when nixon ordered attorney general

by Hettie Smith Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago 5 min read

Richard Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Special Prosecutor ; Richardson refused and resigned effective immediately. Nixon then ordered Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire Cox; Ruckelshaus refused, and also resigned.

Who was President Nixon's Attorney General in 1971?

Dec 04, 2013 · On October 20, 1973, in an unprecedented show of executive power, Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire Cox, but both men refused...

Why did Richard Nixon resign as Attorney General?

In October 1973, after Richardson had served 5 months as Attorney General, President Nixon ordered him to fire the top lawyer investigating the Watergate scandal, Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox. One may also ask, who led the Watergate hearings? United States Senate Watergate Committee Who resigned during Watergate?

Why did Nixon fire Attorney General Cox?

The Saturday Night Massacre refers to October 20, 1973, the Saturday night when then-President Richard Nixon gave the order to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox, leading to the resignation of his Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General. Nixon ordered the firing of Cox after Cox subpoenaed the secret White House tapes Nixon kept, which held key information in the case …

Who ordered Cox to be fired as Attorney General?

Apr 02, 2022 · Martha Mitchell, wife of Nixon’s attorney general who ordered the break-in at the scandal’s heart, was drugged and kidnapped. David Smith in Washington @smithinamerica.

Why did Nixon fire U.S. Attorney General Elliot Richardson?

As U.S. Attorney General, he was a prominent figure in the Watergate Scandal, and resigned rather than obey President Nixon's order to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox.

What did Nixon refuse to do with the tapes from his office?

President Nixon initially refused to release the tapes, putting two reasons forward: first, that the Constitutional principle of executive privilege extends to the tapes and citing the separation of powers and checks and balances within the Constitution, and second, claiming they were vital to national security.

Who was attorney general when Nixon was president?

John Newton Mitchell (September 15, 1913 – November 9, 1988) was an American convicted criminal, lawyer, the 67th Attorney General of the United States under President Richard Nixon and chairman of Nixon's 1968 and 1972 presidential campaigns.

What was President Nixon charged with?

These articles charged Nixon with: 1) obstruction of justice in attempting to impede the investigation of the Watergate break-in, protect those responsible, and conceal the existence of other illegal activities; 2) abuse of power by using the office of the presidency on multiple occasions, dating back to the first year ...

Why did Richard Nixon resign from the presidency in 1974?

President Richard Nixon made an address to the American public from the Oval Office on August 8, 1974, to announce his resignation from the presidency due to the Watergate scandal.

When did Nixon agree to turn over only some of the Watergate?

President Nixon agreed to turn over only some of the Watergate tapes to the special prosecutor when the prosecutor's case against Nixon was heard by the Supreme Court. Explanation: The Watergate scandal was a scandal raised against President Nixon during and after the 1972 Presidential Election.

What was established in February of 1973?

On February 5, 1973, Senator Edward Kennedy offered Senate Resolution 60 to establish a Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities to investigate campaign activities related to the presidential election of 1972.

Did John Mitchell divorce Martha Mitchell?

Jennings, however, spent a lot of time away from home, and (according to Mitchell) it led to the couple's separation on May 18, 1956 and eventual divorce on August 1, 1957. She once said as soon as she met John N.

Who was Richard Nixon's attorney general?

Nixon. John Newton Mitchell (September 5, 1913 – November 9, 1988) was an American lawyer, the 67th Attorney General of the United States under President Richard Nixon, chairman of Nixon's 1968 and 1972 presidential campaigns, and a convicted criminal. Prior to that, he had been a municipal bond lawyer and one of Nixon's closest personal friends.

Who was the Attorney General of the United States during Nixon's presidency?

John Newton Mitchell (September 5, 1913 – November 9, 1988) was an American lawyer, the 67th Attorney General of the United States under President Richard Nixon, chairman of Nixon's 1968 and 1972 presidential campaigns, and a convicted criminal. Prior to that, he had been a municipal bond lawyer and one of Nixon's closest personal friends.

Why was Mitchell in prison?

Due to multiple crimes he committed in the Watergate affair, Mitchell was sentenced to prison in 1977 and served 19 months. As Attorney General, he was noted for personifying the "law-and-order" positions of the Nixon Administration, amid several high-profile anti-war demonstrations.

What did Mitchell believe?

He advocated the use of wiretaps in national security cases without obtaining a court order ( United States v. U.S. District Court) and the right of police to employ the preventive detention of criminal suspects. He brought conspiracy charges against critics of the Vietnam War, likening them to brown shirts of the Nazi era in Germany.

How long was Mitchell in jail?

The sentence was later reduced to one to four years by United States district court Judge John J. Sirica. Mitchell served only 19 months of his sentence at Federal Prison Camp, Montgomery (in Maxwell Air Force Base) in Montgomery, Alabama, a minimum-security prison, before being released on parole for medical reasons.

What did Nixon order Mitchell to do?

Near the beginning of his administration, Nixon had ordered Mitchell to go slow on desegregation of schools in the South as part of Nixon's " Southern Strategy ," which focused on gaining support from Southern voters. After being instructed by the federal courts that segregation was unconstitutional and that the executive branch was required to enforce the rulings of the courts, Mitchell began to comply, threatening to withhold federal funds from those school systems that were still segregated and threatening legal action against them.

Who was Nixon's campaign manager?

Nixon campaign manager. In 1968, with considerable trepidation, John Mitchell agreed to become Nixon's presidential campaign manager. During his successful 1968 campaign, Nixon turned over the details of the day-to-day operations to Mitchell.

Who was fired from the Watergate scandal?

One of the most controversial episodes of the Watergate scandal, the so-called “Saturday Night Massacre” came on October 20, 1973, when embattled President Richard Nixon fired Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox and accepted the resignations of Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus.

Who fired Cox?

On October 20, 1973, in an unprecedented show of executive power, Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire Cox, but both men refused and resigned their posts in protest.

Who was the first woman to lead a major political party?

Hillary Clinton accepts Democratic nomination, becoming first woman to lead a major U.S. political party. Nixon’s attack on his own Justice Department came with grave consequences. More than 50,000 concerned citizens sent telegrams to Washington, and 21 members of Congress introduced resolutions calling for Nixon’s impeachment .

Who was Archibald Cox?

Archibald Cox, a Harvard law professor and former U.S. solicitor general, was tapped to investigate the incident in May 1973. He soon clashed with the White House over Nixon’s refusal to release over 10 hours of secret Oval Office recordings, some of which implicated the president in the break-in. On October 20, 1973, in an unprecedented show ...

Who was the attorney general of the United States during WWII?

Levi served as attorney general (President Bush) from Jan. 14, 1975 to Jan. 20, 1977. He was born in Chicago, IL (May 9, 1942) and attended the University of Chicago and Yale University. During WWII, he served in the DOJ Anti-Trust Division. Before being named AG, he was served in various leadership roles at the the Univeristy of Chicago, being named president in 1968. He was also a member of the White House Task Force on Education, 1966 to 1967. Died March 7, 2000.

Who was the attorney general of Georgia?

Bell served as attorney general (President Carter) from Jan. 26, 1977 to Aug. 16, 1979. He was born in Americus, GA (Oct. 31, 1918) and attended Georgia Southwestern College and Mercer Univerity Law School. He was a major in the US Army in WWII. In 1961, President John F. Kennedy appointed Bell to the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Bell led the effort to pass the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in 1978. He served on President George H.W. Bush's Commission on Federal Ethics Law Reform and was counsel to President Bush during the Iran-Contra affair.

What is the job of the Attorney General?

The US Attorney General (AG) is the head of the US Department of Justice and is the chief law enforcement officer of the US government. These are the Attorney Generals from 1960 to 1980.

Who was the White House Chief of Staff before the Watergate?

WASHINGTON - A year before the Watergate burglary, Richard Nixon instructed White House Chief of Staff H.R. Haldeman to break into the liberal-leaning Brookings Institution, rifle the files and "take it out" - steal material related to the conduct of Vietnam War, a newly released tape recording shows.

What was the Pentagon Papers?

Supreme Court had ruled that the New York Times and the Washington Post had been within their rights to publish the Pentagon Papers, a secret and deeply pessimistic Defense Department 20 study of U.S. military engagement in Vietnam.

What was the purpose of the burglary?

The purpose of the burglary was to get information that would discredit Ellsberg. The taped June 30, 1971, meeting, like all others inside the Nixon Oval Office, was recorded on a hidden system Nixon had installed to record his presidency.

Overview

Political career

In 1967, the firm of Caldwell, Trimble & Mitchell, where Mitchell was lead partner, merged with Richard Nixon's firm, Nixon, Mudge, Rose, Guthrie, & Alexander. Nixon was then officially in "political retirement" but was quietly organizing a return to politics in the 1968 Presidential Election. Mitchell, with his many contacts in local government, became an important strategic confident t…

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Early life

Mitchell was born in Detroit, Michigan, to Margaret (McMahon) and Joseph C. Mitchell. He grew up in the New York City borough of Queens. He earned his law degree from Fordham University School of Law and was admitted to the New York bar in 1938. He served for three years as a naval officer (Lieutenant, Junior Grade) during World War II where he was a PT boat commander.
Except for his period of military service, Mitchell practiced law in New York Cityfrom 1938 until 1…

New York government

Mitchell devised a type of revenue bond called a "moral obligation bond" while serving as bond counsel to New York's governor Nelson Rockefellerin the 1960s. In an effort to get around the voter approval process for increasing state and municipal borrower limits, Mitchell attached language to the offerings that was able to communicate the state's intent to meet the bond payments while not placing it under a legal obligation to do so. Mitchell did not dispute when as…

Committee to Re-elect the President scandal

John Mitchell's name was mentioned in a deposition concerning Robert L. Vesco, an international financier who was a fugitive from a federal indictment. Mitchell and Nixon Finance Committee Chairman Maurice H. Stans were indicted in May 1973 on federal charges of obstructing an investigation of Vesco after he made a $200,000 contribution to the Nixon campaign. In April 1974, both men were a…

Watergate scandal

In the days immediately after the Watergate break-in of June 17, 1972, Mitchell enlisted former FBI agent Steve King to prevent his wife Martha from learning about the break-in or contacting reporters. While she was on a phone call with journalist Helen Thomasabout the break-in, King pulled the phone cord from the wall. Mrs. Mitchell was held against her will in a California hotel room and forci…

Death

Around 5:00 pm on November 9, 1988, Mitchell collapsed from a heart attack on the sidewalk in front of 2812 N Street NW in the Georgetown area of Washington, D.C., and died that evening at George Washington University Hospital. He was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery, based on his World War II Naval service and his cabinet post of Attorney General.

In popular culture

• John Randolph had an uncredited role in the 1976 film All the President's Men as the voice of John Mitchell.
• Mitchell's archival footages are shown in Slow Burn.
• He was portrayed by E. G. Marshall in Oliver Stone's 1995 film Nixon.