Impeachment Hearings: House Judiciary Committee, July 30, 1974 (2/2)
Impeachment Hearings: House Judiciary Committee, July 30, 1974 (2/2)
[01.29.43] The CHAIRMAN. I recognize the gentleman from California, Mr. Moorhead, for 4 minutes. Mr. MOORHEAD. Mr. Chairman, this particular article concerns me more than any of the others that have been filed against the President because I believe that a very important constitutional privilege-constitutional question is involved. The assertion by the. Congress that under the impeachment power it can exercise absolute power of impeachment or any ancillary matter in connection with impeachment without court review certainly would lay the groundwork for legislative abuse of power. I think that it is important that we do have a check and balance. Under our system, the courts are the final determiner of what the law is. There are many things about the power that was given to Congress that might well have to be interpreted by the court. There are other constitutional rights that have been set down under our U.S. Constitution. Those rights on occasion come into conflict with the power that -was given to the House of Representatives to bring impeachment proceedings. Those powers have to be weighed and balanced and it is the, courts that have been given that authority under our Constitution. I think that it is vitally important that this committee, before it considers impeaching a President for failure to follow their demands in a subpena, to take the matter to court as I and some of the other members on this committee voted to do. Some have said there no longer is a privilege of confidentiality in the President. But in the United States vs. Nixon the court said specifically as to the case they -were deciding: In this case we must weigh the importance of the general privilege of 'confidentiality of Presidential communications in performance of his responsibilities against the inroads of such a privilege on the fair administration of the, criminal justice. But they did not rule out the claim in all cases to the privilege. Later on they said: Moreover a President's communications and activities encompass a vastly wider range of sensitive material than would be true of any ordinary individual. It is therefore necessary the public interests to accord Presidential conversations confidentiality the greatest protection consistent with fair administration of justice. The need for confidentiality even as to idle conversations with associates in which casual references might be made concerning political leaders within the country or foreign statesmen is too obvious to call for further treatment. It is important that the President or any other citizen of the United States have a right to have a judicial determination of the validity of any section of the Constitution or any law before places himself in jeopardy of being impeached. I ask for a no vote.