Rhetorical Analysis Of Richard Nixon's Resignation

Richard Nixon uses the appeals of logos in his speech that seem logical but all they do is mask the face of reality. In his speech Nixon states, “To leave office before my term is completed is abhorrent to every instinct in my body. But as president, I must put the interest of America first.” The harsh reality is, Nixon would’ve been impeached, so he decided to resign so he could exit his presidency and still have some pride left. Nixon also said, “I would’ve preferred to carry through to the finish…But the interest of the Nation must always come before any personal considerations.” Yes, Nixon may have preferred to finish his presidency, but he is only thinking of himself in this situation.

President Nixon is one of the most famous Presidents in American history for being the first one to resign from office. While Nixon is famous for doing such an unthinkable act, he is also the one that gave one of the best and most well known speeches in political history, The Checkers Speech. The speech was given by (Senator at the time) President Nixon when he was running for Vice President on General Eisenhower’s Presidential ticket. A newspaper, the New York Post, had a front page with the headline "Secret Rich Men's Trust Fund Keeps Nixon in Style Far Beyond His Salary"; the article alleged that people were donating to a secret fund that Nixon had for his personal benefit in trade for political favors. This scandal caused many Americans and Republican politicians to push Eisenhower to remove Nixon as his running mate and to question Nixon’s integrity. In rebuttal to the scandal, Nixon took the bull by the horns and defended himself by going on live national television and addressed the nation by giving the famous Checkers speech. The soon to be Vice-President articulated his speech with a perfect combination of Pathos, Ethos, and Logos to turn the tables from making everyone hate him to making the American People and Republican Politicians love him.

Richard Nixon was the 37th president of the United States; he resigned as president after his involvement in the Watergate Scandal. People broke into the Watergate building to wiretap phones and steal secret documents. Nixon knew about the break in before hand and tried to cover it up. When people found out about him trying to cover it up, he decided to resign as president. He gave his speech on August 8th 1974 and resigned on the 9th. Nixon successfully apologized to the country by using pathos, ethos, and logos, as well as other forms of rhetoric.

In an epic political move, a young Senator from California, Richard M. Nixon, took to the television, to apologetically address the accusations that he was using campaign donations for personal expenses. His speech is significant in that he brought to light his theory of being honest and straight forward, as well as, proving that money is not always needed in being successful. Nixon changed the way politicians in America preached their ideas, concerns, and platforms. Through a brilliant speech, reaching over sixty million Americans, which is now known to all as the 'Checkers ' speech, Nixon went live and blatantly informed the American people of his life 's expenses, argued that public office candidates should not have to be wealthy in

Nixon was paranoid and feared any man who did not agree with him (“Watergate and the Cover-Up.” 1995). He also believed that, as President, he could take whatever measures necessary to protect himself from his enemies, even if that meant he broke the law (“Watergate and the Cover-Up.” 1995). During his presidency, he actually said, “When the President does it, that means it is not illegal.” (“Watergate and the Cover-Up.” 1995). In turn, he was his own worst enemy.

Nixon’s presidency is considered very controversial and people have widely different opinions about whether or not he was a good president. During his regime he established many important policies and political reforms, some of which still affect the U.S. today. However, at some point the seriousness and amount of his mistakes outweighed his accomplishments, leading him to be the first and so far only president to resign from office. After years and with the information that has been made available for public today, become all Nixon’s hidden and less hidden fails as clear as the countryside sky.

The infamous checkers speech came as the result of an accusation of corruption, foreshadowing President Richard Nixon’s lengthy struggle with candor. 20 years prior to the scandal that changed the way the American people viewed the federal government, Nixon had the ability to utilize the modes of persuasion to his advantage, with few attempts being made at uncovering any discrepancies. This essay will explore his application of ethos and pathos in the first part of the checkers speech and how it enabled the American people to resonate with his narrative, with logos being far less of a factor.

The public believed him and he won the 1972 election by the largest margin on record (White House). Soon, the cover up began to unravel and it became apparent that Nixon had been a part of the Watergate scandal when he was forced to release his tapes from the Oval office. He resigned August 8th to avoid being impeached. When the scandal came out, the public was angered, shocked, and began to openly distrust the government for the first

After completing college, Nixon earned a career to be a lawyer, but this did not satisfy him. Also, his parents were not very pleased with his position as a lawyer. 2“He was always the type of fellow that rose to the top and was the president of this and the president of that,” Gerard Kepple agreed, “and always had a sense of leadership.” Therefore, Nixon knew that the only way to leave a mark in history was through politics. While Nixon was seeking for an opportunity of recognition, he met some Republicans.

Richard Nixon was the 37th president of the United States and currently the only president to have resigned from office. From 1969 to 1974 Nixon held office after a new wave of conservatism due to the College students marches that consequently turned into riots over anti-war Vietnam sentiment. Furthermore the Democratic Party split due to polarization over the involvement of the United States in the war. According to The Enduring Vision President Nixon had a tendency to be paranoid and fearful of any political opponent; including an “enemies list” where he kept all political opponents in check.

Richard Nixon was the 37th U.S President from January 20, 1969 through August 9, 1974 and during his term, President Nixon would become one of the most talked about administration. This was due to the Watergate scandal; this would heavily over shadow his other accomplishments and bring the White House under the microscope. Nixon would tap phones and record conversations of people when he would have meetings. He did end the war in Vietnam and improved our relationships with China and the USSR. One of his objections in the United States was to try and bridge the divide in our cities and try to heal the war weary people of our nation, because of all the disagreements over Vietnam.

In 1974, former President Nixon resigned from office and Gerald Ford became the temporary president. One of the first executive orders that Ford did was pardon Nixon for his crimes against the United States. The entire scandal had, “driven a stake into the heart of traditional national politics.” (Farber, 27) This controversy was not only publicized nationally, but severely damaged the American people’s already withering relationship with their government.

He was elected president and was living a good life. Nixon’s desire to maintain the power and gain the liking of citizens led him to making a decision without court approval when he was criticized for moving too slowly in disengaging from a war. He ordered for the phones of several government officials and reporters to be tapped. Voters began to distrust Nixon and, as a result, he became the only president to resign from office. Richard Nixon was very much like Macbeth in that his excess ambition and desire for power led to bad choices being made.

He rose “hush money’ for the burglars, tried to stop the FBI from investigating the crime, destroyed evidence, and fired uncooperative staff members. In 1974, after the Watergate scandal had finally come to light, President Nixon resigned. Nixon abused

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Junior’s, speech at his inaugural address in 1961 is undeniably a masterpiece of the persuasive arts. Although the speech is short as such speeches go, and although its main persuasive device is pathos alone, the masterful skill with which Kennedy’s speech is written makes it one of the most moving and effective political speeches to date. Kennedy’s vivid use of diction and metaphor, as well as his extremely memorable syntax, are particularly strong and successful.