U.S. President Richard Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox ; Richardson refused and resigned effective immediately.
Archibald Cox
Archibald Cox Jr.
Kennedy and as a special prosecutor during the Watergate scandal. During his career, he was a pioneering expert on labor law and was also an authority on constitutional law. The Journal of Legal Studies has identified Cox as one of the most cited legal scholars of the 20th century.
Kennedy and as a special prosecutor during the Watergate scandal. During his career, he was a pioneering expert on labor law and was also an authority on constitutional law. The Journal of Legal Studies has identified Cox as one of the most cited legal scholars of the 20th century.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Archibald_Cox
Who was the Attorney General under Nixon?
The role of attorney general then fell to Solicitor General Robert Bork, who reluctantly complied with Nixon’s request and dismissed Cox. Less than a half hour later, the White House dispatched FBI agents to close off the offices of the Special Prosecutor, Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General.
Who ordered Cox to be fired as Attorney General?
However, on the following day (Saturday), Nixon ordered Attorney General Richardson to fire Cox. Richardson refused and resigned in protest. Nixon then ordered Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire Cox.
Who did Nixon fire from the investigation into his campaign?
Richard Nixon also fired the person investigating his presidential campaign. On the night of Saturday, October 20, 1973, President Nixon ordered Cox’s firing. However, the person with authority to dismiss Cox, Nixon’s Attorney General Elliot Richardson, refused to carry out the order. Instead, Richardson resigned.
Did Nixon attack his own Justice Department?
An attack by President Nixon on his own Justice Department came with grave consequences.
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What happened to Nixon's attorney general?
After his tenure as U.S. Attorney General, he served as chairman of Nixon's 1972 presidential campaign. Due to multiple crimes he committed in the Watergate affair, Mitchell was sentenced to prison in 1977 and served 19 months.
What did Robert Bork do for Nixon?
On October 20, 1973, Solicitor General Bork was instrumental in the "Saturday Night Massacre" when President Richard Nixon ordered the firing of Watergate Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox following Cox's request for tapes of his Oval Office conversations.
Who resigned during Watergate?
The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of U.S. President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation.
Why was Robert Bork rejected for the Supreme Court?
Bork's nomination precipitated contentious debate. Opposition to his nomination centered on his perceived willingness to roll back the civil rights rulings of the Warren and Burger courts, and his role in the Saturday Night Massacre during the Watergate scandal.
What does Bork mean in slang?
Definition of bork (Entry 2 of 2) transitive verb. slang. : to cause (something, such as an electronic device) to stop working properly : break If your data's backed up, it won't be the end of the world if a rogue Windows update or nasty bit of malware borks your computer.— Brad Chacos — see also borked.
What was James McCord role in Watergate?
James Walter McCord Jr. (January 26, 1924 – June 15, 2017) was an American CIA officer, later head of security for President Richard Nixon's 1972 reelection campaign. He was involved as an electronics expert in the burglaries which precipitated the Watergate scandal.
Who was Martha Mitchell Watergate?
Martha Elizabeth Beall Mitchell (September 2, 1918 – May 31, 1976) was the wife of John N. Mitchell, United States Attorney General under President Richard Nixon. She became an embarrassment to Richard M. Nixon because of her comments to the media about the government at the time of the Watergate scandal.
Who resigned in 1973?
Spiro Theodore Agnew (November 9, 1918 – September 17, 1996) was the 39th vice president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1973. He is the second vice president to resign the position, the other being John C. Calhoun in 1832.
Who was the Attorney General of the United States during the Watergate scandal?
U.S. President Richard Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox; Richardson refused and resigned effective immediately.
Why did Nixon resign?
Nixon's presidency succumbed to mounting pressure resulting from the Watergate scandal and its cover-up. Faced with almost certain impeachment and conviction, Nixon resigned. In his posthumously published memoirs, Bork said Nixon promised him the next seat on the Supreme Court following Bork's role in firing Cox.
What was Nixon's compromise?
On Friday, October 19, 1973, Nixon offered what was later known as the Stennis Compromise – asking the infamously hard-of-hearing Senator John C. Stennis of Mississippi to review and summarize the tapes for the special prosecutor's office.
What movie was the Saturday Night Massacre?
The Final Days (book, film) Dick (1999 film) Mark Felt: The Man who Brought. Down the White House (2017 film) Slow Burn (2020 series) v. t. e. The Saturday Night Massacre was a series of events that took place in the United States on the evening of Saturday, October 20, 1973, during the Watergate scandal.
How many people supported Nixon's impeachment?
citizens supported impeaching Nixon, with 44% in favor, 43% opposed, and 13% undecided, with a sampling error of 2 to 3 per cent.
Who was the special prosecutor in the Watergate scandal?
Leon Jaworski was appointed as the new special prosecutor on November 1, 1973, and on November 14, 1973, United States District Judge Gerhard Gesell ruled that the dismissal had been illegal. The Saturday Night Massacre marked the turning point of the Watergate scandal as the public, while increasingly uncertain about Nixon's actions in Watergate, ...
Where did the phrase "saturday night massacre" come from?
Origin of the phrase. The actual origin of the phrase is unknown; it first appeared in writing two days after the events, in a Washington Post article by David S. Broder on October 22, but even in that article, Broder writes that the events were already "being called" the Saturday Night Massacre.
Who was fired after Richardson submitted his resignation?
After Richardson submitted his resignation, the President directed Ruckelshaus to dismiss Cox. When Ruckelshaus refused to carry out the President's directive, he also was "discharged," Ziegler said. The President's letter to Bork said Ruckelshaus resigned. Mr. Nixon then directed Bork to carry out the instruction.
Who met with Nixon at the White House?
Richardson met at the White House in the late afternoon with Mr. Nixon and at 8:25 p.m. Ziegler appeared in the White House press room to read a statement outlining the President's decisions.
Who said "no desire to come out and talk to newsmen"?
At the Justice Department, where there were repeated requests by newsmen to interview Richardson and Ruckelshaus, department spokesman John W. Hushen said they had "no desire to come out and talk to newsmen.". Hushen quoted Bork: "All I will say is that I carried out the President's directive.".
Why did Richardson not dismiss Cox?
Before taking action, Ziegler said, the President met with Richardson to instruct him to dismiss Cox, but Richardson felt he could not do so because it conflicted with the promise he had made to the Senate, Ziegler said. After Richardson submitted his resignation , the President directed Ruckelshaus to dismiss Cox.
Who fired Cox after the Stennis compromise?
After the failure of the Stennis Compromise, Nixon ordered Richardson to dismiss Cox. Richardson refused and resigned, as did his deputy, Ruckelshaus. Bork ultimately was the one to fire Cox.
Why did Nixon erase the tapes?
Most plausible, according to Drew, is Ehrlichman's allegation that Nixon personally erased the tapes, presumably because they contained yet more discussion of a cover-up. Three days after the tapes’ existence became known to the public, Nixon resigned from the presidency.
Who was fired after Richardson submitted his resignation?
After Richardson submitted his resignation, the President directed Ruckelshaus to dismiss Cox. When Ruckelshaus refused to carry out the President’s directive, he also was “discharged,” Ziegler said. The President’s letter to Bork said Ruckelshaus resigned. Mr. Nixon then directed Bork to carry out the instruction.
Who said "no desire to come out and talk to newsmen"?
At the Justice Department, where there were repeated requests by newsmen to interview Richardson and Ruckelshaus, department spokesman John W. Hushen said they had “no desire to come out and talk to newsmen.”. Hushen quoted Bork: “All I will say is that I carried out the President’s directive.”.
What did the President say in the letter to Bork?
The President’s letter to Bork said Ruckelshaus resigned. Mr. Nixon then directed Bork to carry out the instruction. Bork did so in a two-paragraph letter to Cox, in which he said that at the instruction of the President he was “discharging you, effective at once, from your position as special prosecutor, Watergate special prosecution force.”. ...
Why did Richardson not dismiss Cox?
Before taking action, Ziegler said, the President met with Richardson to instruct him to dismiss Cox, but Richardson felt he could not do so because it conflicted with the promise he had made to the Senate, Ziegler said. After Richardson submitted his resignation , the President directed Ruckelshaus to dismiss Cox.
What time did Richardson call his friends?
Beginning about 8 p.m., Richardson spent an hour or so calling “relatives, friends and associates,” Hushen said. White House aides, visibly shocked by the developments, argued that when direct quotations from the presidential tapes are released they will restore confidence in the President.
Why was Cox discharged?
The President discharged Cox because he “refused to comply with instructions” the President gave him Friday night through the Attorney General, Ziegler said. Furthermore, Ziegler said, the office of special prosecutor was abolished and its functions have been turned over to the Department of Justice. The department will carry out the functions of ...
What did Richardson say to the President?
Richardson told the President in his letter that he was resigning with “deep regret.”. He explained that when named Attorney General “you gave me the authority to name a special prosecutor.”.
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.
What was the impact of Nixon's attack on the Justice Department?
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 .
What was the Watergate massacre?
The “massacre” stemmed from an inquiry into the notorious June 1972 break-in at the Watergate complex, in which five Nixon operatives were caught trying to bug the Democratic National Committee headquarters.
Overview
The Saturday Night Massacre was a series of events that took place in the United States on the evening of Saturday, October 20, 1973, during the Watergate scandal. U.S. President Richard Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox; Richardson refused and resigned effective immediately. Nixon then ordered Deputy Attorney General Wi…
History
U.S. Attorney General Elliot Richardson had appointed Cox in May 1973 after promising the House Judiciary Committee that he would appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the events surrounding the break-in of the Democratic National Committee's offices at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C., on June 17, 1972. The appointment was created as a career reserved position in the Ju…
Aftermath
Initially, the Nixon White House claimed to have fired Ruckelshaus, but as an article published the next day by The Washington Post pointed out, "The letter from the President to Bork also said Ruckelshaus resigned", catching Nixon lying.
The night he was fired, Cox's deputy prosecutor and press aides held an impassioned news briefing and read the following statement from him, "Whether ours shall continue to be a govern…
Origin of the phrase
The actual origin of the phrase is unknown; it first appeared in writing two days after the events, in a Washington Post article by David S. Broder on October 22, but even in that article, Broder writes that the events were already "being called" the Saturday Night Massacre. In a 2017 article in the Washington Post, Amy B. Wang attributed the phrase to humorist Art Buchwald, based on the recollection of Sally Quinn.
Impact and legacy
Nixon felt political pressure to allow Bork to appoint a new special prosecutor, and Bork chose Leon Jaworski. There was a question whether Jaworski would limit his investigation to the Watergate break-in or follow Cox's lead and look into other corrupt activities, such as those involving the "White House Plumbers". Continuing Cox's investigation, Jaworski did look at broader corruption involving the White House.
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