Official and Confidential_ The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover - Anthony Summers [236]
The President now claimed the man he had been trying to dump had been ‘one of my closest personal friends and advisers.’ Edgar, he said, had been ‘the symbol and embodiment of the values he cherished most: courage, patriotism, dedication to his country and a granite-like honesty and integrity.’
Vice President Spiro Agnew, who would soon face trial for bribery and tax evasion, said Edgar had endeared himself to Americans for ‘his total dedication to principle and his complete incorruptibility.’ John Mitchell, who had urged Edgar’s dismissal, called the death ‘a great tragedy.’ Acting Attorney General Kleindienst, who used to hold the phone away from his ear when Edgar called, now thought him ‘a giant among patriots’ who never allowed the taint of political influence. Ronald Reagan, then Governor of California, declared that ‘No twentieth-century man has meant more to this country than Hoover.’
In Congress, politicians rushed to praise Edgar. John Rooney, who had been party to many of Edgar’s abuses, spoke of Edgar’s ‘deep respect for his fellowman.’ Congressman Hale Boggs, who had called for Edgar’s retirement the previous year, now claimed he had never criticized him personally at all. Even Senator Edward Kennedy spoke of Edgar’s ‘honesty, integrity and his desire to do what he thought best for the country.’ In all, 149 representatives and senators eventually paid tribute.
The few that raised their voices in dissent included Martin Luther King’s widow, Coretta. She spoke of Edgar’s ‘deplorable and dangerous’ legacy and of a file system ‘replete with lies and sordid material on some of the highest people in government, including presidents.’ Dr Benjamin Spock was glad Edgar was dead. ‘It’s a great relief, especially if his replacement is a man who better understands democratic institutions and the American process.’
At FBI headquarters, a telex went out to the furthest corners of Edgar’s empire, asking Bureau employees to offer up prayers. It was signed by Clyde, but probably penned by John Mohr. In Miami, Agent in Charge Whittaker said Edgar’s passing was ‘like losing a father.’ From retirement, Cartha DeLoach told the press Edgar had been ‘a great American, a compassionate man with unswerving loyalty and dedication.’
In private, DeLoach had reservations. ‘I respected him,’ he recalled, ‘but I never loved him as a true friend.’ ‘For me,’ said Mark Felt, ‘it was no personal loss. I never did feel emotional about it. My main thought that day was about the problems created by his death.’
There was little solemnity at FBI field offices around the country. In California, Agent Cril Payne arrived at a colleague’s retirement party expecting gloom. ‘I couldn’t believe my eyes,’ he recalled. ‘The place was packed! The older agents had showed up in record number. Had a stranger wandered into the room he might have thought it was the office Christmas party! Instead of the somber gathering I had envisioned, the luncheon became a time for joyous celebration. If the truth were known, I think the great majority of agents felt an overwhelming sense of relief …’
‘It was fitting,’ quipped another agent, ‘that the Director passed away in his sleep. That’s the way the Bureau was run lately.’
For years now a joke had been going the rounds in the Bureau – about the day Clyde told Edgar how much burial lots for the two of them would cost. ‘I’m not going to pay that for a burial lot,’ cried Edgar. ‘I’ll tell you what you do. Go ahead and buy your own lot and rent a vault for me for three days. I’ll only be there three days.’
When Edgar died, FBI Mafia specialist Neil Welch remembered that story. ‘The last resurrection had been sometime previously,’ he said dryly. ‘I wanted to see if history repeated itself. So a group of us in Detroit got together and flew to Washington, not out of a sense of great grief