Richard Nixon Watergate Scandal Analysis

In the beginning hours of June 17, 1972, five burglars were discovered inside the headquarters of the National Democratic Committee. At the now infamous Watergate hotel, it was quickly revealed that this espionage was not to be confused with any ordinary case, as four of the intruders had been connected to President Richard Nixon’s reelection campaign. Caught attempting to tap into and steal information from the Democrats, Nixon’s opposition, all of America share the same probing question; what did Nixon know and not know? However, although the break-in was disheartening, the foremost perplexity that concerned and shocked America was the fact that Nixon attempted to mask the truth from the people. Therefore, the scandal ultimately pivoted to become the sole major case which directly involved all three branches of the U.S. government. Each branch; executive, legislative, and judicial, had a substantial impact on the Watergate scandal, correlating the case to the Constitution and its principal objectives.

Responsible for the investigation of the scandal, the Senate created the Senate Watergate Committee to examine the case. Calling forth several White House officials for testimonies, one was eventually pressured into revealing that Nixon had in fact secretly recorded all of his own conversations within the Oval Office. Seeming to be the “smoking gun” in connecting Nixon to the scandal, the committee immediately sought control of the crucial tapes. However, this legislative action would wound up butting heads with one major executive