| Special committee | |
|---|---|
Defunct United States Senate 93rd Congress | |
| History | |
| Formed | February 7, 1973 (1973-02-07) |
| Disbanded | June 27, 1974 (1974-06-27) (abolished, when the committee's final report was published) |
| Leadership | |
| Chair | Sam Ervin (D) |
| Ranking member | Howard Baker (R) |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 7 members |
| Political parties | Majority (4)
|
| Jurisdiction | |
| Purpose | To investigate "illegal, improper, or unethical activities" conducted by individuals involved with a campaign, nomination, and/or election of any candidate forPresident of the United States in the1972 presidential election, and produce a final report with the committee's findings. |
| Rules | |
| Watergate scandal |
|---|
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| Events |
| People |
Intelligence community |
Related
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TheSenate Watergate Committee, known officially as theSelect Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, was aspecial committee established by theUnited States Senate,S.Res. 60, in 1973, to investigate theWatergate scandal, with the power to investigate the break-in at theDemocratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in theWatergate complex inWashington, D.C., and any subsequent cover-up of criminal activity, as well as "all other illegal, improper, or unethical conduct occurring during the controversial1972 presidential election, including political espionage and campaign finance practices".
American print news media focused the nation's attention on the issue with hard-hitting investigative reports, while television news outlets brought the drama of the hearings to the living rooms of millions of American households, broadcasting the proceedings live for two weeks in May 1973. Thepublic television networkPBS broadcast the hearings from gavel to gavel on more than 150 national affiliates.
Working under committee chairmanSam Ervin, the committee played a pivotal role in gathering evidence that would lead to the indictment of forty administration officials and the conviction of several ofRichard Nixon's aides for obstruction of justice and other crimes. Its revelations later prompted theimpeachment process against Nixon himself, which featured the introduction of three articles of impeachment by the Democratic-ledHouse Committee on the Judiciary. Watergate led toNixon's resignation on August 9, 1974.
Shortly after midnight on June 17, 1972, five men were arrested inside the DNC offices.[1] TheFBI launched an investigation of the incident, and the dogged reporting of twoWashington Post journalists,Bob Woodward andCarl Bernstein, raised questions and suggested connections betweenRichard Nixon's controversial reelection campaign and the men awaiting trial. TheWhite House denied any connection to the break-in, and Nixonwon reelection in a landslide.[2] Following confirmation that such a connection did in fact exist, the Senate voted 77–0 in February 1973 to create the Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities.[3]
Before the election, theHouse Banking Committee chaired byWright Patman (D-TX) held hearings on Watergate but were stymied by Nixon Administration officials. A vote to issue subpoenas in October 1972 failed when several Democratic members joined all Republican members of the committee to oppose the vote.[4] The failure of the committee hearings formed an impetus for action in the Senate.
The members of the Senate Watergate Committee were:
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The chief counsel of the Committee wasSamuel Dash, who directed the investigation. The minority counsel wasFred Thompson. Members of the Senate Watergate Committee's professional staff included:
Hearings opened on May 17, 1973, and the Committee issued its seven-volume, 1,250-page report on June 27, 1974, titledReport on Presidential Campaign Activities. The first weeks of the committee's hearings were a national political and cultural event. They were broadcast live during the day on commercial television; at the start,CBS,NBC, andABC covered them simultaneously, and then later on a rotation basis, whilePBS replayed the hearings at night.[8] Some 319 hours were broadcast overall, and 85% of U.S. households watched some portion of them.[8] The audio feed also was broadcast, gavel-to-gavel, on scores ofNational Public Radio stations, making the hearings available to people in their cars and workplaces, and increased the profile of the fledgling broadcast organization.[9]
The hearings made stars out of both Ervin, who became known for his folksy manner and wisdom but resolute determination, and Baker, who appeared somewhat non-partisan and uttered the famous phrase "What did the President know, and when did he know it?" (often paraphrased by others in later scandals). It was the introduction to the public for minority counsel Thompson, who would later become an actor, senator, and presidential candidate.
Many of Watergate's most famous moments happened during the hearings. During former White House counselJohn Dean's four days before the committee, he testified about the cover-up, who was involved including himself and events related to it, including him telling Nixon on March 21 that there was a "cancer on the Presidency") . Dean confirmed to Inouye that the Nixon White House kepta list of its enemies – including Weicker, who then called for added transparency in the executive branch. Meanwhile,FAA chairman and former White House deputy assistantAlexander Butterfield revealed the existence of the secretNixon White House tapes and Ervin sparred with former Nixon chief domestic policy advisorJohn Ehrlichman about whether constitutional law allowed a President to sanction such actions as the Watergate break-in and a break-in at the office of the psychiatrist toDaniel Ellsberg, the former assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs who had leaked thePentagon Papers.[10]
