United States and American History: 1973

About the history of the United States in 1973, U.S. signs a treaty with North Vietnam, American Indians fight for their rights, Watergates comes out, despite his quote, Nixon is shown to be a crook, Agnew and others resign.

1973

Early Jan. President Nixon, in an interview, said that the average American was like "a child in the family."

Jan. The Miners for Democracy ticket, headed by rank-and-file miner Arnold Miller, was elected to the top posts in the United Mine Workers union, ending a long reign of corruption.

Jan. 28 The U.S. and the North Vietnamese signed a treaty ending direct American military intervention in Vietnam. The U.S. continued to fund the Saigon dictatorship, which held at least 200,000 political prisoners in jail.

Feb. 27 The American Indian Movement occupied the trading post and church at Wounded Knee, S.D., the site of the 1890 massacre of Sioux Indians by the U.S. Army cavalry, to draw attention to the grievances of the American Indians.

Mar. 19 James McCord, a defendant in the Watergate break-in case, wrote a letter to Judge John Sirica charging that perjury had been committed at the trial, that high Administration officials were involved in pressuring defendants to maintain silence and plead Guilty.

Mar. 21 President Nixon ordered the payment of $75,000 in hush money to defendant E. Howard Hunt. The next day Nixon told John Mitchell: "I don't give a shit what happens. I want you all to stonewall it, let them plead the 5th Amendment, cover-up or anything else, if it'll save it-save the plan...."

Apr. 12 CREEP deputy director Jeb Magruder confessed his perjury to prosecutors of the Watergate case.

Apr. 17 Presidential news secretary Ron Ziegler declared all previous statements about Watergate "inoperative."

Apr. 30 H.R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, President Nixon's top 2 assistant, resigned. Nixon fired John Dean. Nixon said that he, personally, accepted the responsibility for Watergate, "but not the blame."

May 11 Judge Matthew Byrne dismissed all charges in the Pentagon Papers case, against Daniel Ellsberg and Anthony Russo, because of government misconduct.

May 17 The televised Senate hearings into Watergate began. Sen. Sam Ervin, the committee chairman, quoted during the hearings: "O what a tangled web we weave, when 1st we practice to deceive!"

July 16 White House aide Alexander Butterfield inadvertently revealed to Senate Watergate investigators that President Nixon maintained a secret tape-recording system.

Sept. 11 The elected Marxist Government of Salvador Allende was overthrown by a military junta in Chile. Allende died defending the presidential palace.

Oct. 6 War erupted in the Middle East between Israel and Syria and Egypt.

Oct. 10 Spiro Agnew pleaded nolo contendere (no contest) to a charge of evading income tax. U.S. attorneys had uncovered alleged kickbacks to Agnew, from Baltimore County contractors, while he was Baltimore County executive, governor of Maryland, and Vice President.Agnew is said to have received the graft in unmarked envelopes. He resigned as Vice-President.

Oct. 12 Nixon nominated House minority leader Gerald Ford as Vice-President. Ford stated: "I'm a Ford not a Lincoln."

Oct. 17 Arab nations began an oil embargo against the U.S. in an attempt to raise prices and alter U.S. support of Israel.

Oct. 20 The "Saturday Night Massacre" occurred. President Nixon ordered Attorney General Richardson to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox because Cox sought key White House tapes. Richardson refused and resigned. Deputy Attorney General Ruckelshaus also refused and was fired. Nixon's Chief of Staff, Gen. Alexander Haig, told Ruckelshaus: "You have received an order from your Commander-in-Chief." Robert Bork, the Solicitor General, was then named Acting Attorney General and he fired Cox and abolished the special prosecutor's office under Nixon's direction.

Oct. 23 Nixon reversed himself because of intense public pressure, and offered to release the tapes Cox sought and to maintain the special prosecutor's office.

Nov. 17 Richard Nixon declared: "I'm not a crook."

Dec. 8 Nixon revealed that he paid less than $1,000 in taxes in 1970 and 1971.

Dec. 31 In separate incidents, 31-year-old Roy Buck and 67-year-old Willie Camber were killed by robbers, bringing the total number of murders in Detroit during 1973 to 746. Mayor Terry Troutt of nearby Romulus, Mich., complained that Detroit murderers were using his city as a dumping grounds. He asked murderers with a body on their hands to "leave it where you got it."

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