Nixon orders the firing of Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox; Attorney General Richardson and Deputy AG Ruckelshaus both resign rather than comply

President Nixon ordered special prosecutor Archibald Cox fired on October 20, 1973, after Cox refused to accept edited transcripts of White House tapes in place of the actual recordings. Attorney General Elliot Richardson resigned rather than carry out the order; Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus also resigned. Solicitor General Robert Bork, third in the line of Justice Department command, complied and fired Cox. The event — immediately called the "Saturday Night Massacre" — triggered articles of impeachment and intensified demands for the appointment of a new, independent special prosecutor.