Elliot Richardson

Elliot Richardson
Richardson in 1975
Elliot Richardson
Born	Elliot Lee Richardson 20 7, 1920
Birthplace	Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	Template:Death date and age Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Lawyer, politician, diplomat
Known for	Resignation during the Saturday Night Massacre; holding four U.S. cabinet positions
Education	Harvard University (AB, LLB)
Children	3
Awards	Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart

Elliot Lee Richardson (July 20, 1920 – December 31, 1999) was an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat who served in a series of senior government positions spanning nearly four decades. A member of the Republican Party, Richardson is one of only two individuals in American history to have held four different cabinet-level positions, the other being George Shultz. He served as United States Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, United States Secretary of Defense, United States Attorney General, and United States Secretary of Commerce under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Richardson is perhaps best remembered for his role in the Watergate scandal, when, as Attorney General, he resigned rather than carry out President Nixon's order to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox during the event that became known as the Saturday Night Massacre on October 20, 1973. His principled stand during that constitutional crisis made him a symbol of integrity in public service, and his resignation helped precipitate the collapse of confidence in Nixon's presidency that ultimately led to the president's own resignation in August 1974. Born and raised in Boston, Richardson was a product of the New England establishment who attended Harvard University, served with distinction as a combat medic during World War II, and clerked for two of the most prominent jurists in American legal history before embarking on a career that carried him from Massachusetts state politics to the highest levels of the federal government.

Early Life

Elliot Lee Richardson was born on July 20, 1920, in Boston, Massachusetts. He grew up in a distinguished Boston family with deep roots in the city's civic and professional traditions. Richardson's upbringing in the patrician circles of New England society instilled in him values of public service and noblesse oblige that would shape the trajectory of his long career.

Richardson enrolled at Harvard University, where he completed his undergraduate studies and received his Bachelor of Arts degree. His education at Harvard was interrupted by the outbreak of World War II, during which Richardson enlisted in the United States Army. He served from 1942 to 1945, attaining the rank of First Lieutenant. Richardson served as a combat medic and participated in the invasion of Normandy on D-Day, one of the most consequential military operations of the war. His service in the European theater was marked by bravery under fire; he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in combat.

After the war ended, Richardson returned to the United States and resumed his education. He entered Harvard Law School, where he earned his Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree. His academic performance at Harvard Law was distinguished enough to secure him clerkships with two of the most respected judges in the American legal system. He first clerked for Learned Hand, the legendary federal appeals court judge widely considered one of the greatest American jurists never to serve on the Supreme Court. Richardson then clerked for Felix Frankfurter, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. These clerkships placed Richardson at the pinnacle of the American legal profession and provided him with a deep grounding in constitutional law and judicial reasoning that would prove instrumental in his later career.

Following his clerkships, Richardson joined the prestigious Boston law firm of Ropes & Gray, one of the oldest and most established firms in the United States, where he began his career in private legal practice.

Education

Richardson's formal education was centered at Harvard University, one of the preeminent academic institutions in the United States. He received his undergraduate degree, a Bachelor of Arts (AB), from Harvard College. After his military service during World War II, he returned to Harvard and enrolled in Harvard Law School, where he completed his legal education and earned his Bachelor of Laws (LLB). Richardson's time at Harvard Law School was followed by two highly competitive judicial clerkships — first with Judge Learned Hand of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and subsequently with Justice Felix Frankfurter of the Supreme Court of the United States. These clerkships, among the most coveted positions available to young lawyers, reflected Richardson's exceptional academic credentials and provided him with an extraordinary foundation in American jurisprudence.

Career

Massachusetts Politics (1959–1969)

Richardson's career in public office began in 1959 when President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed him as the United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, the lead federal prosecutor in the state. He served in this capacity until 1961, succeeding Anthony Julian and being succeeded by W. Arthur Garrity Jr.

Through the 1960s, Richardson emerged as a leading figure in the Massachusetts Republican Party. In 1964, he won election as the 62nd Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, serving under Governor John A. Volpe from January 7, 1965, to January 2, 1967. He succeeded Francis Bellotti in the role and was followed by Francis Sargent.

Building on his success as lieutenant governor, Richardson was elected the 37th Attorney General of Massachusetts in 1966. He served as the state's chief legal officer from January 18, 1967, to January 23, 1969, again under Governor Volpe. He succeeded Edward T. Martin and was followed by Robert H. Quinn. As of 2025, Richardson remains the last Republican to have served as Massachusetts attorney general, a reflection of the state's substantial political shift toward the Democratic Party in the decades that followed.

Nixon Administration: Under Secretary of State and HEW Secretary (1969–1973)

When Richard Nixon assumed the presidency in January 1969, Richardson joined the new administration as the 25th United States Under Secretary of State, serving under Secretary of State William P. Rogers. He took office on January 23, 1969, succeeding Nicholas Katzenbach, and served until June 23, 1970, when he was succeeded by John N. Irwin II.

Richardson's competence and reliability within the Nixon administration led to his promotion to a full cabinet position. On June 24, 1970, he was appointed the 9th United States Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW), succeeding Robert Finch. At HEW, Richardson oversaw one of the largest departments in the federal government, responsible for administering programs related to public health, social welfare, and education. During his tenure, which lasted until January 29, 1973, Richardson was responsible for implementing various domestic policy initiatives of the Nixon administration. During his time at HEW, Richardson established what became known as the "Richardson Waiver," a policy governing notice and comment procedures for grant and contract rules at the department. This policy remained in effect for over five decades until it was rescinded by the Department of Health and Human Services in February 2025. He was succeeded at HEW by Caspar Weinberger.

Secretary of Defense (1973)

On January 30, 1973, Richardson was appointed the 11th United States Secretary of Defense, succeeding Melvin Laird. His deputy secretary was Bill Clements. Richardson's tenure at the Pentagon was brief — lasting less than four months — as the escalating Watergate crisis prompted Nixon to move him to another position. He served until May 24, 1973, and was succeeded by James R. Schlesinger.

Attorney General and the Saturday Night Massacre (1973)

On May 25, 1973, Richardson was confirmed as the 69th United States Attorney General, succeeding Richard Kleindienst, who had resigned amid the growing Watergate scandal. Richardson's appointment was seen as an effort by Nixon to restore credibility to the Department of Justice at a time of deepening crisis. During his Senate confirmation hearings, Richardson pledged to appoint an independent special prosecutor to investigate the Watergate affair and promised to give that prosecutor broad authority and independence. He subsequently appointed Archibald Cox, a Harvard Law School professor, to serve as the Watergate special prosecutor.

Richardson served as Attorney General for less than five months, with Joseph Tyree Sneed III and William Ruckelshaus serving as his deputy attorneys general. The defining moment of his tenure — and arguably of his entire career — came on October 20, 1973, in what became known as the "Saturday Night Massacre."

The crisis arose when Cox subpoenaed tape recordings of White House conversations that were central to the Watergate investigation. Nixon refused to comply and instead ordered Attorney General Richardson to fire Cox. Richardson, honoring the commitment he had made during his confirmation hearings to protect the independence of the special prosecutor, refused to carry out the order and resigned from office. Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus also refused to fire Cox and either resigned or was fired — accounts of the sequence of events vary. The task ultimately fell to Solicitor General Robert Bork, who, as the third-ranking official in the Department of Justice, carried out the president's order and dismissed Cox.

The Saturday Night Massacre provoked an immediate and intense public backlash against Nixon. The event precipitated a severe crisis of confidence in the Nixon presidency and is widely credited with accelerating the political dynamics that led to Nixon's resignation on August 9, 1974. Richardson's principled resignation established him as one of the central figures of the Watergate era and became a touchstone in American political discourse about the rule of law and the independence of the justice system. He was succeeded as Attorney General by William B. Saxbe.

Ford Administration: Ambassador and Commerce Secretary (1975–1977)

After Nixon's resignation and the accession of Gerald Ford to the presidency, Richardson returned to government service. On March 21, 1975, he was appointed United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom, succeeding Walter Annenberg. He served in London until January 16, 1976, when he was succeeded by Anne Armstrong.

Richardson returned to Washington to assume his fourth and final cabinet position when President Ford appointed him the 23rd United States Secretary of Commerce on February 2, 1976. He succeeded Rogers Morton and served until the end of the Ford administration on January 20, 1977, when he was succeeded by Juanita M. Kreps, appointed by incoming President Jimmy Carter.

Post-Government Career (1977–1999)

After leaving the Ford administration in January 1977, Richardson returned to private practice as an attorney in Washington, D.C. He continued to engage with public affairs and policy questions, and he served as an adviser to President Jimmy Carter on matters of maritime law, demonstrating his willingness to work across party lines on issues of national and international importance.

Richardson made one final attempt to return to electoral politics in 1984, when he sought the Republican nomination for United States Senate in Massachusetts. However, he lost the Republican primary to Ray Shamie, reflecting the changing dynamics within the Republican Party as it moved in a more conservative direction during the Reagan era.

Richardson spent his remaining years in private practice and public life in the Washington area. He continued to be involved in various civic and professional activities until his death.

Personal Life

Elliot Richardson maintained strong ties to his native Boston throughout his life. He and his wife had three children, including a son named Henry.

Richardson died on December 31, 1999, in Boston, Massachusetts, at the age of 79. His papers were donated to the Library of Congress, where they are preserved as the Elliot L. Richardson Papers, covering the period from 1922 to 2000. The collection documents his extensive career in government and public service. Additional materials related to Richardson are held at Harvard University.

Recognition

Richardson's military service during World War II was recognized with the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart, awarded for his bravery and wounds sustained as a combat medic during the Normandy campaign and subsequent operations in the European theater.

His resignation during the Saturday Night Massacre became one of the most frequently cited examples of principled conduct in American government. The episode is regularly invoked in discussions of executive power, the independence of the justice system, and the obligations of government officials to uphold their commitments and the rule of law.

In recognition of his legacy of public service, the Elliot L. Richardson Prize for Excellence was established to honor individuals who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in government. The prize continues to be awarded; in 2025, former Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and former Washington Governor Gary Locke were named as recipients of the award.

Richardson's papers at the Library of Congress and Harvard University serve as important archival resources for scholars studying the Nixon and Ford administrations, the Watergate scandal, and American political history of the twentieth century.

Legacy

Elliot Richardson's legacy rests on two principal pillars: his record of sustained, high-level public service across multiple cabinet departments, and his principled stand during the Watergate crisis. As one of only two individuals to have held four cabinet positions, Richardson demonstrated a breadth of competence across national security, domestic policy, law enforcement, and economic affairs that few American public servants have matched.

His resignation on October 20, 1973, during the Saturday Night Massacre remains a defining moment in American political history. The event is regularly commemorated on its anniversary and continues to be studied as a case study in the tension between executive authority and the rule of law. Richardson's decision to resign rather than comply with what he considered an improper order established a precedent for the conduct of senior government officials faced with directives they believe to be inconsistent with their constitutional or ethical obligations.

Richardson's career also illustrated the evolution of the Republican Party in the second half of the twentieth century. As a representative of the moderate, northeastern wing of the party — sometimes referred to as Rockefeller Republicans — Richardson embodied a tradition of governance-oriented conservatism that prioritized institutional integrity and bipartisan cooperation. His 1984 primary loss to Ray Shamie in the Massachusetts Senate race signaled the declining influence of this faction within the national Republican Party.

The Richardson Waiver, the administrative policy he established during his tenure at the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare governing notice and comment procedures for grant and contract rules, remained in effect for more than fifty years before being rescinded in 2025, a testament to the lasting practical impact of his administrative work beyond the dramatic events of Watergate.

The Elliot L. Richardson Prize, which continues to be awarded to distinguished public servants, ensures that his name remains associated with the values of integrity, competence, and commitment to the public good that characterized his career in government.