OPINION: Watergate was no boon for New Mexico's investigating senator

Aug. 8—The Watergate scandal that began 50 summers ago crushed many a Republican. It also helped do in one Democrat, a local no less.

That listless fellow was U.S. Sen. Joseph Montoya, the only New Mexican with deep ties to the Watergate investigation.

Montoya had been in politics since his election in 1936 to the New Mexico House of Representatives when he was only 21 years old. Nicknamed "Little Joe," Montoya campaigned for one office or another during the next four decades. He was in his second term as a U.S. senator when Watergate began making headlines in 1972.

Partly because of his blandness, Montoya became one of seven members of the Senate Watergate Committee. It was the most publicized assignment of his career.

The committee's televised hearings explored the burglary of Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate office complex. This clumsy crime would be traced to the White House and Republican President Richard Nixon.

Montoya handled the Watergate inquiry like a little-known actor who lands a role in a major movie but flubs all his lines.

The New York Times highlighted his troubles: "He enters the hearing room each day with a prepared set of questions and appears to ask each one of them, regardless of whether they have been asked by another senator and regardless of the witness's answer. Montoya has told associates that much of his problem has been caused by his lack of staff assistance."

His flimsy excuse didn't silence critics. They saw Montoya as someone overwhelmed by the moment.

Sen. Sam Ervin, D-N.C., drawled his way into viewers' consciousness and became the committee's star. Ervin remained in demand as a speaker on college campuses for many years after the Watergate hearings.

Montoya couldn't hit his stride, even in an era when the Senate was not nearly so partisan as it is today. He didn't have to fear retribution from Republican senators for being aggressive. They turned against Nixon with the same intensity that today's GOP defends former President Donald Trump.

Montoya's best day during Watergate might have been when he asked former White House lawyer John Dean about Nixon denying involvement in the break-in and coverup. Dean said the president's account included "less than accurate statements."

Nixon was doomed politically. The same was true of Montoya, though he couldn't have known it.

Montoya ran for reelection to the Senate in 1976, two years after Nixon resigned in disgrace. It was a dominant election for Democrats. They maintained control of Congress, and Jimmy Carter won the presidency.

Against this backdrop, Montoya couldn't connect with New Mexico voters.

The old Albuquerque Tribune stung Montoya with series of stories about corruption. One of Montoya's publicly paid aides was dispatched to handle repairs and other duties at a shopping center owned by the senator. It wasn't Watergate, but it didn't have to be to strike a nerve.

Montoya's challenger, Republican Harrison Schmitt, was a former astronaut who had walked on the moon. Schmitt seemed attuned to the public mood after Watergate. His campaign slogan, "Honesty for a change," was aimed at Montoya rather than the Nixon crowd.

Little Joe didn't help himself by knocking Schmitt for his Apollo 17 mission. "It's no big deal to go to the moon," Montoya said. "They tied him in the rocket, pushed the button in Houston and off he went. Even I could have gone."

Schmitt had an easy comeback: "I'd like to see him try it."

Their earthly election wasn't much of a race. Schmitt defeated Montoya in a landslide, taking almost 57 percent of the vote.

Watergate helped make many careers and a few legends.

Dean turned his oily crimes into a lucrative life as an author, lecturer and television panelist.

Chuck Colson, another crooked member of Nixon's inner circle, became famous for establishing a religious organization to help prison inmates.

Carl Bernstein had been denied a full-time reporting job at the Washington Star because he lacked a college degree. He found work at the Washington Post, where his stylish writing on Watergate exposés helped bury his old paper.

W. Mark Felt, also known as Deep Throat, really wasn't an important Watergate source for Bernstein and fellow Post reporter Bob Woodward. But Hollywood can define public opinion. Deep Throat was lionized in the movie version of All the President's Men, based on the reporters' book about Watergate.

After 50 years, most of the truth about Watergate has seeped out. The era was tougher on Montoya than almost any other Democrat.

His loss to Schmitt turned out to be his last campaign. Montoya died in 1978 of liver and kidney ailments at age 62.

Watergate followed him to the end. Montoya's role in the investigation topped his obituary.

Ringside Seat is an opinion column about people, politics and news. Contact Milan Simonich at msimonich@sfnewmexican.com or 505-986-3080.