What was the Watergate scandal and why did it lead to Nixon's resignation?
The Watergate scandal was a political crisis stemming from a the 17th of June 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington D.C.'s Watergate complex, carried out by operatives linked to President Nixon's re-election campaign. Nixon's efforts to conceal his administration's involvement, including directing the CIA to obstruct the FBI's investigation, constituted criminal obstruction of justice. Facing near-certain impeachment and removal after the "Smoking Gun" tape confirmed his role in the cover-up, Nixon resigned on the 9th of August 1974, the first U.S. president to do so.
Who were Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein and what was their role in Watergate?
Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein were journalists at The Washington Post who investigated the Watergate scandal beginning shortly after the June 1972 break-in. Their reporting, which relied partly on an anonymous FBI source named "Deep Throat" later identified as deputy associate director Mark Felt, helped expose the White House's political espionage program. Woodward himself has said that accounts crediting him alone with bringing down Nixon are "totally absurd".
Who was Deep Throat in the Watergate investigation?
Deep Throat was Mark Felt, the FBI's deputy associate director. Felt was passed over for the FBI directorship after J. Edgar Hoover's death in 1972 and began leaking information to Woodward as a way to undermine acting director L. Patrick Gray. Editor Howard Simons of The Washington Post named the source "Deep Throat", referencing both the anonymous briefing style and the 1972 film of the same name.
What was the Saturday Night Massacre during Watergate?
The Saturday Night Massacre took place on the 20th of October 1973, when Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox. Richardson refused and resigned in protest. Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus also refused and was fired. Solicitor General Robert Bork then carried out the dismissal. The event triggered a constitutional crisis and sent nearly 500,000 mailgrams and telegrams to Congress demanding Nixon's impeachment or resignation.
What was the Smoking Gun tape in the Watergate scandal?
The Smoking Gun tape recorded a the 23rd of June 1972 conversation in the Oval Office between Nixon and chief of staff H. R. Haldeman, in which Nixon approved using the CIA to pressure the FBI into dropping its Watergate investigation. Released on the 5th of August 1974, the tape showed Nixon had been involved in the cover-up from its earliest days. Its release destroyed remaining Congressional support for Nixon and directly preceded his resignation on the 9th of August 1974.
What was the White House Plumbers unit and what did they do?
The White House Plumbers were a covert Special Investigations Unit created in 1971 to stop government leaks. Led by E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy, the unit burglarized the Los Angeles office of Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist Lewis Fielding on the 3rd of September 1971, and later carried out the Watergate break-in as part of Operation Gemstone. The group also plotted to drug Ellsberg with LSD, forge diplomatic cables, and investigate Ted Kennedy's Chappaquiddick accident.