Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 27, 1973
Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 27, 1973
[00.06.48-KAYE in empty hearing room, seated on table where DEAN had been sitting.] KAYE says that it's already being called "the top twenty" or "the Dean's list", referring to persons who opposed the NIXON administration, for the purpose of, quoting Charles COLSON, "how the Federal Government machinery can be used to screw our political enemies". It would work by staffers introducing names to the list, and then turning the info over to Lyn NOFZIGER, who would use the IRS and other agencies to hassle opponents. The list at first included twenty names, KAYE names some of them, describing briefly the antipathy felt by the NIXON administration to each enemy-Labor leaders, newspaper editors, the head of Common Cause, and the expansion continued to include celebrities, including the seemingly ridiculous inclusion of Joe NAMATH, KAYE speculating that perhaps the NIXON administration was irritated with him because, due to his bad knees, "he couldn't go to his right". MacNEILL gets a chuckle out of that, notes that the list mistakenly listed NAMATH as QB for the NY Giants, in spite of the football-consciousness of the NIXON administration. [00.08.41-to committee room, Sen. ERVIN standing, conferring with Sam DASH prior to start of hearing, MacNEILL v.o. gives hourly summary of the proceedings] [00.10.18-ERVIN brings committee to order] Senator ERVIN. We. have two very peculiar questions -which have been specially addressed to the committee, apparently by Mr. J. Fred Buzhardt, special counsel to the President. The first question addressed to the committee by Mr. Buzhardt is this: "Did you and your counsel develop a strategy for obtaining immunity, from prosecution? What were the elements of that strategy? On behalf of the committee I -would reply to Mr. Buzhardt that the only strategy we, developed -was to pursue the course -outlined by the act of Congress codified as sections 6002 and 6005 of title 18 of the United States Code. The second question to the committee is: "Didn't your strategy include deliberate leaks of information to the media on what you had told investigators?" Maybe this is addressed to Mr. Dean, I do not know. [Laughter.] It is probably addressed to Mr. -Dean. Mr. Dean, I will ask you these questions--well, maybe I had just better let us proceed in orderly fashion,. I am sorry I misconstrued the question. [00.12.01]