Merriam-Webster defines morality as conformity to ideals of right human conductso what could have raised eyebrows thirty years ago may very well be commonly acceptable today. Scandals are framed in the context of what is socially acceptable behavior. The majority of presidents of the United States have endured or faced some sort of scandal during their terms of office. One recent wrongdoing, however, stands out in the minds of many Americans. William Jefferson Clinton faced what is probably the most notorious presidential offense in recent history. His presidential campaign was tainted when Gennifer Flowers came forward and confessed to having an affair with the then governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton.
Clinton was known to have sexual relations with women on a regular basis during his term as governor of Arkansas. In December of 1993, these escapades became public in Troopergate, the scandal that surfaced when a group of Arkansas state troopers told stories about soliciting women and facilitating extramarital trysts for Clinton while he was governor. (Isikoff p.4) One of the women involved in the Troopergate scandal was Paula Corbin Jones, a woman whose persistence and persecution later proved vital to the impeachment of President Clinton. Jones worked at the registration desk in the Excelsior Hotelthe location of her first encounter with Clinton. He asked her to accompany him to his room and exposed himself to her. When she went public with these allegations against Clinton, he vehemently denied ever meeting with Jones.
The Term Paper on Clinton Sex Scandal
Rare is a person that crosses the path of the White House without some emotion of envy or awe. This building epitomizes world leadership and unprecedented power. This renowned leadership may be the only association made by certain countries, while in the United States many see an other significance: Watergate, Whitewater, Kennedy's brutal and mysterious assassination, and today, Clinton's " ...
Clintons denial infuriated Jones, causing her to pursue a civil case against him, but after his denial, her case lost public interest. Perhaps the most infamous of all Clintons affairs was his relationship with the young intern, Monica Lewinsky. Her repeated encounters with the President probably would have never surfaced if it werent for Linda Tripp. Tripp had become a motherly figure to Lewinsky, consoling her and becoming her confidant. Tripp recorded several phone conversations between the two regarding her relationship with Clinton. These conversations were some of the strongest evidence against Clintons denial of his sexual relationship with Ms.
Lewinsky. On January 20, 1998 news [broke] that President Clinton may have had a sexual relationship with a White House intern named Monica Lewinsky (presidential).
Clinton had denied these accusations under oath in the Paula Jones trials, but Tripp had evidence that could be used against him. Kenneth Starr, an independent counsel, sent a report to Congress in which he charged Clinton with perjury, obstruction of justice, witness tampering, and abuse of authority in the Paula Jones lawsuit. (whitewater) On December 11, 1998 The House Judiciary Committee approve[d] three articles of impeachment on a 21-16 party line vote, passing them to the full House of Representatives. The three articles accuse[d] Clinton of lying to a grand jury, committing perjury by denying he had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky, and obstructing justice.
Clinton declare[d] himself “profoundly sorry” and willing to accept censure. (Clinton) Clintons impeachment shocked many Americans. His denials and attempts to have other people lie for him caused him to lose much respect in our world. Unfortunately, we have seen deception such as Clintons in the face of another presidentRichard Nixon. Richard Milhous Nixon served two terms as vice president under Dwight D. Eisenhower. Nixon ran for the presidency in 1960 only to lose to John F.
Kennedy. In 1962, he lost the election for Governor of California to Pat Brown. Nixon defeated Hubert H. Humphrey in the 1968 presidential election. Americans believed Nixon would end the fighting in Vietnam because he promised peace with honor (Richard).
The Term Paper on Clinton Nixon Impeachment White House
... investigation, including transcripts of the testimony of President Clinton and Ms. Lewinsky (CNN/All Politics). On October 8, House ... scandal in American Politics.However, even before the break-in, President Nixon had begun illegal operations. President Nixon had created ... activities that were designed to help President Richard Nixon win re-election. The scandal involved burglary, wiretapping, ...
During his first presidential term, Nixon ended American involvement in the Vietnam War and began withdrawing troops.
Although we had withdrawn involvement in the war, Nixons administration began secretly bombing Cambodiathe area believed to host the National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam. Nixon overexerted his executive powers by never asking Congresss permission to bomb Cambodia. The unauthorized bombings were considered as an article of impeachment, but the charge was dropped (Richard).
In 1972, Nixon was very popular to Americans. He won the presidential election by a landslide, carrying 49 of the 50 states. The voters had no idea that Nixon was a liar and a scoundrel.
What the public didnt know at the time of his election would eventually be the grounds for his resignation. A scandal named for the Washington, D.C. hotel where it took place, Watergate was an event that tarnished several people in the Nixon administration and caused the American public to become much more interested in morality in politics. Frank Wills, a security guard at the Watergate Hotel noticed a piece of tape keeping the basement door unlocked. He removed it, only to find the tape replaced a few hours later. This prompted Wills to contact the D.C. police.
Five men were discovered in the hotelBernard Barker, Virgilio Gonzales, James W. McCord, Frank Sturgis, and Eugenio Martinez. They had broken into the office of the Democratic National Convention. It was later discovered that the men were breaking in to photograph documents and fix wiretaps they had installed three weeks earlier. A link was established between this burglary and the President when it was discovered that McCord was the Chief of Security at the Committee to Re-elect the President (CRP).
The phone number of E. Howard Hunt, a former White House employee, was found in Barkers notebook, creating an even stronger suspicion that Nixon had something to do with this burglary.
The Essay on Clinton Vs Nixon Presidents President American
Clinton vs. Nixon The resent scandal in the White House has brought my attention to the American Presidents as people and Presidents. Looking into the American history and her presidents I have found out that presidents are not just political figures but that they are also people. In my research I will compare and contrast two of the American presidents' current Bill Clinton and ex-president ...
When questioned about it, Ron Ziegler, Nixons press secretary, dismissed the link between the burglary and the President. No one ever knew exactly who all was involved in Watergate. It is unclear how high the level of involvement was, but one thing is certainquite a bit of the Nixon administration knew what was going on. Nixons campaign manager, Jeb Stuart Magruder, alleged overhearing Nixon ordering Attorney General John Mitchell to conduct the break-in. Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy were to direct the attempt to retrieve documents from the office of the Democratic Campaign Committee.
In January of 1973, Hunt, Liddy, and the original five burglars were tried for and convicted of burglary, conspiracy and wiretapping. Senate investigators for the Watergate hearings discovered from Alexandar Butterfield, the deputy assistant to the President, that there was a tape recorder in the Oval Office. These recordings could tell whether or not Nixon was telling the truth about meetings there. However, when the Senate subpoenaed these tapes, Nixon refused, claiming his executive privilege theory. When the Senate pressed for the tapes, Nixon continued to refuse, but released edited transcripts of most of them. The edited tapes confirmed John Deans account of what had happened in the Oval Office, but a vital 18 minute portion of one of the tapes was erased.
Nixons issue of holding the tapes went all the way to the Supreme Court, who ruled that Nixon must hand over all of the tapes in their original form. The Watergate grand jury was noticing how much Nixon seemed to be involved in much of their investigation. Several people extremely close to him in his administration were being indicted for association with Watergate. The House of Representatives chose to begin formal investigations on the possible impeachment of the president. On July 27, 1974, the House Judiciary Committee voted to recommend an article of impeachment of obstruction of justice on the president. Two days later, the second article, abuse of power, was passed, and the next day contempt of Congress was passed.
Once Nixon knew impeachment was unavoidable, he publicly announced his resignation. His successor, Gerald Ford, issued a controversial pardon that protected him from any crimes he committed as president. Many people believe Clinton was an inadequate leader because of his continuous extramarital affairs. Given proof that many presidents have affairs and it doesnt affect their ability to lead our country, I disagree with this belief. President Clintons downfall was his lies and attempted cover-ups, much like Nixon. Clinton and Nixon both had very twisted ideas of their power. They both had a because I can attitude towards their actions.
The Term Paper on President Bill Clinton
The Map Room Speech delivered by President Bill Clinton by way of apology and explanation regarding his conduct with Monica Lewinsky appeals to the listener as an American and as an individual, that is, makes its appeal to personal and presumably universal feelings and emotions regarding the state and the family. This speech must be reviewed with the idea in mind that this is not the first time ...
Both presidents would have caused much less controversy if they had just admitted and apologized for their mistakes and asked for the countrys forgiveness. Clintons biggest mistake was lying under oath and convincing other people to lie for him. It was never proven whether or not Nixon lied or asked for anyone to lie for him, but his evasive actions led to his resignation. Neither Clinton nor Nixon had an unsatisfactory ability to lead our country. Clinton had a fairly uneventful presidency, and he probably wouldnt be remembered if it werent for his impeachment trials. Nixon was faced with controversy in his first term that he handled with grace and intelligence, but his paranoia and involvement in the Watergate scandal caused the public to suddenly change its idea of him. Being the leader of the most powerful nation in the world has its price.
A lack of privacy and extreme scrutiny by members of the press could reveal weaknesses among even the most pristine leaders. While both Clinton and Nixon had positive traits as presidents, their indiscretions and inability to come clean tainted most Americans perceptions of their leadership abilities..
