House Judiciary Committee Gets Broad Subpoena Powers for Watergate
Investigation
https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k-12/browse/?cuecard=2417
General Information
Source:
Creator:
Event Date:
Air/Publish Date:
NBC Nightly News
John Chancellor/Ray
Scherer
02/06/1974
02/06/1974
Resource Type:
Copyright:
Copyright Date:
Clip Length
Video News Report
NBCUniversal Media,
LLC.
1974
00:02:00
Description
By a vote of 410-to-4, the House of Representatives grants broad subpoena powers to the House Judiciary
Committee to help determine whether President Richard Nixon should be impeached for the Watergate
scandal.
Keywords
Watergate, Investigation, Inquiry, House of Representatives, House, Judiciary, Committee, Vote,
Subpoena, Powers, Hearing, Resolution, Impeachment, President, Richard Nixon, Andrew Johnson,
Congress, Scandal, Chairman, Peter Rodino, Barbara Jordan, Constitution
Citation
© 2008-2015 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Page 1 of 3
MLA
"House Judiciary Committee Gets Broad Subpoena Powers for Watergate Investigation." Ray Scherer,
correspondent. NBC Nightly News. NBCUniversal Media. 6 Feb. 1974. NBC Learn. Web. 1 August 2015
APA
Scherer, R. (Reporter), & Chancellor, J. (Anchor). 1974, February 6. House Judiciary Committee Gets
Broad Subpoena Powers for Watergate Investigation. [Television series episode]. NBC Nightly News.
Retrieved from https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k-12/browse/?cuecard=2417
CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE
"House Judiciary Committee Gets Broad Subpoena Powers for Watergate Investigation" NBC Nightly
News, New York, NY: NBC Universal, 02/06/1974. Accessed Sat Aug 1 2015 from NBC Learn:
https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k-12/browse/?cuecard=2417
Transcript
House Judiciary Committee Gets Broad Subpoena Powers for Watergate Investigation
JOHN CHANCELLOR, anchor:
The House of Representatives today voted almost unanimously, 410 to 4, to grant broad subpoena powers
to the House Judiciary Committee in its inquiry into the impeachment of the President. Only once before
has the House taken such a vote, in the matter of the impeachment of President Andrew Johnson, and 99%
of the members voted for the unqualified subpoena powers. Ray Scherer covered the debate.
RAY SCHERER reporting:
The debate centered on a resolution to give the Judiciary Committee broad subpoena power to help
determine whether President Nixon should be impeached. No one argued against the impeachment
investigation. The only disagreement was whether to put a time limit on the resolution.
Judiciary Chairman Rodino said, ’Let us act so the American people and their children after them will say,
that was the right course.’
Republican McClorey said the resolution should have an April 30th deadline; otherwise the impeachment
probe might go on forever.
But House leader Rhodes disagreed, and said he supported Rodino.
Barbara Jordan, Democrat of Texas, drew the big applause of the day, saying it was the quality of the
investigation that mattered not the speed.
Republican Weiman asked Rodino if he intended to subpoena the President. Rodino replied, ‘Only if
necessary.’ Weiman hoped it would not be. Rodino agreed.
In the voting, the move to put on a deadline failed by a 5 to 1 margin. And the resolution passed with
only 4 votes against it.
This vote cannot be considered a test vote on impeachment, but it was important. And it does set the stage
for a Constitutional confrontation between President Nixon and Congress.
© 2008-2015 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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With this resolution and the full authority of the House behind it, the Judiciary Committee can ask the
President to turn over any information at once. If he does not, it can order him to do so, and hence the
possibility of confrontation.
Ray Scherer, NBC News, at the United States Capitol.
© 2008-2015 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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