Watergate Scandal Research Paper

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Watergate Scandal LaToya R. Williams History 145 January 5, 2012 Watergate Scandal "Five Held in Plot to Bug Democratic Offices Here," said the headline at the bottom of page one in the Washington Post on Sunday, June 18, 1972. The story reported that a team of burglars had been arrested inside the offices of the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate office complex in Washington. (Lewis, 1972, pA01) This was the opening line to the Washington Post newspaper after the men were arrested for breaking into the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters of the Watergate complex. This signified the beginning of political scandal widely known as the Watergate scandal. The Watergate scandal included the president’s staff as…show more content…
The five men were Virgilio González, Bernard Barker, James W. McCord, Jr., Eugenio Martinez, and Frank Sturgis. It involved a series of breaking and entering attempts that involved the men setting up wire taps in an effort to aid in the re-election of the Committee for the Re-Election of the President (CRP) Acting Chairman Jeb Stuart Magruder, Attorney General John Mitchell and Presidential Counsel John Dean. On June 17, 1972, Frank Willis discovered tape on the latch or the doors which allowed re-entry into the complex. (Lesley, 1974, p31) He removed the tape only to return and find tape on the door latches again. He immediately contacts the local authorities and thus began the investigation of the Watergate Scandal. The investigation lasted two years. It uncovered numerous activities that were illegal and unethical and the activities were mostly performed by people who were associated with then president, President Richard M.…show more content…
The American people were so distraught behind the events that occurred in the nation’s capital. It left Americans in the dark about how their leaders obtain their positions and if their leaders were trustworthy, after Nixon proved he was not. Throughout the long months of controversy over Watergate, there was constant talk in and by the press of a “nation torn apart”. (Lang, 1980, p530) The period of time the Watergate scandal took place is similar to the crisis of confidence that occurred under the administration of President Jimmy Carter. Americans, at this point, wanted and need a national leader that would bring them out of the dark and into the

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