Watergate A Decade Of Corruption, Lies, And Shadiness

Olivia Sees Mrs. Shandera Mr. Hill English pd. 3 History pd. 9 10 February 2017 *Insert Title Here* The 1970 s: a decade of corruption, lies, and shadiness. It seemed impossible any good could come out of such a disaster. However, only one thing was certain: United States Government would never be the same. Republican President Richard Nixon ran for reelection in 1972, amidst the Vietnam War and a divided nation (History.com Staff). It was crucial that Nixon and his reelection team put forth an aggressive campaign (History.com Staff). The Watergate Scandal increased public distrust of United States Government, therefore creating new acts to disclose government information and closer scrutiny of government by the media. According†¦show more content†¦Archibald Cox was appointed special prosecutor for Watergate in May of 1973 (Feinstein 39). Nixon had previously taped White House conversations and had Cox fired when asked to turn in these tapes (Feinstein 39). Clearly, Nixon had something to hide. According to â€Å"Watergate,† from July 10 throug h July 12 of 1973, former Attorney General Mitchell testified in court. He confessed that he helped cover up the scandal to save Nixon s reelection. Mitchell also revealed the plumbers,† which were a secret White House group created to stop information leakage involving President Nixon (Watergate (1973)). The information that surfaced during the trial always led back to Nixon. The Supreme Court commanded Nixon to turn over the tapes in July of 1974 (Feinstein 39). It was proven on the tapes that Nixon lied about covering up Watergate, thus putting Nixon in the position for impeachment (Feinstein 39). According to Watergate Scandal, more information was unveiled as the trial went on, ironically followed by President Nixon’s resignation in August 1974. Gerald Ford was Nixon’s successor, and he pardoned Nixon for any accused crimes. However, many of Nixon’s aides were not pardoned. They were convicted and sent to federal prison, while Nixon faced no punishmen t. Although Nixon was never prosecuted, the Watergate scandal changed American politics forever, leading many Americans to question their leadership and think more critically about