Watergate Scandal
Watergate was a political scandal that ultimately led to President Nixon resigning from office. The scandal began when a group of men were caught breaking into the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters at the Watergate complex on June 17, 1972. A security guard had noticed that the latches on some of the doors had been covered with tape, allowing the doors to be closed but remain unlocked. He called the police, and when they arrived, they discovered five men inside the DNC office attempting to wiretap the phones and arrested them. It was learned later that the office had originally been broken into in May and top-secret documents had been stolen and the phones bugged, but the wiretaps did not function correctly, and the June event was a second burglary in order to replace the wiretaps.
An FBI investigation was opened, and it was discovered that cash found on the burglars was connected with a fund used by the Committee for the Re-Election of the President, as well as a phone number of E. Howard Hunt that was labeled as “W House”. The subsequent attempt to impede the investigation and cover-up the involvement of the President’s re-election campaign staff caused the scandal to grow even larger and more serious than the break-in itself, because it involved the abuse of presidential power and the deliberate obstruction of justice.
The FBI investigation of the scandal led to Senate hearings, and the public was kept well informed through thorough regular media coverage. Washington Post investigative reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein in particular had a source who provided them information related to the investigation, which they used as a basis for stories throughout the two-years following the break-in at the Watergate complex.
Nixon’s early public denial of involvement was initially believed by most voters, and he was re-elected in November 1972. However, as the investigation continued and more revelations came to light, including the fact that Nixon had recorded conversations in the Oval Office which showed he was directly involved in the attempt to cover-up the break-in, the public sentiment began to turn against the President.
Finally, on August 9, 1974, facing an almost certain impeachment in the House of Representatives and conviction by the Senate, Nixon resigned the Presidency.
The item that I have in my collection is a photograph of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein which was autographed by Bob Woodward. The two reporters wrote book titled “All the President’s Men”, in which they detailed their investigative journalism efforts related to uncovering the scandal. In the book, they referred to their key source of information as a man they referred to as “Deep Throat”. It is interesting to note that the journalists kept the identity of their source a closely guarded secret for over thirty years. It wasn’t until 2005 that the informant was finally identified by a family attorney as Mark Felt, an Associate Director at the Federal Bureau of the Investigation, and Woodward and Bernstein confirmed the attorney’s claim.
An FBI investigation was opened, and it was discovered that cash found on the burglars was connected with a fund used by the Committee for the Re-Election of the President, as well as a phone number of E. Howard Hunt that was labeled as “W House”. The subsequent attempt to impede the investigation and cover-up the involvement of the President’s re-election campaign staff caused the scandal to grow even larger and more serious than the break-in itself, because it involved the abuse of presidential power and the deliberate obstruction of justice.
The FBI investigation of the scandal led to Senate hearings, and the public was kept well informed through thorough regular media coverage. Washington Post investigative reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein in particular had a source who provided them information related to the investigation, which they used as a basis for stories throughout the two-years following the break-in at the Watergate complex.
Nixon’s early public denial of involvement was initially believed by most voters, and he was re-elected in November 1972. However, as the investigation continued and more revelations came to light, including the fact that Nixon had recorded conversations in the Oval Office which showed he was directly involved in the attempt to cover-up the break-in, the public sentiment began to turn against the President.
Finally, on August 9, 1974, facing an almost certain impeachment in the House of Representatives and conviction by the Senate, Nixon resigned the Presidency.
The item that I have in my collection is a photograph of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein which was autographed by Bob Woodward. The two reporters wrote book titled “All the President’s Men”, in which they detailed their investigative journalism efforts related to uncovering the scandal. In the book, they referred to their key source of information as a man they referred to as “Deep Throat”. It is interesting to note that the journalists kept the identity of their source a closely guarded secret for over thirty years. It wasn’t until 2005 that the informant was finally identified by a family attorney as Mark Felt, an Associate Director at the Federal Bureau of the Investigation, and Woodward and Bernstein confirmed the attorney’s claim.
