Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, July 10, 1973 (1/2)
Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, July 10, 1973 (1/2)
[00.55.26-GURNEY interrogating MITCHELL-MITCHELL'S answers attack DEAN and defend NIXON] Senator GURNEY. Well, that I think is the meeting We, are talking about. His memorandum says that he talked about the fifth amendment, "I told him that would not only 'hurt me, personally 'but, also hurt the President. Did he discuss that with you? Mr. MITCHELL. The fifth amendment? Senator GURNEY. Taking the fifth amendment. Mr. MITCHELL. Yes. he did, yes, he did. Senator GURNEY. Was that pretty much the discussion that you had with him? Mr. MITCHELL. AS best I can recall it, The only thing that disturbs me. about that meeting was that the prosecutors wanted him to tape it and I wish the hell he had so we, would have an accurate description of what took place, not, just his recollection. Senator GURNEY. He also said he talked. about privilege- I suppose that was in matters discussed between him and the President? Mr. MITCHELL. Well, excuse me, Senator, for interrupting, but at that particular time they were all subject. matters being quite widely debated in the press as well as his individual problems, Senator GURNEY. Yes. Mr. MITCHELL. And, of course, by that time he had long Since gone to Counsel and to the prosecutors so that, he was pretty well advised on this, on not only his options but, as to how he should, I am sure, present them. Senator GURNEY. Well, why do you think he spent, all this time talking about these things with you? Call you give, your version of what this meeting was all about? Mr. MITCHELL. What the version of the, meeting? Senator GURNEY. Yes. Mr. 'MITCHELL. Well, I think the memorandum outside or a few little self-serving vignettes about, it, I think currently did set forth what the circumstances were. I was going to be in Washington, of course. John Dean and I had discussed this matter Over very many months and I think that he was coming to tell me, without telling me he. had gone to the prosecutors et cetera, that he had come to the end of the road and these were his options. and he Was going to have to take one of them. Senator GURNEY. Who requested the meeting? Mr. MITCHELL. I don't recall. Senator Senator GURNEY. He indicates that you had requested the meeting. Mr. MITCHELL. I don't recall his testimony In that respect. it may very well be that I was to be hi Washington and see him and be brought up under current, developments in connection with the matter As you know. this followed the March 22 meeting and the March 28 meeting that we had had. Senator GURNEY. The memorandum starts out here, "'Mitchell had called the day before requesting that I meet with him in Washington. Ehrlichman and Haldeman both told me I should meet with him to tell him that I would be going before the grand jury. Accordingly I agreed on the meeting after being advised by counsel." That at is his is version of that. Mr. MITCHELL. Pardon? Senator GURNEY. That is his version of it, of who called the Meeting. Mr. MITCHELL. Well. as I say I have no recollection of who called it. I am perfectly willing to accept it on that basis. there wouldn't be, anything unique about my going to Washington to see John Dean under these, circumstances even though they had progressed to this point because obviously he had done a lot of things that I was completely unaware of until some of them even came out in this meeting. [00.59.13-GURNEY is satisfied with the answer, although MITCHELL doesn't reveal much here] Senator GURNEY. Just one final question Mr. Mitchell, When do you think the President found out about Watergate and the coverup? Mr. MITCHELL. I haven't any idea. Senator. I haven't any idea at all. If I had to speculate, I would speculate that he probably found out about the coverup when he, talked to the people, in the Government and got the true story out of the people in Government. Senator GURNEY. This would be in what time frame? Mr. MITCHELL. I haven't any idea. I wasn't involved in it. I just haven't discussed it with him or with the people in Government. Senator GURNEY. Thank you very much, Mr. Mitchell. I have no more questions." Senator ERVIN. The committee, will stand in recess until 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. [00.59.54-Senators stand to leave] [01.00.01-MacNEILL in studio] MacNEILL states that the first day of MITCHELL'S testimony has ended with his reputation for being unflappable still intact, although there were signs of trouble as Sen. TALMADGE hinted that MITCHELL may have committed perjury by telling the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1972 that he did not have campaign duties prior to resigning as attorney general. Mitchell has now admitted that he did have campaign duties at that time, but contended the debate involves semantics and not points of substance. [01.00.34-TAPE OUT]