Whenever a democracy falters, society’s faith in the government crumbles. In the wake of Donald Trump’s indictment, such concerns are on people’s minds. With the former president facing a criminal charge, people are looking back at the Watergate Scandal that forced Richard Nixon to resign from office.
A team of ruthless political advisors was formed to strengthen Nixon’s future term. The team, code-named ‘Plumbers,’ was tasked with intercepting the press leaks and padding up the administration against attacks from media and civilians. Unfortunately, this team was caught breaking in into what became the infamous Watergate Scandal. The perpetrators were caught and brought to justice. Richard Nixon, though, went unscathed.
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What Is The Infamous Watergate Scandal?
The Watergate Scandal is the worst political scandal to have plagued the United States of America. Nixon aides E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy devised a diabolical plan to ensure the president remained on for another term. Using every source, they were to spy on the Democratic Party.
Soon, E. Howard Hunt and his team (dubbed as White House Plumbers) broke into the headquarters of the Democratic Party’s offices at the Watergate Building. The first break-in took place on May 11, 1972. The team successfully broke into the offices, took photographs of secret documents, and placed wiretaps on the phone.
But the second break-in attempt on June 17, 1972, failed. This attempted burglary of national secrets birthed The Watergate Scandal. Richard Nixon denied any knowledge of these illegal activities. But two investigative journalists named Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein were about to blow the case wide open.
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Did Richard Nixon Go To Prison For His Role In The Watergate Scandal?
Richard Nixon smartly maneuvered out of this high-wire situation. Woodward and Bernstein of the Washington Post were contacted by an anonymous source, ‘Deep Throat.’ Their investigation stank up to high heaven. Most administration members, including Nixon, were guilty of a cover-up. After all, paying hush money to crush matters has been a Presidential legacy for some.
Woodward and Bernstein had everything going except solid hard proof. They learned about the existence of certain tapes, the “smoking gun” that could bring down Nixon’s glass palace. After being denied, the investigators took the judicial course of justice. The Supreme Court got the smoking gun. With the tapes made public, Richard Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974.
Richard Nixon never faced any criminal charges for his involvement in the Watergate Scandal. President Gerald Ford pardoned him. He initially hesitated to accept the pardon, but seeing the legal ramifications of lawsuits changed his tone. Around 48 government officials were found guilty of crimes and served jail terms. The Watergate Scandal remains an uncomfortable blot on the political fabric of the United States of America.
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