Impeachment Hearings: House Judiciary Committee, July 30, 1974 (1/2)
Impeachment Hearings: House Judiciary Committee, July 30, 1974 (1/2)
[00.53.55] The CHAIRMAN. The time. of the gentleman has a again expired. The gentleman from Iowa has 29 minutes remaining. Mr. MEZVINSKY. I yield. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield 5 minutes to Mr. EILBERG. Mr. EILBERG. Mr. Chairman-* The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Pennsylvania is recognized for .5 minutes. Mr. EILBERG. I have a slightly different point of view than my friend from Indiana. Mr. Chairman, this is not a simple act of tax fraud or misuse of Government funds. It is a clear case of the President of the United States using the power and prestige of his office, to enrich himself to the point of grandeur. Who else would have the opportunity or- the power to decorate and landscape his home with unlimited Federal funds? During his time, in office Mr. Nixon has acted more, like an imperial ruler than any of his predecessors and it is obvious that he decided to continue to live in this manner after he left office. In order to do so he took an illegal tax deduction so he could build a huge personal fortune and he used Federal funds to make his homes into lordly manors. The decoration and landscaping of Mr. Nixon's homes was supposed to be disguised as necessary security measures, but like any greedy man, Mr. Nixon tried to take too much. There simply can be no reason why the tax money of the, American people should have been used to pay" for a $1,600 shuffleboard court, $10,000 for the removal of weeds, $2,800 for a swimming pool heater, and $587 for a flagpole at Key Biscayne. At San Clemente we paid $1,600 for den windows, $12,988 for new electric heating system when the old gas one was working perfectly, $3,800 for a new sewerline, $8,810 for a, sprinkler system and to remove, weeds, $388 for an exhaust fan, and $1,853 for another flagpole. There are, many other expenditures but this gives you a reasonable able idea of what was going On. Now, it might be, argued that, Mr. Nixon did not, approve these improvements, and that they were carried out, by his subordinates, notably the ubiquitous 'Mr. Haldeman. But even if the President did not, approve--and I do not believe that--where did he think all the money to pay for the. redecorating and landscaping was coming from? Does anyone really believe he thought he, was paying for it? it is my opinion that. he thought, this was his due even though it is clearly prohibited by article II, section 1. The section on provides for no increase in pay or emoluments. As for his taxes, Mr. Nixon sent, in a set of returns for the year's 1969 through 1973 that would have, had the Internal Revenue Service after any ordinary citizen like wolves after a sheep. Regarding the. deduction for the, Vice Presidential we have been over that, story many times. the story of the so-called tax deductible gift. Now, it, can be argued that the President did not know what was going on. It can be said that the tax laws are so complicated that only the lawyers understand them. In the case of the President of the United States, this argument has to be labeled as absurd. We were told that the President went over his tax returns with his accountants and lawyers line, by line. It must be, assumed that he noticed that, huge sums were, being deducted for the, donation of his Vice Presidential papers. Are we supposed to believe that he did not ask for the details of how this deduction worked? Are we to assume that his accountants and lawyers decided to commit tax fraud without telling their client? That is simply not how these people operate in normal circumstances and they certainly would not take such a chance when the President of the United States is involved. What I submit happened is that Mr. Nixon took advantage of the fact that the President's tax returns receive only the most cursory review, as events have brought it out--and that he tried to get as much be could while, he had the chance. Mr. Chairman, some time ago Mr. Nixon told the Nation over three television networks that he is not a crook. If he had not been President when be committed these crimes, that is exactly what the Internal Revenue Service and the Justice Department would have proved he is in a court. of law. It is said that the income tax issue is not a grave enough constitutional abuse." But, there is similarity to the offense in article II--in that the President used his power to cause the harassment of 'his enemies. There is evidence he sought to use the Internal Revenue Service to help his friends, for example, John Wayne and the Reverend Billy Graham. He also used it to help himself--for the IRS was used to short-circuit the, investigation Of the Joint Congressional Committee and the committee evidence was not pursued. I -would point out that none of the President's tax preparers or lawyers--although they told various stories--were subpenaed. Now, the question is turned over to Mr. Jaworski. Even if no article of impeachment is approved, I hope the Special Prosecutor will pursue the matter and that this committee and the House reserve to itself the right it to go further if there are new developments.