Watergate Scandal Essay Examples

June 17, 1972 - August 9, 1975

United States, Washington, D.C.

John Dean, John D. Ehrlichman, Samuel J. Ervin, Jr. Richard Nixon, Seymour Hersh

The origins of the Watergate break-in lay in the hostile political climate of the time. By 1972, when Republican President Richard M. Nixon was running for reelection, the United States was embroiled in the Vietnam War, and the country was deeply divided. A forceful presidential campaign therefore seemed essential to the president and some of his key advisers. Their aggressive tactics included what turned out to be illegal espionage.