Surely some of this was explained in the novels?
The novel didn't include any of the Roth stuff--it ended with the move to Nevada. The novel said that Rocco stayed in NYC with Clemenza, and Neri went to Nevada to be in charge of security for all of Michael's properties.
Somebody tell me why Rocco didn't wear a vest on the Roth hit? That never made sense to me...
Rocco probably thought his best chance for escape was to shoot, run like hell, and get lost in the crowd at the airport, so that the FBI guys wouldn't get a clean shot at him. A bulletproof vest of that pre-Kevlar era was very bulky and heavy, and would have slowed down Rocco's attempted escape.
And what if they caught Rocco?
Or was there a hint from Tom to the FBI that an assassin might turn up who'd kill Roth and that the Corleones would agree to have the assassin killed?
Well, there's another example of sketchy writing (or directorial license, if you prefer):
Dead or captured, Rocco would have been indentified as a top Corleone aide. He was listed as a caporegime in the FBI chart shown at the Senate hearing. So, dead or captured, Rocco would be a finger pointing directly at Michael. Since his chances of getting away clean were slim to nil, you have to wonder why Michael would risk implicating himself directly in the Roth assassination so soon after the Senate hearing nearly blew his legitimate cover. And, while we're at it, wouldn't the Feds have put two and two together--Tom's visit to Frankie, and Frankie's suicide?
One possible explanation: it's another example (among many) of how greed and lust for revenge cloud judgment.
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