Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee Hearings on Presidential Campaign Activities, May 24, 1973 - Testimony of Bernard L. Barker
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee Hearings on Presidential Campaign Activities, May 24, 1973 - Testimony of Bernard L. Barker
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee Hearings on Presidential Campaign Activities, May 24, 1973 - Testimony of Bernard L. Barker United States Senate Caucus Room, Washington DC
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee Hearings on Presidential Campaign Activities, May 24, 1973 - Testimony of Bernard L. Barker
Senator MONTOYA. All right. Now, did Mr. Hunt tell you who he was working for at the time? Mr. BARKER. Yes. At the time, Mr. Hunt was a counselor at the White House. On one occasion, I remember that I had met Mr. Hunt at the executive building and went home for lunch with him. Senator MONTOYA. And he mentioned the internal security aspects of the Ellsberg case with you, and it was with that motivation that you got into that. Now, what did he mention to you about the Democratic National Committee headquarters and the McGovern headquarters other than the simple objective of going in there to find out what foreign governments had made contributions to either the Democratic National Committee or to Mr. McGovern? Mr. BARKER. To the best of my recollection, Senator, the operation aspect was never discussed after that. Senator MONTOYA. Well, didn't he mention to you that the reason that he wanted to go into the Democratic National Committee we to find out whether or not some foreign government had contributed to the Democratic Party? Mr. BARKER That is correct, yes. Senator MONTOYA. And it was your assignment to look at the documents as you went in and for Eugenio Martinez to follow as you gave him the documents with a little photography? Mr. BARKER. That is correct.
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee Hearings on Presidential Campaign Activities, May 24, 1973 - Testimony of Bernard L. Barker
Senator MONTOYA. Now, you stated in response to Senator Baker's question that you found no evidence in those documents that you saw of any contributions to the McGovern campaign or to the Democratic National Committee from any foreign government, and still you pursued the photography of the documents, did you not? Mr. BARKER. That is correct. Senator MONTOYA. Why did you? Mr. BARKER. Because the documents that I uncovered, that I read, included names of persons and in one particular case, there was a series of notations of, they appeared to be money notations and, another document involved security. Senator MONTOYA. Did it have the name of any foreign country? Mr. BARKER. No, sir. Senator MONTOYA. How did you connect it as being something very instrumental with respect to internal security? Mr. BARKER. I don't understand the question. The documents that I photographed or had photographed were only photographed for the reasons that I believed at that time was the judgment which I had explained. I had stated that it was evident that the type of information that we were searching was not available at that particular office. So I just did the best I could under the circumstances.
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee Hearings on Presidential Campaign Activities, May 24, 1973 - Testimony of Bernard L. Barker
Senator MONTOYA. Well, as a matter of fact, Mr. Barker, you went in there for the general purpose of political espionage and not internal security. Mr. BARKER. Sir? Senator MONTOYA. Isn't that right? Mr. BARKER. That is not my honest interpretation. Senator MONTOYA. Well, in view of the subsequent events and the subsequent disclosures would you agree with me now that it was, in fact, political espionage? Mr. BARKER. I would respectfully disagree with the Senator. Senator MONTOYA. Why do you? Now give me your response. Mr. BARKER. Because, if my motivation was that which I have stated, and it was, there was no-there is no reason now to change that motivation, sir