STANS ASKED ABOUT FUND

Press, Volume CXIII, Issue 33251, 14 June 1973, Page 17

STANS ASKED ABOUT FUND

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) WASHINGTON, June 13. The former United States Commerce Secretary, Mr Maurice Stans, ordered over his objections to testify at the Senate Watergate hearings, was questioned on a memorandum in which he was said to have raised a million dollar department fund for Mr Nixon’s re-election. This was the first allegation that Government department money was used for the re-election campaign, and was denied by Mr Stans. Mr Stans, with swept-back grey hair and speaking with the deliberation of a man used to authority, had asked

that his appearance before the televised hearings of the Senate investigating committee be delayed until after he stood trial in New York. Mr Stans, Mr Nixon’s campaign finance director, is accused with the former campaign chief, Mr John Mitchell, of conspiracy over a secret SUS2OO,OOO donation —later returned from the international financier, Robert Vesco. The committee ordered Mr Stans to give his evidence today, with a proviso that he would not be questioned about the Vesco case. The deputy committee counsel. Mr Rufus Edmisten, read to Mr Stans what he said was a confidential memorandum sent by Mr Jeb Stuart Magruder, former deputy campaign director, to Mr Mitchell on July 29, 1971. 1 The memorandum said in part: “The secretary has 'built up a discretionary fund

at Commerce that will total approximately one million dollars. He is using this fund for conferences, hiring and other activities that will be beneficial to the President’s re-election.” Asked about the memorandum, Mr Stans replied: “It must have been based on some misunderstanding or other. I had no funds in the Department of Commerce other than the authorised budgeted funds of the department.” Mr Stans said that on June 29, nearly two weeks after the break-in at the Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate office complex, he received an urgent telephone call from Mr Herbert Kalmbach, then Mr Nixon’s personal counsel, who said that he was on a “special mission, j a White House project.” Mr Stans said Mr Kalmbach told him: “I need all the cash I can get.” Mr Stans said that he gave Mr Kalmbach $U575,000. “I knew him as a man of the highest integrity and honesty.” Mr Kalmbach is said to have raised money for political espionage and to have paid the defendants in the Watergate break-in and their: lawyers. Liberal members of the House of Representatives last night made their second attempt in a week towards impeaching President Nixon over the Watergate bugging scandal. The matter was first brought up on the House floor last week by a liberal Republican, Mr Paul McCloskey, of California.

A Democrat, Mrs Bella Abzug, brought it up last night and Mr McCloskey said that he would bring it up again next week. Mrs Patricia Schroeder (Democrat. Colorado), told the House that avoidance of impeachment discussions did not absolve Congress of its (commitment, and she said (that if confidence in Governjment was to be restored Mr ! Nixon must go before the Senate committee investigating (the scandal, explain his actions and respond to questions. Only about 25 of the 435 members of the House were present during the debate, which lasted about two hours without a formal call to impeach Mr Nixon.