[Barbara Jordan Scrapbook, July - September, 1974] Page: 87 of 236
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HOUSTON POST
July 29, 1974Womeli OK impeachment resolution
By JANE ELY
Post Reporter
AUSTIN-Members of the
T e x a s Women's Political
Caucus (TWPC) voted to sup-
p o r t the impeachment of
President Nixon Sunday, but
a majority insisted on soft-
ening the original resolution
calling also for his conviction
by the U. S. Senate.
The members still on the
floor in the final minutes of
t h e group's third annual
statewide convention also
headed off a move by State
Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson
to get the caucus' endorse-
ment of State Rep. Fred
Head in his race for speaker
of the Texas House of Repre-
sentatives.
As expected, the impeach-
ment resolution was the most
controversial of all the resolu-
tions considered by the wom-
en at the convention, which
was reported to have 239 reg-
istered delegates.
The original resolution on
the floor called for the caucus
to "urge the U. S. House of
Representatives to impeachand the U. S. Senate to con-
vict Richard M. Nixon of high
crimes and misdemeanors."
Opponents were able to
muster more than enough
votes to add the words "if the
evidence so dictates," but
they could not block the pas-
sage of the amended version.
Supporters of the resolution
maintained there already has
been enough evidence
presented to warrant the con-
viction of the President. .
They also insisted the Sen-
ate is an elected body that is
supposed. to be responsive to
the people and said that to
urge a specific verdict on its
members is not comparable
to trying to influence jurors
in a court trial.
The basic opposition to the
resolution seemed to lie not in
opposition to impeachment or
conviction but in the fear
such a resolution might fur-
t h e r alienate conservative
and Republican women from
the caucus, which has a liber-
al and Democratic image.
"We must keep the lines
open to our Republican sis-
ters," explained one oppo-nent.
It was this issue of parti-
sanship that seemed the un-
derlying factor in most of the
conflict at the convention, and
it was this issue that was
most avoided in public debate
and was most apparently un-
resolved at the time of ad-
journment.
Jane Macon of San Antonio,
w h o w a s elected caucus
chairperson without opposi
tion Sunday, said she intends
to try "to bring in women of
all parties and political per-
suasions."
She said she would work to
guide the caucus to concen-
trate on "key issues that are
of utmost importance to all
women."
M a n y speakers Sunday
spoke of the need for the
caucus to speak only to the
so-called women's issues and
to leave alone issues such as
impeachment and support of
a public utilities commission.
Others, however, obviously
were in agreement with for-
mer TWPC Chairperson Hel-
en Cassidy of Houston who in-
sisted:"There really are no wom-
en's issues. All issues are
ours-war, poverty, even the
rates on telephones-for we
come to these problems from
a different direction.
The only time the conflict
appeared close to coming
onto the floor was during the
impeachment debate. Emo-
tions then were cooled, how-
ever, when debate was inter-
rupted for a speech from na-
tional caucus Chairperson Sis-
sy Farenthold.
Tempers also flared when
Johnson made her last-minute
bid to gain the caucus en-
dorsement for Head in the
Speaker's race.
Opponents to her motion
maintained there were too
few members left in attend-
ance for there to be a repre-
sentative vote.
After her motion finally
was tabled, Johnson tried one
more time in a meeting of the
caucus' new policy council
called after convention ad
journment.
Her efforts were stymied
there because of lack of a
quorum.1
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[Barbara Jordan Scrapbook, July - September, 1974], book, 1974; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth616583/m1/87/: accessed May 22, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Southern University.