Richard Nixon And The Watergate Scandal

Richard Milhous Nixon served as the thirty seventh President of the United States from 1969 to 1974. Nixon served as both a representative and Senator for the state of California and Vice President under Dwight Eisenhower before running for president. During his time in office, Nixon was praised for his work with foreign affairs; however, he also made history for his involvement in the Watergate scandal that led to him being the first and only President to resign from office in the summer of 1974. Following a break-in at the Democratic campaign headquarters, both the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and Congress conducted lengthy inquiries into Nixon’s involvement in the burglary and his subsequent efforts to conceal his involvement.

Nixon’s failure to abide by the “rule of law” was demonstrated by his involvement in the Watergate break-in and cover-up for which he attempted to avoid accountability under the law, and his refusal to hand over tapes the documenting conversations he held in his office with coconspirators when he attempted to degrade the efficacy of the United States court system and undermine the authority of its members. Nixon was born in Yorba Linda, California and grew up in Whittier, California working in his family’s gas and grocery store. He attended Whittier College and Duke University’s law school, graduating in 1937. In 1942, Nixon joined the Office of Price Administration, created by the Price Control Act passed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933-1945) in 1942. The Office of Price Administration was created to regulate prices and ration goods (Biography of Nixon, OPA Sage Journal). Later that year, Nixon entered the Navy, serving as lieutenant commander in the Pacific during World War II (Whitehouse.gov). After the war, Nixon ran for Congress for the Republican party and served as a California

In the speech he announced the resignations of several staff members due to their alleged involvement in the break-in. In the speech, Nixon recounted his indignation at the “‘senseless, illegal action,’” citing the indictments of seven defendants after he ordered an investigation. Nixon maintained that he staunchly supported members of his staff until he learned, in March of 1973, of “‘a real possibility that some of these charges were true,’” and of “‘an effort to conceal the facts from […] the public’” (Nixon’s first Watergate speech). The speech also revealed the resignation of Harry (Bob) Haldeman, John Ehrlichman, Richard Kleindeinst, and John Dean. Haldeman served as chief of staff under Nixon from 1969 until 1973, Ehrlichman served as Nixon’s domestic affairs advisor from 1969 until 1973, Kleindeinst served as U.S. Attorney General under Nixon from 1972 until 1973, and Dean served as White House counsel from 1970 until 1973. Both Haldeman and Erhlichman were implicated in the cover up of the break-in, leading to their resignation. According to President Nixon’s speech, John Dean also resigned; however other sources indicate he was fired by Nixon on April 30, 1973 for refusing “to issue a proposed fictitious report denying a cover-up” (Brittanica for