May 25, 1972

With the McGovern headquarters still a possible target -- they would do, perhaps, both McGovern HQ and the Watergate incursion while the Cubans were in town -- Gordon Liddy and Frank Sturgis go to check out the area. The floodlights behind the offices (as Emery explains; see also here) make the area too bright...so Liddy pulls out his gun and shoots them out.

Sure, it's a fun episode. But really the next bit is a better indication of what's going on. According to Jeb Magruder, Liddy's boss at the campaign, Liddy reported this to him while he was meeting with Gordon Strachan, who you'll recall was Bob Haldeman's liaison to the campaign. Magruder testified that he was upset by that, because Liddy wasn't supposed to do anything that could be tied to the Committee to Re-Elect. Of course, it also means that the White House was fully in the loop about what was happening at CRP.

They haven't been just dealing with McGovern, however; plans to break into the DNC at the Watergate complex are moving ahead. That included waltzing straight in to the Democrats' offices to inspect the doors and, Liddy reports, have Hunt take an impression of the lock. It also involved James McCord renting a room at the Howard Johnson's across from the Watergate and moving in the electronics they would need.

Everything is moving into place for some action, finally, after months of delay, and with the White House still pressing them, always, for more good information.