◆ SpookStack

ON THE pcur --< py William F.gackley, Jee) . For Relesse Thuredsy, December 15, 1966, oc thereafter. wWial'S BUGGING KEWEOTT At first 1¢ appears to be a semantic problew, nothing more; but as cae looks more closely, it becouse a titanic character struggle, am unfortunate consequence of which is that ic leaves everyone wondering whather Mr. Hoover or Mr. Kennedy is telling the truth, end practically no one wondering why efther of them should think there is a great deal here to hide, i.e., to be worth telling falsehoods about. . The first distinction ts between the wire tap and the microphone (bug), The ose of the wiretap is regulated by law; not so the bug, which was invented years after the wiretep law. For sows reason (inertia), Congress hean't got around to extending to buge che reservations it insists on with reference to wiretaps. The general feeling in the Justice Department, however, bas been that it would be - unsportepenlike to take advantage of the technicality by using bugs with abandon. ded eo the diepute is over the question whether, when Hr. Epover used his bugs, Mr. Kennedy, as Attorney General, was svare of their use, even as he acknowledges being eware of the use of wiretaps, as required by Congress. Certainly Mr. Hoover seems to have got the best of the credibility argument. Mr, Kennedy said publicly that he was not aware that buge were being used, Whereupon Mr. Hoover promptly produced a letter signed “Robert F, Eennedy" raising the queation of leasing telephone Lines which would connects up to the FBI's bugs. Kannedy retaliated by producing a contemporary affidavit from one Evans, a former liason official between himself as Attorney General and the FBI, which affidavit stated that he Evans had never spoken to Kennedy on behalf of the FBI, on the subject of bugs, Whereupen Hoover produced a memorandum frog the sane Evans dated 1961 in which he reported that ha had discussed with Mr. Kennedy, at the request of Mr, Hoover, the use of microphones under certain circumstances, and Keonedy hed ad auhia so expressed himself as “pleseed" that these should be ; subjec asset — = dL hed tad fa che oe & ant’ oe CAs denying ordinance, “where possible in organized crime ustters." Question: is - Evans (whe ia no longer with the FBI) sore cradible in 1966 about what he did 1961; or more credible in 1961 about what he did in 19617 And then there are several witnesses who were in the same room with Kennedy when he listened to a taped conversation {n Las Vegas between two hoods discussing the unhappy local appointment of an honest police chief, Srace yourself. Kennedy says he didn't know the conversation had been eavesdropped! Ha thought, pre- a eueoLy ia Why did Mr, Kennedy do it? Let ue disdain the moral questions, inasmuch as they are generally thought to be tangentiel in polities, and wonder not why Mr. Kennedy told an untruth, but why he thought he could get away with it? (HORE} Relessed Exciusiveiy Tire Tue WASHINGTON STAR SYNDICATE, INC, 444 Madisoa Ave, New York, N. ¥. 10022 Te. 212-EL $-7137