ial number. Throughout the whole ordeal, Nixon emphasized his cabinet members to abolish the publics belief of a cover-up. Nixon stated, A cover-up is the worst thing; cover-up is how I nailed Truman. It can hurt deeply. Nixon also directed his spokesman to, Tell them, no one in the White House was involved...At the Committee to Re-elect, there is a possible involvement of a few lower-level officials (Spear, 156). In these statements, Nixon reveals the need for him and his administration to subterfuge their cover-up of the Watergate scandal. The testimony of Alexander Butterfield was the affirmation that unlocked the whole investigation and eventually became the most disastrous of all. On July 16, 1973, Butterfield told the committee, on nationwide television, that Nixon had ordered a taping system installed in the White House to automatically record all conversations (Emergy, 217). These tapes could have been the answer to all the questions in the publics minds. If Nixon or his cabinet members were involved in the Watergate scandal, their voices would be on tape. If they were not involved, they would be free of conviction; the tapes helped either way. Archibald Cox quickly subpoenaed eight relevant tapes to confirm John Deans testimony. However, Nixon refused to release the tapes, claiming, They were vital to national security. U.S. District Court Judge John Sirica ruled that Nixon must give the tapes to Cox, and an appeals court reaffirmed the resolution (Emergy, 230). Nonetheless, Nixon held his ground and would not give in. If Nixon was indeed innocent of any and all wrongdoings, so he claimed, why was he so preoccupied with the releasing of the tapes that would set him free of questioning? On Saturday, October 20, 1973, Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to dismiss Cox. Richardson refused and resigned instead, as did Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus. Ultimately, the solicitor general dismissed Cox. The acti...
