Axar.az presents an article “Nixon Vs. Trump” by John Samuel Tieman.

Half a century ago, Richard Nixon resigned his presidency. I remember it well. “By taking this action, I hope that I will hasten the process of healing which is so desperately needed in America.” President Nixon tore the nation's soul in half. For that reason, there have been many comparisons to former President Donald Trump. I think these comparisons are a bit thin. Nonetheless, retired teacher that I am, I also think they are instructive.

Watergate

While there were dozens of reasons to hate him, Richard Nixon's resignation was the direct result of a singular scandal. 17 June 1972. A group of “plumbers” broke into the Democratic National Committee headquarters located at the Watergate Office Building in the nation's capital. This was in the middle of the 1972 election. Nixon inserted himself into the matter, the “second-rate burglary”, in hopes of covering up a wide range of “dirty tricks” he'd used during the campaign. Talks about the cover-up were taped. That's what brought him down.

Donald Trump's presidency, and his various campaigns, have been one scandal after the next. But beyond all the scandals, beyond calling our war dead “suckers” and “losers”, beyond “grab 'em by the p---y”, Trump has repeatedly made direct threats against the Constitution and the democratic republic. Remember January the 6th? Remember “Project 2025”? Richard Nixon didn't want to overthrow the Constitution. In a sense, he wanted to own it. In the end, Pres. Nixon abided by the norms of governance and resigned. When faced with an election he lost by 7,000,000 votes, Pres. Trump attempted an insurrection.

The Republican Party

In 1972, there was nothing doctrinaire about being a Republican or a Democrat. Party affiliation tended to be more a matter of faction and connection. There were liberal and conservative Republicans. There were liberal and conservative Democrats.

Nixon was a California Republican. He established the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970. Most people think of environmental concerns as liberal. On the other hand, Nixon first gained national attention as a strident anti-Communist. In foreign and domestic policy, Nixon's instincts were conservative. However, he assumed the presidency in 1969 during liberalism's postwar peak. So he played this issue to the right, that issue to the left.

Richard Nixon resigned because lost the support of his party. During the Watergate hearings, few things hurt him more than a simple question repeatedly asked by Howard Baker, a Tennessee Republican. “What did the president know and when did he know it?”

In 2024, the Republican Party is wholly owned by Donald Trump. Loyalty to Trump is the singular requirement. Following the 2020 Republican Convention, the party did not write a platform. The party's sole priority was supporting Trump. That hasn't changed.

The Times

Nixon was president from 1969 to 1974. For those of us who were there, one-half of “The 60s” was the first half of the 70s. For example, the Vietnam War didn't end until 1975. Like this year, it was a time of great turmoil. But 1974 is not 2024.

In the 60s and 70s, there was a lot of talk of revolution. But, in fact, many folks, possibly most folks, were really interested in reform. The civil rights movement was one such example. There were those, like the Black Panthers, who wanted revolution. Most, like Martin Luther King, jr., wanted reform. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was one such reform.

One last thought. In 2020, Trump lost to Joe Biden. Trump and his followers then fomented an insurrection. People died. People were grievously injured. In 1974, the most powerful man in America was forced to resign. That night, the 9th of August, a few hours after Nixon left office, our capital was quiet. Our capital was calm. There were no rioters. There were no soldiers with fixed bayonets. There were no tanks in the streets. It was one of those August evenings when, despite the heat of the day, you wore a jacket that night.