Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 29, 1973 (1/2)
Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 29, 1973 (1/2)
[00.45.17-DASH questions DEAN, trying to demonstrate that the September 15, 1972 meeting between DEAN and NIXON in all common sense indicates that NIXON was aware of a coverup effort at the time] You were asked a question as to whether or not the President had, in fact, told you about his knowledge of the, Watergate case, or had indicated any knowledge on his part of any of the coverup. I think the first question I would like, to like to ask is would you have expected, in any relationship with the President, for the President to have asked you to come in and said that "'Bob Haldeman had told me about your covering up of the Watergate case, your assisting Jeb Magruder in committing perjury" or things of that kind? [00.45.49] Mr. DEAN, It wasn't the nature of that, type of conversation so I would not have, expected that, type of further follow-up questioning; no, sir. Mr. DASH. All right. But when the President told you that Bob Haldeman had told or kept him posted, on how you had handled the Watergate case, he also indicated from your testimony that, he appreciated how difficult a task it was. You were asked did You tell the President what you in fact, had done, that you had assisted Magruder in committing perjury, that you had assisted in the coverup, that you had limited the FBI investigation or actually gotten CIA involvement. [00.46.29-DASH slams on GURNEY'S questioning of DEAN as ludicrous] Would it have been realistic in that circumstance if the President said that Bob Haldeman had kept him posted and Was congratulating you on how you had handled your job, for you to say, "That is right, Mr. President, you know what, you are telling me is and what I want you to know is that I had gotten Mr. Magruder to Commit perjury before the grand jury and that I had him limit the FBI investigation, et cetera." Would that be a realistic response of yours in such a meeting? Mr. DEAN. I don't believe it would be, no. [00.46.59] Mr. DASH. As a matter of fact, when the President told you that Bob Haldeman had kept him posted on how you handled the Watergate case, you knew very well how you had handed the Watergate case, did you not? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. Mr. DASH. And in fact, it did involve having Mr. Magruder perjure himself before the committee and other types of things such as payoffs and limiting FBI investigation? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. [00.47.25] Mr. DASH, And you knew that Bob Haldeman knew that? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. Mr. DASH. From your knowledge of Mr. Haldeman's relationship with the President, and you have said that when you were in that Oval Office, you never lied to the President. [00.47.40] From Your knowledge of Mr. Haldeman's relationship to the President, 'Would it be your opinion that Mr. Haldeman would lie to the President? Mr. DEAN. It, would be to the contrary. I do not think Mr. Haldeman would lie to the President. I do not know of anybody who would walk into the Oval Office and lie to the President. [00.47.54] Mr. DASH. So if Mr. Haldeman had kept the President, posted on exactly how you had handled the Watergate case, he, would have, told the President exactly how you had handed the Watergate case., including the coverup'? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. Mr. DASH. You told the President, according to your own statement at that time that you had only been able to contain the case and you could not insure that someday it, would not become unraveled; is that not correct? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. [00.48.19-because he already knew?] Mr. DASH. Did the President ask you what, you meant, by that? Mr. DEAN. No, he did not. Mr. DASH. 'NOW, also at that time, you discussed the civil case.. Is that not the time you told the President that, the lawyers for the, Committee To Re-Elect the President had developed an ex parte relationship to influence the judge? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. [00.48.40] Mr. DASH. And the. President, according to your statement, at that time said, that would be helpful? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. Mr. DASH. And during the course of that meeting on September 15, you got into the Patman committee hearings. Mr. DEAN. That is correct, also. Mr. DASH. Now, on the Patman committee hearings, what was the concern about those hearings? [DEAN is visibly and audibly beaten down by the ordeal of testifying, in contrast to DASH'S energy in delivering this extremely pointed line of questioning] Mr. DEAN. The concern was twofold. One, it would cause further embarrassment to the White House prior to the election by more headlines about the Watergate. Second, it could result in the Patman investigators stumbling into something that might start unraveling the coverup. Mr. DASH. Do you have a copy of exhibit No. 34-22, which you have submitted to the committee? Mr. DEAN. Yes, I do. Mr. DASH. Now, Now, that exhibit has attached to it a letter, or memorandum under the letterhead of the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee of Banking and Currency, and it is from Chairman Wright Patman. There is attached a list of Individuals that were subpenaed before the Patman committee. [00.49.55] Now, was there anything significant in that list of individuals who were going to be subpenaed before the Patman committee? Mr. DEAN. Yes, there was. I might add, Mr. Dash, that the list that was submitted or made public on this date had informally, the bulk of the list was already in the possession of the, White House and the congressional relations staff before this was actually made public. Mr. DASH. Your name appears on that list on page 2? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. Mr. DASH. And Mr. LaRue's name? Mr. DEAN. That is correct. Mr. DASH. And a number of the witnesses who have already appeared here and been questioned by the grand jury-Jeb Magruder, Robert -Mardian, John Mitchell, Robert Odle, Herbert Porter, Hugh Sloan, Maurice Stans. [00.50.39] Now, if all those witnesses had been called by the Patman committee at the time those hearings were going to be held and had answered according to the subpena, what in fact was the concern of the White House? [00.50.49] Mr. DEAN. Well, if those hearings had been held, there is a good chance, these hearings would not be held today, because I think that would have unraveled the coverup. [00.50.59]