Bill Josephson remembers Marvin Watson (PC/HQ)
Dear John, The death of W. Marvin Watson on November 26, 2017 is an opportunity for the Peace Corps community to remember him, and, of course, President Johnson with gratitude. The November 29, 2017 New York Times obituary describes him as President Johnson’s “Unofficial Chief of Staff.” The 1961-66 Peace Corps specifically did not want to have an office charged with “security” issues. So, the General Counsel’s office handled liaison with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Secret Service, the Civil Service Commission investigators, and so forth. When I was General Counsel of the Peace Corps and Sarge was preoccupied with OEO, but still Peace Corps Director, J. Edgar Hoover, through the FBI’s liaison to the Peace Corps, requested from me access to the personal records, including medical histories, of all Peace Corps volunteers. This was a generalized demand, not related to a particular person or incident. I refused, citing . . .
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David: I doubt that the times have changed that much. Look at what happened to General Flynn, for example. Like…