The Political Disaster of Watergate Essay - 879 Words

The political disaster of Watergate in the early 1970s marked the first time a president resigned. Essentially, it began when a former Marine, Daniel Ellsberg, who no longer supported war in Vietnam, leaked an analysis of American involvement there to The New York Times, starting in 1971. President Richard Nixon, a very private man, demanded that these Pentagon Papers be kept secret in order to prevent the public from finding out exactly what was going on. The scandal that followed ruined Nixon and led Americans to be more critical of the politicians they put in power and to question their leadership. Nixon wanted to prevent news articles from being published about the papers and their conclusions for reasons of â€Å"national security†. He is†¦show more content†¦His identity was not revealed until 2005 , although there had been many suspicions. He told the reporters about the federal government’s role in the cover-up of the scandal. Woodward was able to disco ver, through conversations with CREEP employees, that $70,000 of funds had been used as payoffs to the burglars. In March 1973, one of the burglars and a former CIA agent James McCord, reported a list of those in the government who were involved with the break-in and cover-up. Two of them were John Dean, who had been previously mentioned by FBI Director L. Patrick Gray, and Jeb Magruder, who had been involved with Nixon’s campaign. The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post both ran the story, facing lawsuits from Dean’s lawyer. Dean testified that Nixon knew about the cover-up, and then Nixon refused to appear before the Senate Judicial Committee based on executive privilege, which allows officials to keep information private if releasing it would disrupt the function of the government. He had previously said that he would not invoke executive privilege. In the court case, one of Nixon’s aides testified that there was a taping system in the Oval Office that the president used to record all his conversations. Immediately afterwards, Nixon had the recorder removed, and refused to submit the existing tapes as evidence. On August 15,Show MoreRelatedThe Watergate Scandal Essay811 Words   |  4 PagesThe Watergate Scandal The United States Justice System is founded on In its historical context, Watergate was not a surprising development when it is considered that Nixon was a paranoid personality capable of using any avenue to insure that his political objectives were attained. He had proved that early in his political career in his famous Checkers speech. By the early 70s however the nation had changed. It wasnt as easy to dupe the public with sappy speeches to explain away politicalRead MoreWatergate Paper1434 Words   |  6 Pages Watergate Paper Paul Salabarria HIS/145 June 26, 2012 Jeff Wilson Watergate Paper Watergate was a scandal that involved a break-in into the offices of the Democratic National Committee during the Nixon administration. Watergate was one of the most famous political scandals in American history. Decades after Watergate historians and others continue to argue about its causes and significance (Brinkley, 2007). It marked a period that both weakened our relationships with other countries as well asRead MoreRichard Nixon s Impact On The Nation1214 Words   |  5 Pagesput himself right into action making sure he could build up and maintain and good reputation in office. But soon after completing his first term, disaster struck just as reelection was coming up. 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Watergate created cynicism of the government, which in turn made governing difficult both intentionally as well as improvisational because the institution of the President was seen as acting in the best interest of itself. President Jimmy Carter and President Ronald Reagan both had their difficulties as President. Carter had terrible problems with economics asRead MoreFor Americans, The 1976 Presidential Election Was As Confusing1047 Words   |  5 Pagesexciting. Several factors made it dramatically different and more complex than any other election before. In both parties, the mood of the 1976 campaign was deeply influenced by past disasters. Democrats kept recalling the enormous defeat they suffered in 1972 and Republicans could not seem to move beyond the Watergate scandal they had just endured. 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