News stories from Wednesday March 6, 1974
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- Attorney James St. Clair revealed that President Nixon is willing to turn over the same evidence to the House Judiciary Committee as was given to the Watergate grand jury. The President also agreed to answer the committee's questions pertaining to its impeachment probe. St. Clair made the announcement during Judge John Sirica's hearing regarding the Watergate grand jury's report. Committee counsel John Doar stated that the committee wants the report, but John Wilson, the attorney for H.R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, insists that the report should not be released.
House Judiciary Committee members disagreed with Judge Sirica's suggestion to the delay the impeachment probe. They are also skeptical of the President's intention to cooperation with the committee. Representative Jerome Waldie stated that postponement of the impeachment inquiry is "unthinkable" and the White House offer of cooperation is inadequate. Other committee Democrats agreed with Waldie.
The White House offer to cooperate only goes so far; the committee's request for evidence goes beyond that offer. Committee chairman Peter Rodino refused to rule out using subpoenas to obtain evidence.
[CBS] - President Nixon announced a press conference for tonight. Not included among the likely topics for discussion is an announcement that the Arab oil embargo is being lifted. The news conference will be broadcast at 7:30 p.m. by CBS. [CBS]
- White House press secretary Ron Ziegler corrected Gerald Warren's earlier statement regarding President Nixon's telephone conversation with H.R. Haldeman. Ziegler stated that the President only congratulated Haldeman on his silver wedding anniversary and made no mention of the Watergate indictments. [CBS]
- The Democratic candidate won in Ohio's special congressional election; Republicans held on to the seat in California's 13th district.
In Ohio, Cincinnati Democrat Tom Luken won over Willis Gradison. Democratic strategist Mark Shields declared that voters found a connection between America's problems and corruption in Washington. Republican strategist Eddie Maye blamed Gradison's loss on the candidate's strategy and voter dissatisfaction with government. In Ventura County, California, Republican Robert Lagomarsino won against seven Democrats, so the Democratic vote was heavily divided. Lagomarsino warnedthat his win is a victory only for himself and his supporters, not the President. The major issue in Ohio concerned abortion; Gradison refused to back an anti-abortion amendment and lost many Catholic votes.
Vice President Gerald Ford said that Republicans are beginning their comeback now and the California win was encouraging. He admitted that President Nixon figured into the Ohio loss, however. Senator Robert Dole noted that every Democrat elected means another vote for impeachment. Senator Robert Taft pleaded that Watergate be cleared up so independent votes can again go to Republican candidates. Disapproval of the President was the biggest single factor in the win for Democrat Tom Luken in Ohio.
[CBS] - The Internal Revenue Service revoked a 1969 tax ruling that enabled the International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation to acquire the Hartford Fire Insurance Company in the nation's largest corporate merger. The revocation, which is retroactive, could cost stockholders who exchanged Hartford stock for I.T.T. shares an estimated $35 million to $100 million in capital gains taxes that had been deferred under the 1969 I.R.S. ruling. [New York Times]
- A government witness at the Mitchell-Stans trial testified that he had been told that Maurice Stans had asked Robert Vesco to make his $200,000 contribution to President Nixon's re-election campaign in cash. The testimony of the witness, Harry Sears, appeared to contradict testimony that Mr. Stans made to a federal jury in 1973. [New York Times]
- The Senate sidestepped the politically sensitive issue of congressional pay increases in an election year by killing all proposed raises for Congress, the judiciary and top-level federal officials. By rejecting the President's entire 22.5 percent three-year package of pay increases, the Senate effectively killed any raises for Congress and other high-level officials for the immediate future. [New York Times]
- Britain's new Labor government and leaders of the striking coal miners agreed on a wage settlement that gives the strikers virtually everything they had demanded. The workers are expected to return to their jobs early next week and Prime Minister Wilson will move to end the three-day work week that has crippled most of British industry for more than two months. [New York Times]
- The French reacted sharply to new American criticism of their policies and those of their European partners. French diplomatic sources challenged the State Department's assertion that the Common Market had failed to consult the United States before making a broad offer of cooperation with Arab countries. And government-inspired press comment indicated that a war of words has broken out.
High administration officials said the government has begun to re-examine its policy toward France in light of what it regards as French attempts to separate the European Common Market from the United States. Though Secretary of State Kissinger reportedly wants to avoid a confrontation that would force Europe to choose between the United States and France, he is apparently anticipating developments that would require a sharp anti-French response.
[New York Times]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 879.85 (+7.43, +0.85%)
Arms Index is the ratio of volume per declining issue to volume per advancing issue; a figure below 1.0 is bullish. | |||||||||||||||
| Market Index Trends | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | DJIA | S&P | Volume* |
| March 5, 1974 | 872.42 | 97.32 | 21.98 |
| March 4, 1974 | 853.18 | 95.53 | 12.27 |
| March 1, 1974 | 851.92 | 95.53 | 12.88 |
| February 28, 1974 | 860.53 | 96.22 | 13.68 |
| February 27, 1974 | 863.42 | 96.40 | 18.73 |
| February 26, 1974 | 859.51 | 96.00 | 15.86 |
| February 25, 1974 | 851.38 | 95.03 | 12.90 |
| February 22, 1974 | 855.99 | 95.39 | 16.36 |
| February 21, 1974 | 846.84 | 94.71 | 13.93 |
| February 20, 1974 | 831.04 | 93.44 | 11.67 |