Richard Nixon, born on January 9, 1913, was the 37th president of the United States of America. He had many achievements during his term, including ending the Vietnam war and establishing the USA’s amicability with China. However, Richard Nixon left the office even before his presidential term ended. What went wrong? Was he impeached?
Richard Nixon wasn’t impeached. Instead, he resigned from the presidency.
From Richard Nixon’s achievements to the notorious Watergate scandal, here’s a brief history of the former president’s time in office.
When did Richard Nixon become president?
Richard Nixon attended college to study history. After graduating, he attended the Duke University School of Law and was admitted to the California Bar in 1937.
He became a congressman in 1947 after a family friend recommended him to the Republicans, who needed a worthy candidate for the elections. Following his congressional post, he steadily climbed the political ladder and became a senator, vice president, and, eventually, president.
Richard Nixon won the presidential elections in 1969 and was named the 37th president of the United States.
Why did Richard Nixon resign?
A typical quiet morning in Washington D.C. on June 17, 1972, produced one of the biggest political scandals in America’s history.
Three burglars were caught after breaking into the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Watergate, Washington D.C.
One of the suspects was James McCord Jr., the chief security officer in charge of Richard Nixon’s re-election committee. The burglars were caught with stolen documents and wiretapping phones to record police conversations.
It wasn’t the first time people had tried to break into the Democratic National Committee headquarters. However, this particular burglary was highly suspicious because it happened when Richard Nixon was running for a second term.
After the incident, Richard Nixon released a statement in an attempt to console the general public and gain back their trust. This didn’t happen, though, because the former president’s hidden skeletons were eventually exposed.
On August 5, 1974, a series of voice recordings revealed Richard Nixon’s involvement in the Watergate scandal. He resigned on August 7, 1974, and left the office the following day.
Was Richard Nixon forced to resign?
After the recordings proving Richard Nixon’s involvement in the Watergate affair were released, an impeachment warning arose. Congress members were ready to take him out of the office.
To avoid such a level of embarrassment, he resigned willingly on August 7, 1974. Richard Nixon was the first American president to resign.
Was Richard Nixon arrested for his involvement in the Watergate affair?
Richard Nixon never admitted to committing any of the crimes. But he did acknowledge using poor judgment to manage the situation.
After Richard Nixon resigned, the vice president at the time, Gerald Ford, assumed power. Ford granted Nixon a pardon and decided not to convict the former president of any crimes, which gained national controversy.
What scandals surrounded Richard Nixon?
There weren’t many rumors surrounding Richard Nixon during his time as president. The Watergate affair was the only scandal with his name attached to it, to which he didn’t admit any involvement. But, even if he didn’t say he was involved with the burglary, he stepped down from office due to the intensity of the situation.
Richard Nixon’s life after the presidency
After Richard Nixon resigned, he moved out of the White House with his wife and returned to their house in San Clemente, California.
He suffered physically, including a blood clot in his leg that needed surgery. After the leg surgery, he still had to undergo several more procedures before finally getting a much-needed rest at home.
Richard Nixon found himself in a lot of debt after his resignation, reaching $1 million from all the Watergate scandal lawsuits. This led him to release his first book in 1978, called RN: The Memoirs of Richard Nixon, which became a nationwide bestseller. Copies of the book were sold for over $2 million.
The former president also sold his house in California to get out of debt. In addition, he was reportedly paid $600,000 for his 1977 interview with British journalist David Frost, where he apologized to the American people for his alleged involvement in the Watergate scandal.
What did Richard Nixon achieve?
Although Richard Nixon’s presidential term was cut short by a huge scandal, he achieved remarkable feats during his time in office.
In 1973, he ended America’s involvement in the Vietnam war. This move led to the end of the compulsory military draft in the nation.
In 1972, he visited China, which led to diplomatic relations between the countries. Richard Nixon also signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with the Soviet Union restricting the Union missile deployments in the United States.