Watergate scandal during Nixon’s presidency
Describe the Watergate scandal during Nixon’s presidency and assess its short-term and long-term impact on
American politics.
Sample Solution
Watergate scandal during Nixon’s presidency
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal in the United States involving the administration of U.S. President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon’s resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration’s continuous attempts to cover up its involvement in the June 17, 1972 break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Washington, D.C. Watergate Office Building. The metonym Watergate came to encompass an array of clandestine and often legal activities undertaken by members of Nixon administration, including bugging the offices of political opponents and people of whom Nixon or his officials were suspicious about, and ordering investigations of activists groups and political figures. As a result of the Watergate scandal many Americans lost faith in the government and caused the reputation of the presidency to be greatly damaged. The War Powers Act enacted in 1973 stopped the president from going into war without the support of congress, and The Election Campaign Act, 1974, set limits to contributions and spending on campaigns.
