>> would you think of pat, her husband of 53 years i hope you're over the sunshine of her smile. she would like that. [applause] >> c-span where history unfolds daily. in 1979 c-span was created as a public service by america's cable television company. today we continue to take to congress and other public policy events and washington d.c. and around the country. c-span, powered by cable. >> he spent as your unfiltered view of government. we are funded by these television companies and more including buckeye broadband. milko ♪

♪ buckeye broadband support c-span as a public service. along with these other television providers for giving it a front row seat to democracy. >> my name is kristine eyman exhibit curator here at the capitol visitor center inside ce the u.s. capitol. we are here in the congressional investigation exhibit and exhibition hall. this is an exhibit that speaks to how and why congress does one of his most important jobs. the constitution gives congress the power to legislate. but in order to do that congress needs information on what topics it can legislate on. what needs to be legislate about.ro congress gets that information through investigation. so at any given time congress

can be investigating for example if a law is being implemented as it is intended to for the cause of a disaster. it gathers information and uses that information to create new law. one of our goals for this exhibit is for americans to get a betterde understanding of the things that happen here inn the capitol. the things done by their representatives in congress. so because investigations are one of those things that congress does so regularly, we wanted to highlight that. we wanted to show historical examples of congress investigating. they can use that example to better understand's going on right here in this building the capitol. therewh are four main reasons wy congress investigates.

one is fact-finding. investigations can reveal the facts of things that happen and clarify what happens and why. another reason is oversight. congressional investigations can revealon waste, fraud, or corruption in government cannot hold officials and agencies accountable to the american people. legislation is another reason my congress investigates. investigations can provide information about new laws that could be made to benefit the american people. sometimes they also provide information about revising the laws as well. and a fourth reason why congress investigates is to influence opinion. so, investigations can bring national attention to the subject.

brink voter support for an issue. and can get more support for member or party's preferred policy.. the constitution is not does not explicitly state congress has the power to investigate. but the supreme court has ruled investigation is essential to congress' ability to legislate. a power that's in the constitution. what are the goals for this exhibit is for americans to better understand what happens here in the capitol building. most investigations can follow a pattern of steps. recognizing thater pattern and e historical examples can help visitors see what is going on t today. the steps of an investigation tend to repeat in most investigations. the first step is something happens that causes congress to want to get more information.

it can be growing awareness of a problem. congress decides they need to investigate. after that happens then there's anotherst step the authorization to investigate. standing committees can investigate anything that is within their jurisdiction. but sometimes congress decides to authorize a special committee or commission to take a closer look at a specific topic. the nextst step is hearing set. thisma is a stuff many americans may be most familiar with this was what a lot of americans will see on tv or onan the news. hearings are usuly public events or congress is to hear from witnesses and from experts who know about the things that happened or who know about the

problems that need to be resolved.an congress gather the information they can then use. step four is reports most investigations of a published report that's used by congress and the american public to better understand what the information was that congress gathered during the investigation. the report can lay out what was discovered and also include conclusions or recommendations about what congress should do next after the investigation. the last step is legislation. not every investigation ends in legislation, but most of them do. the legislation is when congress acts on those recommendations. or acts on the findings of the investigation to solve a problem or to change the law to better address the situation.

congress first ever congressional investigation the late 1700s. it resulted from a military defeat congress wanted to know why the military had been defeated so badly it by a group of native american tribal nations. so asked the secretary of war for papers about the defeat. secretary of war knox did not know exactly how to respond to that. at this early stage in the republic congress the executive branch were still figuring out the separation of power means. the sretary knox went to president washington and asked how he should respond to congress' request for papers? president washington considered the question. and decided there was going to be times when the executive branch should not share

information with either congress or the courts. the reason for that is because the executive branch, the president has a need sometimes for private counsel from his advisors. the president needs to be able to receive candid advice i don't that advice will remain private. so washington decided that was a situation that will probably be occurring in the future. he recognized that is an important aspect of the situation. he determined in this particular case he could turn over the papers requested to congress and he did so. thst conversation with president whiton and his advisors was the first time discuss the concept later known executive privilege. the power of the present to

withhold certain communication from congress and the courts. so in april 1912 a few days after the sinking of the titanic the survivors arrived in new york city.p senators from here in washington erased up to new york to meet the survivors there. they wanted to find out what happens, why the ship sank and the people could tell them what happened on the ship. they went directly to new york to meet them to make sure they have the opportunity to hear from witnesses before they began to disperse to the different locations around the world including many who plan to travel back to england. there hearings for the titanic investigation started right there in new york city. they were held on the waldorf waldorf-astoria hotel present we have a photograph in the case of those hearings in the waldorf. the senators wanted to know how

this came to happen? and then what happened after? one of the things they found out how the rescue ship had heard the distress call of the titanic and raised it through dangerous icy waters to reach the titanic the carpathian it was the ship that collected all of the people who survived the sinking. the t captain of the carpathiant was one who testified to congress. congress was so impressed with the bravery that he exhibited duringng this event they later awarded him a congressional gold which you can also see on display right here. we also have a map showing the north atlantic. the ice fields were in that time. committee did in their investigation to find out what

was known about ice and the north atlantic prior to the voyage of the titanic. as a result of the investigation congress change regulation about maritime safety. lifeboat regulations. and crew training. accreted the international ice patrol to ensure the absence of information that the titanic have been face would not be something repeated. generally raise the profile of safety legislation and other such laws subsequently followed. so amidst the great depression in the early 1930s congress started an investigation into why the stock market crashed on the events that burst precipitated the beginning of the great depression. congress investigated what happened on wall street.

look into the activities and neat procedures at banks and financial businesses used on wall street. theyey found that were many financial industry insiders who use our power on wall street to accumulate money to themselves. sometimes at the expense of their own investors. one of the people the senate called to testify was charles mitchell. the president of what was then that the nation's largest bank, national city. the subpoena of mitch it was right here. under questioning bank president mitchell admitted he had acted irresponsibly with his investors money. he had sold securities as safe bets when he had not vetted them thoroughly to know their safe bets.

the committee also subpoenaed other wall street titans for example j.p. morgan junior who admitted under oath he had paid no income taxes for several years. he had given providential vacuoles. the great depression had impacted more americans than any other economic events had in their history. most americans are playing close attention on the senate about wall street. the investigation and the public hearings led to an increase in public support for new legislation that would regulate wall street for the first time. there are several legislative outcomes from this investigation. one of them was the banking act of 1933 which created the federal deposit insurance corporation, the fcic. on another act that was passed

as a result of this of 1934 which are regulated the trade of securities in the stock market. any american who has over time include stocks has been affected by the legacy of those laws passed in the aftermath of this investigation. december 7 , 41 was a surprise attack on the u.s. military base in pearl harbor. [inaudible] it created a joint committee which means members of the house and the senate the committee looked into what happened before

pearl harbor and white they were so unprepared and the consequences of that attack were so devastating. point to point out this item right here this machine is one part of a machine created by our army signal intelligence service used to decrypt japanese diplomatic code and the month before and after the attack on pearll harbor. one of the things that was discovered was purple america had covered they'd cracked the japanese code using purple was decrypting these diplomatic messages. it is also discovered one of the messages sent hours before the attack pointed towards a military action by japan. the american crew was not able to decrypt it and send that

information to the military commanders in hawaii in time for them to act on it before the attack began. but as a resultur of the information congress passed the national security act of 1947. this act did a major reorganization of the military branches and national intelligence. it cried the first permanent intelligence agency. and also reorganize all the military services to be under one department. just before that isaiah's entered world wares ii the specl committee to investigate the national defensese program. this committee was created to oversee billions of dollars the congress and just made for war preparations. this committee was led by senator harry truman of missouri

and investigated reports of fraud inefficiency and war preparation. the o committee uncovered numers instances of corruption and mismanagement and profiteering. it set a standard for congressional oversight operation was widely praised for effective work saving billions of dollars of taxpayer money. it also madenator truman a nationalur figure. the truman committee investigation range far and wide. sometimes even including household goods like this umbrella you see here in the case. the tag on the umbrella marked by the committee since illustration of waste and material and manpower because of its shoddy construction and did not last very long. ander or time a regular consumer goods were considered to be critical wartime commodities. tips from the american public.

individual americans for pointing out things they had witnessed of waste, fraud, abuse. one letter here from a citizen to truman thanking him for his actions uncovering the fraud. he was one of many people who wrote into truman to express either tips or their support. at the conclusion of this investigation, after saving billions of dollars of taxpayer money the senatee decided the truman committee had been so effective at saving money and identifying fraud they decided to make the committee permanent and create the permanent subcommittee on investigation. even today psi is investigating for accountability of government

and to uncover waste and fraud. one of 10 japanese american incarceration camps built in remote areas of the american west during world war ii. future congressman was incarcerated for several years. the story behind heart mountain the other incarceration can't begin after congress declared war in japan 1941 which was the start of american involvement in world war ii. subsequent to that the u.s. government forcibly moved or relocated approximately 120,000 u.s. residents of japanese descent. about two thirds of whom were american citizens.

president franklin roosevelt executive order for the incarcerations claimed it was necessary to protect the country from espionage. the decades after the war in 1980 congress decided to investigate. at that time there is a number of asian american pacific island are members of congress including congressman norman fromal california document the harms that have beenn caused by incarceration. i'm to take action to rectify that. this commission the commission on wartime relocation and internment of civilians that congress created put out a two-part reporte this is the report right here. the report concluded there was no evidence of threats for any military need for the

incarceration. it also found detentions resulted from quote racer presbyters, or time hysteria and the failure of political leadership. the commission recommended an official government apology. in restitution payments to the survivors of the internment camp for many of whom had lost their homes or businesses when their forcibly relocated to the incarceration camp. butrs the efficacy of many membs of congress including norman men data congress passed the civil liberties act of 1988. this act did issue an official government apology for the incarceration authorize the restitution payments for the survivors. so this letter right i here is a letter written by president george h.w. bush to one of the

survivors of the incarceration camp. the letter is eight letter of apology and also include a statement. because the objects in this case relate to the investigation into domestic communism and the early 1950s debate centered joseph mccarthy of wisconsin. this is the period of the early cold war when there was an intense suspicion of domestic communists and number of members of congress who are attempting to influence a public opinion to be against domestic communists holdingin positions of influence and the united states government and in the country as a whole. said senator joseph mccarthy had given a speech claiming there were 205 known communists and the dent of state.

an senate investigation found they were false. mccarthy handled the investigation.t when the objects i went to call out is this item right here her. it is a speech delivered by one of mccarthy's fellow senators. this is from senator margaret chase smith of maine. one of the only republicans the first republicans to speak up about mccarthy's investigation. she did so she was concerned about the weight mccarthy had been using abusive tactics. unsubstantiated allegations inf investigation of suspected communists. the allegations mccarthy was making could often end up in ruined lives and ruin careers. quick senator i never gave your cruelty or your recklessness.

>> speak up she gave this speech on the floor of the senate. in this speech she cried tactics condemn the climate of quote fear, ignorance, bigotry in smearca unquote. that c mccarthy had created. a few of fellow republicans that joined her condemnation of mccarthy at that time. mccarthy's investigation continued. the mccarthyin hearings were televised. it was these televised hearings were americans got deceit mccarthy abusive tactics and unsubstantiated allegation for the first time. this change public opinion within a few months of the hearing the senate had decided

had voted to censure mccarthy for conduct unbecoming a senator. in early 1950s increasing number of media reports focus on organized crime. there is an increase and americans who weree concerned this crime was overcoming a serious problem and nothing was been done about it. at of tennessee decided to look into this. the vested organized crime and the mob. with different cities around the country. and politicians in these different cities. crime in their areas for the put

suspected mobsters and gamblers on the sand as well. these hearings which were televised captivated the nation. the repeated king of the underworld. a startling bit of dramatic reality. [inaudible] an awful lot of respect for them i'mnot going to answer another question.in just a minute we have a resource in our command to seize brought to contempt? and he is arrested. >> some of them were shown in movie theaters did not have televisions at home watch the hearings themselves. americans tuned into these hearings incredible numbers. more americans watching the committee hearings that had watch the world series.

the accomplishments were somewhat modest. but senator became a nationally known figure. coonskin cap that evoked another well-known tennessean made him instantly recognizable to the public knew about his investigations into the mob. the investigation into organized crime was one of those instances there is not a huge legislative output from thega investigation. but it didn't have a big impact on public opinion. the public wanted more law enforcement after hearing about

what was happening in the world of organized crime. one of the reasons why this exhibit is here right now congressional investigations is because it is the 50th anniversary of watergate. one of the most important consequential oversight investigations that congress is done. the watergate scandal began with a crime a break-in at the watergate complex and washington d.c. in june of 1972 by people who were associated with n presidentt nixon's campaign. it evolves into a battle between congress and thesi president ovr access to tape recordings that contain evidence about the crime and the cover-up. it concluded the resignation of president nixon under threat of impeachment.

the security log from the watergate complex you see the dates of june 17, 1972 the date of the break-in at the watergate hotel. that log has a note written by the securityrd guard made a note in the log he had seen a piece of tape on a door to prevent the door from latching and made the doorrs accessible from the outside. first he remove the piece of tape it later the same night he was continuing his rounds he found another piece of tape on the door. that tipped him off that something was happening. and there might be intruders in the building. hend called the police and the police arrived they found the five burglars inside the democratic national committee headquarters and said the watergate complex and they were arrested. the security log here the events

that triggered all the other events that followed. the tape recorder after the breakout happens president nixon might be aware of it a special committee special committee to present a campaign activities better known as a watergate committee. part of their investigation was president nixon had installed a secret tape recording system and the white house and in other locations to record the conversations he had with his advisers. as soon as the senate and

watergate committee discovered the existence of these recordings they wanted to hear them. to know what they contain evidence that the president himself was personally involved in the crime. that is in the senate issued the subpoena right here. you can see on the back of the wall the first ever congressional subpoena of a sitting president. other little subpoena or other documents as well. president richard nixon decided not to comply witha, the subpoe. citing executivege privilege. executive privilege is a power claim by presidents to withhold certain communications from congress and the courts. the idea behind executive privilege is the president needs to be able to receive candid advice from his advisers i know notethat those conversations wil

remain private. refusal to comply with the subpoena set off a constitutional crisis between congress and the president. subsequently the house judiciary committee and may of 1974 began hearings on whether or not president nixon should be impeached in the watergate break-in and cover it. they also issued subpoenas to the president he declined to comply with e those as well agan citing executive privilege. a couple of months later the house judiciary committee did vote to adopt three articles of impeachment and lesson two weeks later president nixon facing sure impeachment and conviction in the senate decided to resign his resignation letter is also here in the case on the back wall over there. there was a substantial legislative legacy from this

investigation. there was a number of the investigation revealed a number of problems that have been exploited by the nixon administration. there were a number of needs for new legislation. the sum of the laws the past include the privacy act the freedom of information 1978 and 571978 as well. as further investigation that came out of watergate as well. this turned out to be one of the most consequential oversights that congress has conducted. and sets a standard in executive branch.

click september 11, 2001 both the terrorist attack in the united states by the terrorist group al qaeda as a result of this in washington almost 3000 people died. that allowed 911 to happen. bipartisan legislative commission. the national attacks upon the united states. better known as a 911 condition. the staff of the nine election commission made this a map to document the events that happened on 9/11. the map shows the path of the flights of the four hijacked

planes. those paths are initially marked as solid lines. at the moment the planes were hijacked the hijackers turned off the transponderss that broadcast the plane's location. on the map. that moment is marked by a change in the flight path from a solid line to a dashed line. two of the hijacked planes flew into the twin towers in new york city which caused them to subsequently collapsed. one of the planes was flown into the pentagon in washington d.c. a fourth plane crashed in a field near shanksville, pennsylvania. 911 commission concluded that fourth plane intendedar target s either the white house or here at the capitol building. one of the outcomes of the 9911 investigations was the creation i have a new cabinet level department of the federal

government. the department of homeland security. in this chart right here was created won'tha law was being considered. that shows the many different sections of the federal governnt that had aole to play in nation social security. an illustrated how sprea out those responsibilities were in the coordination between the different federal government entities. the homeland security was created to bring all those different pieces of the national security system all under one person with leadership. i think it is really important for americans to understand what happens here in the capitol. and what ours elected representatives to hold on our behalf. the historical investigations

that we have put on display here allow americans to see how this process works. by seeing how congress has acted out investigated in the past i hope americans will be better able to understand what is happening today and current investigation. they can use that historical context to know how things are working' what's actually happening and why it's important to them. ♪ saturday american history tv historic conventions features watch notable remarks by presidential nominees and other political figures in the past

several decades. this is eric texas governor george w. bush accepts the republican presidential nomination in 2000 addresses leadership in america. >> are opportunities are too great. our lives too short to waste this moment. so tonight we vow to our nation we will seize this moment of american promise. we will use these good times f great goals. >> wants historic conntn speeches saturdays at 7:00 p.m. eastern on american history tv. on cspan2. weekends on cspan2 are an intellectual feast. every saturday american history tv america story and on sundayss sundaysbook to vaping she delayn nonfiction books and authors. funding for cspan2 comes from these television companies and more including ♪ ♪. where are you going?