As Mr. Buckley recounts in his introduction, the Watergate hostilities, which had

already been in the headlines for more than a year, had just escalated with the Saturday Night Massacre. Our guest had been fired for refusing to fire Independent Prosecutor Archibald Cox, and he here speaks knowledgeably about the legal and moral ramifications and the probable next steps. WFB: "I should like to begin by asking Mr. Ruckelshaus whether he believes there is any question about Mr. Nixon's right to fire Mr. Cox." WR: "I think there's some question about his right to fire him. There is no question about his power to do so." WFB: "Would you elaborate on the distinction?" WR: "Yes. I think 'right' implies some correctness of action, which I thought was questionable, and that was why I refused to execute the order. I think that acting through a presidential appointee [such as the] attorney general, he would unquestionably ultimately have the power to do so."