This is Daniel Ellsberg

In the early nineteen seventies, Ellsberg had managed to photocopy a bunch of official-type documents the Department of Defense didn't want the American people to see. Ellsberg worked at a place called the Rand Corporation. Rand is a "think tank" that's been around since 1945. When the US government needed to think about the Vietnam Conflict, they let the folks at Rand do some of their thinking.

Ellsberg had been doing a lot of thinking himself. Maybe it was a symptom of the times. Maybe it was because Ellsberg was in his forties. Whatever the reason, he had begun to think that the whole Vietnam thing was a big, fucking mess and totally unwinnable. The Pentagon Papers proved that he wasn't alone in his thoughts. Apparently, the very people responsible for running the war thought the whole thing was unwinnable too and they didn't seem to give a shit. The Vietnam conflict-war-tea party wasn't about winning, it was about the perpetuation of the Cold War. From Eisenhower, to Nixon, not one president wanted Americans to think that he was "soft' on Communism.

Ellsberg tried for a solid year to get senators to bring the Pentagon Papers to the floor of the Senate. When that tactic failed, he turned to the press. The Pentagon Papers were released (in serial form) by the New York Times in June, 1971.

In June, 1971, President Richard Nixon was cranking up his re-election machine. He wanted a second term like a rat wants a piece of cheese. He even got his Attorney General to sue the NYT in order to stop the publication. The AG lost the case and Nixon was pissed.

Nixon had a crack team of covert operatives that worked for his re-election committee. They were called The Plumbers. The Plumbers basically performed all of Nixon's dirty tricks. One trick they performed was to break into the office a of Los Angeles phsychiatrist named Lewis J. Fielding. Ellsberg was a client of the good doctor and the Plumbers wanted to see if they could dig up any dirt. Reportedly there was even a plan to kill Daniel Ellsberg but it fell through.

Daniel Ellsberg was arrested on charges of conspiracy, theft and espionage. Eventally the case was dropped because his crime looked plain silly compared to the crimes committed by the members and friends of the Nixon Admnistration.

Ellsberg is still a shit-stirrer and recently gave a big "You go, girl!" to ex-Government Communications Headquarters employee and Iraq War whistleblower, Katharine Gun.

Ellsberg's Present Day Counterpart:

Joseph Wilson