Ex-US Sen. Howard Baker Jr. dies at 88

Ex-US Sen. Howard Baker Jr. dies at 88

WASHINGTON

Former Sen. Howard H. Baker Jr., who cut to the core of the 1973 Watergate hearings when he asked, “What did the president know and when did he know it?” has died. He was 88.

Baker died Thursday at his home, according to an email distributed at the law firm where Baker was senior counsel. He died as a result of complications from a stroke suffered Saturday, the email said.

The scion of a political family, Baker served 18 years in the Senate, winning widespread respect from Republicans and Democrats alike and rising to the post of majority leader.

But it was his instantly famous question during those Senate hearings about what President Richard Nixon knew that made him an enduring household name. It instantly focused the nation’s attention on the cover-up that perhaps more than the Watergate break-in itself eventually brought down Nixon’s presidency.

Associated Press