Veteran journalist James Rosen revealed striking new details about a little-known Cold War-era espionage episode during a new edition of Michael Patrick Leahy Interviews, shedding fresh light on tensions inside the Nixon administration and the origins of a long-buried scandal tied to Richard Nixon.
Rosen described a dramatic moment uncovered in declassified recordings from 1971, when top Nixon aides informed the president of a covert intelligence breach.
“When it was released in the year 2000 in which, in a nighttime, a very rare nighttime session, the Oval Office, again, just the heavy hitters – Nixon, Haldeman, Ehrlichman, and Mitchell… they have uncovered this year-long spying in which an enlisted man… had secretly stolen 5,000 documents from Kissinger’s NSC and delivered them to the joint chiefs of staff for a year in wartime.”
According to Rosen, Nixon was “shocked” by the revelation, which involved a military aide assigned to Henry Kissinger who systematically removed classified materials from the National Security Council.
Rosen emphasized the gravity of the situation and the unprecedented nature of Nixon’s response.
“I looked at the tapes and listened to the tapes for the next 10 days to see how Nixon navigated this unique constitutional crisis,” he said.
The research ultimately led to Rosen’s 2002 article “Nixon and the Chiefs” and later to a book deal focused on former Attorney General John Mitchell. Rosen noted the long road to publication, saying, “I went 11 years without a book contract.”
Rosen also discussed his more recent reporting, including a February essay published in The New York Times featuring previously secret testimony from Nixon.
“That morning I published a lengthy essay… disclosing still more on previously unpublished evidence… including seven pages from ex-president Nixon’s grand jury testimony that had been held secret since… 1975,” he explained.
He added that even decades later, new discoveries continue to emerge.
“Here I am in 2026, still breaking new documents related to Nixon and the military spying and Watergate. It’s a lifelong obsession in short,” he said.
The incident, often referred to as the Moore-Radford affair, involved Navy yeoman Charles Radford and senior military leadership, including Admiral Thomas Moorer. During the interview, Michael Patrick Leahy, the CEO and Editor-in-Chief of The Tennessee Star, referenced the broader geopolitical context, noting opposition within military ranks to Nixon’s diplomatic strategy.
Rosen confirmed, “His detente with the Soviet Union and the… rapprochement with China. Yes.”
He described how distrust between civilian leadership and the military had intensified during the Vietnam War.
“There was this hard progressive hardening… over the course of the Vietnam conflict… this kind of poisonous atmosphere between the civilian and military leadership,” he explained.
Rosen further detailed how the operation worked.
“Literally this yeoman would rifle their briefcases while they slept… he would make copies… that which he couldn’t copy, he memorized,” he said, adding, “My conservative estimate is that over those 13 months in wartime, this yeoman delivered 5,000 classified documents.”
The scheme was eventually uncovered by the White House “plumbers” unit, which was later infamous for its role in the Watergate scandal.
Despite the severity of the breach, Rosen explained that Nixon ultimately chose not to prosecute.
“Nixon, to his eternal credit, decided not to prosecute Chairman Moore for espionage,” he noted, citing concerns about exposing classified operations and further damaging public trust in the military during a turbulent period.
“Nixon did not want to contribute to that vilification of the military… so he buried this,” he added.
Rosen also revealed internal suspicions within the administration, including discussion of surveillance targeting senior officials.
Watch Rosen’s full interview:
🚨Another MUST WATCH interview w @JamesRosenTV: We cover his book, The Strong Man: John Mitchell and the Secrets of Watergate, his NYT article about the JCS spying on Nixon, and whether Mitchell received due process in his trial and criminal conviction.
08:12 – As his campaign… pic.twitter.com/pmRiSCvoTU
— Michael Patrick Leahy (@michaelpleahy) April 2, 2026
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
