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Watergate: Watergate Committee
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Television viewers were attracted to the Watergate hearings in impressive numbers. One survey found that 85% of all U.S. households had tuned in to at least some portion of the hearings. Such interest was not universal.... In fact, Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox had argued that television's widespread coverage of Watergate testimony could endanger the rights of witnesses to a fair trial and in doing so, could deprive Americans of ever hearing the full story of Watergate. The Ervin Committee refused Cox's request to curtail coverage, saying that it was important that television be allowed to carry Watergate testimony to the American public firsthand.
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The two-year route to Nixon’s downfall began during the night of June 17, 1972, when five men were caught breaking into Larry O’Brien’s office at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate Hotel complex. In the beginning, the now famous Woodward and Bernstein of the Washington Post were the only reporters following-up on the break-in which White House press secretary Ronald Ziegler had labeled “a third-rate burglary.” Most of the press played along with the White House. To give the Washington Post rare credit, it moved the story to a point where it could no longer be ignored, thanks to the leaks and leads of their “Deep Throat” source. It is interesting to note the inaction of most of the other so-called major media who today claim a share of the credit for bringing Nixon down.
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On July 16, 1973, Alexander Butterfield, a former White House official, testified to the Ervin Committee that Nixon had taped his own conversations in the White House for a period of time that included the alleged Watergate cover-up. Cox subpoenaed a number of tapes that he felt were essential to the investigation. Nixon refused to release them. Judge Sirica directed Nixon to let him hear the tapes. Nixon appealed the order, arguing that a president was immune from judicial orders enforcing subpoenas and that under the concept of executive privilege only he could decide which communications could be disclosed.
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The men involved in the Watergate affair were members of the Committee to Re-elect the President sometimes referred to colloquially as "CREEP." Months before the break-in, members of CREEP advised President Nixon to develop "political intelligence capabilities" to further his campaign. Facing public backlash from the war in Vietnam, Nixon's committee sought to discredit Democratic opponents in an attempt to gain ground in the election. Following the Watergate burglary, and the arrest of the "White House plumbers," Federal authorities conducted a full investigation of the incident. The White House, and CREEP, attempted to block full disclosure of the scandal.
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August 5th 1974: Nixon releases three more tapes that provehe ordered a cover-up of the Watergate burglary on June 23rd 1972, six daysafter the break-in. The tapes show that he knew of the involvement of WhiteHouse officials and the Campaign for the Re-election of the President. Thesetapes become known as the "smoking gun". The eleven Republicanson the Judiciary Committee who voted against impeachment say they will changetheir votes. It is clear that Nixon will be impeached and convicted in theSenate.
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Just as Nixon’s impeachment began with the Watergate hearings and Clinton’s with the Starr investigation, impeachment of Bush and Cheney needs an investigation to convince a majority of House members to want to impeach. Former House Judiciary Committee member Liz Holtzman helped get Nixon out of office and co-authored the Special Prosecutor law.
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Watergate Committee