now that is a total order and if necessary i'll fire you. do you understand? >> i do understand. >> nixon hated the press because it was bigging into the very story that he was desperate to hide. that the white house does deeply involved in the cover up. nixon's approval rating soared but then came the crack in the white house defense. in the summer of 1973 all of america was riveted by the senate watergate hearings. >> what did the president know and when did he know it? >> as the country watched white house council john dean turn on his president. >> i began by telling the president that there was a cancer growing on the