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with the leaders of the Puerto Rican section for the raising of their political party.

Q. This is who you were working with in New York in March 1965? A. This was part of my activities.

Q. Did you have other activities?

A. Well, I was heading a John V. Lindsay campaign in the foreign service. I was his campaign manager in the last election for the Spanish areas.

Mr. HAYS. You are not a registered voter in New York, are you, Mr. Vidal?

The WITNESS. I was.

Mr. HAYS. Where would you be considered now a voter?

The WITNESS. In Puerto Rico.

Mr. HAYS. When you managed Mr. Lindsay's campaign

The WITNESS. I was living in New York and Puerto Rico, moving back and forth.

Mr. HAYS. But you could vote in New York?

The WITNESS. Yes.

Mr. HAYS. Did you vote in that election?

The WITNESS. I did vote.

Mr. HAYS. Thank you very much, Mr. Vidal. In my judgment you have been a very cooperative witness. We appreciate your cooperation and if you can find the other half of that ticket, we would like to have you send it up here to the committee so that it can be turned in.

Mr. TAYLER. May he be excused finally, Mr. Chairman?
Mr. HAYS. I see no reason why not.

(Witness excused.)

Whereupon, DOROTHY W.HIMES, having been duly sworn, was examined and testified as follows:

By Mr. TAYLER:

Q. What is your name?
A. Dorothy Himes.

Mr. HAYS. Mrs. Himes, your appearance before this committee will be in executive session, unless you request that it be in public session. If your appearance is in executive session, I am sure you know the public and press will not be admitted to the hearing room pursuant to paragraph 22, House of Representatives rule 11. Your testimony may not be released or used in a public session without the consent of this committee. If your appearance is in public session, the public and news reporters will be admitted but not television and news photographers.

I now ask you whether you choose to appear in executive or public session.

The WITNESS. In executive session.

Mr. HAYS. You are aware that you could have been accompanied by counsel if you so desired?

The WITNESS. Yes, sir.

Mr. HAYS. You did get a copy of paragraph 22, rule 11?

The WITNESS. Yes, sir.

Mr. HAYS. You understand that your constitutional rights will be recognized by the committee and if you should make a proper claim of privilege against self-incrimination under the fifth amendment, that will be recognized.

If you feel an answer might tend to incriminate you, you may say So. If you do, the committee will consider the claim and pass on its validity. You were here yesterday, I believe, when I read my opening statement?

The WITNESS. Yes.

Mr. HAYS. You have a copy of it? Did you get a copy?

The WITNESS. I assume this is your opening statement here. I am so nervous I do not know what I have.

Mr. HAYS. Don't be nervous.

Tayler.

By Mr. TAYLER:

There is no reason for it. Mr.

Q. Have you read the copy of the opening statement that was furnished you, Mrs. Himes?

A. Yes. I read it while I was sitting in the room.

Q. Will you look on the face page and see what it is?

A. It says the "Opening Hearings, December 19, Statement of the Chairman." That is what I have.

Q. Have you read it and do you understand the opening statement? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Where do you live?.

A. I live in Arlington.

Q. Would you give us your street address, please?

A. 1300 Army-Navy Drive.

Q. What is your occupation?

A. I am a secretary.

Q Where?

A. In the chairman's congressional office.

Q. Are you referring

A. Chairman Powell.

Q. How long have you been a secretary in Mr. Powell's congressional office?

A. In February it will be 2 years.

Q. Were you employed in any other congressional capacity prior to that?

A. Yes, sir; for 12 years.

Q. Would you tell us who your previous employer was?

A. Yes, sir. Do you want all of them?

Q. Just the one previous to Mr. Powell.

A. Congressman John Dent for 5 years.

Q. You are on Mr. Powell's clerk-hire roll; is that right? You work

in his congressional office?

A. I work in his congressional office.

Q. Do you work there with Mrs. Powell who appears on the payroll as Marjorie Flores?

A. I do not work with Mrs. Powell.

Q. Does she work in that office at all?

A. Not to my knowledge.

Q. You have been there for 2 years?

A. In February it will be 2 years.

Q. You have been there almost 2 years. During that time have you worked exclusively in Mr. Powell's congressional office?

A. No, sir. I worked in the committee for about 3 months.
Q. The first 3 months?

A. Yes.

Q. Will you tell us approximately when it was that you moved from the committee over to Mr. Powell's congressional office?

A.. It was when we moved our office from the Cannon into the Rayburn. That is when I joined his congressional staff.

Q. Can you give us a month and a year when such move took place?

A. I think it must have been April, but I am not sure.

Q. You are saying April 1965?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Since April of 1965 you have worked continuously in Mr. Powell's congressional office?

A. That is correct.

Q. Other than normal leaves and vacations have you been there all the time?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Have you ever seen Miss Flores or Mrs. Powell working in the office there?

A. No, sir.

Q. Have you visited Mr. Powell's New York office?

A. Yes, but not officially.

Q. Have you ever visited that office during normal business hours? A. No.

Q. You have been in his office?

A. I have been in the church and in his office, yes.

Q. Is that where he has his New York office?

A. That is where he has one of them.

Q. On how many occasions during the past 2 years have you been in that office?

A. I believe it is only one time.

Q. Did you see Miss Flores or Mrs. Powell there as that time?
A. No, sir.

This was not during the workday I was in there.

Q. I understand. Can you tell us what services Mrs. Powell performs as a member of the Congressman's congressional staff?

A. No, sir.

Q. Do you have any information about what services she performs? A. No, sir.

Q. Have you ever seen any evidence of any work done by her for the Congressman?

A. No, sir; I would not necessarily see that because I am not the Congressman's personal secretary.

Q. Do you know what assigned duties Mrs. Powell has as a member of his clerk-hire staff?

A. No, sir.

Q. Have you ever discussed Mrs. Powell's duties with any other member of the staff or with the Congressman?

A. Never.

Q. Do you know whether or not Mrs. Powell has any assigned duties in the New York office of the Congressman?

A. No, sir.

Q. Is it fair to say that you simply do not know what she does or what her responsibilities are?

A. I simply do not know. I would have no reason to know.
Q. You have no information?

A. I have no information at all.

Q. You said you did not work as the Congressman's personal secretary. What sort of duties do you perform and for whom?

A. I work directly for Chuck Stone, who is the chairmen's special assistant.

Q. You are Mr. Stone's secretary? Have you been Mr. Stone's secretary since you moved over to the new office in April 1965?

A. Yes.

Q. Were you his secretary before that time? secretary before that time? I know you were on

the committee staff.

A. I was on the committee for about 3 months.

Q. Very well. Is there any travel that is involved in the performance of your duties?

A. No.

Q. My questions from now on all relate to the 89th Congress, that is from January 3, 1965, to the present time. Have you ever done travel on official business?

any

A. On one occasion I went to Los Angeles. It was after the Watts riot out there.

Q. Did you go on a ticket purchased with committee funds?
A. I believe it was purchased on Mr. Stone's credit card.

Q. When was this?

A. This would have been in June.

Mr. O'CONNOR. 1965?

The WITNESS. Yes.

By Mr. TAYLER:

Q. June of 1965. Who went with you on that trip, if anyone? A. I went by myself as far as any of the committee personnel. I was alone. They had had staff members out there previously.

Q. Who was it who assigned you to go to Los Angeles on that occasion?

A. The chairman.

Q. What did he tell you to do or what duties did he assign to you? A. He asked me to go into the Watts area where I was to take some depositions.

Q. Did you take these depositions in the presence or in the company of any other member of the committee staff?

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A. I gave them to the chairman.

Q. Did you see any other member of the committee staff during this period.

A. No, sir; not during the time I was there.

Q. Did you ever submit tn expense voucher for per diem and related expenses?

A. No, I did not, because I did not stay in a hotel and I did not think I should.

Q. Where did you stay?

A. I stayed with a girl friend of mine.

Q. Mrs. Himes, the audit of your travel done by this committee does not show any ticket purchased for you between here and Los Angeles at any time during the past 2 years. Do you have any explanation for that, or could you account for that in any way?

A. No, sir; I cannot.

Q. You did travel on a ticket purchased on Mr. Stone's credit card? A. I did not actually pick the ticket up myself.

Wait just a minute. Yes, I did. I beg your pardon. I did pick it up. I used a credit card to pick up the ticket.

Mr. HAYS. Mrs. Himes, were you traveling on the business of the subcommittee? Was one special subcommittee looking into that Watts thing?

The WITNESS. Our poverty people had been out there.

Mr. HAYS. Ad Hoc Committee No. 71

The WITNESS. Yes, sir.

The chairman had wanted me to go into Los Angeles.

By Mr. TAYLER:

Q. Mrs. Himes, the audit of the payroll records indicates that since April 1, 1965, you have been on the payroll of Subcommittee No. 7, the Poverty Subcommittee. Do you know anything about that?

A. No, sir, I do not understand at all what payroll I have been carried on.

Q. You work in the Congressman's congressional office; is that right?

A. That is right. Since April 1965.

Q. Have you performed any other travel during the past 2 years on committee business?

A. None.

Q. At committee expense?

A. None.

Q. If I tell you that the audit records and the airline records indicate that you traveled between Washington, D.C., and New York City on April 25, 1965, and returned to Washington from New York on April 27, 1965, would your answer be that you did not make that trip?

A. My answer would be I did not make that trip.

Q. I am going to show you what will be marked "Himes Exhibit No. 1," being two coupons of an airline ticket on Eastern showing Dorothy Himes as the passenger, Washington to New York on the shuttle, on April 25, New York to Washington on the shuttle, April 27, and ask you if you can tell us whether or not you used that ticket for that travel.

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