NEW INQUIRY BEGINS

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27444, 2 September 1954, Page 11

NEW INQUIRY BEGINS

Dispute At First Session

(Rec. 10 p.m.) WASHINGTON. Aug. 31. A United States special Senate comI mittee opened censure hearings on : Senator Joseph McCarthy (Republi- ' can, Wisconsin) today and wound up : its first session in a shouting dispute between him and the chairman (Sena- ' Utah) ArthUr WaOcins> Republican, The hearing was less than two hours old when Senator McCarthy touched ; off a dispute by demanding to know whether statements attributed to a committee member, Senator Edwin Johnson (Democrat, Colorado) by the “Denver Post” were correct. The newspaper quoted Senator Johnson on 1 March 12 as saying that Democratic ■ leaders “loathed*'Senator McCarthy. Senator Johnson had just told the committee that he had not said he personally loathed Senator McCarthy ' > and that he had “full faith” in his own ability to weigh the charges against the senator, "without prejudiced But Senator McCarthy demanded that Senator Watkins say whether the newspaper report was accurate. Senator Watkins banged his gavel and shouted: "It is not material to this hearing. You are out of order." . " I . l l a y. e a right t 0 know Sena- I tor McCarthy broke in. Senator Wat- ( kins again banged his gavel. ■“You are out of order," Senator Watkins, a former judge, shouted. “We are not going to be Interrupted by ■ these diversions." Senator Watkins immediately recessed the hearing, about five minutes . ahead of schedule. The inquiry, the first of its kind ever held in the . Senate and the greatest Mt yet in ; Senator McCarthy’s stormy public ; career, will be resumed tomorrow. I The th. ; task of deciding whether SenatoJ m” ; . : mont), William Fulbright (Democrat Arkansas), 'and Wayne Morse (Inde- : pendent, Oregon). The committee decided‘to take up the first five genera! accusations: that Senator McCarthy abused fellow senators: that he received and improperly used a secret F.BJ. document; that he urged Federal employees to violate their oaths and give him secret data: that he abused an Army general: and taaU:. to tortUy ,bout “• . The committee, opened the hearings 11®”)?’ that it drop the last charge. Mr Williams noted that Senator McCarthy’s refusal to testify occurred in the eighty-second Congress. He said a senator could not be censured for conduct in a past legislative Court'Secrato'to prove n."' As the hearing opened. Senator McCarthy read a statement in which he £. h ?. rg ?d that h “ accusers either had political motives’’ or were unwitting victims of powerful political groups;’’' ■ hearings may last several Senator Watkins opened the session by reading a statement declaring that r u L® s . adopted to ensure "a iphere ” hearing ““ a Judicial atmoHe said it was obvious that committeemember, were aware of the McCarthy controversy and might have BS r be’ e^dS?Ji“ i ?h^.“?i? vente t'aPPeDedrSd.'.x'S tl ?* y wera mature men . W 1 wide experience that should en .?™ e them to r *»ch a just decision* 1 i/™ e ( r? a i I,e " Vn * t «d States Senate tria ‘- an d we hope our conduct ran such , as .‘? ““‘"Win ‘he American sense of fair play and the high dilta t . io S a a ? d dignity of the United : ?t nat S. “nder the authority Watkins sa d**' Conat “ ut * on ” Senator