Segretti was hired by his friend Dwight L. Chapin to run a campaign of dirty tricks - which Segretti referred to as "ratfucking" - against the Democrats, with his work being paid for by Herb Kalmbach, Nixon's lawyer, from presidential campaign re-election funds gathered before an April 7, 1972 law required that contributors be identified. Segretti's actions were part of the larger Watergate scandal and were important indicators for the few members of the press investigating the Watergate break-in in the earliest stages that what became known as the Watergate scandal involved far more than just a burglary.
Overview of "dirty tricks" against Democrats
Segretti's involvement in the "Canuck letter" typifies the tactics Segretti and others working with him used; in this case they forged a letter ascribed to SenatorEdmund Muskie which maligned the people, language, and culture of French Canada and French Canadians, forcing that soon-to-be Democratic presidential candidate considerable headaches by having to deny having written the letter and to continue dealing with that recurring issue. Many historians have indicated, over the years, that Muskie's withdrawal from the Presidential primaries was at least partly the result of Segretti and some of the other "Ratfuckers"' having created so much confusion and so many false accusations that Muskie simply could not respond in any meaningful way. Another notable example of Segretti's wrongdoing was a letter he faked, on Democratic presidential candidate Edmund Muskie's letterhead, falsely alleging that U.S. Senator Henry "Scoop" Jackson, a fellow Democrat, had an illegitimate child with a 17-year-old. The "Muskie letters" also accused Senator Hubert H. Humphrey of sexual misconduct. After testimony regarding the Muskie letters emerged, Democrats in Florida noted the similarity between those sabotage incidents and others that involved stationery stolen from Humphrey's offices after Muskie dropped out of the race. For example, a false news release on Humphrey's letterhead "accused Rep. Shirley Chisholm of being mentally unbalanced", and a mailing with an unidentified source mischaracterized Humphrey as supporting a controversial environmental measure that he actually opposed.
Imprisoned following Watergate conviction
In 1974, Segretti pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor counts of distributing illegal - in fact, forged - campaign literature and was sentenced to six months in prison. Segretti served four months.
In 1995, Segretti ran for a local judgeship in Orange County, California. He quickly withdrew from the race when his campaign awakened lingering anger over and memories of his involvement in the Watergate scandal.
Orange County co-chair of McCain 2000 primary campaign
In 2000, Segretti served as co-chair of John McCain's presidential campaign in Orange County, California.
In the 1976 film about Watergate, All the President's Men, Segretti was portrayed by Robert Walden. The character downplayed the dirty tricks he had undertaken as "Nickel-and-dime stuff. Stuff. Stuff with a little wit attached to it."
