Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 6, 1973 Testimony of Hugh Sloan
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 6, 1973 Testimony of Hugh Sloan
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 6, 1973 Testimony of Hugh Sloan
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 6, 1973 Testimony of Hugh Sloan
Fred Thompson, attorney. What did you say your function or role was in the 1968 campaign? Hugh Sloan. At one time titularly, it was Assistant Finance Director but that was a carryover from the Republican Finance Committee. In terms of the Presidential campaign, my duties there were restricted to a project basis running the thousand dollar nationwide dinner. Fred Thompson, attorney. Did you have any access to figures concerning cash contributions or cash inflow in the 1968 Presidential campaign? Hugh Sloan. No, sir. Fred Thompson, attorney. Not sufficient to make a determination or comparison between the two campaigns with regard to cash? Hugh Sloan. No, sir. I was not in anywhere near comparable situation there.
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 6, 1973 Testimony of Hugh Sloan
Fred Thompson, attorney. You have stated here and stated thus previously in the staff meetings you had made attempts to get these outlays of money to Mr. Liddy and Mr. Porter and others verified. And I believe in Mr. Liddy's situation it was in the budget, you checked with Mr. Magruder and he OK'd it and you went further and checked with Mr. Stans and he said Mr. Magruder had the authority from Mr. Mitchell. As far Mr. Porter is concerned, you checked again with Magruder and I believe you checked again with Mr. Stans, who I believe, again said Mr. Mitchell said that it was OK, is that correct? Hugh Sloan. Yes, Sir.
Watergate Hearings: Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, June 6, 1973 Testimony of Hugh Sloan
Fred Thompson, attorney. With regard to the $350,000, of course, that was ordered cleared by Mr. Kalmbach the money for Mr. Haldeman. Of course we know now, the speculation is, and we have the testimony with regard to how some of that money was spent that you were giving out at that time. Mr. Liddy s $199,000, or allegations concerning the $350,000 being coverup money and all these allegations floating around. You were the man who had the money and yet you were doing everything you could evidently to check and double check the situation to see that it was properly spent. Could you enlighten the committee as to how this could be prevented? Could there be any structural changes inside the campaign political organization to prevent this? Or does it depend on the good judgment of the people involved? Hugh Sloan. I think in terms of, one of the biggest problems I think was the fact we had a change of law. Fred Thompson, attorney. A change what? Hugh Sloan. A change of campaign law in the middle of the campaign. I think that probably created, assuming the allegations are correct, an opportunity to abuse that transition period. I do not know how you can ever avoid Fred Thompson, attorney. What kind of difficulties did that cause? What kind of opportunities did that present, do you think? Hugh Sloan. I think this whole question of prepayments and so forth is you really don't have any choice in a way in terms of political context to go that way. There is an obvious political advantage to it, but you would have had to make that decision if the new law had been in effect from the beginning. Fred Thompson, attorney. There was no objective standard? Hugh Sloan. There is no precedent for it as far as I know. I think as far as individuals handling cash in a campaign, I know of nothing that could prevent individuals from doing that unless you just outlaw cash but they may do it anyway.