Columbia Missourian Newspaper 1973-08-03

              Nelms Says CIA Resisted Requests to Aid Cover Cover- Cover Up Up By Our Wire Services WASHINGTON Two former officials of the Central Intelligence Agency told the Senate Watergate Committee Thursday that they had to resist White House pressures in order to keep the agency clean of in in- involvement involvement in the Watergate cover up Richard M. M Helms the former fonner CIA director who is US U.S. Ambassador to Iran hammered his hand on the witness witness- table as he recalled having warned another intelligence official last summer to disregard White WhiteHouse WhiteHouse WhiteHouse House feelers for assistance that would besmirch the name of the agency Gen Robert D. D Cushman Jr the Marine Corps Commandant who had been Helms' Helms deputy in 1971 described later a request from John D. D Ehrlichman that prompted him to rewrite a memorandum linking the former White House aide to E. E Howard Hunt one of the Watergate conspirators Both former fonner intelligence officers held to testimony conflicting sharply with the sworn statements made earlier by Ehrlichman and by H H. R. R Haldeman in their appearances before the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities Ehrlichman President Nixons Nixon's former domestic affairs adviser insisted last week that he had no recollection of a 1971 telephone call to Gen Cushman to arrange for Hunt to get CIA spying equipment and false identity papers But Cushman recanting a Jan 10 1973 memo in which he said he cannot recall at this late date who placed the call testified Thursday that the official minutes 11 of a July tI 8 1971 CIA staff meeting showed that he definitely stated that Ehrlichman had placed the call to him Cushman who appeared in uniform with rows of ribbons on his chest said that when Hunt came to see him July 22 1971 he tape- tape recorded the conversation because Hunt requested they meet alone in his his office offic The transcript of that con con- conversation conversation given to the committee showed Hunt saying Ive been charged with a highly sensitive mission by the White House to visit and elicit information from an in in- individual individual whose ideology we arent aren't entirely sure of Hunt asked for flash alias documentation and some degree of physical disguise and Cushman ordered it done Hunt was given national pocket litter liller documentation documentation documentation tation which included false iden iden- identification identification identification cards as well as a wig a voice-altering voice device and a camera hidden in a tobacco pouch The key point of the th transcript however was a partial quotation from Hunt that began Well Ehrlichman said and Cushmans Cushman's reply Yes he called me Cushman said on last Dec 13 almost a year after he became Marine commandant he was told by CIA official William Colby Colby- that the agency needed to prepare a sum sum- summary summary mary of their contacts with Hunt at r J WI 1 Robert Robed E. E Cushman Jr He refreshed my memory on the Ehrlichman phone call I couldn't remember in December who phoned me from the White House I 1 thought sure c F. F Richard Helms Helms challenged testimony given earlier this tt s week by Haldeman the Presidents President's former farmer Chief of Staff about a meeting in the White House on Continued on Page 14 It Watergate Watergate- Continued from Page 1 June 23 1972 sue six days after the too Watergate break According to Haldeman's Hal emans eman's account aCCO of the meeting Helms and the current deputy director of the CIA Lt U. Gen Vernon A. A Walters had bad been unable to assure him biro that the Watergate inquiry being conducted by the FBI would not compromise ron se intelligence activities in Mexico Helms Retina said Thursday however that Haldeman had made only an incoherent reference to a potential problem in Mexico and an had not sought his judgment on its directly Instead Helms went on Haldeman had turned to Waters and instructed him to tell the FBI that it would be desirable for the investigation in Mexico to be either tapered off or reduced Helms said that when he and Walters left the White House he told his deputy to disregard Haldeman's instructions and to confine himself to reminding L. L L Patrick Gray III II m. m then the Ule acting director of the FBI that the two agencies hada had a Ii longstanding agreement to notify each other if their investigations crossed paths Subsequently Helms said he learned that funds contributed to President Nixons Nixon's re-election re com com- committee committee committee had been channeled to one of the Watergate burglars through a lawyer in Mexico City and the in in- intelligence intelligence intelligence agency bad had assured the FBI that it had bad no connection on with the lawyer Much of the testimony that Helms and Cushman gave Thursday con con- consisted consisted consisted of an told oft-told tale fale They had already testified in closed sessions before four separate congressional committees with jurisdiction over the CIA The testimony revealed c a series of or contacts between Helms and David R. R Young a former fonner member of Henry A. A A Kissingers Kissinger's staff on the Plumbers Plumbers' team It was Young Helms said who first requested the CIA to prepare for the White WJ le House a psychological profile on Ellsberg such as as the agency had for years prepared on foreign heads of state and other leaders The profile was reluctantly prepared and delivered to Young Helms said Such profiles on Ameri Ameri- American can citizens are virtually unheard of at the agency but Helms hinted that the Cias Cia's statutory duty to protect intelligence sources from unauthorized disclosure was uses as leverage to get his assent to the profile Helms corroborated earlier carlier testimony that two such profiles eventually were prepared The first was rejected as unsatisfactory at the White House and other witnesses have suggested that the Plumbers' Plumbers in break-in at the office of Ellsberg's psychiatrist in September 1971 was partly in order to fill rul out the profile But he contradicted the testimony by Ehrlichman that it had h d been necessary for a White House special intelligence intelli unit whose members include Hunt and 0 G. c Gordon Liddy Eddy another Watergate conspirator to to try to obtain Ellsberg's psychiatric files Hunt and md Liddy broke into the theoffice theoffice theoffice office of Ellsberg's psychiatrist in September 1971 Helms said that the psychological profiles that the CIA CL prepared on foreign officials were based almost entirely on general background information that might provide clues to tha character of the individuals He said that they were not based on en psychiatric records and that he had hadnot hadnot hadnot not known of the 1971 burglary until this year Sen SeD Howard H. H H Baker Jr of Ten Ten- Tennessee Tennessee Tennessee the ranking Republican on the Senate Committee sought at one point to challenge Helms Rebus for having failed to conduct his own investigation into the Watergate case Noting that several of the Watergate burglars had once worked for the agency and that one of them Eugenio Eugenic R. R Martinez was still on a month a CIA retainer at the time of the Watergate in break-in Baker asked why Helms had not sought to determine the motive for the burglary Helms said that it would have been improper for far the CIA to intrude on ona ona ona a matter under investigation by the FBI almost exactly what Mr Haldeman and Mr Ehrlichman said Baker shot back Helms said that the CIA had turned over to the FBI all an the information it had on the former fonner agents and that he had regarded the inquiry as the FBI's responsibility And so did the White House Baker declared Sen Sam J. J Ervin Jr North D-North Carolina and committee chairman interjected however that he thought Helms had been correct in keeping the agency out out of a domestic in- in in Perhaps the most compelling part of Helms's testimony was his public intimation in reply to several questions that he had been forced to resign from the CIA after having declined to assist on matters related to Watergate Asked if he had considered resigning he said I thought I could take care of the agency better if I stayed where I was Helms said that last Nov 20 President Nixon had told him that he wanted to make a change at the agency and wished Helms who was nearing retirement age of 60 to assume a diplomatic post You did not have any impression that you were being pushed out asked Sen Herman E. E E Talmadge D- D Ga GaWell Well it was not put to me that way anyway Helms replied In other words Talmadge con con- continued continued continued When the tte President makes a suggestion you do not have to deter deter- determine determine determine mine whether you have been pushed pu h d shoved or led ted do you Helms Heims joining in general laughter from the audience in the hearing room nodded his head in agreement