Preview

Was Richard Nixon's Political Power In His Favor?

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
131 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Was Richard Nixon's Political Power In His Favor?
This all begs the question, “Was Richard Nixon’s legacy and accomplishments tarnished by his desire to bend his political power in his favor”? I for one, believe that Nixon became the victim of his own ambition. Although he wasn’t a part of the Watergate burglary itself his participation to cover it up and refusal to allow investigations led to his fall from power. By failing to disclose his Watergate materials, Nixon practically admitted his guilt and began the impeachment proceedings himself. Not only did he lose his political stance he dramatically dwindled his relationship with the American people. His resignation for office spread relief and exhilaration throughout the nation. Significantly, many of the whom only two years before voted

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    “The stage was set for a great constitutional struggle between a President determined not to give up executive documents and materials and a Senate committee and a federal prosecutor who are determined to get them," The White House claimed “Executive Privilege” when they refused to disclose the recorded tapes of President Nixon and his aides. Nixon and his advisors became arrogant with their possession of power. The Executive Branch was disrupting the balance of power and the separation of powers written into the Constitution. No Branch, elected official, governmental worker, or even the President is above the law, but Nixon definitely…

    • 644 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    He, along with the rest of the hired intruders, was caught in the act by security guards. Their mission was to install eavesdropping equipment in the chambers and to retrieve secret democratic files, so the president would know the Democrats’ secret plans. It was later confirmed that Nixon, along with most of his administration, was involved in the scandal. Nixon and his administration violated the constitution in two different ways. They violated the constitution by committing perjury and by obstructing justice. Nixon and his administration committed perjury b denying their involvement with the scandal. They obstructed justice by bribing individuals to remain silent towards the Scandal and by editing and erasing information off of the audio tapes. These audio tapes were key evidence that would have allowed the case to have been solved…

    • 870 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Richard M. Nixon was the 37th president of the United States of ‘murica. He is the only president in American History to resign from his position in office. He was part of the Watergate scandal but still made many great achievements in his life time. Nixon is certainly a president that will forever be in American History.…

    • 354 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Richard Nixon has been known for his Watergate scandal and never known for his accomplishments. He was the first president and Vice President to ever meet with Soviet Union, not only that but when no other President or Vice President were able to. He also started the Environmental Protection Agency. Not only that he also gave 18 yr olds the right to vote and ended the draft. Most importantly he ended the Vietnam War, depending how you look at it. He did many accomplishments in his Vice president and President term but unfortunately he was really known for the Watergate Scandal.…

    • 426 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    With embezzlements and bank fraud to retirement delays in the country, it would leave Americans in a state of fragility. Things were not the best in the days when President Nixon left office. However if we look back to 42 years ago and remember our 37th President of the United States. This was most likely a memorable day for all Americans. President Nixon was in office, and it was time to move forward he was a very conservative man, that had fresh new ideas to bring political views that would win the people. Promises of a new beginning and the great things that the American people were believing suggested the era was to be different. It was the beginning of hope, hope that the country was in need of. With so many things that took place…

    • 1443 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    President Clinton and President Nixon both associated themselves with criminal actions. Both the presidents misled the American public, causing personal as well as professional problems. For instance, President Clinton released a false statement about his affair with Monika Lewinsky, causing a lengthy and costly trial, and greatly affecting his presidential career. Also, President Nixon caused a scandal associated with Watergate, which ended up with his leaving the office. Even though they caused trouble for themselves and others around them, Clinton and Nixon did influence the American economy to a great degree. Clinton practically saved the economy and lowered the US inflation rate, through gradual and advocated plans of reform. Moreover, Nixon was the first to go into China territory for negotiations. Ultimately, they have attracted the media with their antics, making themselves’ targets of controversy and embarrassment. In fact, President Clinton and Nixon have become the subjects of public mockery and have been an embarrassment to the American people in the office of the President. Moreover, both men have been involved in humiliating situations.…

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    At the time of his first term as president, Nixon's approval ratings were higher than those of President Johnson and he won reelection by one of the biggest margins in American history (Gallup). That is to say, despite the protests and ineffectiveness of his tactics, there was public support for the way in which he conducted the war, especially from the “Silent majority”. Although, this can be attributed in part to the secrecy of his actions, as was case of the bombing of Laos and Cambodia and the sabotage of the 1968 peace talks. In addition, he did effectively end the Vietnam War in 1973. For this reason in the literal sense of the word, Nixon was an effective leader, he was able to influence both American people and politicians towards a common goal, the end of the war. However, because of new information found on Nixon's tapes and in notes from his top aids it is clear that Nixon lacked the moral integrity that characterizes an effective leader. This begs the difficult question, should Nixon's leadership be judged for his accomplishment and the way he was viewed in the moment or should he be judged by the means through which he accomplished so…

    • 1056 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    To win this position, Nixon utilized a tactic he would repeatedly use throughout his political career; he exploited his opponent, Voorhis’s, alleged communist sympathies. In the end, Nixon won a seat on the US House of Representatives by more than fifteen thousand votes. While in this position, Nixon served on the Education and Labor Committee and was one of those in support of the Taft-Harley Act. As a member of the House Un-American Activities Committee he became a controversial national figure. This stemmed from him leading the investigation of former State Department official Alger Hiss for being an alleged spy for Russia during World War II. Nixon was opposed, however, years later, Hiss’ guilt was revealed and he was pegged as a fervent anti-communist. Nixon was reelected for congress in 1948. In 1950, won the position of California Senator by nearly half a million votes after distorting his opponent, Helen Douglas’s voting history as left-wing. This move earned him the unflattering nickname “Tricky Dick” that followed him for the rest of his life. Nixon won the attention of President Eisenhower for his anti-communist reputation and, in 1952, won the nomination as vice president. However, during his campaign, a rumor surfaced that he held a secret fund for his own use. Eisenhower gave him a chance to clear his name and, in a nationally televised statement, Nixon affirmed the existence of the fund but denied that any of it was being used for the wrong purpose. Eventually, he won the positon as vice president. In this positon, he attended many of the high-power meetings meant for Eisenhower as the president was often incapacitated by sickness. In a way, he was already…

    • 1394 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Nixon has the unwanted honor of being the only U.S president to have resigned from office. This is a text of his entire resignation speech. This is a great source because those are the words taken directly from Nixon's mouth. It also reveals a lot about Nixon. The most common theme in the speech is his preaching his innocence. He says that he still believes that he is innocent, and that everything he did was for the best of the nation. He says he’s only resigning because he feels that would be best for the country, not because of all the crimes he committed. This speech really helps showcase Nixon's character, that he will lie and lie until the very…

    • 317 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nixon was a president during the late 60’s early 70’s. He was a president who had good private morality, but not so much public morality. This flaw made him quite paranoid and Nixon felt he needed information to be on top. Nixon also made great world changing decisions without the advice or interference of Congress. When Nixon went the extremes of using government to wiretap without the congress’s or court’s approval Congress was not happy. This was the beginning of bad…

    • 321 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Vietnam war was a troubling war that lasted from 1955 to 1975. It was located in North and South Vietnam and was fought by the U.S., South Vietnam, and North Vietnam. There was bloodshed from both sides and many innocent lives lost. The Vietnam war was not only a troubling time for Vietnam, but also the United States.…

    • 1984 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Both presidents were accused of perjury and essentially impeached, Nixon was technically not impeached but he would have been had he not resigned. Also, both scandals included a large media presence that contributed to the public's opinion of the situations. Both of these presidents were one of the first few politicians to have their private life criticized by media. Plus, although neither presidents career matched up completely they shared similar issues. One being the Foreign policy in which both presidents became involved in conflict they should not have. Another issue being the overcoming of scandals, both men faced several scandals in their career but overcame them to have successful careers up until their downfall. Overall, both of these men went into american history as lying corrupt leaders despite their once successful…

    • 599 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nixon

    • 804 Words
    • 3 Pages

    lot of the same plans as JFK had for the war. Richard Nixon believed his…

    • 804 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Watergate Scandal was an act by President Nixon, that caused him to become the infamous president he was known as. The Watergate Scandal was a burglary that occurred in June 17, 1972 and was organized by none other than President Nixon himself. The scandal caused a great deal of uncertainty in America as no one wanted to believe that the President would do something so naive and devious. This…

    • 687 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Watergate Scandal Essay

    • 825 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Many people argue that the Watergate Scandal had an overall damaging and negative influence on American politics. They say that the scandal instilled in the citizens a feeling of distrust and doubt regarding politicians. On the other hand, I believe that even though the Watergate Scandal was an event of corruption in politics, its positive consequences outweighed the negative. The Watergate Scandal showed President Richard Nixon’s corruption in his attempt to cover up the break in of the office of the Democratic National Committee. Not only did he cover the crime up, he also raised money to keep the burglars quiet and abused his power to obstruct the FBI’s investigation, allowing illicit activities to take place. This event, at first glance,…

    • 825 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays