The 1970’s was an era of political, environmental, and technological awareness. This era provided the American people with information and inventions that would positively shape the future of the United States. Awareness brings about optimistic thinking and change. This is exactly what happened in the 1970’s. Political awareness brought about accountability for the government and politicians. Environmental awareness brought about consumer and governmental accountability in energy usage. Inventions in the 1970’s were the platform for technology age that Americans currently rely on daily. President Richard M. Nixon and his involvement in the Watergate scandal were broadcast nightly on the 6 o’clock news in the early 1970’s. Americans were engrossed with the scandal and each person held his or her own view of situation. Each broadcast or newspaper article created a mistrust of political and governmental leaders. In response to this mistrust, the Freedom to Information Act was strengthened by the United States Congress in 1973 (Chamberlain). Although this act was first placed into law in the late 1960’s, the Watergate scandal provided the incentive make this law stronger. The Watergate Scandal and the resignation of President Nixon was the beginning of American’s mistrust of politicians. This can be viewed as a positive effect. As a result three important open record reforms created. The first of the reforms is the Sunshine Act in 1976. This requires government agencies to conduct meetings that are open to public, with a few exceptions. In 1978, the Ethics in Government Act requires public officials to disclose financial and employment records. The Presidential Records Act, also initiated in 1978, required preservati... ... middle of paper ... ...s Clear as Muddy Water: A Short Story about How Politics Can Mess up What Appears to be Such A Simple Concept.” Pollution Engineering May 2010: 7. General OneFile. Web. 27 April 2014. Chamberlain, Kenneth, “History: The Day the Freedom of Information Act Expanded”. Nationaljournal.com 20 Nov. 2012 General OneFile. Web 26 April 2014. Finney, Daniel P, “Watergate Scandal Changed the Political Landscape Forever,” USA Today, June 16, 2012. Web 17 April 2014. Hamilton, Kendall, and Tessa Namuth. "Sticky stuff." Newsweek 130, (January 15, 1997): 27. Readers' Guide Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson), EBSCOhost (accessed April 30, 2014). Kilbane, Dorris, “Martin Cooper: But, Is It Useful?” Electronic Design, Oct. 20 2003, Web, 22 April 2014. Yarett, Ian, “Has Anything Gotten Better Since That First Earth Day?.” Newsweek, April 26, 2010. Lexisnexis, 23 April 2014
The documentary entitled, Watergate Plus 30: Shadow of History, documents the political decisions and environment within the Nixon Administration from 1969-1974. The documentary specifically details and describes the environment and culture in which the Watergate scandal could occur and the events and abuses of power that lead to its occurrence. Setting the tone and the political climate of the Nixon Administration was the Vietnam War; making him a wartime President, a war that he inherited from his predecessor. The Vietnam War faced a lot of opposition from the general public, with massive protests and political demonstrations by the younger generations and overall general public. Nixon’s presidency was surrounded by this climate amidst the
McCraw, David, and Stephen Gikow. “The End to a Unspoken Bargain? National Security and Leaks in a Post-Pentagon Papers World.” Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review 48.2 (2013): 473-509. Academic OneFile. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.
The documentary “Sixties: Years that Shaped a Generation” illustrates a period in United States history defined by cultural movement. Several citizen led campaigns were developed to challenge long established American institutions and traditions. This age of defiance, cultivated a counter culture which stood against social injustice, racial inequalities, and the war in Vietnam.
It is clear that while political scandal, primarily the 1974 Watergate scandal, played a large role in the rapidly declining confidence in government between 1968 and 1980, it is not the sole or even the dominant factor. The Watergate scandal only impacted on the Nixon era, and subsequently lead to measures that should have prevented further distrust in the government. Instead, the role played by the four presidents who held office in those years was the main reason behind the decline in confidence. The role of the presidents and their White House administrations encompassed political scandals, and also clearly influenced other factors such as the role
“Watergate: The Scandal That Brought Down Richard Nixon.” Watergate.info. N.p., 1995. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. .
Out of all of the current presidents in our time the most interesting president to explore was President Richard Nixon and out of all of them he was the only one in term to resign. That Richard M. Nixon, President of the United States, is impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors, and that the following articles of impeachment to be executed to the fullest extent of their nature. His poor choices and decisions led to his resignation. Although he did have some good qualities in helping the U.S. the bad however override the good. In the CRS (Congressional Research Service) It states: “ Obstruction of justice is the impediment of governmental activities. There are a host of federal criminal laws that prohibit obstructions of justice. The six most general outlaw obstruction of judicial proceedings (18 U.S.C. 1503), witness tampering (18 U.S.C. 1512), witness retaliation (18 U.S.C. 1513), obstruction of Congressional or administrative proceedings (18 U.S.C. 1505), conspiracy to defraud The United States (18 U.S.C. 371), and contempt (a creature of statute, rule and common law). Simple perjury in a federal investigation or judicial proceedings carries an extensive fine and up to 5 years in prison.” This was the first article president Richard M. Nixon was charged with by the House of Judiciary Committee. The vote was 27 to 1 for Nixon to be charged with the first article of impeachment, which was Obstruction of Justice. In denial of his liability in part taking in the Watergate scandal by saying he wasn't involved in the scandal He pointed finger at others that were involved in the break-in. However, tapes were found of conversations that proved his involvement and he was going to be impeached. Before he was charged, he made a resignat...
The 1970s was a tumultuous time in the United States. In some ways, the decade was a continuation of the 1960s. Women, African Americans, Native Americans, gays and lesbians and other marginalized people continued to fight for their freedom, while many other Americans joined in the demonstration against the ongoing war in Vietnam. Due to these movements, the 1970s saw changes in its national identity, including modifications in social values. These social changes showed up in the fashion industry as well, delivering new outlooks in the arenas of both men’s and women’s clothing.
In 1972, Nixon and his aides hired people to break into the Watergate, a hotel where Democratic election plans and budgets were stored. Nixon’s plan was to steal the campaign plans and counter them, getting the winning results. When all of this information came out, a special prosecutor working on the case asked for the tapes recording calls in the Oval Office as a part of the investigation. Nixon didn’t want to hear it, so he fired the first special prosecutor. The next one assigned to the case also wanted the tapes. Nixon finally gave up edited versions of the tapes, but the D.C. Appellate Court of Appeals wanted the full tapes, but Nixon wouldn’t let it happen. It finally was taken to the Supreme Court where Chief Justice Warren E. Burger had the task of proving Nixon guilty. But Nixon claimed he had Executive Privilege, which states that he does not have to give up confidential information involving his branch as it could be sensitive to his branch only, due to checks and balances. Nixon was eventually convicted, because of his two operations. Operation Sandwedge, and Operation Gemstone. Operation Sandwedge was essentially collecting sensitive information on the other presidential candidate that would harm his chances of being elected, and taint him in the eyes of the public. Operation Gemstone was actually the action of breaking into the hotel and stealing the information.
Several Presidents have been involved in scandals. Some of these scandals have caused the American people to lose faith in their government. Other scandals have pushed the United States to the brink of nuclear war. The law must be upheld at all costs. The only way to prevent future scandals is to always hold individuals accountable for their actions.
As television exposed the truth of government, so did Journalists. Daniel leaking of the Pentagon Papers that explained in detail the Vietnam War, and the leaking of the information to the New York Times in 1971. Scandals like this played an active role throughout the late 1960’s and into the early 1970’s. This eventually led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon in 1974. The critical stand point of the journalists led to the marked contradictory of American politics that grew into turbulent during the 1960s.
This paper offers a summary of the key decisions that led to Edward Snowden leaking files the National Security Agency violating the constitution and this abuse becoming public knowledge in the summer of 2013.
The 1960’s and early 1970’s were a time that eternally changed the culture and humanity of America. It was a time widely known for peace and love when in reality; many minorities were struggling to gain a modicum of equality and freedom. It was a time, in which a younger generation rebelled against the conventional norms, questioning power and government, and insisting on more freedoms for minorities. In addition, an enormous movement began rising in opposition to the Vietnam War. It was a time of brutal altercations, with the civil rights movement and the youth culture demanding equality and the war in Vietnam put public loyalty to the test. Countless African-Americans, Native-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, women, and college students became frustrated, angry, and disillusioned by the turmoil around them.
The fight for privacy rights are by no means a recent conflict. In fact, there was conflict even back in the days before the revolutionary war. One of the most well-known cases took place in England, ...
The literature of the 1970’s contains a divergent amount of writers and genres. Poems, novels, and short stories are the main forms of expression, and these were produced by writers from around the world. “Many of the books in the 1970’s revolve around a general theme of man’s alienation from his spiritual roots”(Gillis).
The Internet has allowed people to express ideas and communicate with each other around the world. Those that are against the government’s interference and monitoring of the Internet believe that they are entitled to privacy and the freedom of self-expression. The Clinton Administration wanted to enable a way to trace potential threats to the United States Government by accessing confidential information, tapping into conversations through the Internet and phone calls. “While privacy faces threats from both private and government intrusions, the existing motley patchwork of privacy laws and practices fails to provide comprehensive protection. Instead, it causes confusion that fuels a sense of distrust and ske...