Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 26, 1973
Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 26, 1973
[00.18.45] Senator MONTOYA. Now, I have read press comments and I have become fully cognizant of different efforts which have been made to discredit your testimony before this committee in recent, days, one of which was the release Of information dealing with your obtaining $4,800 from the cash fund. The other was the leaking out by sources Unknown of an allegation that you had applied in concert with others for a television license while you were working for a law firm. Now, this has been rebutted this morning and I will not go into the authenticity of this. But did it ever occur to you that you had gone through a complete checkup before you were employed by the Department of Justice and before you were employed by the White House, and that this information necessarily had to turn up in your folder or dossier collected by the FBI and that you had to either explain it or the dossier explained -whatever allegation was made with respect, to the TV license per se? Mr. DEAN-. I am Well aware of that, because when I was first interviewed by Mr. Haldeman, he had a copy of my FBI report from the Justice Department. I gathered from his review of the FBI report that, this material was in the FBI report, He asked me for some comments on it. I told him about, the, fact that I thought it in involved more personalities than anything else, that I had been prepared to take it, to an ethics committee, at the time, that I had had a lawyer friend -who had been at the firm, and had the time to check it out. that I had been operating on the advice of a very senior and distinguished member of the communication bar, and that I thought it was really a Matter of personalities more than facts and that I had not pursued the matter because it had been retracted later on and I was satisfied -with that. So this was reviewed and this obviously -was investigated by the FBI before, I went to the Justice Department originally, and then subsequently to the White House. Senator MONTOYA. So apparently this was picked out of context and released by someone. Do you have any conjecture about that? Mr. DEAN. I didn't understand your question, Senator. Senator MONTOYA. So apparently, the allegation that you had applied for a TV license in conjunction with others while you were employed in a law firm that was almost a similar application, apparently this was apparently picked Out of context from your file by someone- Mr. DEAN. That, is, correct. I understand that it, -was leaked by someone to a member of the press and in turn reported. Senator 'MONTOYA. Who do you think leaked it? What is your opinion? Mr. DEAN. Well, that would be highly speculative. At that, point in time, I don't know. I have heard of subsequent efforts to discredit me and a rather concerted attack to discredit me. Senator MONTOYA. Have, you felt that they were serious efforts? Mr. DEAN. Well, I am quite, aware of the fact that there a, are a number of investigators who have, been privately retained to visit friends, visit stores I deal with-- It, has run the gamut--places where I bank, every conceivable inch of my life has been gone over, Senator. Senator MONTOYA. Now, tell me more about it, I mean not your life, but about the, efforts made by the White House. Mr. DEAN. I have learned this from people who have said, 'Who have called and tried to get verification on stories and the like, I can tell you the absurdity of some, of the stories. For example, I borrowed a friend's car, a friend of my wife's, one of her girl friends, and I drove that car for several days. My wife went off to Florida with some friends of hers for a couple of days. The next thing that was on the rumor mill was that I had left my wife and was living with some beautiful foreign 'Woman. That went around for awhile, It, was not printed, but it has been gossiped. I have been charmed with being afraid--I have been charged with being afraid to go to jail for reasons of homosexuality. That was attributed directly to one of my lawyers. Now, the story is absurd, but again it is a typical character assassination technique. [00.23.52]