor Warren, (who hoped to gain the Republican nomination for president in a brokered convention
), the strategist realized that Nixon's best chance for advancement was in the nomination of General Dwight D. Eisenhower
, who was in a close battle with Senator Robert Taft
for the party's nomination.
Chotiner was quietly designated an alternate delegate to the convention as an original alternate had dropped out, and when Governor Warren learned of his selection, he "erupted ... furiously". Chotiner had volunteered to take care of many of the convention arrangements for the California delegation, and for the Warren campaign headquarters at the Conrad Hilton Hotel. Seeking to avoid a split with Nixon, who assured Warren that Chotiner was merely there to handle physical arrangements, the governor grudgingly allowed Chotiner to retain his roles. When the California delegation's train arrived in Chicago, the Warren campaign found that the buses which Chotiner had arranged to transport the delegation to its hotel were covered with "Eisenhower for President" banners—which the governor's supporters hastily replaced with Warren signs. Chotiner had an extra phone surreptitiously installed in the Warren headquarters so he could quietly communicate the latest developments to Nixon. He also remained in close contact with Eisenhower aide and future Attorney General, Herbert Brownell. Warren paid a courtesy call on Eisenhower, and later wrote in his memoirs, "Imagine my surprise when the doorkeeper who admitted me to the general's suite was Murray Chotiner." Eisenhower was nominated over Taft and Warren in a close, first-ballot victory. As a final indignity to Warren, it developed that Chotiner had overspent his budget, forcing the governor and others to pay hotel expenses from their own pockets.
Despite Chotiner's maneuvering for Nixon, the senator was still uncertain if he should take the vice-presidential slot if offered. Pat Nixon
wanted her husband to decline it. Chotiner argued to the Nixons that if the Republicans lost, Nixon would retain his seat in the Senate, that if he served as Vice President and re-entered private life, he would have a lucrative legal career, but that if Nixon did not move up to the Vice Presidency, with Senator Knowland relatively young and in good health, Nixon was likely to remain merely the junior senator from California for many years to come. Eisenhower offered Nixon the position, the senator accepted, and with Knowland's re-election bid all but won, Chotiner became Nixon's campaign manager.
Soon after Nixon's selection, controversy erupted over the senator's 1951 purchase of a home with a restrictive covenant
that forbade resale or rental to Jews. Chotiner, a Jew, successfully appealed to the Anti-Defamation League
and the Jewish press for support for Nixon in the controversy, providing them with a list of Jewish causes which he had favored. Nixon's staff pointed out that the covenant was, in any event, invalid because of the U.S. Supreme Court
's 1948 ruling in Shelley v. Kraemer
. The controversy "failed to gain fatal traction" but repeatedly surfaced in later Nixon campaigns.
When the media discovered that Nixon had received reimbursement for political expenses from a fund set up by a private group, the nominee was severely criticized, and he was pressured to give up his place on the ticket. Warren supporters, still smarting from the convention, had told reporters about the fund. Chotiner told Nixon that if he were forced off the ticket, Chotiner would hold a press conference and reveal the behind-the-scenes machinations that led to the candidate's departure, the ensuing furor being of no consequence to them, as both Nixon and Chotiner would be through in politics. His spirits revived by Chotiner's loyalty, Senator Nixon delivered the televised Checkers speech
, during which he defended himself and emotionally stated he would not return a black and white dog that had been given to his children. Nixon received an outpouring of public support after the speech, but was angered at Eisenhower's hesitance to issue a statement backing him. He dictated a telegram to his secretary, Rose Mary Woods
, giving up his place on the ticket, but Chotiner took the telegram and ripped it up, unsent. Nixon later praised him for his support, "In the whole fund matter, Chotiner was the strongest of all—like a rock." Eisenhower eventually supported Nixon, and the Republican ticket won a landslide victory in November.
With Nixon as Vice President, Chotiner, "who loved politics and hated his bail bonds law practice in Beverly Hills", moved part of his legal practice to Washington. The Californian was popular with many lawyers, reporters and politicians, and displayed a quick, though sardonic sense of humor. In November 1955, Chotiner's wife, Phyllis Lee, divorced him, stating that Chotiner was often gone for weeks at a time because of his business commitments. On November 17, 1956, Chotiner married his longtime assistant, Ruth Arnold.
Despite his success in advancing Nixon's career, Chotiner was respected, but was not universally popular among the Vice President's backers. Frank Jorgensen, one of Nixon's first backers in the Voorhis race, said of the attorney, "I knew that Murray was very impatient with people who didn't have the IQ that he had. He had the habit of a man like that of tramping on them. He'd move ahead. He'd just leave the wreckage behind him, but he would get the job done." Nixon family friend and Whittier College
trustee Herman Perry stated, "When Murray develops a little more of the techniques of public relations, I will be one of the first to recognize it and one of the first to give him credit ... The one thing I do not want him to do is be the quarterback and call the plays on the team on which I play."
In 1955, Chotiner lectured at the Republican national campaign school. He described his campaign philosophy:
Chotiner was slated to play a major role in the Eisenhower/Nixon re-election bid. However, he had represented two Atlantic City
clothing manufacturers, the Kravitz brothers, who had been fined and barred from further government contracts for fraud, and on April 25, 1956, a subcommittee of the Senate Permanent Committee on Investigations, looking into military procurement, subpoenaed him to appear before it. The senators wanted to inquire why a New Jersey firm which already had six attorneys would hire a California lawyer, especially one with close ties to Vice President Nixon.
When Chotiner appeared before the subcommittee on May 2, he testified that he had been retained by the firm when it was seeking to expand to California, that he had conferred with Justice Department attorneys regarding the criminal charges, and that no special favors had been asked or given. Under questioning by subcommittee counsel Robert F. Kennedy
, the younger brother of committee member and future president John F. Kennedy
, Chotiner also disclosed that he had been retained by New Jersey mobster Marco Regnelli
in an attempt to stave off a deportation order. He testified that he never discussed his clients with Nixon, and had not used the Vice President's offices for business purposes. In a press release, Chotiner fired back at Kennedy, suggesting that he had been subpoenaed for political reasons. Denying any influence peddling, Chotiner asked whether the subcommittee counsel could "explain whether any influence was used in connection with his own appointment as attorney for a subcommittee of a committee of which his brother ... is a member." Patrick Murphy Malin
, head of the American Civil Liberties Union
concurred that requiring Chotiner to testify had "overtones of political harassment." Time magazine summed up the hearings, "At week's end two points were clear: 1) Murray Chotiner had been sought out by, and had gone to work for, unsavory clients who obviously regarded him as a man of influence; and 2) on the basis of evidence so far adduced, he had been remarkably unsuccessful in wielding any."
On June 2, 1956, the Republican National Committee
announced that Chotiner would have no role in the upcoming campaign On June 6, a House subcommittee disclosed that the California attorney had written to President Eisenhower asking the President to intercede on behalf of North American Airlines (NAA) before the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). The attorney admitted inquiring of White House aides concerning the case, but denied using any influence on behalf of any client. White House officials said that they had done no more than ask the CAB when a decision might be expected in NAA's case, and that NAA had lost before the CAB anyway.
Congress's investigations of Chotiner continued through much of 1956, and were eventually postponed until after the election. The Senate subcommittee finally issued its report on September 5, 1957, placing no blame on Chotiner. The House investigation dragged on until 1958, by which time the focus of the investigation was on White House Chief of Staff
Sherman Adams
, who had sent Chotiner two letters regarding the airline matter. Nixon parted ways with Chotiner after the Senate testimony, calling his predicament "a tragedy", but by 1959, the two were friends again. Senator Knowland considered hiring Chotiner to manage his 1958 run for governor, but did not do so, and lost to Edmund G. "Pat" Brown
. Chotiner would play no visible role in the unsuccessful 1960 Nixon presidential campaign. Despite his status as a political outcast, Nixon's former campaign manager remained loyal to him, and remained convinced Nixon would one day be president.
In early 1962, Chotiner managed the unsuccessful primary campaign of conservative California Senate candidate Loyd Wright
, who was easily defeated by incumbent Senator Thomas H. Kuchel in the Republican primary. In August 1962, he joined Nixon's campaign for Governor of California against incumbent Democratic Governor Pat Brown as an unpaid volunteer. Chotiner and Nixon had a major disagreement, with the consultant opposing the candidate's decision to denounce the conservative John Birch Society
. In its final weeks, the Brown-Nixon battle became an "alley fight", with legal battles over "smear" pamphlets distributed by each side. Chotiner's involvement and the alleged use of his techniques were issues in the campaign, with one bitter Republican describing him as "a millstone around our neck". Brown defeated Nixon by five percentage points.
Five days after the election, Chotiner appeared as a Nixon defender on Howard K. Smith
's News and Comment
program on ABC
in the episode entitled "The Political Obituary of Richard M. Nixon". Nixon nemesis Alger Hiss
also appeared on the broadcast, and Hiss's participation led to such an uproar that sponsors pulled back from underwriting the program, and News and Comment left the air in the spring of 1963.
Chotiner continued to practice law. In 1962, his wife Ruth obtained an interlocutory
divorce decree against him. After the decree became final, Chotiner married again in 1965. In January 1966, attorney and land developer Charles W. Hinman was arrested and charged with plotting to have Chotiner murdered. Chotiner had represented Hinman's wife in a contested divorce case, and Hinman had been jailed for eleven days for failure to pay his fees. No actual attempt on his life took place. Hinman was sentenced to between one and five years in prison. In 1957, one of Chotiner's divorce clients had been killed along with her daughter by the client's estranged husband in the attorney's Beverly Hills office.
Chotiner was involved in Nixon's successful 1968 presidential bid, but kept out of the public eye as special assistant to Nixon campaign manager John Mitchell
. He served as liaison between the campaign and 14 Republican state organizations. He was able to place a "mole
" on the Humphrey campaign press plane; the agent sent back almost daily reports on off-the-record or unreported comments made by the Democratic candidate and his staff, and evaluations of their morale. Kevin Phillips
said of Nixon's 1968 presidential run,
Chotiner was given an office at the RNC, nominally as the official in charge of tickets for the inauguration. RNC chairman Ray Bliss and his aides were disturbed by his presence, and were told he would be gone after January 20. Meanwhile, Nixon and his aides considered a new RNC chairman finally settling on Maryland Congressman Rogers Morton
, who agreed to take the position once Bliss left, though Morton was not told of the promise to Chotiner. When the President-elect met with Bliss on January 10, 1969, he could not bring himself to fire the chairman. With the situation unresolved, and Morton's appointment unannounced, Chotiner sat in his RNC office for a month after the inauguration with nothing to do, as the RNC staff wondered at his presence.
Nixon, Haldeman, and Mitchell did nothing to clear up the situation, and Chotiner finally took action on his own and told Bliss that he was to take control. A shaken Bliss called Haldeman, who backed up Chotiner's account, and Bliss immediately resigned. Bliss's aides publicized the reasons for his resignation, and reporter David Broder contacted Chotiner, who confirmed the story. Morton refused to be a figurehead for Chotiner, or indeed to have Chotiner at the RNC in any capacity, and so stated to the media. Mitchell dispatched his subordinate, John Sears, to tell Chotiner he would have no place at the RNC. Chotiner took the bad news philosophically, stating that it was not the first time he had been treated badly, and that his estranged wife had predicted that Nixon would "screw" him.
However, some job still had to be found for Chotiner, who had wound up his California practice and sold his home. Haldeman refused to have him in the White House, and Nixon's aides deemed that the Democratic-controlled Senate was unlikely to confirm Chotiner for any post requiring its approval. On April 10, 1969, acting Special Representative for Trade Negotiations
Theodore R. Gates appointed Chotiner as General Counsel to his office, as almost simultaneously, the White House announced Gates' replacement, Carl J. Gilbert
. On April 1, Nixon had issued Executive Order 11463, making the position of general counsel in that office a Schedule C, or political appointment, and significantly raising the salary of the position. Nixon press secretary
Ron Ziegler
stated that the salary had been raised because the new incumbent was expected to play a more active role than had previous holders of the position.
On January 13, 1970, Nixon appointed Chotiner as a special counsel to the President, reporting to White House Chief of Staff Haldeman, a move the chief of staff described in his diaries as a "mixed blessing". Ziegler indicated that the new staffer would be handling "special projects of a wide variety", and The New York Times speculated that in view of his past, his duties would most likely be political. Haldeman noted in his diaries that his new subordinate was to serve as the "inside White House man for political campaigns". Chotiner served as liaison between the White House and Republican organizations in 31 states. Chotiner taught at a March 1970 seminar for Young Republican leaders where he suggested that the Republican running against Senator Edward Kennedy
mention the Chappaquiddick incident at every opportunity, while insisting that it was not an issue in the campaign. Chotiner stated, "If he says it enough times, I think the voters of Massachusetts will understand all about Chappaquiddick."
Chotiner was involved in recruiting Republican candidates in the unsuccessful attempt to get a Republican Senate majority in the 1970 elections. Some of Chotiner's friends stated that Nixon involved him in this project after news reports claimed that Nixon had abandoned his former campaign manager, however, Chotiner himself denied that and stated he had been made special counsel because some people in the White House had decided he could be useful. The special counsel also coordinated Vice President Spiro Agnew
's campaign against "radic lib" senatorial candidates, including New York Republican Senator Charles Goodell
, who was subsequently defeated by Conservative Party candidate James L. Buckley
. Chotiner stated that his twenty-year association with Nixon made it possible for him to move on matters without needing to consult the President on every detail.
In March 1971, Chotiner resigned from his White House job and returned to the private practice of law. He represented former Teamsters
president Jimmy Hoffa
, who had been informally promised early parole from his jury tampering sentence. Chotiner wrote to Haldeman in November 1971, noting that no action on Hoffa's release seemed to be taking place, and President Nixon granted Hoffa clemency later that month. When Chotiner's role became public in 1973, he stated that he was proud of his actions on behalf of Hoffa. Chotiner also lobbied the White House on behalf of milk producers, who were seeking increased price supports and who were major contributors to the Republican Party.
During the 1972 presidential election
, Chotiner served as head of the Ballot Security Task Force for the Nixon campaign, a job that The Washington Post described as "largely token". At the instructions of Mitchell, in March 1971, he hired out-of-work reporter Seymour Friedin to present himself as a working journalist and travel with the campaigns of various Democratic presidential hopefuls. Friedin sent reports back to Chotiner, who edited them, had them typed by his secretary, and forwarded them to Mitchell (who had resigned as Attorney General in 1972 to manage Nixon's re-election bid) and Haldeman. When Friedin secured other employment in August 1972, Chotiner replaced him with Lucianne Goldberg
, who remained in that capacity for the remainder of the presidential campaign. The two journalists were collectively code-named "Chapman
's Friend", and were paid $1,000 per week plus expenses from Chotiner's law office account, with the account reimbursed by the Committee to Re-elect the President
(CRP). The Committee reported the payments as reimbursement of his expenses, which the General Accounting Office opined was a violation of federal election law. Chotiner, however, stated that there was "nothing underhanded or illegal" about the arrangement, and Watergate prosecutors later chose not to prosecute CRP officials concerning the payments, deciding they could not prove criminal intent.
In April 1973, the Manchester Union Leader
accused Chotiner of having organized the Watergate break-in. He responded by bringing suit for libel against the Union Leader and its lead investigator. In December 1973, the parties reached a settlement by which Chotiner received an undisclosed, but substantial, sum of money and the newspaper printed a front page apology and retraction of its accusations in its December 31, 1973 edition. Chotiner described Watergate in January 1973 as "a stupid, useless, inane experiment by people who have seen too many TV shows and especially too many productions of Mission Impossible
". According to The Washington Post, Chotiner was not close to Haldeman, John Ehrlichman
, and most other staffers at the White House and CRP. In a taped discussion of the fallout from Watergate, Haldeman told Nixon that his former campaign manager was not "wired in", and the President expressed strong opposition to Chotiner being used as a White House contact. At the suggestion that Chotiner could defend him, Nixon worried that the attorney might not be willing to do so.
Chotiner advised President Nixon to fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox
in October 1973 in what became known as the Saturday Night Massacre
, telling Nixon, "This guy Cox will use anything and everybody. It has to be taken away from him." According to Nixon biographer and Chotiner friend Earl Mazo, he was convinced that "Dick wouldn't have had anything to do with [the Watergate break-in]" and was also convinced that the President would put the scandal behind him by the spring of 1974. According to his brother Jack, "[h]e always considered Nixon a genius."
On January 23, 1974, Chotiner was involved in an automobile accident on Virginia State Route 123
in McLean, Virginia, by the home of Massachusetts
Democratic Senator Edward M. Kennedy
, who heard the collision and called for an ambulance. Chotiner had suffered a broken leg, and appeared to be recovering. The evening before he was due to be discharged from the hospital, he started gasping uncontrollably, and X-rays revealed a blood clot near the lungs. Treatment was unsuccessful and he died of a pulmonary embolism
at the Washington Hospital Center
in Washington, D.C. Gerald R. Warren, Nixon's deputy press secretary, stated that President Nixon was "deeply saddened" by the news.
Nixon described Chotiner as a "valued counselor and a trusted colleague. But above all, Murray Chotiner was my friend." Chotiner was survived by his fourth wife, Nancy, his son, Kenneth, from his first marriage, two stepdaughters, Renee and Julie, and his brother. The President attended his funeral, and emotionally told Nancy Chotiner that her husband was a "great guy".
Chotiner is buried at National Memorial Park in Falls Church, Virginia
. The adage known as "Chotiner's Law" is named for the former Nixon adviser. It holds that if an incumbent is seriously challenged in a primary election, he will be unable to recover and will lose the general election. Chotiner's Law has held true in every presidential election since his death.
Chotiner was known to his friends as "the perfect political technician" and to his foes as "the complete political hatchet man", but often said that he had done nothing in politics that he was not proud of. Rowland Evans
and Robert Novak
summed up Chotiner:
Political campaign staff
Political campaign staff are the people who formulate and implement the strategy needed to win an election. Many people have made careers out of working full-time for campaigns and groups that support them, but in other campaigns much of the staff might be unpaid volunteers...
, attorney, government official, and close associate and friend of President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
during much of the 37th President's political career. He served as campaign manager
Campaign manager
A campaign manager is a paid or volunteer individual, whose role is to coordinate the campaign's operations such as fundraising, advertising, polling, getting out the vote , and other activities supporting the effort, directly.Apart from the candidate, they are often a campaign's most visible leader...
for the future president's successful runs for the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
in 1950 and for the vice presidency
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
in 1952, and managed the campaigns of other California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. He was active in each of Nixon's two successful runs for the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
in low-profile positions.
Chotiner was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
; his father moved the family to California and then abandoned his wife and children. Murray Chotiner attended UCLA
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
, and graduated from the Southwestern School of Law. He practiced law in Los Angeles, and branched out into public relations. Involving himself in Republican politics, he played an active part in several political campaigns and made an unsuccessful run for the California State Assembly
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...
in 1938.
Nixon retained Chotiner as a consultant
Political consulting
Political consulting, beyond the self-evident definition of consulting in political matters, refers to a specific management consulting industry which has grown up around advising and assisting political campaigns. This article deals primarily with the development and nature of political consulting...
to his first congressional campaign
California's 12th congressional district election, 1946
An election for a seat in the United States House of Representatives took place in California's 12th congressional district on November 5, 1946, the date set by law for the elections for the 80th United States Congress...
in 1946. In an era when the perceived threat of communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
was a major domestic issue, Chotiner advised the future president to link his liberal opponent, Representative Jerry Voorhis
Jerry Voorhis
Horace Jeremiah "Jerry" Voorhis was a Democratic politician from California. He served five terms in the United States House of Representatives from 1937 to 1947, representing the 12th Congressional district in Los Angeles County...
, to a political organization which was believed to be communist-dominated. Nixon was elected, and hired Chotiner to run his 1950 Senate campaign against Representative Helen Gahagan Douglas
Helen Gahagan
Helen Gahagan was an American actress and politician. She was the third woman and first Democratic woman elected to Congress from California; her election made California one of the first two states to have elected female members of the House from both parties.-Early life and acting...
. Chotiner used a similar strategy in that campaign
United States Senate election in California, 1950
The 1950 United States Senate election in California followed a campaign characterized by accusations and name-calling. Republican Richard Nixon defeated Democrat Helen Gahagan Douglas, after Democratic incumbent Sheridan Downey withdrew during the primary election campaign...
, stressing Douglas' liberal voting record and printing the accusations on pink paper to hint at communist sympathy. Congressman Nixon easily defeated Douglas, and Chotiner next managed Nixon's 1952 vice presidential campaign and counseled Nixon through allegations of antisemitism and revelations that there was a privately run fund to pay Nixon's political expenses—revelations that the candidate decisively overcame with his televised Checkers speech
Checkers speech
The Checkers speech or Fund speech was an address made by Richard Nixon, the Republican vice presidential candidate and junior United States Senator from California, on television and radio on September 23, 1952. Senator Nixon had been accused of improprieties relating to a fund established by his...
.
After Congress investigated Chotiner in 1956, suspecting he was using his connections to Nixon for influence peddling
Influence peddling
Influence peddling is the illegal practice of using one's influence in government or connections with persons in authority to obtain favors or preferential treatment for another, usually in return for payment. Also called traffic of influence or trading in influence ...
to benefit his private legal clients, the vice president and his former campaign manager temporarily parted ways. Nixon recalled him to work on his unsuccessful 1962 campaign for Governor of California
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
, and again for his successful 1968 presidential bid
United States presidential election, 1968
The United States presidential election of 1968 was the 46th quadrennial United States presidential election. Coming four years after Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson won in a historic landslide, it saw Johnson forced out of the race and Republican Richard Nixon elected...
. After Nixon was inaugurated in 1969, Chotiner received a political appointment to a government position and, in 1970, became a member of the White House staff
Executive Office of the President of the United States
The Executive Office of the President consists of the immediate staff of the President of the United States, as well as multiple levels of support staff reporting to the President. The EOP is headed by the White House Chief of Staff, currently William M. Daley...
. He returned to private practice a year later, but was involved in Nixon's 1972 re-election campaign
United States presidential election, 1972
The United States presidential election of 1972 was the 47th quadrennial United States presidential election. It was held on November 7, 1972. The Democratic Party's nomination was eventually won by Senator George McGovern, who ran an anti-war campaign against incumbent Republican President Richard...
. Chotiner described the Watergate break-in
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
that occurred during Nixon's 1972 campaign and that eventually brought down the Nixon administration as "stupid", and when a newspaper accused him of organizing it, he sued for libel and won a substantial settlement. He remained an informal adviser to Nixon until he died in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, following an auto accident in January 1974, and Nixon mourned the loss of a man he described as a counselor and friend.
Early life and career
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, the son of Albert Hyman Chotiner and Sarah Chotiner. The family moved to Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, soon after Murray's birth, and relocated to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in 1920. Albert Chotiner, a cigar maker by trade, managed a chain of movie theaters in California, and soon abandoned his wife and children.
After attending the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
, Los Angeles, Chotiner enrolled at the Southwestern School of Law, graduating at age 20, the youngest graduate in the school's history. However, he had to wait until he was 21 to be eligible to take the bar exam. He initially practiced law with his older brother, Jack—they had a general practice in which they defended a number of bookmaker
Bookmaker
A bookmaker, or bookie, is an organization or a person that takes bets on sporting and other events at agreed upon odds.- Range of events :...
s—but eventually the Chotiners dissolved the partnership, and Murray Chotiner opened a law practice on his own in Los Angeles. He later described many of his clients as "unsavory, to say the least". In the early 1940s, he branched out into public relations.
Chotiner initially registered to vote as a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, but soon switched parties, joining the Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. He involved himself in Republican politics, working on Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
's unsuccessful presidential re-election campaign in 1932. In 1938, the young attorney ran against longtime Republican incumbent Charles W. Lyon
Charles W. Lyon
Charles W. Lyon was an American attorney from California who served as a Republican in the California State Assembly and the California State Senate. Lyon was Assembly Speaker from 1943 to 1946. Lyon was admitted to the Bar in 1910 and was first elected to the Assembly in 1914...
for the California State Assembly. Lyon cross-filed
Cross-filing
In American politics, cross-filing occurs when a candidate runs in the primary election of not only his own party, but also that of one or more other parties, generally in the hope of reducing or eliminating his competition at the general election...
and secured his re-election by winning both primaries
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
, defeating Chotiner in the Republican poll, and narrowly beating Robert A. Heinlein
Robert A. Heinlein
Robert Anson Heinlein was an American science fiction writer. Often called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was one of the most influential and controversial authors of the genre. He set a standard for science and engineering plausibility and helped to raise the genre's standards of...
(who subsequently turned to writing science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
) in the Democratic contest.
When Earl Warren
Earl Warren
Earl Warren was the 14th Chief Justice of the United States.He is known for the sweeping decisions of the Warren Court, which ended school segregation and transformed many areas of American law, especially regarding the rights of the accused, ending public-school-sponsored prayer, and requiring...
successfully ran for Governor of California
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
in 1942, Chotiner served as his field director. However, he alienated Warren when, hoping for a favor in light of his 1942 support, he asked the newly inaugurated governor to decline to approve the extradition of one of his clients to another state. Warren had Chotiner thrown out of his office, and the future chief justice
Chief Justice of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...
refused to let him have anything to do with his re-election campaign in 1946. According to Nixon biographer Earl Mazo, Chotiner stated that while people remembered him for "making" Richard Nixon, "the real man I created was Earl Warren".
Chotiner served as counsel to state committees investigating violence in motion picture strikes and conditions in children's boarding homes and in homes for the elderly. In 1944, Chotiner was elected president of the conservative California Republican Assembly
California Republican Assembly
The California Republican Assembly is a conservative California Republican activist group. It is the oldest and largest grassroots volunteer organization chartered by the California Republican Party....
, a grassroots
Grassroots
A grassroots movement is one driven by the politics of a community. The term implies that the creation of the movement and the group supporting it are natural and spontaneous, highlighting the differences between this and a movement that is orchestrated by traditional power structures...
organization of party activists; he had previously served as president of the Los Angeles Republican Assembly. In addition to his political involvement, he was active in the Los Angeles Jewish Community Relations Committee.
Congressional races
One of the first professional campaign managerCampaign manager
A campaign manager is a paid or volunteer individual, whose role is to coordinate the campaign's operations such as fundraising, advertising, polling, getting out the vote , and other activities supporting the effort, directly.Apart from the candidate, they are often a campaign's most visible leader...
s; Chotiner was retained as a political consultant by Nixon's 1946 campaign for Congress against incumbent Representative Jerry Voorhis. He advised linking Voorhis with a political action committee
Political action committee
In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...
, believed to be communist-dominated, run by the Congress of Industrial Organizations
Congress of Industrial Organizations
The Congress of Industrial Organizations, or CIO, proposed by John L. Lewis in 1932, was a federation of unions that organized workers in industrial unions in the United States and Canada from 1935 to 1955. The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 required union leaders to swear that they were not...
. The consultant was only able to devote a limited amount of time to the Nixon campaign since he was the Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
campaign manager for the successful re-election bid of Republican Senator William F. Knowland
William F. Knowland
William Fife Knowland was a United States politician, newspaperman, and Republican Party leader. He was a U.S. Senator representing California from 1945 to 1959. He served as Senate Majority Leader from 1953-1955, and as Minority Leader from 1955-1959. He was defeated in his 1958 run for...
. Chotiner coined the campaign slogan, "We will not surrender" for Knowland, implying that Democratic challenger Will Rogers, Jr.
Will Rogers, Jr.
William Vann Rogers, generally known as Will Rogers, Jr. , was a son of legendary humorist Will Rogers and his wife, the former Betty Blake . He was a Democratic U. S. Representative from California from January 3, 1943 until May 23, 1944, when he resigned to return to the United States Army...
would permit communism to take over the country. Both Republican candidates defeated their opponents. Two years later, Chotiner served as Southern California campaign manager for the unsuccessful 1948 presidential bid of New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey.
Vito Marcantonio
Vito Anthony Marcantonio was an American lawyer and democratic socialist politician. Originally a member of the Republican Party and a supporter of Fiorello LaGuardia, he switched to the American Labor Party.-Early life:...
of the socialist American Labor Party
American Labor Party
The American Labor Party was a political party in the United States established in 1936 which was active almost exclusively in the state of New York. The organization was founded by labor leaders and former members of the Socialist Party who had established themselves as the Social Democratic...
, listing the matters in which the two had voted the same way in a leaflet printed on pink paper—the "Pink Sheet"—and popularizing a label for Douglas which had been first coined by Boddy—the "Pink Lady". However, the Northern California campaign chairman for Nixon, John Dinkenspiel, and his paid assistant, Harvey Hancock
Harvey Hancock
George Harvey Hancock , known as Harvey Hancock, was an aviation executive and a journalist who served as the Northern California campaign manager for Richard Nixon's successful 1950 United States Senate race and then the 1952 general election won by Dwight D. Eisenhower and Nixon...
, declined to use the Pink Sheet in their territory. With the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
raging, Douglas also tried to depict Nixon as soft on communism, stating this in her first speech of the general election campaign, but that strategy was not successful, and Chotiner noted, "She made the fatal mistake of attacking our strength instead of sticking to attacking our weakness."
Chotiner had parted ways with Governor Warren, and the popular governor, who was running for a third term, "wanted no part" of the Nixon campaign. Nonetheless, Chotiner sought to maneuver the future chief justice into an endorsement of Representative Nixon. Chotiner instructed Young Republicans
Young Republicans
The Young Republicans is an organization for members of the Republican Party of the United States between the ages of 18 and 40. It has both a national organization and chapters in individual states....
head and future congressman Joseph F. Holt
Joseph F. Holt
Joseph Franklin Holt, III was a U.S. Representative from California.Born in Springfield, Massachusetts, Holt moved to Los Angeles, California, with his parents when one year of age.He attended the public schools....
to follow Douglas from appearance to appearance and demand to know who she was supporting for governor. Douglas repeatedly avoided the question, but with four days to go before the election and the Democratic candidate "close to collapse" from the bitter campaign, she responded to the latest Holt needle with her "hope and pray
James Roosevelt
James Roosevelt was the oldest son of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was a United States Congressman, an officer in the United States Marine Corps, an aide to his father, the official Secretary to the President, a Democratic Party activist, and a businessman.-Early life:Roosevelt was...
would be elected. A delighted Chotiner had a reporter ask Warren about Douglas's reply, and the governor commented, "In view of her statement, I might ask her how she expects I will vote when I mark my ballot for United States senator on Tuesday." Chotiner publicized this response as an endorsement of Nixon, which Warren could not deny". Both Warren and Nixon won overwhelming victories on Election Day.
Chotiner's strategy in the Nixon congressional races remains controversial. Former congressman Voorhis dubbed himself "the first victim of the Nixon-Chotiner formula for political success". Democrats labeled him a master of dirty tricks who ruthlessly destroyed Douglas's political career by intimating that she was soft on communism. Chotiner's son Kenneth later stated, "I think he really believed [Douglas] was evil ... He would equate a liberal or a Democrat with a communist." Chotiner himself said of the campaign against Douglas, "We only stated the facts. The interpretation of the facts was the prerogative of the electorate."
1952 campaign
In 1952, Chotiner served as campaign manager for Knowland. Knowland cross-filed and won both major party primaries, virtually assuring his re-election. The strategist also served as Holt's campaign manager in the California 22nd Congressional districtCalifornia's 22nd congressional district
California's 22nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California that covers parts of San Luis Obispo, Kern, and Los Angeles counties. The district is anchored in Bakersfield and takes in most of San Luis Obispo County....
Republican primary. Senator Nixon endorsed Holt over State Senator Jack Tenney
Jack Tenney
Jack B. Tenney was an American politician who was noted for leading anti-communist investigations in California in the 1940s and early 1950s. Tenney was also the composer of several well-known songs, most notably "Mexicali Rose"....
, and Chotiner asked Nixon to supply him with Tenney's House Un-American Activities Committee
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
file—the state senator had once had communist leanings, though he had long renounced them. Nixon arranged for Chotiner to get the file, which was supposed to be for Congressional use only, though he apparently made no public use of the file in the campaign. Holt defeated Tenney in the primary, and went on to win the general election.
With the primary completed, Chotiner's attention turned to the 1952 Republican National Convention
1952 Republican National Convention
The 1952 Republican National Convention was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois from July 7 to July 11, 1952 and nominated the popular general and war hero Dwight D...
in Chicago. While the California delegation was pledged to Governor Warren, (who hoped to gain the Republican nomination for president in a brokered convention
Brokered convention
A brokered convention is a situation in United States politics in which there are not enough delegates 'won' during the presidential primary and caucus elections for a single candidate to have a pre-existing majority, during the first official vote for a political party's presidential-candidate at...
), the strategist realized that Nixon's best chance for advancement was in the nomination of General Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
, who was in a close battle with Senator Robert Taft
Robert Taft
Robert Alphonso Taft , of the Taft political family of Cincinnati, was a Republican United States Senator and a prominent conservative statesman...
for the party's nomination.
Chotiner was quietly designated an alternate delegate to the convention as an original alternate had dropped out, and when Governor Warren learned of his selection, he "erupted ... furiously". Chotiner had volunteered to take care of many of the convention arrangements for the California delegation, and for the Warren campaign headquarters at the Conrad Hilton Hotel. Seeking to avoid a split with Nixon, who assured Warren that Chotiner was merely there to handle physical arrangements, the governor grudgingly allowed Chotiner to retain his roles. When the California delegation's train arrived in Chicago, the Warren campaign found that the buses which Chotiner had arranged to transport the delegation to its hotel were covered with "Eisenhower for President" banners—which the governor's supporters hastily replaced with Warren signs. Chotiner had an extra phone surreptitiously installed in the Warren headquarters so he could quietly communicate the latest developments to Nixon. He also remained in close contact with Eisenhower aide and future Attorney General, Herbert Brownell. Warren paid a courtesy call on Eisenhower, and later wrote in his memoirs, "Imagine my surprise when the doorkeeper who admitted me to the general's suite was Murray Chotiner." Eisenhower was nominated over Taft and Warren in a close, first-ballot victory. As a final indignity to Warren, it developed that Chotiner had overspent his budget, forcing the governor and others to pay hotel expenses from their own pockets.
Despite Chotiner's maneuvering for Nixon, the senator was still uncertain if he should take the vice-presidential slot if offered. Pat Nixon
Pat Nixon
Thelma Catherine "Pat" Ryan Nixon was the wife of Richard Nixon, 37th President of the United States, and was First Lady of the United States from 1969 to 1974. She was commonly known as Patricia or Pat Nixon.Born in Nevada, Pat Ryan grew up in Los Angeles, California...
wanted her husband to decline it. Chotiner argued to the Nixons that if the Republicans lost, Nixon would retain his seat in the Senate, that if he served as Vice President and re-entered private life, he would have a lucrative legal career, but that if Nixon did not move up to the Vice Presidency, with Senator Knowland relatively young and in good health, Nixon was likely to remain merely the junior senator from California for many years to come. Eisenhower offered Nixon the position, the senator accepted, and with Knowland's re-election bid all but won, Chotiner became Nixon's campaign manager.
Soon after Nixon's selection, controversy erupted over the senator's 1951 purchase of a home with a restrictive covenant
Restrictive covenant
A restrictive covenant is a type of real covenant, a legal obligation imposed in a deed by the seller upon the buyer of real estate to do or not to do something. Such restrictions frequently "run with the land" and are enforceable on subsequent buyers of the property...
that forbade resale or rental to Jews. Chotiner, a Jew, successfully appealed to the Anti-Defamation League
Anti-Defamation League
The Anti-Defamation League is an international non-governmental organization based in the United States. Describing itself as "the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency", the ADL states that it "fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects...
and the Jewish press for support for Nixon in the controversy, providing them with a list of Jewish causes which he had favored. Nixon's staff pointed out that the covenant was, in any event, invalid because of the U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
's 1948 ruling in Shelley v. Kraemer
Shelley v. Kraemer
Shelley v. Kraemer, 334 U.S. 1 , is a United States Supreme Court case which held that courts could not enforce racial covenants on real estate.-Facts of the case:...
. The controversy "failed to gain fatal traction" but repeatedly surfaced in later Nixon campaigns.
When the media discovered that Nixon had received reimbursement for political expenses from a fund set up by a private group, the nominee was severely criticized, and he was pressured to give up his place on the ticket. Warren supporters, still smarting from the convention, had told reporters about the fund. Chotiner told Nixon that if he were forced off the ticket, Chotiner would hold a press conference and reveal the behind-the-scenes machinations that led to the candidate's departure, the ensuing furor being of no consequence to them, as both Nixon and Chotiner would be through in politics. His spirits revived by Chotiner's loyalty, Senator Nixon delivered the televised Checkers speech
Checkers speech
The Checkers speech or Fund speech was an address made by Richard Nixon, the Republican vice presidential candidate and junior United States Senator from California, on television and radio on September 23, 1952. Senator Nixon had been accused of improprieties relating to a fund established by his...
, during which he defended himself and emotionally stated he would not return a black and white dog that had been given to his children. Nixon received an outpouring of public support after the speech, but was angered at Eisenhower's hesitance to issue a statement backing him. He dictated a telegram to his secretary, Rose Mary Woods
Rose Mary Woods
Rose Mary Woods was Richard Nixon's secretary from his days in the Congress in 1951, through his Vice Presidency, Presidency, and until the end of his political career. Before H.R...
, giving up his place on the ticket, but Chotiner took the telegram and ripped it up, unsent. Nixon later praised him for his support, "In the whole fund matter, Chotiner was the strongest of all—like a rock." Eisenhower eventually supported Nixon, and the Republican ticket won a landslide victory in November.
"Man of influence", investigations (1953–1960)
Despite his success in advancing Nixon's career, Chotiner was respected, but was not universally popular among the Vice President's backers. Frank Jorgensen, one of Nixon's first backers in the Voorhis race, said of the attorney, "I knew that Murray was very impatient with people who didn't have the IQ that he had. He had the habit of a man like that of tramping on them. He'd move ahead. He'd just leave the wreckage behind him, but he would get the job done." Nixon family friend and Whittier College
Whittier College
Whittier College is a private liberal arts college in Whittier, California. As of January 2009, the college has approximately 1540 enrolled students.-Overview:...
trustee Herman Perry stated, "When Murray develops a little more of the techniques of public relations, I will be one of the first to recognize it and one of the first to give him credit ... The one thing I do not want him to do is be the quarterback and call the plays on the team on which I play."
In 1955, Chotiner lectured at the Republican national campaign school. He described his campaign philosophy:
I believe in all sincerity that if you do not deflate the opposition candidate before your own campaign gets started, the odds are you are doomed to defeat. I believe it is a smear to attack an individual on matters that have no relationship whatsoever to the campaign ... but it is not a smear if you point out the record of your opponent.
Chotiner was slated to play a major role in the Eisenhower/Nixon re-election bid. However, he had represented two Atlantic City
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...
clothing manufacturers, the Kravitz brothers, who had been fined and barred from further government contracts for fraud, and on April 25, 1956, a subcommittee of the Senate Permanent Committee on Investigations, looking into military procurement, subpoenaed him to appear before it. The senators wanted to inquire why a New Jersey firm which already had six attorneys would hire a California lawyer, especially one with close ties to Vice President Nixon.
Robert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...
, the younger brother of committee member and future president John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
, Chotiner also disclosed that he had been retained by New Jersey mobster Marco Regnelli
Marco Reginelli
Marco "Small Man" Reginelli was a New Jersey mobster who became underboss of the Bruno crime family and operated a famous nightclub in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Reginelli's nickname came from his short stature.-Early life:...
in an attempt to stave off a deportation order. He testified that he never discussed his clients with Nixon, and had not used the Vice President's offices for business purposes. In a press release, Chotiner fired back at Kennedy, suggesting that he had been subpoenaed for political reasons. Denying any influence peddling, Chotiner asked whether the subcommittee counsel could "explain whether any influence was used in connection with his own appointment as attorney for a subcommittee of a committee of which his brother ... is a member." Patrick Murphy Malin
Patrick Murphy Malin
Patrick Murphy Malin was an American activist and administrator who followed Roger Nash Baldwin as the second Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union.-Early life:...
, head of the American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
concurred that requiring Chotiner to testify had "overtones of political harassment." Time magazine summed up the hearings, "At week's end two points were clear: 1) Murray Chotiner had been sought out by, and had gone to work for, unsavory clients who obviously regarded him as a man of influence; and 2) on the basis of evidence so far adduced, he had been remarkably unsuccessful in wielding any."
On June 2, 1956, the Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
announced that Chotiner would have no role in the upcoming campaign On June 6, a House subcommittee disclosed that the California attorney had written to President Eisenhower asking the President to intercede on behalf of North American Airlines (NAA) before the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). The attorney admitted inquiring of White House aides concerning the case, but denied using any influence on behalf of any client. White House officials said that they had done no more than ask the CAB when a decision might be expected in NAA's case, and that NAA had lost before the CAB anyway.
Congress's investigations of Chotiner continued through much of 1956, and were eventually postponed until after the election. The Senate subcommittee finally issued its report on September 5, 1957, placing no blame on Chotiner. The House investigation dragged on until 1958, by which time the focus of the investigation was on White House Chief of Staff
White House Chief of Staff
The White House Chief of Staff is the highest ranking member of the Executive Office of the President of the United States and a senior aide to the President.The current White House Chief of Staff is Bill Daley.-History:...
Sherman Adams
Sherman Adams
Llewelyn Sherman Adams was an American politician, best known as White House Chief of Staff for President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the culmination of a relatively short political career that also included a stint as Governor of New Hampshire...
, who had sent Chotiner two letters regarding the airline matter. Nixon parted ways with Chotiner after the Senate testimony, calling his predicament "a tragedy", but by 1959, the two were friends again. Senator Knowland considered hiring Chotiner to manage his 1958 run for governor, but did not do so, and lost to Edmund G. "Pat" Brown
Pat Brown
Edmund Gerald "Pat" Brown, Sr. was the 32nd Governor of California, serving from 1959 to 1967, and the father of current Governor of California Jerry Brown.-Background:...
. Chotiner would play no visible role in the unsuccessful 1960 Nixon presidential campaign. Despite his status as a political outcast, Nixon's former campaign manager remained loyal to him, and remained convinced Nixon would one day be president.
Political wilderness and return (1960–1968)
Chotiner ran for the House of Representatives in 1960, proclaiming himself "vindicated and exonerated" by the fact that no adverse report had been issued against him by the Senate. Chotiner claimed to have Nixon's backing in the run; however, Nixon declined to make an endorsement, and the attorney was defeated by Alphonzo E. Bell in the Republican primary.In early 1962, Chotiner managed the unsuccessful primary campaign of conservative California Senate candidate Loyd Wright
Loyd Wright
Loyd Wright was an American attorney and lifetime Californian, who represented a number of movie stars, served as president of the State Bar of California, the American Bar Association and the International Bar Association and was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination for the...
, who was easily defeated by incumbent Senator Thomas H. Kuchel in the Republican primary. In August 1962, he joined Nixon's campaign for Governor of California against incumbent Democratic Governor Pat Brown as an unpaid volunteer. Chotiner and Nixon had a major disagreement, with the consultant opposing the candidate's decision to denounce the conservative John Birch Society
John Birch Society
The John Birch Society is an American political advocacy group that supports anti-communism, limited government, a Constitutional Republic and personal freedom. It has been described as radical right-wing....
. In its final weeks, the Brown-Nixon battle became an "alley fight", with legal battles over "smear" pamphlets distributed by each side. Chotiner's involvement and the alleged use of his techniques were issues in the campaign, with one bitter Republican describing him as "a millstone around our neck". Brown defeated Nixon by five percentage points.
Five days after the election, Chotiner appeared as a Nixon defender on Howard K. Smith
Howard K. Smith
Howard Kingsbury Smith was an American journalist, radio reporter, television anchorman, political commentator, and film actor. He was one of the original Edward R. Murrow boys.-Early life:...
's News and Comment
Howard K. Smith: News and Comment
Howard K. Smith: News and Comment was a half-hour ABC news and documentary program hosted by commentator Howard K. Smith , which aired from February 14, 1962, to June 16, 1963...
program on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
in the episode entitled "The Political Obituary of Richard M. Nixon". Nixon nemesis Alger Hiss
Alger Hiss
Alger Hiss was an American lawyer, government official, author, and lecturer. He was involved in the establishment of the United Nations both as a U.S. State Department and U.N. official...
also appeared on the broadcast, and Hiss's participation led to such an uproar that sponsors pulled back from underwriting the program, and News and Comment left the air in the spring of 1963.
Chotiner continued to practice law. In 1962, his wife Ruth obtained an interlocutory
Interlocutory
Interlocutory is a legal term which can refer to an order, sentence, decree, or judgment, given in an intermediate stage between the commencement and termination of a cause of action, used to provide a temporary or provisional decision on an issue...
divorce decree against him. After the decree became final, Chotiner married again in 1965. In January 1966, attorney and land developer Charles W. Hinman was arrested and charged with plotting to have Chotiner murdered. Chotiner had represented Hinman's wife in a contested divorce case, and Hinman had been jailed for eleven days for failure to pay his fees. No actual attempt on his life took place. Hinman was sentenced to between one and five years in prison. In 1957, one of Chotiner's divorce clients had been killed along with her daughter by the client's estranged husband in the attorney's Beverly Hills office.
Chotiner was involved in Nixon's successful 1968 presidential bid, but kept out of the public eye as special assistant to Nixon campaign manager John Mitchell
John N. Mitchell
John Newton Mitchell was the Attorney General of the United States from 1969 to 1972 under President Richard Nixon...
. He served as liaison between the campaign and 14 Republican state organizations. He was able to place a "mole
Mole (espionage)
A mole is a spy who works for an enemy nation, but whose loyalty ostensibly lies with his own nation's government. In some usage, a mole differs from a defector in that a mole is a spy before gaining access to classified information, while a defector becomes a spy only after gaining access...
" on the Humphrey campaign press plane; the agent sent back almost daily reports on off-the-record or unreported comments made by the Democratic candidate and his staff, and evaluations of their morale. Kevin Phillips
Kevin Phillips (political commentator)
Kevin Price Phillips is an American writer and commentator on politics, economics, and history. Formerly a Republican Party strategist, Phillips has become disaffected with his former party over the last two decades, and is now one of its most scathing critics...
said of Nixon's 1968 presidential run,
[Mitchell] and Murray Chotiner were the real people in the campaign, not the artificial public relations phonies who called Nixon "the product" as if he were some kind of underarm deodorant.
Federal lawyer (1969–1971)
The day after Nixon's election as President in November 1968, he asked Chotiner what job he would like, and Chotiner indicated that he wanted to be chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC), but was told that was impossible. However, Mitchell and soon-to-be White House Chief of Staff H.R. Haldeman wished to see Chotiner given a position outside the White House, as they saw him as a rival. Accordingly, they proposed that Chotiner be made RNC executive director, to wield the real power with the chairman as figurehead. A reluctant Nixon, who was worried about Chotiner's hatchet-man reputation, finally agreed, and Chotiner wrapped up his affairs in California.Chotiner was given an office at the RNC, nominally as the official in charge of tickets for the inauguration. RNC chairman Ray Bliss and his aides were disturbed by his presence, and were told he would be gone after January 20. Meanwhile, Nixon and his aides considered a new RNC chairman finally settling on Maryland Congressman Rogers Morton
Rogers Morton
Rogers Clark Ballard Morton was an American politician who served as Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Commerce under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, respectively...
, who agreed to take the position once Bliss left, though Morton was not told of the promise to Chotiner. When the President-elect met with Bliss on January 10, 1969, he could not bring himself to fire the chairman. With the situation unresolved, and Morton's appointment unannounced, Chotiner sat in his RNC office for a month after the inauguration with nothing to do, as the RNC staff wondered at his presence.
Nixon, Haldeman, and Mitchell did nothing to clear up the situation, and Chotiner finally took action on his own and told Bliss that he was to take control. A shaken Bliss called Haldeman, who backed up Chotiner's account, and Bliss immediately resigned. Bliss's aides publicized the reasons for his resignation, and reporter David Broder contacted Chotiner, who confirmed the story. Morton refused to be a figurehead for Chotiner, or indeed to have Chotiner at the RNC in any capacity, and so stated to the media. Mitchell dispatched his subordinate, John Sears, to tell Chotiner he would have no place at the RNC. Chotiner took the bad news philosophically, stating that it was not the first time he had been treated badly, and that his estranged wife had predicted that Nixon would "screw" him.
However, some job still had to be found for Chotiner, who had wound up his California practice and sold his home. Haldeman refused to have him in the White House, and Nixon's aides deemed that the Democratic-controlled Senate was unlikely to confirm Chotiner for any post requiring its approval. On April 10, 1969, acting Special Representative for Trade Negotiations
Office of the United States Trade Representative
The Office of the United States Trade Representative is the United States government agency responsible for developing and recommending United States trade policy to the president of the United States, conducting trade negotiations at bilateral and multilateral levels, and coordinating trade...
Theodore R. Gates appointed Chotiner as General Counsel to his office, as almost simultaneously, the White House announced Gates' replacement, Carl J. Gilbert
Carl J. Gilbert
Carl Joyce Gilbert was the United States Trade Representative from 1969-71. Gilbert had previously been president and chairman of the board of the Gillette Safety Razor Co...
. On April 1, Nixon had issued Executive Order 11463, making the position of general counsel in that office a Schedule C, or political appointment, and significantly raising the salary of the position. Nixon press secretary
Press secretary
A press secretary or press officer is a senior advisor who provides advice on how to deal with the news media and, using news management techniques, helps their employer to maintain a positive public image and avoid negative media coverage....
Ron Ziegler
Ron Ziegler
Ronald Louis "Ron" Ziegler was White House Press Secretary and Assistant to the President during United States President Richard Nixon's administration.-Early life:...
stated that the salary had been raised because the new incumbent was expected to play a more active role than had previous holders of the position.
Ted Kennedy
Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was a United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Serving almost 47 years, he was the second most senior member of the Senate when he died and is the fourth-longest-serving senator in United States history...
mention the Chappaquiddick incident at every opportunity, while insisting that it was not an issue in the campaign. Chotiner stated, "If he says it enough times, I think the voters of Massachusetts will understand all about Chappaquiddick."
Chotiner was involved in recruiting Republican candidates in the unsuccessful attempt to get a Republican Senate majority in the 1970 elections. Some of Chotiner's friends stated that Nixon involved him in this project after news reports claimed that Nixon had abandoned his former campaign manager, however, Chotiner himself denied that and stated he had been made special counsel because some people in the White House had decided he could be useful. The special counsel also coordinated Vice President Spiro Agnew
Spiro Agnew
Spiro Theodore Agnew was the 39th Vice President of the United States , serving under President Richard Nixon, and the 55th Governor of Maryland...
's campaign against "radic lib" senatorial candidates, including New York Republican Senator Charles Goodell
Charles Goodell
Charles Ellsworth Goodell was a U.S. Representative and a Senator from New York, notable for coming into both offices under special circumstances following the deaths of his predecessors.-Early life and education:...
, who was subsequently defeated by Conservative Party candidate James L. Buckley
James L. Buckley
James Lane Buckley is a retired judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and previously served as a United States Senator from the state of New York as a member of the Conservative Party of New York from January 3, 1971 to January 3, 1977...
. Chotiner stated that his twenty-year association with Nixon made it possible for him to move on matters without needing to consult the President on every detail.
Final years (1971–1974)
In January 1971, Chotiner and his third wife, Mimi, divorced on the ground of irreconcilable differences, after five years of marriage and a bitter, contested trial. Mimi Chotiner testified that the couple's matrimonial difficulties began when he left California to work for the Nixon campaign, while Murray Chotiner retorted that his wife had said that his government job in the Nixon Administration "wasn't good enough for her". Mrs. Chotiner had refused to accompany her husband to Washington, stating at trial that she remained because her children were in California schools. Murray Chotiner married again on May 30.In March 1971, Chotiner resigned from his White House job and returned to the private practice of law. He represented former Teamsters
Teamsters
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of several local and regional locals of teamsters, the union now represents a diverse membership of blue-collar and professional workers in both the public and private sectors....
president Jimmy Hoffa
Jimmy Hoffa
James Riddle "Jimmy" Hoffa was an American labor union leader....
, who had been informally promised early parole from his jury tampering sentence. Chotiner wrote to Haldeman in November 1971, noting that no action on Hoffa's release seemed to be taking place, and President Nixon granted Hoffa clemency later that month. When Chotiner's role became public in 1973, he stated that he was proud of his actions on behalf of Hoffa. Chotiner also lobbied the White House on behalf of milk producers, who were seeking increased price supports and who were major contributors to the Republican Party.
During the 1972 presidential election
United States presidential election, 1972
The United States presidential election of 1972 was the 47th quadrennial United States presidential election. It was held on November 7, 1972. The Democratic Party's nomination was eventually won by Senator George McGovern, who ran an anti-war campaign against incumbent Republican President Richard...
, Chotiner served as head of the Ballot Security Task Force for the Nixon campaign, a job that The Washington Post described as "largely token". At the instructions of Mitchell, in March 1971, he hired out-of-work reporter Seymour Friedin to present himself as a working journalist and travel with the campaigns of various Democratic presidential hopefuls. Friedin sent reports back to Chotiner, who edited them, had them typed by his secretary, and forwarded them to Mitchell (who had resigned as Attorney General in 1972 to manage Nixon's re-election bid) and Haldeman. When Friedin secured other employment in August 1972, Chotiner replaced him with Lucianne Goldberg
Lucianne Goldberg
Lucianne S. Goldberg née Lucianne Steinberger, also known as Lucianne Cummings is an American literary agent, author and the publisher of the website Lucianne.com. An avowed critic of U.S...
, who remained in that capacity for the remainder of the presidential campaign. The two journalists were collectively code-named "Chapman
Alger Chapman
Alger Baldwin Chapman was an attorney, businessman, New York state official, and adviser to New York Governor Thomas Dewey. Chapman was involved in Republican politics in New York, and managed several campaigns in the state.Chapman was born in 1904 on Long Island; he attended law school at...
's Friend", and were paid $1,000 per week plus expenses from Chotiner's law office account, with the account reimbursed by the Committee to Re-elect the President
Committee to Re-elect the President
The Committee for the Re-Election of the President, abbreviated CRP but often mocked by the acronym CREEP, was a fundraising organization of United States President Richard Nixon's administration...
(CRP). The Committee reported the payments as reimbursement of his expenses, which the General Accounting Office opined was a violation of federal election law. Chotiner, however, stated that there was "nothing underhanded or illegal" about the arrangement, and Watergate prosecutors later chose not to prosecute CRP officials concerning the payments, deciding they could not prove criminal intent.
In April 1973, the Manchester Union Leader
New Hampshire Union Leader
The New Hampshire Union Leader is the daily newspaper of Manchester, the largest city in the state of New Hampshire. As of September 2010 it had a daily circulation of 48,342 and the circulation of its Sunday paper, the New Hampshire Sunday News, was 63,991. It was founded in 1863.It was called...
accused Chotiner of having organized the Watergate break-in. He responded by bringing suit for libel against the Union Leader and its lead investigator. In December 1973, the parties reached a settlement by which Chotiner received an undisclosed, but substantial, sum of money and the newspaper printed a front page apology and retraction of its accusations in its December 31, 1973 edition. Chotiner described Watergate in January 1973 as "a stupid, useless, inane experiment by people who have seen too many TV shows and especially too many productions of Mission Impossible
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible is an American television series which was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicled the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The leader of the team was Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, except in...
". According to The Washington Post, Chotiner was not close to Haldeman, John Ehrlichman
John Ehrlichman
John Daniel Ehrlichman was counsel and Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs under President Richard Nixon. He was a key figure in events leading to the Watergate first break-in and the ensuing Watergate scandal, for which he was convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury...
, and most other staffers at the White House and CRP. In a taped discussion of the fallout from Watergate, Haldeman told Nixon that his former campaign manager was not "wired in", and the President expressed strong opposition to Chotiner being used as a White House contact. At the suggestion that Chotiner could defend him, Nixon worried that the attorney might not be willing to do so.
Chotiner advised President Nixon to fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox
Archibald Cox
Archibald Cox, Jr., was an American lawyer and law professor who served as U.S. Solicitor General under President John F. Kennedy. He became known as the first special prosecutor for the Watergate scandal. During his career, he was a pioneering expert on labor law and also an authority on...
in October 1973 in what became known as the Saturday Night Massacre
Saturday night massacre
The "Saturday Night Massacre" was the term given by political commentators to U.S. President Richard Nixon's executive dismissal of independent special prosecutor Archibald Cox, and the resignations of Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus on October 20,...
, telling Nixon, "This guy Cox will use anything and everybody. It has to be taken away from him." According to Nixon biographer and Chotiner friend Earl Mazo, he was convinced that "Dick wouldn't have had anything to do with [the Watergate break-in]" and was also convinced that the President would put the scandal behind him by the spring of 1974. According to his brother Jack, "[h]e always considered Nixon a genius."
Death and legacy
Virginia State Route 123
Virginia State Route 123 is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs from U.S. Route 1 in Woodbridge north to the Chain Bridge across the Potomac River into Washington from Arlington...
in McLean, Virginia, by the home of Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
Democratic Senator Edward M. Kennedy
Ted Kennedy
Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was a United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Serving almost 47 years, he was the second most senior member of the Senate when he died and is the fourth-longest-serving senator in United States history...
, who heard the collision and called for an ambulance. Chotiner had suffered a broken leg, and appeared to be recovering. The evening before he was due to be discharged from the hospital, he started gasping uncontrollably, and X-rays revealed a blood clot near the lungs. Treatment was unsuccessful and he died of a pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism is a blockage of the main artery of the lung or one of its branches by a substance that has travelled from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream . Usually this is due to embolism of a thrombus from the deep veins in the legs, a process termed venous thromboembolism...
at the Washington Hospital Center
Washington Hospital Center
Washington Hospital Center is the largest private hospital in Washington, D.C.. It serves as a teaching hospital for Georgetown University School of Medicine....
in Washington, D.C. Gerald R. Warren, Nixon's deputy press secretary, stated that President Nixon was "deeply saddened" by the news.
Nixon described Chotiner as a "valued counselor and a trusted colleague. But above all, Murray Chotiner was my friend." Chotiner was survived by his fourth wife, Nancy, his son, Kenneth, from his first marriage, two stepdaughters, Renee and Julie, and his brother. The President attended his funeral, and emotionally told Nancy Chotiner that her husband was a "great guy".
Chotiner is buried at National Memorial Park in Falls Church, Virginia
Falls Church, Virginia
The City of Falls Church is an independent city in Virginia, United States, in the Washington Metropolitan Area. The city population was 12,332 in 2010, up from 10,377 in 2000. Taking its name from The Falls Church, an 18th-century Anglican parish, Falls Church gained township status within...
. The adage known as "Chotiner's Law" is named for the former Nixon adviser. It holds that if an incumbent is seriously challenged in a primary election, he will be unable to recover and will lose the general election. Chotiner's Law has held true in every presidential election since his death.
Chotiner was known to his friends as "the perfect political technician" and to his foes as "the complete political hatchet man", but often said that he had done nothing in politics that he was not proud of. Rowland Evans
Rowland Evans
Rowland Evans, Jr. was an American journalist. He was known best for his decades-long syndicated column and television partnership with Robert Novak, a partnership that endured, if only by way of a joint subscription newsletter, until Evans's death.Born in Whitemarsh Township, Pennsylvania, Evans...
and Robert Novak
Robert Novak
Robert David Sanders "Bob" Novak was an American syndicated columnist, journalist, television personality, author, and conservative political commentator. After working for two newspapers before serving for the U.S. Army in the Korean War, he became a reporter for the Associated Press and then for...
summed up Chotiner:
Chotiner was in many ways the most interesting personality in Nixon's political camp: aggressive, egocentric, a professional among amateurs, brilliant, overbearing, ruthless, engaging, habitually guilty of overkill, constantly enlarging his area of operation. Painted in sinister colors by the press, he was both a public relations problem for Nixon and an invaluable campaign strategist.