News stories from Wednesday October 24, 1973
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- President Nixon cancelled tonight's televised speech regarding the White House tapes: the news conference has been rescheduled for 9 p.m. Thursday night and will be carried live by CBS. The President claimed that the Middle East crisis caused the delay of the scheduled speech.
AFL-CIO president George Meany said that the public is aware of Nixon's "emotional instability"; press secretary Gerald Warren accused Meany of irresponsibility in making that statement.
[CBS] - The impeachment inquiry in Congress continues despite the President's decision to turn over the White House tapes. House Speaker Carl Albert insisted that the process be continued, and House Judiciary Committee chairman Peter Rodino met with Democratic members to decide the best way to pursue impeachment. Rodino may subpoena former prosecutor Archibald Cox's files in the investigation. Democrat representative John Seiberling declared that the committee has the duty to either clear the President of criminal implications, or impeach him. [CBS]
- The Senate Judiciary Committee will begin public hearings on Monday regarding President Nixon's firing of special Watergate prosecutor Archibald Cox. Cox will be the first witness. The committee hopes to establish a prosecutor under the control of the courts or Congress -- not the White House. The Senate Republican leadership urged the President to name a new prosecutor. [CBS]
- In a taped interview, former special Watergate prosecutor Archibald Cox was asked if the tape crisis was manipulated to ensure his departure. Cox admitted that his "suggestions" were not accepted by White House attorneys before he was fired, but no real basis exists to suspect manipulation. Cox claimed that he made several compromise proposals regarding the tapes and he stated that former Attorney General Elliot Richardson might have agreed on a compromise, but President Nixon's attorney Charles Wright flatly denied the release of tapes or other documents to Cox.
Cox said that the investigation into Watergate won't be effective if handled by the Justice Department, so he hopes Congress will appoint a new prosecutor independent of the White House. Cox was asked if he could reveal lines of inquiry besides Watergate that may have worried the White House. He mentioned that several topics were under investigation including campaign funds and the ITT affair, but Cox wasn't sure if the White House considered those probes to be overly sensitive. When asked about campaign funds being diverted into a private trust fund for the President, Cox replied that it was improper for him to discuss that.
Regarding possibly impeachable offenses by President Nixon, Cox referred to John Dean's testimony before the Senate Watergate committee which implicated the President in wrongdoing, adding that he believes the President's failure to comply with the court order to yield the White House tapes would have been grounds for impeachment. Cox refused to say whether Dean's testimony has been substantiated, but noted that Dean has little to gain by perjuring himself.
As to the significance of the White House tapes, Cox said he hoped the tapes will reveal the guilt or innocence of H.R. Haldeman, John Ehrlichman and John Mitchell and reveal any presidential knowledge about Watergate. Cox further stated that his files are stored safely in the Justice Department, he believes that the tapes "probably" weren't tampered with, and it is unlikely that he will accept another assignment as prosecutor.
[CBS] - Acting Attorney General Robert Bork stated that he intends to continue the Watergate investigation vigorously. Bork held a news conference to explain the future of the investigation. [CBS]
- Fighting flared briefly in the Mideast today, but the cease-fire seems to be working better now. Egypt requested that the United Nations Security Council listen to its grievances regarding Israeli cease-fire violations. Egypt also requested that the United States and Soviet Union send peacekeeping troops to the Middle East to enforce the cease-fire. President Nixon reportedly rejected that request, but he hopes that the U.S. and the Soviets will decrease the amount of military supplies being sent to the Arabs and Israelis. [CBS]
- On the northern front, Israel now holds a large chunk of the Golan Heights. In the south, some tank battles continued along the Suez. Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan reported that the Egyptian 3rd army is surrounded and close to surrendering. [CBS]
- Secretary of State Henry Kissinger's visit to China has been rescheduled for November 10. [CBS]
- President Nixon vetoed the bill limiting the war-making powers of the president. [CBS]
- Eleven people were killed and 40 injured on the New Jersey turnpike in a series of accidents. Authorities blamed fog and smoke for the tragedies. Another chain reaction crash occurred outside Detroit. No one was injured seriously in that 50 car pileup. [CBS]
|
Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 971.85 (+5.34, +0.55%)
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* |
| October 23, 1973 | 966.51 | 109.75 | 17.23 |
| October 22, 1973 | 960.57 | 109.16 | 14.29 |
| October 19, 1973 | 963.73 | 110.22 | 17.88 |
| October 18, 1973 | 959.74 | 110.01 | 19.21 |
| October 17, 1973 | 962.52 | 109.97 | 18.60 |
| October 16, 1973 | 967.41 | 110.19 | 18.78 |
| October 15, 1973 | 967.04 | 110.05 | 16.16 |
| October 12, 1973 | 978.63 | 111.44 | 22.73 |
| October 11, 1973 | 976.07 | 111.09 | 20.74 |
| October 10, 1973 | 960.57 | 109.22 | 19.01 |