All language subtitles for The.Pentagon.Papers.2003.DVDRip.x264-HANDJOB

We've got company.

Picture yourself
on a beach at dusk

a big red sun that's setting
into the ocean

and you're not paying attention
to where you're headed.

You drift on closer to the tide,
the sand underfoot loosens.

You look back at the horizon
and the sun is gone.

And you realize all at once

the composition of this sand
is entirely different

than any you've ever known.

Your feet sink to the ankle
when you step

to the shin, to the hip.

You turn back, but now you can
barely move at all.

The harder you struggle,
the deeper you get.

You're in up to your chest.

It sticks to you
and won't let go.

It's too late.

You can't escape it.

That's how we found ourselves
in Vietnam.

It was 1963, the hottest season
in the Cold War:

Iron Curtain, Missile Gap,
too soft on communism.

The RAND Corporation,
America's leading think tank

recruited top economists
and political analysts

to run models of any possible
conflict for the military.

War games.

If the Soviets match
our forces in Norway

and NATO's in Germany,
there will be a stalemate.

Forget that.
Forget that.

Germany will be covered.

The Soviets know and expect that
so their MRBMs will be ready.

We can flank them

right, gentlemen?

Double the number
of Jupiters in Turkey.

Your moves are
too predictable.

If you don't send
a clear message, Dan

then it's World War III.
We're all radioactive waste.

The risks,
the risks are too great.

Wrong.

Risk. Use risk,
use coercion, use threats.

Use bluff.

They're the fundamentals
of any game theory.

There's no upside to behaving
rationally in a conflict.

Keep them guessing.

Make them fear the fact
that you have nothing to lose

It's a peculiarity
of thermonuclear threats

that make cowards
of practically everyone.

Very few objectives that seem
worth it to anyone.

John Foster Dulles unbelievably
was right.

"The ability to get to the verge
without getting into the war

is a necessary art."

As awful as it sounds,
blackmail is good.

The bombing of Hiroshima

increased credibility
of US nuclear threat.

And killed hundreds of thousands
of Japanese.

And saved hundreds of thousands
of American lives

and ended the war.

We won.

You outmaneuvered the room

you pissed everybody off

and I know how much
you love that

but everything is not
about you, Dan.

This is the RAND Corporation.

We're privileged to be here.

These people
are your colleagues.

Try working with them
once in a while.

That being said

your theories have
a lot of merit.

You should bring them
into the real world.

What do you mean?

Why did you use
the Conrad anecdote?

The one about the man
with the nitroglycerin.

The cops were afraid
to pick him up

because they know he has
the will to blow himself up

and everybody else.
I didn't mean it.

Well, maybe you did.

It would have fed
into your theories

which you should expand on.

Madness even as a tool
or a weapon.

Who would be a model?

Hitler.

Very good.

The Viet Cong
are a guerrilla force

employing the harassing tactics
used by George Washington

during the Revolutionary War.

Quick strikes

expert use of terrain
for ambushes

antipersonnel devices--

they're complemented
by the more regimented

and battle-hardened
North Vietnamese army

responsible for the rout
of the French at Dien Bien Phu.

The VC and the NVA
are making daily incursions

deeper and deeper
into the South

with significant success.

What I wanted most of all
was to serve my country

to be one
of the president's men.

Everything I did
was to further that goal:

scholarship to Harvard,
fellowship at Cambridge

an officer in the Marine Corps

writing my PhD and landing
an assignment at RAND.

It was a heady place

but always every second
of the day I felt restless.

What are you reading?

Bernard Fall. Vietnam.

We've been so distracted
by Cuba

we're just tiptoeing around
in Southeast Asia.

No conviction, no definition.

Russians, North Vietnamese
decisively subverting the South.

Read your paper.

And?

"Political Uses of Madness."

Where in the world
did you get that idea?

It's out there.

It's provocative.

It's dangerous.

It's a good paper.

I'm frustrated, Harry.

You see it?

I'm just... stuck.

Well, you'll be interested
to know

that the paper found its way
to the Pentagon

and into the hands
of the Assistant
Secretary of Defense.

John McNaughton read it?

Yeah.

What'd he think?

He said, "Not bad."

Did he understand it?

Oh, I doubt it.

Which is probably why,
at my suggestion

he wants you to come
to work for him.

Daniel, this is
your going away party

and you're the
guest of honor.

Is there any chance
of you at least
even pretending

you're having a good time?

Why don't we start out
with a little salad?

Can I help?

Are you all right?

How's the packing going?

I'm finished
with your stuff.

I told you
that I'd help.

I'm not going
with you next weekend.

When are you coming?

I'm not

and neither
are the children.

Can I have a piece
of cake now?

Dan Ellsberg.
Hi, I'm Rich Corcoran.

Just wanted to say
congratulations.

I'm going to be
replacing you.

What?

You ready
for the big move, Dan?

What? Excuse me.

Bon voyage, man.

Carol, I know
this is disruptive

but it's important.

We can have a real voice
in shaping the policy
in Washington.

Carol, this means something.

No, you have a chance
to change policy
means something.

I love you,
but I've never
"meant something."

That's not true.

Not even the kids.

What are you talking about?

I don't even know
how to respond to that.

Don't worry.

I can't ask you
to choose your family
over your ambitions.

Will you stop
with the dishes?

This isn't even...

This isn't even
our house.

I know you're destined
to do great things.

I've always known that.

I just hoped our family
would have been one of them.

I won't go
to Washington.

I want a divorce.

What?

Carol, I can change.

With all your wonderful
talents and ambitions

the one thing
you'll never be able
to do is change

and the only thing
in my life that will change

is the scenery.

I threw myself into my work.

They had me in a sub-basement

analyzing incoming data
from Vietnam.

My rank was a GS-18,
the highest-level clearance

for a civilian.

It was impressive.

I reported to John McNaughton,
Assistant Secretary of Defense

who had the ear
of Secretary McNamara

who had the ear

of the new president,
Lyndon Johnson.

This was where
I'd always wanted to be.

My fellow Americans

as President
and Commander-in-Chief

it is my duty

to the American people

to report
that renewed hostile actions

against United States ships
on the high seas

and the Gulf of Tonkin
have today required me

to order the military forces
of the United States...

Looks like it's
our war now, Ellsberg.

I want a position paper, Dan,
on what this could mean.

Give me logic,
give me rational.

Define the variables,
the possible course of action.

No emotion--
facts, always facts

but make it strong.

How fast?

Fast?
Can I have it?

Well...

Not fast enough.

Senator, regardless
of any provocation

the attack
against the SS Maddox

in the Gulf of Tonkin clearly
violates the Geneva Accord.

It demands immediate,
decisive, prejudiced response.

If an American ship
is attacked on the high seas

we have to act

in spite of the risk--
because of the risk.

Foreign policy stakes
are too high

for us not to apply
maximum force and power

necessary to implement
that policy.

You're late.

I know.

Who is that?

That's Dan Ellsberg.

That's Daniel Ellsberg.

What's he so rabidly
talking about?

...postulate
from how we act

then apply it
to nations and wars.

Vietnam falls
to the Communists

the disturbing reality is

the rest of Southeast Asia
will face the same fate.

This is a civil war.

Shouldn't we let
the people of Vietnam

determine their own fate?

They never have before.

They're not ready to now.

Their supposed movement
for independence

has been going on
for thousands of years.

Nothing ever happens.

It predates us.

They fight the Chinese,
the French, the Japanese

the French again,
the Chinese again...

Oh, I see.

You think that because
the Soviets and Chinese

are backing
the Communists

our global prestige and power
are at stake.

No, let's just roll over.

Worked for Neville Chamberlain

in Poland, Hungary
and France in World War II.

That was Hitler.

This is Brezhnev
and Mao.

Who's to say, really
the differences

aren't much more
than a bad mustache?

I'm Dan Ellsberg.

So I've been warned.

Patricia Marx.

This is your house.

Thank you for inviting me
to your party.

It's my father's house,
his party.

I didn't invite you.

I could take your argument apart
piece by piece.

By the time the sun rose,
you'd be on my side.

What makes you think that
I would be so easy to convert?

Because I'm right.

Hmm.

Some other time.

How long have
you been here?

The party?

Washington?

Three months. Four.

Ready to conquer
the world.

You do know that they
call this the Virgin City.

Everybody comes here
to screw the Virgin

and gets screwed by the Virgin.

Hmm.

Where are you going?

How would it look

if I didn't walk over
and greet my boyfriend?

Hi.

It started as a trickle.

Estimates of enemy dead
were hugely exaggerated

while the field reports

would show heavy enemy fire
and American casualties.

The inefficiency was crippling.

There was absolutely no way
to tell where we stood.

John.

This says nightly shelling
was stopped at Ben Tre.

This was sent the same day
from the same command.

Three American soldiers
were killed

on the night of March 11th

from incoming rounds
at Ben Tre.

Maybe it's
an aberration.

It's no aberration.

This is standard
operating procedure.

A month ago I sent you
a folder like these.

I haven't heard a word.

And they keep on coming--
mistakes, discrepancies...

Every piece of intelligence
that we get

can be contradicted
by an equally

trustworthy source.

So what do you suggest?

That you read them.

And then what?

A fact-finding mission--

a real one that actually
uncovers facts.

I'll go over there.
I'll volunteer.

What are you going to do?

Reenlist in the Marines?
Go into combat?

We need an accurate picture

of what the hell's
happening over there.

It's our job
to know the right answers.

Otherwise, how the hell
can the President

make intelligent policy choices?

You should read...
I have.

It's about time.

I've been waiting for you.

What took you so long?

If these numbers
are wrong, false

we could be fighting
on the wrong side.

So do go, and while
you're there

I want you to prepare
a White Paper

on ways we can
get out of this

if everything
collapses.

What are you saying?

You of all people, you're
the hawk that killed the dove.

Ask the right
questions

define the answers,
throw out the assumptions.

Facts. Not self-interest

not myths,
not bullshit

not yours or
anybody else's.

Report to me, only me.

The numbers are contradictory;
they're troubling

but you're wrong.

You should be clear
that you could be signing

the death warrant to your career
by having anything to do

with calculations
and decisions like these.

A lot of people

have been ruined for less.

I was assigned to General
Edward Lansdale's contingent.

Based in Saigon

I quickly found there are
two different worlds--

Saigon and out there.

When a hamlet
was declared "pacified"

I'd hook up
and go out into the province

and see for myself.

What about this province?

Charlie pulled out
a few weeks ago.

Then that's secure.

Well, I wouldn't
exactly say that.

Well, is it secure
or isn't it?

It's the most reliable
information we've got.

That's neither information
nor reliable.

Hey, Ellsberg,
is that you?

Who's that?

Tony Russo.

Russo? What the hell
are you doing here?

What's going on in there?

RAND sent me over here

to supervise a program
for the army.

We're interviewing
Viet Cong prisoners

on motivation and morale.

Don't seem to have a problem
with motivation and morale.

Hmm, sure
as hell don't.

It's not what
we predicted, man.

No matter how much
ordnance and napalm

and personnel
we throw at them

they are not giving up.

But I thought you were
back in Washington.

What's up? What
are you doing here?

Finding a way to win.

Ah...

You want to know
how to win?

Convince them
it's okay to lose.

Get him out of here.

I expected to be overseas
for a few weeks.

Then weeks turned into months,
and months into seasons.

I wasn't any closer
to finding out

why everything
felt like an excuse.

Inconsistencies that even
contradicted themselves.

But I still felt...
more committed than ever.

They carried themselves
with pride.

Their courage was deep.

If they were afraid of dying,
they never showed it.

It's wet.

Ground's wet.

Heater's wet.

Feet's wet.

What's your name?

Compson, Leonard,
the III, sir.

You can drop the "sir."
I'm just an observer.

Observer, huh?

Zip it...

and whip it, Compson.

Can you play?

No.

You're a reporter?

It's true.

I sense a certain distrust.

Don't like
what I read.

What would you
like us to say?

Something positive.
Anything positive.

You mean lie.

Things are going to change.

How long you been in country?

Six months.

Good luck. I hope
you're right.

Hey, if you do get
a good story, let me know.

Neil Sheehan
with UPI.

Dan Ellsberg.

So, how much longer
do you think we'll be here?

I think we'll be here
as long as it takes.

And how long do you
think that is?

Daniel Ellsberg,
December 1965, Saigon.

What are you doing here?

I'm a radio correspondent.

I have my own show.

Care to comment on our progress?

Our progress?

I'd say your coming over here
is a good first step.

How is the pacification program
going?

Not well. You don't seem
particularly pacified.

What kind of success
do you think we're having

in training
the South Vietnamese army

and improving their
fighting efficiency?

About the same amount of success
as I'm having

avoiding this interview
and asking you

to dinner.

Dr. Ellsberg,
when can we expect

an acceptable outcome here,
and what will that be?

I guess we're

done here.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

You're welcome.

Do you know the lotus
is one of the few flowers

that bears fruit and petals
at the same time?

Does your head hurt
with all the information

you cram into it?

When they bloom...

they get more beautiful

with each new...
ring of petals that open.

Quick, over there.

Oh...

I like the rain.

It makes you
look beautiful.

How'd you get that?

When I was a kid
my mother decided

I was going to be
a concert pianist.

I had a certain amount
of talent, I guess

but it was impossible to miss
my lack of greatness.

Didn't faze her at all.

She had complete faith.

Made me practice endlessly.

Oh...

And when I was 15,
on the Fourth of July

my father fell asleep
at the wheel

and I woke up in the hospital
a day later

and they told me
my mother and sister had died.

My God.

I remember...

my first thought
when they told me was

"I won't have to practice
piano anymore"

and I never played again.

Tell me
about your radio show.

Well...

I, um... I see somebody
who's interesting--

an artist, a politician,
anybody...

The officer in the bar?

:
Sometimes.

Mm-hmm.

And I go after them.

It's called
Patricia Marx Interviews.

Yeah, I'd listen
if I was back home.

It only airs
in New York.

Then I'd move
to New York.

Why don't you?

Why don't you come back
with me in a few weeks?

I'm so glad you're here.

Me, too.

...four, six, south.
Bouvier, over.

What's up, Sergeant?

VC and Alpha Company
surprised each other.

The villa got caught

in the middle of
the crossfire.

How many VC and American
casualties?

Says the only dead
she saw was villagers.

We got a report this morning.

20 enemy dead. Ask her again.

Just villagers.

Russo?

Yeah? Ellsberg.

Nice pressed shirt.

You always wear
those damn pressed shirts.

You all right?

Yeah, I'm, uh...

I'm-I'm
contemplating.

Contemplating.

What are you
contemplating?

These Viet Cong prisoners
I'm interviewing--

that I was told were

chicken-scratching,
yellow-bellying vermin--

in fact seem to be

dedicated, determined,
committed, monkish, and, uh...

idealistic.

Why is that?

600 of them.

What are you doing?

Body count.

Body count.

Body count.

There is no body count.

Yeah. Ain't
life good?

Ain't body count good?

Ain't Saigon good?

:
You ever heard the one
about General Navarre?

"The Frog"?

1954, it was just
before Dien Bien Phu.

Asked "How many DBs?"

"300," came the answer.
"300 dead bodies."

"Very well," said the General.

"Now we know that the Viet Minh
drag off that dead."

"So, you have
300 bodies

"that probably
means 3,000 killed.

"You must allow 10%
for error.

So, we'll tell the press
3,300 killed."

"By body count, sir?"

"How else?" sayeth the General.

Two and two is five.

Exactly it.

Dr. Ellsberg, you always
could get to the nub.

Five.

I think you're exercising
the wrong muscle.

I'm leaving in the
morning, you know?

I'll be finished soon.

Yeah?

I've heard that one before.

Just have to get things
back on track.

What does
"back on track" mean?

Movement towards
some sort of victory.

"Some sort of victory?"

You haven't seen enough here
to know better?

Patricia, this country
is in our vital interest.

Fighting for it isn't wrong.

The way we're doing it...

Oh, spare me.

Really. Spare me.

I do not even want to know
what kind of nonsense

you're peddling to those fools
at the Pentagon.

You encouraging them
to escalate this

beyond all reason?

You want more
of our boys--

more of those innocent boys--
to be turned into cannon fodder?

Is that what you want?

'Cause that's what you're doing.

That's what
you're encouraging.

Patricia, I don't want to talk
about the war anymore.

I'm sorry.

You don't have to be sorry.

You're entitled to believe
whatever you want.

I just can't be with that.

I'm not apologizing
for what I believe in.

I'm sorry for disappointing you.

Shit.

Where the hell's

that coming
from?
Keep your mouth shut.

Bravo Eight, Bravo Eight,
we're under heavy fire.

We got VC in the tree line.

Bravo Eight, what's
your position?

We need your
position.

Lewis, Coleman... let's go.

Move out!

Medic!

I need a medic over here!

Stay out of here.

Pull him out!

Plug the wound!
Plug the wound!

Get him to sick bay and give him
a three line of dopamine.

Oh, my arm!

About a hundred meters,
I'm out of here.

Stop bleeding.

Pressure on
the wound.

Stand up...

Keep him tight,
keep him tight.

I'd finally gotten

a glimpse of the...

truth I was groping for.

We couldn't win unless...

I came home

and John McNaughton
had been killed

in a freak plane accident.

He was... gone...

and my position in Washington
and report with him.

I was sick with hepatitis,
depressed, out of touch

and finally,
I took my old job back at RAND.

And they asked me
to be one of the authors

of a history
of our time in Vietnam

that Robert McNamara had ordered
for the Defense Department

and put me to work

writing an options paper
for the White House.

I laid out for them...

what had become so clear to me:

that our situation was dire.

And we had
to admit our mistakes...

and change our strategy.

Hello, Dan.

Hello, Harry.

Sorry about McNaughton.

I know
the two of you were close.

Dan, where's
that obnoxious

egomaniacal pain
in the ass

we all love
so much?

Dan, I'd like
very much

if you went to see
the psychiatrist

that I recommended.

No big deal,
just go see him.

Maybe he'll make
it feel better.

Why didn't Kissinger
include the options paper

in the packet he gave to Nixon?

Well, maybe it was your
conclusions he didn't care for.

"Under the present course
of action

our goals in Vietnam are
completely unattainable."

That's a bitter pill
to swallow, Dan.

They should be grateful

I'm telling them
how it really is.

Dan, how could you expect
to write something like that

and get a positive reaction

from Henry
Kissinger?
I don't.

Send a copy
to the Pentagon.

More eyes that see it,
the better.

They're busy

with the McNamara
war study.

It's done?

That's what I hear.

When do we get our copy?

We're not going
to get one.
Why not?

Because it's classified
"Top Secret."

That's bullshit.

It's a history of the war,
lessons learned.

I worked on it.

My name's on the damn thing.

RAND must be able
to get a copy.

Well, don't hold
your breath.

Nobody's being able
to look at it.

Congress doesn't
even know it exists.

Make a request for me,
please, Harry.

I'll try,
but don't get your hopes up.

We believe,
in face of the evidence

the optimists
who have been wrong in the past.

To suggest
we are on the edge of defeat

is to yield
to unreasonable pessimism.

To say that we are mired
in stalemate

seems the only realistic,
yet unsatisfactory conclusion.

On the off chance

the military
and political analysts are right

in the next few months

we must test the enemy's
intentions

in case this is indeed

his last big gasp
before negotiations.

But it is increasingly clear
to this reporter

that the only rational way now
to think

would be to negotiate

not as victors,
but as an honorable people

who lived up to their pledge
to defend democracy

and did the best they could.

You wanted to see me?

Yeah.

Go to your office,
close the door.

The papers are on your desk.

There's no record
of them in the logs.

Keep it under your hat.

Here are the codes.

Thank you, Harry.

Right.

It wasn't what I expected...
at all.

Over 7,000 pages in 47 volumes

what I had in front of me
was nothing less

than a chronology
of our damnation.

There were two histories
of the war.

One for the President,
and one for the rest of us.

The people were lied to
about Vietnam

through four consecutive
Presidential administrations.

It wasn't one man.

It was the Office itself.

Truman ignored letter
after letter from Ho Chi Minh

asking for help.

He then financed the French
with arms and tactical support

to fight the guerrillas.

Congress knew nothing.

Eisenhower agreed
to split Vietnam in two

helped to install a hopelessly
corrupt regime in the South

rig elections

and then send in the first
US advisors to support it.

Congress was in the dark.

Kennedy made plans
for our large-scale involvement

as early as 1961.

He authorized the overthrow
of President Diem's regime

and sat by
while Diem was assassinated

in the streets of Saigon.

And then came Johnson

who used the attack
in the Gulf of Tonkin--

which, according
to these documents

never even took place--

as an excuse to get us
into the war

without a formal declaration
from Congress.

McNaughton secretly knew.

He knew.

And I was the one
who'd been wrong.

The experience
of reading those pages

altered my anatomy.

With each word

my faith, my trust,
and my allegiance burned away.

And I was part of the lie.

Even after reading the papers

I still wanted to believe
in the system--

hope that its checks
and balances would prevail.

It could be fixed from within.

It was clear
access to the President

was no longer an option.

What I needed
was the right ally in Congress.

Dr. Ellsberg.

I appreciate you making time,
Senator Fulbright.

Please, have a seat.

Senator, your views
against the war
are well known

as is your sense of
honor and integrity.

Well, before you,
uh, you grant me sainthood

I supported
the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

much to my regret now.

Senator, I
need your help.

I could only bring
you a sampling.

But in total, it is
overwhelming proof

of a conspiracy to
wage war without the
approval of Congress

or the blessing
of the nation.

What is this?

It's a study done by
the Defense Department.

It's an
internal study.

Yes.

This is top secret, classified.

I wasn't even aware
of its existence.

How did it
come into your possession?

Well, I...
Is it stolen?

I'll have my office contact
the Secretary of Defense

with an urgent request

for a copy of this
through proper channels.

With all due respect, Senator

they will never honor
your request.

Classified designations
are in place for a reason.

I am not in a position
to controvert

the Defense Department's
assessment.

That's precisely the
position you're in.

You're Chairman
of the Foreign
Relations Committee

and one of Congress's most
outspoken critics of the war.

I do want to thank you

for bringing this
to my attention.

It's classified

because if it ever sees
the light of day

they could never explain
the things they've done.

The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

was drafted months before
the supposed attacks.

They created the skirmish
to circumvent your authority.

Dr. Ellsberg...

I was there.

I saw young Americans die.

I saw Vietnamese die.

I saw the damage
to them, to us

because of what
is contained in
this document.

The evidence is all here.

Our presidents knew
this war was unwinnable

and they kept us in it

because no one,
Republican or Democrat

wanted to be the first
to lose a war.

And it's going to
go on and on and on

until someone in your
position reads this

acknowledges it and stands up
and says we've been lied to.

We are not on the wrong side
in Vietnam.

We are the wrong side.

Do you realize
that you're asking me--

a United States senator--
to break the law?

To expose
state secrets?

I'm sorry. I can't help you.

Right.

Thank you for your time.

I tried others.

I failed.

I was finally ready to do

what I should have done
a long time before: give up.

Mmm. Eggs scrambled,
eggs over easy

sunny-side up, poached--
that's a big decision, Ellsberg.

Russo. Jesus, where the hell
have you been?

Oh, I've been...
I've been organizing.

Getting the word out.

What word would that be?

Peace.

Hey, you know what?

We're, we're having
a party tonight.

You should come by.

Bring whoever--
your latest conquest.

Swedish stewardess,
nurse...

Uh, whatever happened
to that one in Saigon--

the American girl?

Uh, Patricia Marx?

Yeah.
I don't know.

That's cool. I can dig that.

Whoever, Dan.

Excuse me, ma'am.
Do you got a pen on you?

Thank you very much.

Malibu.

Where the living
is easy.

Thank you.

It's good to see you, Tony.

See you there?

Right on.

Dan Ellsberg.

Hi!

Never thought I'd see
that look on your face.

What?

Doubt.

I've tried
every liberal in Congress.

Fulbright, McGovern,
Pete McCloskey.

Tried to get them read
into the Congressional Record.

I tried the Institute
for Policy Studies.

Is there anyone who
hasn't seen this stuff?

Am I the only one?
Kissinger.

Even Kissinger.

We did some sort
of weird dance at Harvard

and we've been doing some sort
of weird dance ever since.

No one will touch it.

"No one will
touch it."

Just hire a friggin' helicopter,
Dan

and drop them out
over Washington and New York.

Bring it to
the people, man.

Tony, quit talking to me
like I'm some kind of radical.

Bring them to him.

Bring them to them.
Bring them to her.

Leak them
to the paper of record.

The New York Times.

You think
I haven't thought of that?

You're insane, my friend.

It's classified.

We're talking
about ending the war, Dan.

It's treason.

Hi, everybody.

I want to talk for a few minutes
about how I love my country.

My name's Randy Kehler.

I'm a graduate of Exeter Academy
and Harvard University.

This country depends
on people with my background

to become CEOs of corporations,
uh, serve in public office

and make breakthroughs
in both medicine and science.

My country

depends on people like me
to lead it

and that's exactly
what I believe I'm doing.

In a few days' time,
I will be going to jail.

Like many of you

I was drafted
and faced a choice

and I don't feel that our cause
in Vietnam is a just one

and I won't fight there.

But I am...

But I am an American

and I refuse to run to safety
in another country

nor will I hide behind the label
"conscientious objector"

where I may be dismissed
as a dilettante

with a passing ideology.

I feel that the best way--

the only way
I can serve my country--

is to sacrifice myself.

When the day comes
that I am released from prison

I'll wear
a permanent mark.

Never will I be a CEO

never will I serve
in office

and never again
will I be trusted by many.

But I'm willing
to surrender these things.

That permanent mark
fixed upon me...

I will wear it with pride.

We were eating our young,
and I realized that at any cost

the country needed
to know the truth.

I began to do
what I'd never wanted to do.

The doors were open
24 hours a day

and I developed a routine.

Around midnight I'd leave RAND
with a couple hundred pages.

They knew me.

I was one of them.

Tony Russo's girlfriend,
Lynda

let me use the Xerox machine
at her advertising agency

in West Hollywood.

I'd copy from 1:00 to 4:00
in the morning

sleep for an hour or two

and have them back in the safe

before anyone knew
they were missing.

It was
a seven-days-a-week operation.

Russo assisted me
whenever he could.

This is stupid.

We don't see you for months,
and this is all we do?

Why don't you just
get new papers

without all the stamps
all over them?

Do you know
what "top secret" means?

Don't tell Mom?

Hold on.

You know,
I don't want either of you

ever to... lie for me.

Not to Mom
or anybody else.

Okay.

Okay?

Let's get out of here.

I'll take this stuff.

You guys throw out
this other junk.

It took months.

I spent my nights
with sunspots in my eyes

from the copier's flash

and my days sleepwalking
on a tightrope.

It took over my life.

All right,
what are you doing up there?

I'm just doing some copying.

At nighttime

with the children
cutting "Top Secret"

off of pages?

I spoke to Mary.

I want the children
out of this.

I will not have them
being part of some crime.

Look, you want to be a hero

be a hero on
your own time.

I'm not trying to be a hero.

I want my children
to know their father.

Know what he thinks,
what he believes.

I want them to know about
their country that he loves

and hopes they will as well.

That's important.

Important?

You want to hear important?

You're arrested, you're in court

and they call on your son
or your daughter

to testify against you!

They won't tell lies, you know.

They're going to
tell the truth.

I can only hope
they tell the truth

and love them
the best way that I can.

Only you could use the word
"love" in a conversation

about breaking the law.

What the hell happened to you?

Hello?

Patricia, it's Daniel.

Is everything okay?

:
Everything's fine.

We were wrong.

I was wrong.

I need your help.

Good night, Dan.

Dan, these men
are with the FBI.

They have some
questions for you.

Of course.
How can I help?

Do you mind showing us
and Dr. Rowen

RAND's copy
of the Vietnam study?

Well, it's locked up
in the safe.

Would you open
the safe, please?

Sure, as long as you have
the proper security clearance.

They're all here.

At any point, Dr. Ellsberg

have these documents been
removed from the premises?

That's against RAND policy.

Have you ever photographed
these documents

or any other
sensitive materials?

That's also
against RAND policy.

Answer the question,
please.

The answer is no.

We'll be in touch.

Daniel, the FBI says
they have information

that you're shopping
the papers.

Is that true?

Daniel...

those papers
were given to you to read.

Whatever your feelings

whatever your thoughts
about them

they were to stay
inside RAND.

This is bigger than RAND.

I've read it.

7,000 pages,
47 volumes.

Some of that I wrote myself.

That doesn't give you
the right

of ownership, Dan.

Are you shopping
the papers?

Have you read them, Harry?

You should.

We've lied for years.

For decades.

To each other, the country,
the Vietnamese.

The policymakers have.
The presidents have.

We all have,
since the beginning.

That's what the papers
are about.

The history of lies.

But it's all right
for you to lie

because you're serving
some high moral purpose.

Let me tell you something, Dan.

All lies are betrayal.

All of them.

If you've gone outside RAND,
if you betrayed that trust

you're going to bring down
a lot of good people.

I find that unconscionable
and unforgivable.

So does this war.
Yeah, right.

You've always said you wanted

to serve the president
and the country.

I don't believe it for a minute.

You just wanted
to serve yourself.

Is that job offer from MIT
still on the table?

Take it.

Your door was open.

You want to help me
with my bags?

They're outside
the front door.

What are you doing?

Well...

...there seems to be an elephant
in the room with us.

You've got nearly 7,000 pages
to read.

Did you read them all?

Twice.

Mm.

Well, I figure
with a lot of coffee...

...and a lot of making love...

I will, too.

Wake me up when you get
to the lovemaking part.

Yeah.

This war was wrong
from the start

and it just keeps growing
exponentially.

It's not about the war;
it's not about Vietnam.

It's never been about Vietnam.

It's always been
about domestic politics.

How to stay in office,
win the election.

The fear has always been

if you lose there,
you lose here.

So it's escalating,
just like '64.

Nixon's quadrupled the number
of bombing sorties

and crossed into Cambodia.

Dan, this administration
has nothing to gain

and everything to lose
if these papers come out.

Peace isn't a political goal.

It's a human goal.

Just being around me
puts you at risk, Patricia.

I know.

I'm not going anywhere.

Marry me.

Albert Spear, Hitler's
chief engineer and architect

manufactured the munitions.

He was the only Nazi tried
at Nuremberg to admit his guilt

for his complicity

for taking part
in the creation of a...

depraved and evil apparatus.

He acknowledged
he was just as guilty

as the men who used the system
to commit genocide.

I knew firsthand
how we got into this war.

I knew firsthand
our prospects were hopeless

and I knew
it was not going to end.

New York Times,
Washington Desk.

Uh, Neil Sheehan.

Sheehan.

Hello?

Who is this?

This is Daniel Ellsberg.

A few years ago you said

if I ever had a good story,
you'd write it.

Yeah, I remember.

I've got one.

What do you know
about the Pentagon's war study?

Nothing. No one's seen it.

That could change.

You realize I can't make
any commitment

that we'll publish this
until I've read it

and my editors
have read...

How long will
that take?

There's no telling.

We'll have to confirm
its authenticity...

They're authentic.

...merits, and there
still could be some resistance.

Resistance?
On what grounds?

I mean, this
incomprehensible.

I mean, this is
a huge story.

These are classified
internal documents

leaked in a time of war.

An undeclared, endless,
sickening killing war.

That is not the point.

That is the point.

Look, I'm just warning you

there are bound
to be some debate

over the legality and wisdom
of going to press with this.

Good, there should be debate--

about the legality and the
wisdom of what it says in them.

Complete,
the study is 47 volumes.

There's 43 upstairs.

I've held back anything

that includes
secret codification

troop positions,
and any other material

that I feel compromises
national security.

You mind if I ask
you a question?

What do you want
out of all this?

I want to get in the way
of the bombing and killing.

Patricia?

I'm here.

Nixon danced last night
at Tricia's wedding.

Gosh, that's
a scary thought.

Here's another
funny story

you might be interested in.

Oh, my gosh...

I don't believe it.

There's no going back now.

Well, somebody
had to tell the truth.

Jesus Christ!

...news was overshadowed

by the appearance
in today's New York Times

of an apparently covert study

outlining our involvement
in Vietnam.

No reaction as of yet
from the White House...

All right!

That's the way to do it!

The New York Times
is finished at the White House.

We can't have any more
of these goddamn leaks.

Some kind of special unit

should be put together
to see to it.

Plumbers.

To fix the leaks.

Where does the president
want us to go from here?

The Times is preparing
the next installment

as we speak.

And we cannot allow
that to happen.

I can ask the Times
to voluntarily cease and desist

from publication.

If they refuse,
we'll take the gloves off.

Justice can enjoin them
from publishing further.

Stop the presses?

Is that done?
Has that ever been done?

No.

Set it in motion.

Where did the Times
get the Pentagon study?

The FBI has a suspect.

Daniel Ellsberg.

Who is he?

They're working on it.

Well, find out
and neutralize him.

Take right.

Got it.

Bedroom's clear.

Kitchen's clear.

Clear.

Ellsberg's gone.

The place is empty.

Here's the last one.

You know, you guys are
the first people ever to knock.

May we come in, Mr. Russo?

No, no, no.
I'll come out.

We want to talk to you
about Daniel Ellsberg.

Well, I don't wish
to talk to you.

Do you have a lawyer?

You better get one.

Carol Ellsberg?

Did you know that your
Top Secret Control Officer

was sleeping with him?

That's none
of my business.

It is if she was involved
in copy and distribution.

She had absolutely
nothing to do with this.

And what did you have to do
with it?

Nothing whatsoever.

Excuse me.

The Times declined our request
to cease and desist.

Put a muzzle on
the sons of bitches.

What about Ellsberg?

Kissinger thinks
he's brilliant, but unbalanced.

It's obvious
that he's flipped.

From hawk to peacenik.

They think
it could be drugs.

Is he alone in this?

He married a very rich girl,
Patricia Marx--

Marx Toy Company.

Hoover knows her father.

Christ! No wonder
the FBI can't find him.

They're probably
not looking.

Well, they say
he's gone underground.

Could he be talking
to the Russians?

Chinese?

How much
does he know?

How badly can the son
of a bitch hurt us?

We should've never have gone
to press

with this in the first place.

For crying out loud,
it's the First Amendment

to the Constitution
of the United States!

Hello?

Dan, it's Sheehan.
Yeah.

We're pulling the next segment
on the papers.

What are you talking about?

It's coming directly
from the Oval Office.

They're not going
to arrest the entire staff

of The New York Times.
Just keep printing it.

You're not listening to me, Dan.

They stopped the presses.

Well, they did.
That's illegal.
They can't do that.

We've been enjoined
for prior restraint.

We've pulled the story.

Nixon had Mitchell claim
Print it anyway!

that publication is a grave
threat to national security.

Bullshit! Nixon and Mitchell
are a goddamn threat

to national security.

Don't tell me that!
There's nothing we can do!

We can't do it!
You can print the story!

It's over, Dan!

It's not over!

You'll have to find another way

to get them out.

Sheehan!

Wait...

Shit!

Shit.

What are you doing?

Excuse me!
What are you doing?!

...allied forces in Vietnam...

Dan, you've been
on every news channel.

They're calling them
the "Pentagon Papers"

and the FBI has named you
as the probable source.

The manhunt's nationwide.

They know everything about you.

They know
what school you went to

how long you were there,
your family.

They know about me...

Nixon got a court order
enjoining The New York Times

to cease publication.

He did what?

The Times
pulled the story.

I called The Washington Post.

They're flying up to get a copy.

Will they be able
to go to press

after what's happened
to the Times?

I don't know.

What if they don't?

I don't know.

I mean, how can they?

If Nixon can stop
the Times...

I don't know, Patricia!
I don't know!

...with Saigon
the main objective.

We're not
just going to give up.

...a few major battles.

The third of six days of action
has been heavy.

The allies estimate
they have killed

more than 6,000 enemy troops
in that period.

American casualties
are put at 360 dead

and more than 1,000 wounded.

I didn't say anything
about giving up.

...South Vietnamese
have been killed.

Good evening.
Publication of parts

of the 47-volume,
top secret history

of American involvement
in Vietnam

has triggered a major
constitutional legal battle

over government secrecy
and freedom of the press.

The man most frequently
suggested as the source

for the Pentagon documents
is Daniel Ellsberg, 40

PhD with honors, one-time
Marine, now a researcher

at Massachusetts Institute
of Technology.

Ellsberg was a Pentagon
and State Department analyst

during the Vietnam buildup.

Later, he worked
on the now-controversial

Pentagon study of the war.

Perhaps because of his clearly
delicate legal position

he will not talk right now
of whatever part

he played in the release
of the secret documents

but he talks freely

of what he hopes
their release will accomplish

and what turned him
from hawk to dove

such as what he believes was
official coldheartedness

towards civilian casualties
in the war.

Fact is, in the seven
to 10,000 pages of this study

I don't think
there is a line in them

that contains an estimate
of the likely impact

of our policy
on the overall causalities

among the Vietnamese,
the refugees to be caused...

I'll get some men
over to CBS right away.

It won't do
any good.

They're doing the interview
at some secret location.

My father had
a favorite line in the Bible

which I used to hear
a great deal when I was a kid.

"The truth shall make you free."

And I hope that
the truth that's out now

that's out of the safes--
and there is no way, no way

to get it back into the safes--

I hope that truth
will free us of this war.

I hope that we will
put this war behind us

and we'll learn from it
in such a way

that the history
of the next 20 years

will read nothing like the
history of the last 20 years.

The Appellate Court
stepped aside.

Times and the Post
vs. The United States

have been bumped up
to the Supreme Court.

They start
in the morning.

We've done all we can.

I think it's time
for me to go in.

I wasn't ready
to hear you say that.

We just heard
that Senator Gravel

of Alaska was prevented
from reading the paper

on the Senate floor.

It's up to the Supreme Court,
the First Amendment issue.

Dan, let's talk
about your case.

So, where do we stand?

Charges against you
will include

stealing government
property

receiving, communicating
and retaining

national defense documents.

Conspiracy, multiple violations
of the Espionage Act.

Possibly even treason.

We really can't tell
how far they'll go.

Sounds like I'm in
for a slap on the wrist.

What's the worst
that could happen?

There's no reason
to sugarcoat this.

A lot of people are
extremely grateful to you

for what you've done

but Dick Nixon
is not one of them.

Apparently, the more
he thinks about it

the more outraged...
Um...

Short of the death penalty

life in prison is probably
what they'll shoot for.

The sooner you
turn yourself in

the sooner we can
start fighting.

Let's arrange for my surrender.

Step back, please.

Dr. Ellsberg, comment
on the indictment

the Attorney General read
against you this morning.

Eleven counts.

You could get more
than 100 years.

I don't regret
releasing the papers

only that so many lives
might have been saved

if I'd only done it sooner.

Dr. Ellsberg,
one more comment.

One more comment!

You have the right
to remain silent

and refuse
to answer questions.

Do you understand?

Yes.

Any thing you say
may be used against you

in a court of law,
you understand?

Yes.

You have the right
to consult an attorney

before speaking
with the police

and to have an attorney present
now and in the future.

You understand all that?

Yes.

Both sides seemed
to score points

with the justices
in oral arguments today.

The government stressed
the sensitive nature

of the Pentagon Papers

and the risk to our troops
abroad by their publication.

Lawyers for The New York Times
and Washington Post

countered that the papers
are a historical record

which poses no danger
to soldiers overseas

and which the public here
at home has a right to read.

The case
was submitted late today.

A ruling could be handed down
at any time.

Yeah?

I'm on my way.

Decision's in.

The Court has reached
a decision.

The Majority Opinion
will now be distributed.

Dan...

What happened?

The Supreme Court--

they ruled six to three

and the papers are going
to press as we speak.

And we've posted bail.

So we're going to be able
to put all this behind us

and with the publication
of the papers

they're now legal,
so...

I mean, what law
have you broken, Dan?

This has nothing
to do with my case.

They're still going
to try me for treason.

Let me see the decision.

It's Justice Black's opinion.

"In the First Amendment

"the Founding Fathers
gave the press

"a protection they must have

"to fulfill its role
in our democracy

"and paramount among
the duties of the free press

"is the duty to prevent

"any part of the government
from deceiving the people

"and sending them off
to distant lands

"to die of foreign fevers
and foreign shot and shell.

"Far from deserving
condemnation

"The New York Times
and Washington Post

"nobly did precisely that
which the Founders hoped

"and trusted they would do.

"The press must be left
free to publish news

whatever the source
without censorship."

I don't think I'm going
to be back here again.

Thank you.

You're welcome,
Daniel.

Vamos. Abiento.

So Ellsberg's a national hero

and The New York Times will
probably win a damn Pulitzer--

all for stealing
documents.

These people
are thieves.

Apparently Ellsberg
had an accomplice.

We're going after him
as well.

Believe me, neither will see
the light of day again.

That's fine
about their trials

but the President
still wants to get the dirt.

He wants the son of a bitch
destroyed.

Morning, Mr. President.

Morning,
Mr. President.

Mr. President.

Our little operation out in
Beverly Hills went smoothly.

Here's what the Plumbers found
in Dr. Fielding's office.

Not that it didn't go well
in there today

and not that I think our trial
is going badly in general

but which countries

have non-extradition
policies with the US?

...special news bulletin.

Five men were arrested
at 2:30 this morning

while they were in the process

of wiretapping
and bugging the offices

of the Democratic National
Committee at Washington's

Watergate hotel
and apartment complex.

The identities of the burglars
remain unanswered at this hour.

What is it?

I couldn't sleep.

Yeah?

You know,
it hit me today

that it's been over a year
with your case.

Sometimes it feels
like it's just...

never going to end.

Everyone always thought

I was destined to do something
great with my life.

Make a mark.

When my mother
and sister died...

My fa...

I only thought of myself.

And when my illusion
of America died

I did the same thing.

I wanted to bring the government
and the nation down.

I loved them, and I was angry,
and they disappointed me.

I'm going to be remembered
as a traitor.

My children
will be ashamed

their name disgraced.

All rise.

The Honorable Judge William
Matthew Byrne presiding.

Be seated.

Commencing on April 26th,
the government has made

an extraordinary series
of disclosures

regarding the conduct of
several governmental agencies

regarding the defendants
in this case.

It is my responsibility

to assess the effect
of this conduct

upon the rights
of the defendants

and their opportunities
for a fair trial

with due process of law.

Along with the country at large

this court has recently
become aware of a special unit

that was established,
reporting to the White House

which undertook
both the burglary

at the office
of Dr. Lewis Fielding

and the break-in
at the Watergate Hotel.

The totality of
the circumstances of this case

offends a sense of justice.

The bizarre events
have incurably infected

the prosecution of this case.

Therefore, I have decided to
declare a mistrial and grant...

And grant the motion to dismiss.

Thank God
for Richard Nixon.

For me as an American,
democracy is sacred

something worth fighting for.

And if my own
greatest act of patriotism

was treason, so be it.

I think the lesson is

that the people of this country,
um, can't afford

to let the President
run the country by himself

even foreign affairs,
any more than domestic affairs

without the help of the Congress

without the help of the public.

The system shouldn't change,
I think, to begin with.

Very hard, really,
the way our system operates now

for a truly frank, honest man

to stay in that system
indefinitely

without being weeded out
or fired or made apathetic

or in effect,
corrupted in the end.

Good evening.

A quarter century
of American involvement

in South Vietnam is over.

At mid-afternoon, Saigon time

and armada of 81
US Marine helicopters

descended on the South
Vietnamese capital.

More than 6,000 persons
were evacuated

plucked from
the US Embassy grounds

from rooftops
throughout the city

and from the nearby
Tan Son Nhut Airport.

It was a chaotic scene
in Saigon today

when those US Marines arrived.

Hundreds, perhaps thousands,
of South Vietnamese

fought to get inside the
American Embassy compound

to get on those American
helicopters leaving Saigon.

Some Vietnamese tried to scale
the ten-foot Embassy walls

and got caught
on the barbed wire.

The Vietnamese
cried and shouted

"We want to go, too,"
and during all this

inside the American Embassy

officials were burning
the last of their documents.

Dan Rather,
CBS News, New York.

Thank you
for joining us.