What was Richard Nixon’s “enemy list” and who was on it? Jane Fonda's history with president explored amid SAG Awards shoutout

Jane Fonda received the Lifetime Achievement accolade at the 31st Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards on Sunday, February 23, 2025. Julia Louis-Dreyfus presented the honor to the celebrated actress and political activist. The Veep star also referenced Fonda’s inclusion in the “Nixon’s enemies list” as the actress’ “ultimate trophy” before presenting her with the award.

The enemies list was a compilation of names of political enemies of President Nixon and his administration. It was reportedly compiled by Charles Colson, President Nixon’s White House Counsel from 1969 to 1970. At one point, Colson was also regarded as Nixon’s Hatchet man.

The primary motive for compiling Richard Nixon’s enemy list was to “use the available federal machinery to screw” the administration and president’s political opponents, per a confidential memo issued by the White House Counsel John Dean. The memorandum was titled “Dealing with our Political Enemies” and issued in August 1971.

The list remained secret for a few years until Dean mentioned it in front of the Senate Watergate Committee on June 27, 1973. Shortly after the revelation, the first enemies list went public, naming the top 20, along with more than 200 supposed enemies of the Nixon administration. The list was obtained by CBS journalist Daniel Schorr, who was also named among the top 20.

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Jane Fonda was named on Richard Nixon’s first enemies list in 1973

Jane Fonda found herself on the first enemies list of President Nixon. The two-time Academy Award winner was among over 200 political adversaries of the Nixon administration, which included senators, US representatives, African-American congressmen, and congresswomen, people from the media, activist organizations, and many more.

The first enemies list included over 200 names, but initially, only the top 20 political opponents were read by Daniel Schorr. The journalist, who was positioned at the 17th spot as a “real media enemy,” was startled after reading his name. In a 2001 interview, Schorr talked about how he felt after reading aloud his name on Live TV,

“I began to read down the list until I came to number 17. ‘And 17… Daniel Schorr… Notation a real media enemy.’ And then I don't know how I looked it. I have never seen the tape, but I felt as though I was going to gulp and collapse.”

The top 20 list extended to a larger collection of the names of political opponents, which also included celebrities such as Paul Newman, Bill Cosby, Steve McQueen, Tony Randall, Barbra Streisand, Jane Fonda, and more. Fonda later sued President Nixon and other government officials for $2.8 million in damages. In the suit, the actress alleged a conspiracy to deprive her of her constitutional rights.

The first enemies list succeeded in a bigger compilation of over 500 names, which went public in December 1973.

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Jane Fonda displayed her activist stance after receiving the Lifetime Achievement honor at SAG Awards

Fonda has been known as a women's rights, environmental, anti-war, and political activist for years. She has been actively putting forth her opinions and efforts for different reforms for years now. The Grace and Frankie actress also used the SAG Awards stage to display her activist stance.

She started by thanking the SAG-AFTRA,

“This means the world to me. You can't know. Thank you, SAG-AFTRA. Thank you.”

After making some humorous remarks about her “weird” career, Jane Fonda continued to speak about feminism, her portrayal of angry women characters, and her support for the unions as she continued,

“This is really important right now when workers’ power and… Workers' power is being attacked, and community is being weakened. Yes, but SAG-AFTRA is different than most other unions, because us, the workers, we actors, we don't manufacture anything tangible. What we create is empathy. Our job is to understand another human being so profoundly that we can touch their souls.”

Fonda also commended Sebastian Stan’s portrayal of Donald Trump in The Apprentice. She commented on the current political climate, calling it “big-time serious,” and asked everyone to remain brave and not isolate anyone, especially the vulnerable.