Editing Archibald Cox (section)

===Reaction===
The president publicly welcomed the selection and, consistent with his new public relations offensive, commended Richardson's "determination" to get to the bottom of the affair.{{sfn|Kutler|1990|p=332}} Privately, Nixon seethed with anger. In his memoir he said: "If Richardson searched specifically for the man whom I least trusted, he could hardly have done better."{{sfn|Emery|1994|pp=356–357}} Richardson, however, thought he had the best man for the job, because once Cox cleared the president there would be no hint that he colluded with Nixon or even that he was sympathetic. Richardson had perhaps been misled about what his assignment was (and what the president's true intentions were) when the president instructed him the night [[Richard Kleindienst|Kleindienst]] was dismissed to "get to the bottom of it" "no matter who[m] it hurts." Richardson was to "stand firm" only on two issues: presidential conversations were to remain privileged and national security matters were not to be investigated. Otherwise "I don't give a Goddam what it is—[[John N. Mitchell|Mitchell]], [[Maurice Stans|Stans]]—anybody." If there were any doubt, the president insisted to Richardson: "You've got to believe I didn't know anything."{{sfn|Kutler|1990|pp=328–329}}

Official Washington, however, was skeptical; Cox, they thought, would be ineffective; he was "too soft—not nasty enough."<ref name="LewisTrib">{{cite web|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1873&dat=19751021&id=EnApAAAAIBAJ&pg=840,2128305|last=Lewis|first=Anthony|title=A Tribute to Archibald Cox|work=Dayton Beach Morning Journal|date=October 21, 1975|page=4A|access-date=March 31, 2016}} (From the ''New York Times News Service.'')</ref> [[James S. Doyle|James Doyle]], a ''Washington Star'' reporter who would later become the chief press advisor for Cox's group, described his own first reaction to meeting Cox: "Prosecutors are supposed to have the instincts of a shark; this one seemed more like a dolphin."{{sfn|Doyle|1977|p=48}} That Cox was insufficiently attuned to the politics of his situation was on show when he invited to his swearing-in Senator [[Ted Kennedy]] (the one Democrat whom Nixon loathed and feared) as well as Robert Kennedy's widow; had it take place in his old solicitor general's office; and had his old boss, President Roosevelt's Solicitor General Charles Fahy, administer the oath. It convinced Nixon that Cox saw his job as to bring down the president. Nixon now regarded him as a 
"partisan viper."{{sfn|Kutler|1990|p=332}} Not long afterwards, Cox offended Senate Democrats as well by revealing at a press conference a letter requesting Senator Sam Ervin to cancel or at least postpone the Senate Watergate hearings so that he could familiarize himself with the proceedings.{{efn|''See'' {{harvnb|Doyle|1977|p=67}}. Cox wanted to establish his independence, but mostly the request was to protect the integrity of the prosecutions. National publicity might make it impossible for defendants to receive a fair trial, requiring indictments to be dismissed. Defendants and witnesses could watch the testimony and fashion their own accordingly. More significantly, the Senate could grant immunity to witness, to require them to testify, and thus possibly fatally compromise a prosecution. Cox was serious enough about the point that he made a motion to Judge Sirica, who was presiding over the Watergate prosecutions, requesting that he postpone the hearings. Alternately he asked that the court prohibit television coverage of the hearings. Cox also asked the court to prohibit the Senate Committee from granting use immunity to John Dean and [[Jeb Stuart Magruder]]. Cox's lawyers researched the points but determined that the judge would deny the motion (which he eventually swiftly did). When Cox realized he would lose, he sent his assistant [[Philip Heymann]] to argue the motion.{{sfn|Gormley|1997|pp=272–273}} The court denied the motion is all respects.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B00E0D9123DE63ABC4B52DFB0668388669EDE|last=Ripley|first=Anthony|title=Immunity Denied: But Sirica Grants It in the Senate Inquiry|work=New York Times|date=June 13, 1973|page=1|access-date=April 22, 2016|url-access=subscription|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160508080921/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B00E0D9123DE63ABC4B52DFB0668388669EDE|archive-date=May 8, 2016|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref>}} Ervin told the press: "Professor Cox's request is extraordinarily arrogant."{{efn|Quoted in {{harvnb|Doyle|1977|p=68}}. Committee Counsel Sam Dash used the same word describing their encounter when he visited Cox and Vorenberg on their first day in their offices. Cox told Dash that "you've got to close down your investigation" because it would interfere with the investigation. Dash said he told Cox: "For God's sakes, Archie, we have separation of powers. Our function is quite different than yours. We're supposed to inform the public and ultimately to reform legislation. You're a prosecutor. You're going to be trying to send people to jail. ... This is such an emergency that the public should know now what happened that we can't wait that long and I'm going to recommend to Ervin to say 'no' to you."{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=176}}}}