John Mitchell had never run a political campaign before becoming Richard Nixon’s 1968 campaign manager. In fact, it wasn’t even clear what his political ideology was—or that he even wanted to do anything political.

When Mitchell merged his firm with Nixon Mudge in 1967, his stated goal was to build the biggest law firm in the country. However, Mitchell, as one of the pioneers of municipal bond work, built up an enviable network of political contacts throughout the country—making him the obvious choice to run Nixon’s campaign. Plus, several of Nixon’s law partners believed Mitchell only chose Nixon Mudge in order to get close to the once-and-future GOP presidential nominee.

Mitchell’s hard-nosed campaign tactics brought him much controversy—especially after it came to light that he had been the campaign’s main contact for Washington, D.C., socialite Anna Chennault. His—and Nixon’s—role in getting Chennault to try and sabotage the Paris Peace conference in 1968 remain a subject of debate for historians. After Nixon’s victory, Mitchell turned down numerous overtures to join the administration, pointing out that Mudge would soon become “the firm to see.”

Ultimately, he accepted the job as attorney general—to his eventual regret. After getting ensnared in Watergate, Mitchell would go down in infamy, becoming the first, and only, former AG to serve prison time.

Nixon in New York is the first book written by Victor Li, an assistant managing editor at the ABA Journal.

Read an excerpt from Nixon in New York in the May 2018 issue of the ABA Journal.