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Unsuccessful Presidential Campaign
Nixon ran but was no elected for president in 1960, by a vary close margin to John F. Kennedy.
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Unsuccessful Run for Governor
Nixon lost the run for governor of California to Pat Brown in 1962.
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Successful Presidential Campaign
He re-emerged as a presidential candidate in 1968 and ran a successful campaign against Democrat Hubert Humphrey, squeaking out a victory in one of the closest elections in U.S. history.
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Common Cause
John Gardner formed to Common Cause in August 1970n to act as a citizens' lobby to make government and politics more open and accountable.
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5 Get Arrested
Five men are arrested after breaking into Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate complex in Washington, DC. White House press secretary Ron Ziegler describes the incident as a "third-rate burglary." The 5 burglars who were a part of the Watergate scandal were James McCord, Virgilio Gonzalez, Frank Sturgis, Eugenio Martinez, and Bernard Baker.
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Smoking Gun Tapes
Smoking gun tapes revealed president Nixon recorded covering up watergate burglary.
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Burglars Indicted by Jury
The 5 burglars who were a part of the Watergate scandal were James McCord, Virgilio Gonzalez, Frank Sturgis, Eugenio Martinez, and Bernard Baker, and were all indicted.
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Washington Post Starts It All
The Washington Post publishes a story by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, stating that the FBI believes the Watergate break in was done by aides to President Nixon.
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CBS Gets on Board
Shortly before the election, CBS News prepared a lengthy two-part television report synthesizing the scandal’s emerging ties to the White House. However, after the first segment aired on October 27, Colson threatened CBS’s president, William Paley, and the second segment was truncated.
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Re-election
President Richard Nixon is elected to a second term in office, defeating Democratic candidate George McGovern.
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Pleading Guilty
Former FBI agent G. Gordon Liddy and former CIA employee James McCord, security director of the Committee to Re-elect the President (CREEP), are found guilty of conspiracy, burglary and bugging DNC headquarters. E. Howard Hunt, a former CIA operative, and four others involved ended their trials by pleading guilty.
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Select Committee
U.S. Senate established a Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, chaired by Sen. Sam Ervin, to investigate all of the events surrounding Watergate and other allegations of political spying and sabotage conducted on behalf of Nixon's re-election.
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Judges Give Sentence
Judge John Sirica sentenced the burglars. 3 got 2 1/2-8 years while one got 10 months to 3 years.
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Four Resign
Four of President Nixon's aides resign as the Watergate scandal grows. They are: John Dean, White House counsel; H. R. Haldeman, chief of staff; John D. Ehrlichman, assistant for domestic affairs; and Attorney General Richard G. Kleindienst.
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Hearings for the Scandal
The Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities opens hearings into the Watergate incident, chaired by Sen. Sam Ervin (D, NC). The hearings are televised nationally.
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Archibald Cox is in Charge
Archibald Cox is appointed special prosecutor in the Watergate investigation.
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John Dean Testifies
Former White House counsel John Dean testifies before the Senate Select Committee about the White House, and Nixon's involvement in the Watergate break-in and cover-up.
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Nixon Recordings
During the Watergate hearings, former aide Alexander Butterfield reveals that President Nixon has been secretly recording all of his White House conversations since 1971.
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Why Didn't the Tapes get Turned Over?
In a letter to Sam Ervin, Nixon explains his reason for not turning over the presidential tapes as "the special nature of tape recordings of private conversations is such that these principles (of executive privilege) apply with even greater force to tapes of private presidential conversations than to presidential papers."
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Will Not Give Out Copies
President Nixon responds to two subpoenas issued by the Ervin committee, by saying he will not comply with requests for copies of White House recordings. He also refuses a similar request from special prosecutor Archibald Cox.
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The Tapes Are Heard
The appeal is denied and the president is ordered to turn over the tapes to Mr. Cox. Nixon offers to give a summary of the White House conversations personally edited by him and verified by Sen. John Stennis (D, MS) instead. The summary offer is rejected and Mr. Cox is ordered to drop the case. Cox refuses.
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Saturday Night Massacre
In what becomes known as the "Saturday Night Massacre," President Nixon orders the firing of Archibald Cox as special prosecutor. Rather than comply, Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus resign. Cox is eventually fired by Solicitor General Robert Bork.
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The Gap
The White House reveals that one of the subpoenaed recordings, dated June 20, 1972, has an 18-minute gap. President Nixon's secretary Rose Mary Woods says she is responsible for accidentally erasing the tape.
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7 of the 9
Nixon released seven of the nine tapes, and one of the seven had a huge gap in them.
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Transcripts Are Out
The White House releases edited transcripts, more than 1,200 pages, of the presidential tapes.
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Original Recordings Released
The Supreme Court unanimously rules that President Nixon must immediately turn over the original recordings of over 64 conversations to special prosecutor Leon Jaworski.
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Impeachment Begins
The House Judiciary Committee approves three articles of impeachment against President Nixon. The recommendation is then sent to the full House of Representatives for a vote.
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The Cover Up Was Intentional
The remaining tapes, having been turned over to Jaworski, reveal a conversation from June 23, 1972 that proves the president's knowledge of the cover-up from the beginning.
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Addressing the Nation
President Nixon ,"I have never been a quitter. To leave office before my term is completed is abhorrent to every instinct in my body. To continue to fight through the months ahead for my personal vindication would almost totally absorb the time and attention of both the president and the Congress in a period when our entire focus should be on the great issues of peace abroad and prosperity. Therefore,I shall resign the presidency effective at noon tomorrow."
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Resignation Is Official
Nixon signs a letter of resignation and Vice President Gerald Ford becomes president.
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Memorandum for Watergate Special Prosecutor
Two pages of a three-page memorandum written for the Watergate Special Prosecutor, after Richard Nixon resigned the Presidency and before President Ford pardoned him.
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Guilty for Instruction of Justice
Former Attorney General John Mitchell, former aide John Ehrlichmann and former Chief of Staff H.R. Haldeman are found guilty of obstruction of justice.
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Nixon Defends His Actions
In a series of interviews with David Frost, Nixon defends his actions during the Watergate investigation, "I'm saying when the president does it, that means it's not illegal." Extra Info
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Mark Felt Gave Insider Information
The Washington Post confirms that former FBI agent Mark Felt was "Deep Throat," the informant who provided reporters Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward with insider information during the Watergate scandal.
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40th Anniversary
For the 40th anniversary of the infamous resignation of President Nixon, historians Douglas Brinkley and Luke Nichter publish "The Nixon Tapes: 1971-1972," transcriptions from a selection of Nixon's White House audio recordings.
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