Cases in American Political Leadership: Nixon: Follow the Money: 1972 and 1973

"Follow the Money" -- Something that Deep Throat Did Not Actually Say

Prelude 1967: States complete ratification of the 25th Amendment

May 28, 1972 Electronic surveillance ("bugging") equipment is installed at Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate building.

June 17, 1972 Five men are arrested while attempting to repair the surveillance equipment at Democratic National Committee headquarters.

June 23, 1972: Nixon and Haldeman discuss how to obstruct justice. This conversation will end Nixon's presidency.

August 1, 1972; The Post reports that a $25k check made out to CREEP Midwest Finance Chair Ken Dahlberg ended up in a bank account of Watergate burglar Bernard Barker.

August 30, 1972 President Nixon announces that John Dean has completed an investigation into the Watergate buggings and that no one from the White House is involved.

September 15, 1972 Bernard Barker, Virgilio Gonzalez, E. Howard Hunt, G. Gordon Liddy, Eugenio Martinez, James W. McCord, Jr., and Frank Sturgis are indicted for their roles in the June break‑in.

October 10, 1972: According to the Post, FBI agents have established that the Watergate bugging incident stemmed from a massive campaign of political spying and sabotage directed by officials of the White House and CREEP

January 8, 1973 Watergate break‑in trial opens. Hunt pleads guilty (January 11); Barker, Sturgis, Martinez, and Gonzalez plead guilty (January 15); Liddy and McCord are convicted on all counts of break‑in indictment (January 30).

February 7, 1973 U.S. Senate creates Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities.

March 17, 1973: Watergate burglar McCord writes a letter to Judge John Sirica, claiming that some of his testimony was perjured under pressure and that the burglary was not a CIA operation, but had involved other government officials, thereby leading the investigation to the White House.

April 17, 1973 President Nixon announces that members of the White House staff will appear before the Senate Committee and promises major new developments in investigation and real progress toward finding truth.

April 23, 1973 White House issues statement denying President had prior knowledge of Watergate affair.

April 30, 1973 White House staff members H. R. Haldeman, John D. Ehrlichman, and John Dean resign. Nixon then gets hammered, calls Haldeman.

May 17, 1973 Senate Committee begins public hearings.

May 25, 1973 Archibald Cox sworn in as Special Prosecutor.

July 7, 1973 President Nixon informs Senate Committee that he will not appear to testify nor grant access to Presidential files.

July 16, 1973 Alexander Butterfield informs Senate Committeeof White House taping system.

July 23, 1973 Senate Committee and Special Prosecutor Cox subpoena White House tapes and documents to investigate cover‑up.

July 25, 1973 President Nixon refuses to comply with Cox subpoena.

August 9, 1973 Senate Committee files suit against Nixon for failure to comply with subpoena.

September 29, 1973: Vice President Agnew proclaims: "I will not resign if indicted! I will not resigned if indicted!"

October 10, 1973: Agnew resigns.

October 12, 1972: Nixon announces intention to nominate Gerald Ford as vice president.

October 19, 1973 President Nixon offers Stennis a compromise on the tapes; that is, Senator John Stennis (D‑Miss.) would review tapes and present the Special Prosecutor with summaries.

October 20, 1973 Archibald Cox refuses to accept the Stennis compromise. President Nixon orders Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fireCox, but Richardson refuses and resigns in protest. Acting Attorney GeneralRobert Bork fires Cox. These events come to be known as the "SaturdayNight Massacre." And once again, everything circles back to the Cold War:

Mr. Richardson recalls that the first thing Mr. Nixon said when he entered the Oval Office to resign was a reference to Leonid I. Brezhnev, the Soviet leader.
“Brezhnev would never understand it if I let Cox defy my instructions,” the President declared.
“I'm sorry that you insist on putting your personal commitments ahead of the public interest,” he quoted Mr. Nixon as saying.

October 23, 1973 President Nixon agrees to hand over tapes to comply with subpoena

November 1, 1973 Leon Jaworski named Special Prosecutor.

November 17, 1973 Nixon speaks to AP managing editors