Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 25, 1973
Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 25, 1973
[00.46.22-DEAN'S further meetings with NIXON directly] MEETING OF FEBRUARY 28 I had received -word before I arrived at, my office that the President -wanted to see me. He asked me, if I had talked to the Attorney General regarding Senator Baker. I told him that the Attorney General was seeking to meet with both Senator Ervin and Senator Baker, but that a meeting date had not yet been firmed up. I told him that I knew it was Attorney General's wish to turn over the FBI investigation and the President said that he did not think -we should, but asked me. what I thought of the idea. I told him that I did not think that there was much damaging information in the FBI investigation, although there. could be some bad public, relations from it. He told me to think about this matter. He also said that, he had read in the morning paper about the Vesco case and asked me what part, if any, his brother Ed had had in the matter. I told him what I knew of his brother's involvement, which was that he was an innocent agent, in the contribution transaction, [00.47.18] We then discussed the leak to Time magazine of the fact that the White House, had placed wiretaps on newsmen and White House staff people. The President asked me if I knew how this had leaked. I told him I that I did not; that I knew several people were aware of it, but I did not know any who had leaked it. He asked me -who knew about it. I told him that "Mr. Sullivan had told me that he thought that Director Hoover had told somebody about, it, shortly after it happened because Hoover 'was, against it and that Sullivan said that He had heard that this information had gone to Governor Rockefeller and in turn had come back from Governor Rockefeller to Dr. Kissinger. We then talked about the executive privilege statement and the President pressed his desire to get, the statement out well in advance of the Watergate hearings so that it did not appear to be in response to the Watergate hearings We also discussed Mr. Mollenhoff's interest in the Fitzgerald case, and he asked me to look into the matter for Mr. Mollenhoff. Before departing his office, he again raised the matter that I could report directly to him and not through Haldeman and I told him that I thought he should know that I was involved in the post-June 17 activities regarding Watergate. I briefly described to him why I thought I had legal problems, in that I had been a conduit for many of the, decisions that were made and, therefore, could be involved In an obstruction of justice. He would not, accept my analysis and did not, want me, to get into it in any detail other than what I had just related. he reassured me not, to worry. that I had no problems I raised this on another occasion with the President, when Dick Moore was present. [00.49.03] MEETING. OF MARCH 1 The, first, meeting on this date and the afternoon meeting Which occurred on March 1, related to preparing the President for his forthcoming press conference The President, asked me a number of questions about the, Gray nomination hearings and facts that had come out during these hearings. In particular. I can recall him stating that there, should be no problem with the fact that I had received the FBI reports. He said that I was conducting an investigation for him and that it would be. perfectly proper for the counsel to the. President to have looked at these reports. [00.49.37] I did not tell the President that I had not conducted an Investigation for Him because I assumed he was, well aware of this fact and that the, so-called Dean investigation was a public relations matter, that frequently the President made reference in press conferences to things that never had, in fact occurred. I was also aware that often in answering Watergate questions, that he had made reference to my report and I did not feel that I could tell the President that he could not use my name, There had been considerable adverse publicity stemming, from the Gray hearings and the fact that Gray was turning over FBI information to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Which caused the. President to tell me at this morning meeting that Gray must be "pulled up short." He told me that he, had talked with the Attorney General to tell him to read the chapter in his book "Six Crises." dealing with the Hiss case regarding the lack of Cooperation which Truman and the FBI had given to his investigation. He also told me, the FBI Watergate materials should not, be turned over by Gray. I informed him that I had had a meeting several days prior with 'Mr. Sullivan who had been at the FBI for many years and Sullivan had alluded to the fact that the FBI had been Used for political purposes by past administrations I cited a few examples that Mr. Sullivan had given me. The President told me to get this information from Sullivan. The President told me That he was reading a book it that time called "The 13 Mistakes of Kennedy," 'he told me that I should read the chapter regarding Kennedy use of the FBI. he also told me that I should gather any material I could gather regarding the uses and abuse of the FBI by past administrations so that we could show that we had not abused the FBI for political Purposes. [00.51.27]