The Watergate scandal, for many, is seen as the largest federal political scandal in the history of American politics. In 1972, the United States government was at the center of a political scandal involving the administration of President Richard Nixon. While there is debate over how directly involved then-President Nixon was with Watergate, there is no doubt that with his cover-up attempts in the immediate aftermath, he was now firmly inserted into the scandal. With that, the highest office in the land now had a criminally implicated president at the helm. This assessment will explain why the consequences of Nixon's actions affected how the American people now viewed government policies, and how the Watergate scandal had negative assessments of government that damaged long-term trust in the American political system. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay There are several factors that contributed to the damage of political trust and this essay will analyze each of these factors individually, ultimately justifying the consequences what followed can be attributed to the Watergate scandal itself. To answer the question at hand, this essay will use the works of scholars such as Kim McQuaid and James Patterson in assessing the damage to trust in America. Additionally, we will draw facts and opinions from credible journal articles by scholars such as Karlyn Bowman and Troy Zimmer as we fairly assess the harmful political fallout caused by the Watergate scandal. When Nixon took office in 1968 and won reelection in 1972, he paved the way for a period heavily dominated by Republicans in presidential elections, who won seven of the next ten elections. One argument that the scandal was so damaging to political confidence is that, despite clear evidence of wrongdoing and Nixon's high crimes and misdemeanors, Senate Minority Leader Hugh Scott believed there were only 60 votes in the Senate, 7 votes less than the 67 required. to impeach.2 B, Woodward, and C, Bernstein, 'The Final Days'. This statistic indicates that there were still many Republican senators supporting Nixon, who saw the growing distrust of the American people as a direct consequence of their support. Despite the fact that the 1976 election would place Jimmy Carter in the White House, while Gerald Ford was not implicated in the Watergate scandal despite Nixon's pardon which met with heavy reaction, many Americans still believed that the Republican Party was still tainted. Nonetheless, the American people quickly returned to the Republican, Ronald Reagan, leading the way, just four years later, but that is not to say that the damage to political trust had disappeared. Determining precisely when exactly the damage to political trust began following the The scandal is difficult to pinpoint, however, in the course of the investigation, it is crucial to note that it took no more than two years for it to have a significant impact on the country, as it subsequently led Democrats to raise an astonishing forty dollars. -nine seats in the House of Representatives during the 1974 midterm elections. Once again, Hugh Scott's judgment is attributable to the issue of this essay, stating that the office has lost ground, including its relationship with Congress. If a Senate leader could understand this, then so could the American people. This is further evidence that the damage to trust in the political system was in full swing. The American people wanted change, an opinion that did nothe had many rivals. In an article published in Forbes, political contributor Karlyn Bowman believes that the link between politics and corruption has long been associated by the American people, especially in 1974. Bowman goes on to state that in a survey conducted by the analyst firm Gallup, 49% of people believe that the Watergate scandal is a “very serious matter” due to the revelation of corruption within the Nixon administration. In addition to the argument supporting Bowman's, James Patterson notes that there has been a general decline in trust in government – ​​with data revealing that by 1975, just three years after the Watergate scandal broke, trust had fallen to 45%, a total decrease of 15% from 1960. Professor Richard E. Neustadt of Harvard stated in his article "The Constraining of the President: The Presidency After Watergate" that for Democrats 1972 highlighted the demise of the old regime.7 A regime that saw Nixon obstruct justice and abuse his presidential power would only further weaken the party system, political structure, and trust that the country had spent years building. When Nixon resigned, thus avoiding impeachment, Vietnam had yet to be concluded and America needed a strong leader that it did not have. While Kim McQuaid claims that America was divided during the Vietnam War, he also adds that the Watergate scandal made a joke of America and made it look ridiculous in the eyes of its own people. And if there's one thing Americans hate, it's being a laughing stock. Theodore White states that Nixon left a weakened presidency when America was in the midst of an economic and military crisis. New York: Dell. This helped the American people and gave them the ammunition they needed to throw political confidence into disarray. It's arguable that Nixon's resignation is where the distrust began, but at the very least it's where the damage to trust in the political system began to take hold. The Federal Times chastised Nixon for the decision to resign, as it believed impeachment was what the American people deserved. According to Jill Aitoro, the policy was lost on the American people shortly after the scandal broke. Aitoro openly reflects on the effect Watergate had on Americans and summarizes that, despite Nixon's attacks on the media, the government came to realize that the press "may not be so easily contained." A major factor in the Watergate scandal that not only increased the damage to political trust, but may well be the catalyst for that damage, was the wiretapping of private citizens orchestrated by President Nixon between 1969 and 1971 that was came to light during the investigation, including the wiretap of the Democratic National Committee headquarters. The repercussions of Nixon's violation of his oath are unfathomable when you consider how betrayed the American people felt by this shameful abuse of power. The acts committed by a sitting president have undoubtedly broken the trust of the American people. Further acts committed that became public once the articles of impeachment were drafted were the further abuse of power in the subsequent cover-ups; violated constitutional rights as stated in the article and obstruction of justice which saw Nixon refuse to turn over the incriminating tapes to Congress following a congressional subpoena. President Nixon was known for misleading the public. Once Nixon finally turned over the tapes that represented the “smoking gun” the Judiciary Committee was looking for, he concluded that, based on the evidence of the tapes and the statements.