Hi, Amicus listeners. This is the first episode of Slow Burn, a podcast about Watergate. It's a new Slate miniseries hosted by the wonderful Leon Nafak that asks, what was it like to live through the greatest political scandal of the 20th century? To hear the rest, subscribe to Slow Burn in the iTunes store or wherever you get your podcasts.

I'm going to start with a story that you've probably never heard.

It takes place in June of 1972, just a few days after five men broke into the Watergate

office building in Washington, D.C.

It's a story about a woman named Martha Mitchell, who was at the the time, very famous, and whose life was destroyed

in large part because of her proximity to the Watergate conspiracy. Martha's husband worked in

politics. His name was John Mitchell, and in June of 1972, he was in charge of the committee

to re-elect President Richard Nixon. Before that, Mitchell had an even bigger job.

He was the Attorney General of the United States.

Nixon called John Mitchell his most trusted friend and advisor.

Others simply called him deputy president.

Historians disagree on what exactly Martha really knew about Watergate.

But in the aftermath of the burglary, she was treated by Nixon's men as someone who knew too

much.

That was the beginning of my being held a prisoner.

Later, Martha would tell David Frost of the BBC everything that happened to her that weekend.

You really were held a prisoner.

That wasn't.

That wasn't.

First, she was kept against her will in a California hotel for You really were. Literally held a prisoner within four walls.

First, she was kept against her will in a California hotel for days.

Then she was forcibly tranquilized while being held down in her bed.

...