Alexander Butterfield, the Nixon aide who disclosed Watergate tapes, dies at 99 [View all]

Source: AP

Updated 3:50 PM EDT, March 9, 2026


WASHINGTON (AP) — Alexander Butterfield, the White House aide who inadvertently hastened Richard Nixon’s resignation over the Watergate scandal when he revealed that the president had bugged the Oval Office and Cabinet Room and routinely recorded his conversations, has died. He was 99.

His death was confirmed to The Associated Press by his wife, Kim, and John Dean, who served as White House counsel to Nixon during the Watergate scandal and went on to, along with Butterfield, help expose the wrongdoing.

“He had the heavy responsibility of revealing something he was sworn to secrecy on, which is the installation of the Nixon taping system,” Dean said. “He stood up and told the truth.”

As a deputy assistant to the president, Butterfield oversaw the taping system connected to voice-activated listening devices that had been secretly placed in four locations, including Nixon’s office in the Executive Office Building and the presidential retreat at Camp David.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/alexander-butterfield-death-watergate-tapes-nixon-39a00552ae8a404da00a0d4bd5bc2d3d