Sunday, June 18, 1972. Warm sunshine, fresh sea breeze, dense forests and soft beaches constitute a wonderful seaside landscape in early summer. There are also several villas in the painting, which are the residence of the President of the United States in Biscayne Bay, Florida. President Nixon, who is on vacation here, is in the same good mood as the weather and scenery. Four months ago, from February 21th to 27th, President Nixon paid a historic visit to the People's Republic of China accompanied by Dr. Kissinger, his chief foreign policy adviser, thus ending the hostility between the two countries for more than 21 years. This move won widespread praise from the world public opinion and the general welcome of the American people, and Nixon's reputation was greatly boosted. From May 22 to 28, 1 months ago, Nixon went to Moscow for talks with Soviet leaders and reached an agreement on limiting the United States and the Soviet Union to have two anti-ballistic missile launch sites each, which made the world see a glimmer of restraint in the escalating arms race. President Nixon, who has made a series of remarkable achievements, has completed his term of office this year, and he is proudly starting preparations for re-election. On this holiday, he still kept a campaign memo in his briefcase. On his desk, there is a book "Victory and Tragedy" by former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who recalled World War II. He has read this book several times, and he wants to get further beneficial enlightenment from it. Nixon didn't realize that while he was climbing to the peak of victory, tragedy was quietly coming to him. At the moment, Nixon is sitting on the sofa, casually browsing the newspaper of the day. He has the habit of reading early, and reading newspapers is as essential as eating breakfast. A short story on the left side of the first edition of Miami Herald caught his attention. Its title was: "Miami people who tried to bug the Democratic Party headquarters were detained in Washington." It was interesting to eavesdrop on the headquarters of his rival Democratic Party. Nixon couldn't help watching. The report said that five people were arrested in the Watergate Building in Washington last night (June 7), where the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee is located. Of these five people, four went from Miami, one of whom claimed to be a CIA employee and the other three were Cubans. They carried cameras and electronic reconnaissance equipment with them. They were found wearing rubber gloves and installing eavesdropping devices, and were arrested on the spot. According to Nixon's own memoir, his first feeling was that the news was ridiculous. It was a joke that Cubans came to the headquarters of the Democratic Party of the United States to plant bugs. So, he put the newspaper aside and freely plunged into the sea for a long time. Later, he even felt that this was good news for his re-election, because it could be stated that McGovern, the rival of the Democratic presidential candidate, who is known as the "leftist", has always adopted a policy of humility towards the Castro regime in Cuba, and Cuban expatriates in the United States are afraid of this, so he committed theft at the Democratic Party headquarters. The spread of this kind of news can severely hit the Democratic Party. However, things are not as simple and satisfactory as Nixon imagined. Among the five people arrested, McChord, who claimed to be an employee of the Central Intelligence Agency, was actually a security concern of Nixon's "Committee for President's Re-election". The other four people were not Cubans, but were probably agents employed by the Committee for President's Re-election. A stone stirs up a thousand waves. The arrest of McChord and others with such prospects quickly turned the Watergate incident into an explosive news that attracted the attention of the whole country. Mitchell, who resigned as attorney general and served as chairman of Nixon's re-election Committee, had to declare to the press that the actions of the five people arrested in Watergate Building were purely their personal actions and had nothing to do with this Committee. The Democratic Party launched an offensive. They filed a civil lawsuit against the presidential re-election Committee and the thieves, demanding compensation of $1 million, which was later increased to $6.4 million. At that time, they didn't think that they could have got more-of course, not the amount of money. Two days later, on the morning of June 21th, a message from Washington post made Nixon uneasy. The report said that from the address book carried by the arrested person, a former CIA agent who had served in the White House was found. His name was Howard Hunter, and he worked under Nixon's senior adviser Coulson. The White House, which heard the news, seemed to have been hit by an earthquake. Nixon, who just returned to Washington from his vacation yesterday, immediately called his confidant, White House Chief of Staff Haldeman, to discuss the matter. More than an hour passed quickly, and it seems that no comprehensive countermeasures have been found. Continue to discuss the same problem in the afternoon. Nixon, whose situation is unknown and he is afraid of being implicated, first asked Haldeman to tell him truthfully whether officials of our own, no matter what level, have involved us in this embarrassing situation. Then we will study together whether all the current investigations and confessions, if thoroughly investigated, will allow the Democratic Party to seize the handle, which will be detrimental to our election. According to Nixon's diary, Mitchell mysteriously told Haldeman not to get involved in the case on the phone. But at this time, Haldeman assured Nixon that White House officials would not be involved in the case, and Mitchell had nothing to do with it, so he could rest assured. Hearing this assurance, Nixon was worried about being replaced by confidence, and he decided to take the offensive as the defensive strategy. Haldeman, however, also told him that the mastermind of the Watergate operation had found Gordon Liddy, the legal adviser of the finance group of the re-election committee, and that the FBI was tracking down the money McChord was arrested for Watergate, which probably came from the re-election committee. "The FBI must be stopped from tracing the source of that money!" Nixon said beyond doubt. Later, a senior official of the Central Intelligence Agency authorized to call the acting director of the FBI and asked him to "leave this matter alone" because there was an agreement between the two bureaus not to interfere in each other's secret actions. Although the White House used its ruling power to cover up and obstruct, the procuratorial organ's investigation of Watergate incident is still in progress. On September 5, after obtaining the necessary evidence, five people, including McChord, who was arrested on the spot in this incident, were prosecuted according to law, as well as Howard Hunt, a special agent of the Central Intelligence Agency, and Gordon Liddy, legal adviser of the Committee for re-election. Despite the shadow of Watergate, Nixon's re-election campaign was still very colorful. On October 26th, the night before the election, Special Envoy Kissinger, who returned from Paris, announced to the American people the results of a series of secret talks with Li Deshou, the representative of North Vietnam, and declared: "Peace is coming soon." This added another heavy stroke to the Nixon administration's record book. Nixon mercilessly mocked his rival Democratic presidential candidate McGovern and others, and was a "radical group that mocked our country's past and would hinder its future". He criticized McGovern for saying that his government was "the most corrupt government" under the pretext of Watergate: "It has become fashionable to criticize the American system over the years. Critics insist that it is so biased, so corrupt and so unjust that we should destroy it and replace it with something else. I totally disagree. I believe in the American system. " McGovern is obviously no match for Nixon. Nixon, who was famous for his good speech and debate in middle school, skillfully turned his opponent's accusation of corruption against him and his government into an attack on the corruption of the American system. Although many facts about the Watergate incident have been exposed, American voters seem to care little about it, and they value the achievements of the Nixon administration more. Therefore, Nixon won 61% of the electoral votes and 521 electoral votes in the election results announced on October 7, while McGovern only won 34% of the electoral votes and 17 electoral votes. This is a rare time in the history of the US presidential election to decide the outcome by such a wide margin of votes. The members of the presidential re-election campaign committee headed by Mitchell are all beaming. They seem to have forgotten that there are still seven "he is my brother" who are being tried in prisons where they lost their freedom because of Watergate. Nixon, all smiles, took office and began a new presidential term. In his inaugural speech on October 21, 1973, he did not forget to attack his opponent: "At every critical moment, we are always troubled by people who think that America is useless and rarely right. However, I am convinced that this is not the judgment of history that we are fortunate to experience these extraordinary years. " In his speech, he proudly used a series of words "What makes us proud is …", declaring that "the experience of the United States in this century is unparalleled in the history of the world". However, the shadow of Watergate incident did not dissipate because Nixon was all smiles, but on the contrary, it came to him step by step. When Nixon delivered his inaugural speech for re-election on the stage, the trial of the accused in Watergate was also in full swing. The trial began on October 8, and the defendants began to explain their criminal facts under great pressure, and some publicly pleaded guilty to various accusations. What exactly have they done, and will they involve bigger people in the White House? Also, all the efforts made to cover up the truth will be self-defeating, shattered glass, but add new evidence? All this has filled the White House with an anxious atmosphere, and Nixon and his confidant officials are fidgeting and insomnia frequently. It should have been immersed in the joy of winning the re-election, but now it is shrouded in the shadow of Watergate. Nicholson is rather depressed. At this time, he seems to have realized that it was a mistake to stop the investigation from the beginning, and it was a bigger mistake than installing eavesdropping devices at the Democratic Party headquarters in Watergate Building. However, in order to maintain their identity and image, even if this road is wrong, we must unswervingly go on. The stormy White House seems to be suffering from the increasing aftershocks after the earthquake. Who can guarantee that this is not a precursor to another bigger "earthquake"?
the president lost his pawn to protect his car, and the great president shed tears to behead Ma Su.
There was a wave of unrest, and there was another wave. President Nixon, who once wanted to take the offensive as the defensive, was gradually in an unpredictable situation. In his diary on February 4, 1973, Nixon wrote worriedly: "I can expect that if the judge calls Hunter before him and threatens him with a 35-year sentence, he will probably tell everything he knows in order to avoid punishment." Hunter, an agent of the Central Intelligence Agency, was not only involved in the five criminals who sneaked into the headquarters of the Democratic Party in Watergate Building, but also broke into the office of ellsberg, a psychotherapist, with the connivance of the White House, together with Liddy, a legal adviser to the presidential re-election committee, in an attempt to steal materials that harmed ellsberg. This ellsberg once submitted the Pentagon's secret materials about the Vietnam War to the newspaper for publication, which was unfavorable to the Nixon administration. The government sued him for embezzlement of documents and was on trial. The White House obviously wants him dead. Once this incident is revealed, isn't it another "earthquake"? How to keep Hunter silent, or never give up the connivance behind the scenes, is a tricky thing. On the morning of March 21th, in Nixon's Oval Office, the President was talking with his legal adviser, John Dean. "Hunter wrote a letter to a lawyer running for re-election committee, asking for $122,111 as personal and lawyer's expenses. He even set a deadline for payment. " Dean informed Nixon of the situation. "How much do they want?" Nixon knew that with the first sum, there would be the second and third sum of money; If there is a first person, there will be a second person and a third person. "During the whole litigation period, at least 1 million yuan should be paid to each defendant." Dean quoted a lot of money, although this number is not difficult for the president of the United States, but in the case of tight wind, after all, there are many risks to be taken. From Dean's tone, it seems that he doesn't want to take any more risks. President Nixon, who is riding a tiger, can only go on this road according to the established policy. He has twice assured the public that he and his White House are innocent in the Watergate case and can withstand investigation. If we retreat, he and his government will become liars and swindlers with discredited reputation. "Maybe it's wrong for us to do so," Nixon said slowly and firmly, "but at this moment, don't you agree that the best way out is to deal with Hunter's problem properly? I think, at this moment, this is worth doing. " He obviously bet on keeping the defendant quiet. He is the incumbent president, with supreme power, and this bet may have his reasons. Because, if these defendants take the money and want to be free, even if the court sentences him severely, as president, they still have the power to pardon criminals. With the strong backing of the president, the smart defendant will not reveal the facts that are unfavorable to the president and the White House under his leadership. Nixon believes this. Dean promised the president's request, but his heart was like hanging 15 buckets, so anxious. Nixon admitted in his memoirs: "In retrospect, this day was a tragic turning point in my term of office." That's exactly what happened. Dean, who soon "turned back", embarrassed Nixon and the White House. Dean not only told us that several important people in the White House were involved in the case of five thieves sneaking into the Democratic Party headquarters in Watergate Building, but also confessed a series of attempts to cover up the truth after the incident. He publicly stated that Holdman, the White House chief of staff, Ehrlichman, the president's internal affairs adviser, and himself were all involved in the case and had "obstruction of justice". He also revealed that Kambak, the president's personal lawyer, had been ordered to raise money for the defendants in the Watergate case. McChord, who was put on trial in prison, also accused the chairman of the presidential liaison committee, former Attorney General Mitchell, of being responsible for the theft of the Democratic Party headquarters in Watergate Building, and confessed that during the trial, some people said that they could be pardoned in exchange for his silence. The federal district court judge in charge of the Watergate case also seems determined to have a hard time with the White House. In the verdict at the end of March, McChord, the first defendant who brought political dignitaries into this incident, was lenient and released on bail, while the remaining four defendants who sneaked into the Watergate Building were given heavy sentences, tentatively set at 41 years' imprisonment; Hunt and Liddy, who were involved in this case and were guilty of breaking into Dr. ellsberg's office and stealing, were sentenced to 35 years in prison, while the latter was convicted of contempt of court for refusing to speak, and were sentenced to 6 years and 8 months in prison and fined 41,111 yuan. The sentencing of the disparity in severity has formed a great deterrent to the defendants who are so lucky and unwilling to disclose all the facts. Nixon knew that such a sentence was too heavy, even outrageous, because the sentence for some murderers was not so; However, we have to admit that this is a civilized strategy adopted by the local court judges, that is, to urge the defendants to tell the truth, because their sentences are not final. If they confess and expose meritorious deeds, McCord is their example. With the constant revelation of the truth of Watergate incident, public anger and public opinion exploded. Nixon's defense is so fragile, has it reached the limit?