Source: Garrett M. Graff. Watergate - A New History (2022)
On 20 October 1973 (Saturday), Cox worked on what he would say at his press conference that afternoon at the National Press Club, which would be televised by all three networks. Before Cox left to deliver his statement, Richardson told him that he’d sent a letter to the White House where he stated that the Attorney General would stand by the Special Prosecutor. Cox, with Richardson’s backing, took to the podium, where he told assembled reporters that he was not looking for a confrontation with the White House over the tapes. Reporters kept asking Cox if he thought he was going to be fired, and Cox, after explaining the procedures of how he could be removed, stated, “Eventually, a President can always work his will”. Afterwards, Cox and his team thought his address and his answers to the reporters’ questions had gone well, and the Special Prosecutor went home to await his fate.
The White House was in crisis mode. Nixon and his inner circle had only imagined three paths for Cox: 1) Accept the President’s wishes and stand down; 2) Ask the courts to find the President in non-compliance; 3) Resign as Special Prosecutor. The White House had not considered that Cox would make a public, principled stand and become a sympathetic figure. At 2:07 pm, Garment called Richardson and asked the AG if he would fire Cox, and then resign in protest, and Richardson refused. Thirteen minutes later Haig called Richardson, informing him that Nixon was ordering him as Attorney General to fire Cox. Richardson told Haig that he couldn’t do that, and that he’d come over to the White House and resign. Richardson alerted Ruckelshaus to what was going on, where Ruckelshaus said he’d stand by the Attorney General. Both men summoned US Solicitor General Robert Bork, who had only been in office for four months, but had already become a rising star in the conservative legal world.
The White House was in crisis mode. Nixon and his inner circle had only imagined three paths for Cox: 1) Accept the President’s wishes and stand down; 2) Ask the courts to find the President in non-compliance; 3) Resign as Special Prosecutor. The White House had not considered that Cox would make a public, principled stand and become a sympathetic figure. At 2:07 pm, Garment called Richardson and asked the AG if he would fire Cox, and then resign in protest, and Richardson refused. Thirteen minutes later Haig called Richardson, informing him that Nixon was ordering him as Attorney General to fire Cox. Richardson told Haig that he couldn’t do that, and that he’d come over to the White House and resign. Richardson alerted Ruckelshaus to what was going on, where Ruckelshaus said he’d stand by the Attorney General. Both men summoned US Solicitor General Robert Bork, who had only been in office for four months, but had already become a rising star in the conservative legal world.
When he was informed of the situation, Bork grew angry and started to pace the office, in that he was worried about losing his job as US Solicitor General, which had grown to love. Despite his discomfort at what Nixon was doing, Bork’s view was that the President had the legal right to fire Cox, since the Special Prosecutor was an employee of the Executive Branch; therefore, if Nixon ordered him to fire Cox, he would do so. Also affecting Bork’s decision was that if he refused and resigned, the Justice Department would be left leaderless. Bork believed that he had a bright future in Republican politics, and he didn’t want to be seen as Nixon’s hatchet man. Richardson and Ruckelshaus assured Bork that they would publicly state that they urged him to stay at his post, which took most of the pressure off the Solicitor General.
At the White House, Haig met with Richardson in order to try and change the Attorney General’s mind about resigning, suggesting that he delay announcing his resignation by a week, but Richardson was not swayed. Haig took Richardson to the Oval Office, where the Attorney General immediately felt Nixon’s wrath. Nixon wanted Cox gone and for Richardson to remain AG until the fighting in the Middle East was over, not wanting to look weak in the face of such a crisis. Richardson responded by saying to the President that he was acting in the national interest by resigning. The two men talked from 4:42 - 4:58 pm on 20 October 1973, and at the end of that time, Richardson told Nixon that “I feel I have no choice but to go forward with this” [resigning].
When Richardson arrived back at Justice, his staff knew how the meeting had gone by looking at his face, and Ruckelshaus girded himself for history to bear down on him. Minutes later, Ruckelshaus received a call from the White House, during which time Richardson told Bork that he had about five minutes to make up his mind on what to do, since the White House would be calling him next.
At the White House, Haig met with Richardson in order to try and change the Attorney General’s mind about resigning, suggesting that he delay announcing his resignation by a week, but Richardson was not swayed. Haig took Richardson to the Oval Office, where the Attorney General immediately felt Nixon’s wrath. Nixon wanted Cox gone and for Richardson to remain AG until the fighting in the Middle East was over, not wanting to look weak in the face of such a crisis. Richardson responded by saying to the President that he was acting in the national interest by resigning. The two men talked from 4:42 - 4:58 pm on 20 October 1973, and at the end of that time, Richardson told Nixon that “I feel I have no choice but to go forward with this” [resigning].
When Richardson arrived back at Justice, his staff knew how the meeting had gone by looking at his face, and Ruckelshaus girded himself for history to bear down on him. Minutes later, Ruckelshaus received a call from the White House, during which time Richardson told Bork that he had about five minutes to make up his mind on what to do, since the White House would be calling him next.
Over the phone, Haig gave Ruckelshaus the same speech he gave Richardson. Ruckelshaus suggested that Cox be fired in a week, and that he’d stay around, but that he wouldn’t fire Cox before he resigned as Deputy Attorney General. Haig responded by saying “Your Commander-in-Chief” has given you an order”, and at that point Ruckelshous verbally tendered his resignation. Haig refused to accept Ruckelshaus’ resignation, and fired him outright. Bork was then summoned to the White House, picked up in a limousine with Leonard Garment and Fred Buzhardt. Once at the White House, Bork told Haig that he would fire Cox, with his only question being whether or not to resign after doing so.
Haig ordered the Justice Department to send over official stationary while Haig and his staffers wrote a draft for Bork to issue that fired Cox as the Acting Attorney General. After reading the final draft, Bork signed the document, and Cox was fired. At 5:59 pm, only an hour after Richardson left the Oval Office, Bork entered the Oval Office as the Acting Attorney General. It was the third time that Nixon and Bork had met, and this meeting lasted only nine minutes. Bork saw a defeated man in the Oval Office, even though he had succeeded in firing Cox. Nixon asked Bork if he wanted to be the next Attorney General, and Bork responded by saying that he thought it would be inappropriate given the circumstances.
Richardson called Cox to inform him that he had been fired as Special Prosecutor, as well as his resignation as AG, At that point, Richardson felt totally betrayed by Nixon and the White House, now knowing that he had been led on via a sham, that there had never been an attempt to allow a full investigation of Watergate. And worse yet, the White House had tried to enlist his integrity as an accomplice in the conspiracy.
Haig ordered the Justice Department to send over official stationary while Haig and his staffers wrote a draft for Bork to issue that fired Cox as the Acting Attorney General. After reading the final draft, Bork signed the document, and Cox was fired. At 5:59 pm, only an hour after Richardson left the Oval Office, Bork entered the Oval Office as the Acting Attorney General. It was the third time that Nixon and Bork had met, and this meeting lasted only nine minutes. Bork saw a defeated man in the Oval Office, even though he had succeeded in firing Cox. Nixon asked Bork if he wanted to be the next Attorney General, and Bork responded by saying that he thought it would be inappropriate given the circumstances.
Richardson called Cox to inform him that he had been fired as Special Prosecutor, as well as his resignation as AG, At that point, Richardson felt totally betrayed by Nixon and the White House, now knowing that he had been led on via a sham, that there had never been an attempt to allow a full investigation of Watergate. And worse yet, the White House had tried to enlist his integrity as an accomplice in the conspiracy.
After the Richardson-Ruckelshaus-Bork drama, Nixon retired to the White House residence with BeBe Rebozo. At about the same time, Ron Ziegler announced that the Watergate Special Prosecutor’s Office had been abolished, which sent shock waves through DC. Breathless television reporters treated the situation as if it was the equivalent of being on the front lines in a battle in a war. What added gasoline to the fire was that Gerald Ford hadn’t yet been confirmed as Vice-President, which meant that the next in line for the Presidency was Speaker of the House Carl Albert, a Democrat from Oklahoma.
The media immediately dubbed the series of events the “Saturday Night Massacre”. FBI Special Agent Angelo Lano was ordered to secure the offices of the Special Prosecutor, the order originally coming from Haig. Lano tried to secure the offices, but the staffers did their best to delay and obstruct, which led to Lano calling Henry Petersen for guidance. While that was happening, staffers secreted away as many documents as they could manage. Cox’s deputy called Bork, and as best as anyone could figure out, only the Special Prosecutor had been abolished; those other than Cox that worked in the office still worked for the Justice Department, which meant they were still able to move forward, albeit under new supervision. In the opinion of one of Cox’s leading staffers, the White House was continuing in the same pattern that night as it had with all of Watergate: corrupt intent matched with incompetence.
The media immediately dubbed the series of events the “Saturday Night Massacre”. FBI Special Agent Angelo Lano was ordered to secure the offices of the Special Prosecutor, the order originally coming from Haig. Lano tried to secure the offices, but the staffers did their best to delay and obstruct, which led to Lano calling Henry Petersen for guidance. While that was happening, staffers secreted away as many documents as they could manage. Cox’s deputy called Bork, and as best as anyone could figure out, only the Special Prosecutor had been abolished; those other than Cox that worked in the office still worked for the Justice Department, which meant they were still able to move forward, albeit under new supervision. In the opinion of one of Cox’s leading staffers, the White House was continuing in the same pattern that night as it had with all of Watergate: corrupt intent matched with incompetence.
The next day (21 October 1973, Sunday), Acting Attorney General Robert Bork watched the media coverage and was aghast at how badly executed the whole affair had been on Nixon’s side of the coin. Bork was also displeased with the media’s use of the word “massacre”. The ferocious intensity of the public response to the “Saturday Night Massacre” stunned Nixon, with condemnation of Nixon’s actions coming from allies and enemies alike. America was responding en masse to Cox’s firing, viewing him as a political martyr. Nixon and his inner circle reeled, but kept insisting that the President had acted legally. The White House Communications Director bluntly asked the press what crime or misdemeanor did the President commit in firing Cox.
On Monday, thinking that their offices were now bugged, the leaders of the Watergate Special Prosecutor’s Force met in a conference room in a nearby law firm, unsure of what they should do. Their spirits were buoyed by the rising public outrage, and Henry Ruth, now in charge of the office, suggested that they move forward as normally as possible, to in essence force the White House to stop them. That evening, Ruth and other members of his staff met with Bork at Justice, and the Acting AG told them to keep working. Bork was no doubt acting on a combination of enforcing the rule of law while also working on his political survival. Henry Petersen turned out to be the high-ranking Justice official that was against the group moving forward, but Bork assured the group that he would have their back. Bork went so far to say that the group could go to court for any tapes and documents they needed, and if the White House gave you any grief, then publicly resign.
On Monday, thinking that their offices were now bugged, the leaders of the Watergate Special Prosecutor’s Force met in a conference room in a nearby law firm, unsure of what they should do. Their spirits were buoyed by the rising public outrage, and Henry Ruth, now in charge of the office, suggested that they move forward as normally as possible, to in essence force the White House to stop them. That evening, Ruth and other members of his staff met with Bork at Justice, and the Acting AG told them to keep working. Bork was no doubt acting on a combination of enforcing the rule of law while also working on his political survival. Henry Petersen turned out to be the high-ranking Justice official that was against the group moving forward, but Bork assured the group that he would have their back. Bork went so far to say that the group could go to court for any tapes and documents they needed, and if the White House gave you any grief, then publicly resign.
As the following Tuesday unfolded after the “Saturday Night Massacre”, Nixon and his inner circle found themselves backed into a corner even further, with the House Republican Conference flat-out telling Nixon that if he wanted their support, he needed to turn over the tapes. House Majority Leader Tip O’Neill (D; MA) spoke on Watergate officially for the first time, saying that Nixon’s conduct brought shame to the office and the nation.
Very soon thereafter, 84 representatives introduced impeachment resolutions, and 98 introduced bills that called for an appointment of a new Special Prosecutor, with 57 senators doing the same in their chamber. Nixon assessed the legal damage with Haig and his three lawyers, Buzhardt, Wright, and Garment. They all agreed that the point had been reached in which they needed to turn over the tapes. The next day in Judge Sirica’s courtroom, where the judge had prepared an order for Nixon to appear in court the following day or face possible contempt charges, Wright surprised everyone by stating that Nixon intended to turn over the tapes, and would “comply in all respects”. Wright included a caveat, explaining that it would take time to gather and index the tapes that had been requested.
Very soon thereafter, 84 representatives introduced impeachment resolutions, and 98 introduced bills that called for an appointment of a new Special Prosecutor, with 57 senators doing the same in their chamber. Nixon assessed the legal damage with Haig and his three lawyers, Buzhardt, Wright, and Garment. They all agreed that the point had been reached in which they needed to turn over the tapes. The next day in Judge Sirica’s courtroom, where the judge had prepared an order for Nixon to appear in court the following day or face possible contempt charges, Wright surprised everyone by stating that Nixon intended to turn over the tapes, and would “comply in all respects”. Wright included a caveat, explaining that it would take time to gather and index the tapes that had been requested.