Il 1 March 1974 will forever be imprinted in American history as the day it Watergate scandal revealed one of the darkest and most shocking chapters in United States politics. It was on this date that the so-called "Watergate Seven“, a group of individuals linked to President Richard Nixon, whose involvement in the affair led to unprecedented consequences, culminating in the president's impeachment.
The roots of the Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal had originated in June 1972, when five men were arrested for attempting to steal documents and wiretap conversations in the Watergate building, home of the Democratic National Committee. The subsequent investigation revealed a political espionage plot orchestrated by the Nixon administration to discredit its political opponents.
The “Watergate Seven”
As the investigation progressed, investigative efforts led to the discovery of a larger group of individuals involved in the scandal. The 1 March 1974, investigations conducted by the United States Congress revealed theexistence of the “Watergate Seven”, seven Nixon advisors directly involved in organizing and covering up events related to the scandal. All of them they were all convicted for trying to hinder and taint the investigation into the Watergate scandal. Among them were:
- John N. Mitchell – Former US Attorney General and Nixon campaign manager in 1968 and 1972. Convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury, he served 19 months in prison.
- HR Haldeman – White House Chief of Staff during Nixon's first term. Convicted of conspiracy and obstruction of justice, he served 18 months in prison.
- John Ehrlichman – Former Nixon assistant for internal affairs. Convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury, he served 18 months in prison.
- Charles Colson – Former White House advisor specializing in political affairs. He pleaded nolo contendere to obstruction of justice and served seven months in prison.
- Gordon C. Strachan – White House Assistant to Haldeman. The charges against him were dropped before the trial.
- Robert Mardian – Mitchell's assistant and advisor to the Committee to Re-Elect the President in 1972. His conviction was overturned on appeal.
- Kenneth Parkinson – Advisor to the Committee to Re-Elect the President. He was acquitted during the trial.
During the trial, the grand jury also blamed Nixon, albeit not publicly, for having indirectly cooperated in the activities of his collaborators. On April 5, 1974, one of Nixon's personal secretaries, Dwight Chapin, was charged with perjury before the grand jury, followed on April 7 by the Republican governor of California, Ed Reinecke, accused of perjury before the Senate Commission.
The political consequences
The discovery of the “Watergate Seven” marked a crucial turning point in the scandal. The accusations against them, along with others, increasingly compromised Nixon's position, leading the House of Representatives to undertake a formal inquiry into a possible impeachment of the President.
Public congressional hearings exposed shocking details of the illegal activities and efforts to conceal them, profoundly shaking public confidence in the administration.
The Impeachment and Nixon's resignation
As a direct result of the revelations related to the “Watergate Cult” and the scandal as a whole, the impeachment of President Nixon seemed inevitable. Thus it was that the American president he chose to resign rather than face legal proceedings. It was the first time a US president had resigned.
Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974, delivering a letter to the Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, and making the announcement live on television, declaring that he “no longer has a sufficiently strong political base” to continue with the job. Gerald Ford, then vice president, assumed the presidency, granting Nixon a presidential pardon on September 8.
