Watergate Affair Essay Research Paper The Watergate
Watergate Affair Essay, Research Paper
The Watergate Affair
This analysis of the intelligence media coverage will concentrate on the Watergate
matter which originally began on June 17, 1972 with the housebreaking of the
Democratic National Committee Headquarters at the esteemed Watergate office
composite in Washington D.C.. I will chiefly concentrate on the negative impact
that media coverage had to the populaces oculus. This media coverage, although
justified and appropriate for the state of affairs, finally destroyed the
credibleness of Nixon & # 8217 ; s disposal and the ability to run an effectual
authorities which forced the first surrender of an American president.
The history of the events at manus is as follows. The Nixon
Administration financed a White House Special Investigative Unit called the
pipe fitters. This unit was ab initio established under John Erlichmann a top White
House adjutant, to? stopper? leaks from the White House to the imperativeness and consisted of
former FBI and CIA secret agents.
It comes to fact that these pipe fitters were
involved in illegal housebreakings and wiretapping before the Watergate dirt. On
June 17, 1972, the dark watcher at the Watergate composite discovered adhesive
tape on the cellar doors of the composite. Five work forces were arrested that dark
and began a series of enquiries and probes into the possible corruptness
of White House Officials. ( Encyclopedia of the American Presidency, Volume 13,
page 1603 )
Among those arrested on the dark of June 17, 1972 were James McCord Jr. ,
security coordinator for the Committee for the Re-election of the President ( CRP
besides known as CREEP ) . ( New York Times, June 21, 1972, page 1, column 3 )
Immediately after the apprehensions, the intelligence media had already began initial
accusals and offering possible motivations to the populace through statements like:
? There was go oning guess here and in the Cuban community in
Miami that unnamed work forces, in or out of an anti-Castro organisation, had carried
out a figure of politically sensitive operations to win the Governments understanding
for 30,000 to 40,000 Cuban refugees populating in Spain. ? ( 4 Hunted in Inquiry on
Democratic Raid, New York Times, June 21, 1972, page 44, column 1 )
On June 20, it came to the attending of President Richard Nixon that
there were connexions made between the burglars and CRP and assorted White House
forces. The president, on June 23, recommended that the CIA should forestall a
FBI enquiry into the Watergate incident based on national security involvements.
To no help, the FBI continued its probe and finally sifted through
the labyrinth of paper trails and cover up. Evidence began to come up, indicating to
the disposal itself. Recognizing the internal nature of this state of affairs,
narratives began to look like this:
? No 1 was doing any accusals yet, but in the thick of a funny
non-cooperation from the White House and the Committee for the Re-election of
the President, the intuition grew that person non far from the centre of
Republican power in Washington had engineered the Watergate Caper. ? ( Watergate,
Contd. , TIME Magazine, August 14, 1972, page 21 )
As clip went on, more and more grounds had begun to come up. On
September 15, 1972, the Justice Department obtained the indictments of seven work forces
said to be implicated: James W. McCord, Bernard L. Barker, Eugenio R. Martinez,
Frank A. Sturgis, and Virgilio R. Gonzalez, the five work forces originally arrested at
the Watergate composite. Besides involved, and indicted were G. Gordon Liddy, head
of the security unit called the? pipe fitters? and former White House adviser, E.
Howard Hunt. These work forces were all charged with cabaling to interrupt in and works
listening devices into the phone lines at the Democratic National Headquarters.
One adult male, although implicated, was non charged. His name was Alfred Baldwin, an
FBI agent who was a escort for John Mitchell, the run director, and his
married woman. Mr. Baldwin had admitted to being assigned by James McCord to supervise and
transcribe the transmittals from the illegal bugs. These written texts were
so given to McCord who so turned them into memos that were distributed among
1972, page 21 )
The financess used for this operation were authorized by one adult male, Jeb Stuart
Magruder, who became one of Nixon & # 8217 ; s commission & # 8217 ; s deputy managers. Before
fall ining CRP, Magruder was an helper to the President & # 8217 ; s head of staff, H.R.
Haldeman, so subsequently became adjunct to Herb Klein, Director of Communications.
It has been said that Magruder was sent to Klein to descry on him for Haldeman.
Magruder, was non charged or indicted because he thought the money was being
used to acquire information about groups and dissenters who may seek to interrupt the
Republican National Convention. ( Denials and Still More Questions, TIME
Magazine, October 30, 1972, pages 18-19 )
The intelligence media continued to portray the event as a confederacy from the
highest pinnacle of power within the United States. Although President Nixon
was ne’er brought up on charges or indicted, the people decidedly had a general
misgiving of the Nixon Administration. The negative image portrayed by the
assorted intelligence media finally brought about inquiries of the legitimacy and
moralss of the current presidential disposal. The televised commission
hearings led by Ervin on unrecorded telecasting cast a visible radiation of criminalism onto the
disposal. White House Plutos and helpers were questioned and regarded
as common felons. Typical? playing up? by the media beginnings portrayed Nixon
as besieged, his popularity sagging, his Administration near shambles, his
reputation- and his hereafter, perilously on the line. ( And the Mess Goes On,
Newsweek, September 25, 1972, page 16 )
Despite the negative media coverage, in all equity, there was some
coverage of the President in defence. One article wrote:
? A few Nixon guardians have vehemently challenged the imperativeness & # 8217 ; s function in
Watergate. Last hebdomad, Franklin B. Smith, editorial-page editor of the Vermont
Free Press predicted there would be a terrible recoil against the seamy imperativeness
Mccarthyism and rational punksterism of those who mindlessly sought to rupture
down a great President, a great office, and a great state & # 8230 ; .zealous
communicators on the trail of Watergate ignore the rule that artlessness must
be presumed until guilt is proven. ? ( Defending Nixon, TIME Magazine, May 28,
1973, page 61 ) Much later in the probe, after declining to give up
subpoenaed tapes and transcripts, claiming executive order, Richard Nixon
himself, was ordered to give up the tapes. The President, although, demanded
the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General to fire the particular
prosecuting officer bespeaking the tapes. Both work forces disagreed to make so and accordingly
resigned. This state of affairs put the Administration into an awkward visible radiation and
the President agreed to give up the tapes. On reaching of the tapes, they were
found to be losing exerpts and information. On July 27, 1974, a commission
recommended the impeachment of the president. To avoid about certain
strong belief in the impeachment test, President Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974.
Gerald Ford, who was appointed Vice President after Spiro Agnew resigned, gave
the former president an unconditioned forgiveness for all federal offenses he may hold
committed. ( Encyclopedia of the American Presidency, Volume 13, page 1605 )
In decision, the Nixon Administration was finally overturned and
destroyed due straight to the big sum of media coverage given to this event.
Compared to the Teapot Dome, in which Warren Harding & # 8217 ; s Secretary of the
Interior was convicted with graft and sentenced to nine months in prison, the
Watergate dirt was covered more due to the addition in engineering and the
sum of imperativeness people involved. Although ne’er charged or tried for any offenses,
Richard Nixon still remains one of the most ill-famed Presidents of our clip non
because of the good he did wish backdown
from Vet Am and passing of the Equal Rights Amendment, but for the negative
intension still adherent to his profile as a leader. That intension is one
of dishonesty and hocus-pocus. Equally long as the memory of Richard Nixon lives, so
excessively, will his bequest of secretiveness.