Modern commentators cite Democratic control of Congress as a reason that Nixon was ultimately forced to leave office in 1974. This might be true, although it ignores the bipartisan nature of the investigations into Watergate. A handful of Republican Senators such as Percy and Brooke called on Nixon to resign back in 1973, and it was Republican Senator Baker of Tennessee who famously asked, "What did the President know, and when did he know it?". Suppose that, as a result of the 1968 and 1972 elections, Republicans control both Houses of Congress in 1973. Would the Watergate hearings have played out differently? Would Nixon ultimately have been forced to resign from office?
WI: Republicans Control Congress During Watergate
- Thread starter Amadeus
- Start date
Chapman
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Yes, but the Democrats controlled both houses of Congress by fairly wide majorities at this point. It only made sense for the GOP representatives to fall in line, really. Obviously political norms have changed drastically since then, but can we really say for sure that, if Republicans had controlled both houses of Congress at this point, they would have acted similarly? I'm not so sure about that. IMO, the process would've been dragged out quite a bit; Nixon probably wouldn't have been able to stay for the entire rest of his second term, but might have resigned later than IOTL, assuming his party stands by his side here.
I suppose another thing to consider is that in the 1970's both parties were more ideologically diverse and generally represented more moderate districts than today, and therefore politicians were less beholden to a fired up base or the President. That's why the moderate Republican Senate Leader, Hugh Scott of Pennsylvania, could get away with condemning the Nixon Tapes as showing a vulgar, criminal administration. I wonder if the GOP would actually be more desperate to get rid of Nixon if their seats are on the line in 1974, and getting rid of him would take pressure of their party in the midterms.
That kind of margin suggests to me there was more at play than simply falling into line to avoid making a fuss. Republican legislators legitimately found President Nixon's actions distasteful and worthy of admonishment.
Republican support for Nixon was fairly steady until quite late though. With a GOP Congress, it's very possible the investigation never really gets off the ground in the first place.
It was, but once the full extent of what he had done was made clear, it fell off quickly. Now, you may be right that the investigation does not get any steam.
In that event, likely trust in the GOP is harmed badly, though whether or not they lose the next election as a result is hard to say. They certainly lose seats in the legislature, potentially enough to lose control, whereupon investigation immediate becomes more likely.
One knock-on effect of such a turn of events is Vietnam, which collapsed largely due to a Democrat-led Congress cutting aid funds to that country in their internal conflict. A few more solid years of seeing the benefits of the long-term survival of the funding policy might help keep it alive and prevent the fall of the South Vietnamese state.
I understand that sentiment, however please keep current politics in Chat. This thread is meant to be a discussion on Watergate, I don't want mods to shut down my thread because the focus has turned over to current politics.
That said, looking back on 1974 both the GOP and Democrats generally had enough integrity to enforce the rule of law and oppose a corrupt President. So while the Congressional investigation would've played out differently, there will be just as many Republicans (in particular Hugh Scott, who'd be Senate Majority Leader in this scenario) who are disturbed by the Watergate affair and who'll work with Democrats to get down to the truth.
Most likely a GOP majority would have stopped any Watergate investigation in its
tracks. And yet- 45 years ago, the Republi-
cans did not, as they do now, automatically
march in lockstep behind a fellow Republican
POTUS. The conduct of Barry Goldwater is
instructive. No liberal(to say the least)he was a respected & influential figure in Re-
publican Party circles. When Watergate broke, he often defended Nixon, bringing
up- & he had a point here- Democratic Party
spying on his 1964 Presidental campaign. Yet @ the same time, he was clearly not
pleased with Nixon’s conduct. Again & again,
he urged the President to come clean, to
admit everything. When it became clear that
Nixon was indeed guilty of criminal behavior
Goldwater turned on him, deciding he’d vote
to impeach Nixon, then playing a key role
in persuading him to resign. Can anyone name a prominent Republican today who
would act similarly in a similar situation?
tracks. And yet- 45 years ago, the Republi-
cans did not, as they do now, automatically
march in lockstep behind a fellow Republican
POTUS. The conduct of Barry Goldwater is
instructive. No liberal(to say the least)he was a respected & influential figure in Re-
publican Party circles. When Watergate broke, he often defended Nixon, bringing
up- & he had a point here- Democratic Party
spying on his 1964 Presidental campaign. Yet @ the same time, he was clearly not
pleased with Nixon’s conduct. Again & again,
he urged the President to come clean, to
admit everything. When it became clear that
Nixon was indeed guilty of criminal behavior
Goldwater turned on him, deciding he’d vote
to impeach Nixon, then playing a key role
in persuading him to resign. Can anyone name a prominent Republican today who
would act similarly in a similar situation?
Do not post current political screeds (or any other current political commentary) outside of Chat.
I suppose the worst that could happen is that Nixon's misdeeds don't come to light until after he is no longer President. Maybe the Dems open up an investigation later when they get enough of a majority. Granted, this would result in a massive backlash against the GOP since they'd either look incompetant or complicit for not acting sooner.
Due to the economy as well as the media firestorm surrounding Watergate, it'll be pretty much inevitable that the Dems win back Congress in November 1974. By that point public pressure would be so intense resignation is only a matter of time, even if Nixon leaves office only months before the 1976 election.