All the President's Men Reissue Edition by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein (Simon & Schuster)

In my early twenties, I had read 'All the President's Men' and, over thirty-years later, I decided to revisit the famous work by Mr. Woodward and Mr. Bernstein. It certainly has aged well and still holds up very nicely. The book is primarily about two young reporters doing old-fashioned muckraking in an effort to unravel who was behind the break-in at the Watergate. The Washington Post was never out to take down the Nixon Administration, but simply doing their jobs. Little did they realize that it would ultimately lead right into the vipers' pit and the President's downfall. The further their investigation went up the chain of command, the more concerned the Post became with the implications of their digging. Nixon and his henchmen were not people to be messed with especially when it was their fannies you were putting to the fire.

President Nixon and his morally-challenged acolytes did a great amount of harm that involved theft, illegal wiretapping, slush funds, obstruction of justice, and highly unethical campaign espionage as well as sabotage. The President's mindset, active participation, and surrounding himself with like-minded people to set this odious FUBAR into motion still impacts today's politics. The Republicans seem to have embraced these sort of tactics with more enthusiasm with such nasty political architects as Lee Atwater and the troll's disciple Karl Rove. It took a great deal of hard work and courage for the reporters to continually knock on doors and revisit uncooperative people. Fortunately for Woodward and Bernstein, they also were supported by able editors, the colorful Ben Bradlee and the owner Katharine Graham. For many months, the Washington Post was the only news organization that was trying to unravel the mystery and were especially hated by the White House. Nixon's paranoia and deep hatred of the press caused him to have zero qualms about trying to destroy the Post. This was serious hardball, folks. Once the investigations produced solid evidence that Tricky Dick and the other powerbrokers around him were in on the whole thing, it became every man out for himself in the administration with backstabbing others becoming the norm.

Mr. Woodward and Mr. Bernstein were very forthright about not only describing the triumphs but also their mistakes including some of their actions going over the line of proper journalism. It was very helpful that the book has photos of all the key players in the story. It's quite a gallery of rogues. Also, the Afterword written for the 40th-Anniversary edition does a good job explaining the seriousness, motivations and repercussions of President Nixon's unseemly actions. This is great riveting history. After finishing the book, I wondered, "Is it too late to dig up President Nixon and have him impeached?"