Watergate Scandal is regarded as one of the highly controversial incidents ever to occur in the United States of America. The Watergate Scandal occurred on 17th June of 1972, when burgles attempted to break into the Democratic National Committee offices. Unfortunately, the investigation revealed that President Richard Nixon and his close aides had directly participated in the incident. They were accused of covering a chain of illegalities as spying, recording political opponents’ strategies, and breaking into the buildings of the Democratic Party. The incident has had a significant impact on the nation’s history and changed the perception of the Presidency. Therefore, the paper aims at analyzing the overall impact of the act on the perception of the Presidency and nation’s history.
Impact on the Nation’s Perception of the Presidency
According to the evidence collected, the Watergate Scandal was directly centered on the US president’s duty. In the scandal, President Nixon was accused of office abuse and interfering with the investigation (Berkin 761). One of the main impacts of the act was the poor perception of the office by the public. According to survey results, most American citizens no longer have any believe in the Presidency’s office. These members have lost trust in the sense of accountability and integrity which is expected in the office. The disgrace’s dimming memories have continued to show that no single American is immune to carrying out illegal activities, including the president. In their opinion, most Americans have continued to believe that Nixon’s political agencies and aides failed in their part of guiding the president to operate in the right direction. In other words, the occurrence lowered the dignity that have been held regarding the supremacy of the office. It exposed the weak nature of some of the presidential candidates, such as Nixon, that were elected to represent the nation.
Impact on America’s History
Ever since it occurred, the Watergate Scandal has had a very high impact on the nation’s history. Watergate was the first scandal to expose some of the most severe problems that engulfed the US political system. The incident showed that most of the perceived system lacked the power to countercheck and investigate the irregularities (Berkin 762). Consequently, it led to constant reforms on the patterning of the vital elements to the presidential elections. According to historical records, the various previous administrations have worked to make changes beyond power. As a result, they have developed better standards geared towards upholding the office’s integrity. The lessons from the incident have helped America to amend the constitution to help in analyzing the character of all presidential candidates before they resume office.
Conclusion
Watergate Scandal has directly alluded to the possible weaknesses that have occurred in the office of Presidency. The direct involvement of Nixon in the incident is perceived as one of the worst abuses of the highest office. On the other hand, burglary’s success was a clear indicator of the system’s failure. Finally, the occurrence resulted in negative perception of the office of the Presidency by the public. Therefore, to help recover from the scandal, America needs to continue working on the different reforms that will promote ethics and integrity in their programs. By applying these approaches, American will create sanity and reassure the public of their perceived superiority.
Reference
Berkin, Carol, et al. Making America: A History of the United States Volume 2: Since 1865. 6th ed., Cengage Learning. 760-765.