Nixon stays in power

Could Nixon have avoided being forced to resign due to Watergate by:

  1. Not ordering the coverup?
  2. Admitting to the coverup early on and apologising for it (saying that it was a heat-of-the-moment thing and he wouldn't normally have done it, or something like that)?
  3. Releasing all the information asked of him early on?
  4. (this is probably ASB) Once the impeachment proceedings had begun, trying to order the Army to disperse Congress?
 
1. Emphatically Yes.

2. Most historians think Yes.

3. This one could go either way. Depending on how much is released, I think it could backfire on Nixon.

4. No way. The President exercises control over the Army through the Joint Chiefs of Staff. All of them had already decided to validate any direct order from Nixon with the Sec. of Defense and/or other officials. They passed this down the chain to their various commands.
 
1. Emphatically Yes.

2. Most historians think Yes.

3. This one could go either way. Depending on how much is released, I think it could backfire on Nixon.

4. No way. The President exercises control over the Army through the Joint Chiefs of Staff. All of them had already decided to validate any direct order from Nixon with the Sec. of Defense and/or other officials. They passed this down the chain to their various commands.

Number 4 being incredibly scary to think about. I think if Nixon would have attempted anything major, which would have been ignored, the Cabinet may have declared Nixon unfit and put Ford in charge.
 
Number 4 being incredibly scary to think about. I think if Nixon would have attempted anything major, which would have been ignored, the Cabinet may have declared Nixon unfit and put Ford in charge.

What I've heard about this relates mostly to the Air Force, but with the siege mentality of the Nixon White House (protesters were outside constantly), I can imagine the Army doing the same. Alexander Haig said that Kissinger came and told him Nixon was very depressed and he was concerned he'd do something desperate. Haig called the JCS and it was decided the JCS would verify any direct Presidential order. Air Force bomber and missile commanders were also told to verify any orders received from Nixon. I imagine it was much the same for the Army who want a civil war about as much as the Air Force wants a nuclear one.
 
I think the only way he stays in office is to not order the cover up. iIf he stays in office, he works on his health care program. tThe Democratic majority in Congress passes. nNixoncare angers conservatives. it's passage helps the presidential campaign of the leading opposition spokesperson, Ronald Reagan.
 
Number four would not only lose him the white house, but he could forget about any kind of pardon, he probably dies in jail. Trying to throw over the lawful government of the country (even if you are one of the lawful authorities) is treason.

Be a good deal harder for the Republican's to get out from under, since lets face it "the last Republican was a crook" is nowhere near as bad "The last republican was a traitor!"
 
None of these options I see as particularly plausible, except for option #5: Nixon destroys the tapes.
 
Nixon continues on as a personally polarizing but very supported president. He works to craft a legacy and create a Churchill inspired Conservative party out of the Republican party, uniting various interests under the umbrella of Conservatism and the GOP. Not really all that different of a situation, given said plan really mirrors what exactly happened. Possibly it would have been more successful and more hastened, since it would take till about Michael Dukakis in 1988 for Liberal to become really a 4 letter word and for Liberalism to be decimated as a political force for generations. Nixon's legacy is carefully shaped in the exact manner the Nixon Foundation still does, and all the same there will be many people who shoot holes in the glorifying of Nixon and take major criticisms of him based on the way he already was and what was already known pre-Watergate. It's just that there won't be a Watergate to totally demonize him over.
Also, don't expect some great Liberal administration. Nixon wasn't "the last Liberal president" as he is often called. Many of those things he is lauded for and which are claimed as Liberal were the result of a lot of good government Republicans, and Nixon is recorded as bemoaning them and being embarrassed by them, and wanting to get rid of many of them, meaning he could potentially have repealed them given an unhindered administration. I'll point you to the Timothy Naftali interview:
http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/309875-1
http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/309875-2

Also, Nixon hounded John Lennon up until the very end trying to get him kicked out of the country and wiretapping him and otherwise using government force to harass. I'd expect that to continue, possibly successfully.

Come 1976, there is no dirty Washington need for an outsider, so no Jimmy Carter. Nixon is also in a prime spot to nominate his favored successor. That could be John Connally, but I get the feeling that the Republicans would rebuke any attempt since Connally was a turncoat (Democrat who turned Republican) and he wasn't in any position to be president via offices held; it's just that Nixon liked him. No, Connally would not be vice president in lieu of Agnew in this universe. Firstly, Watergate was separate from Agnew's resignation. Secondly, Connally turned down the office when offered because he viewed it as worthless. You potentially have Reagan in 1976. At the same time, Nixon thought he was essentially a moron. Not sure about what would happen there. Nixon could be all for it, in spite of that, especially if the GOP pushes strongly for Reagan in a tide Nixon cannot stand against, or he could back Reagan because he doesn't assume he'll do too much damage and may even assume he could control the White House via the influence of his people already there who continue in a Reagan* administration, or he could try to fight it for someone he'd prefer.
 
A bit off to the side, but even given Nixon's paranoia and vindictiveness, I still marvel that nobody said "are you crazy?" to the big risk/small gain proposition of breaking in to DNC headquarters. After all, with McGovern as his opposition, he had the election in the bag largely from the outset; he stood to gain nearly zero from the break-in.
 
A bit off to the side, but even given Nixon's paranoia and vindictiveness, I still marvel that nobody said "are you crazy?" to the big risk/small gain proposition of breaking in to DNC headquarters. After all, with McGovern as his opposition, he had the election in the bag largely from the outset; he stood to gain nearly zero from the break-in.

Nixon did not authorize or know of the break in before hand.

And the break in was months before the election when the lopsided nature of it was not predicted.

Remember, Nixon was barely elected in 1968.
 
A bit off to the side, but even given Nixon's paranoia and vindictiveness, I still marvel that nobody said "are you crazy?" to the big risk/small gain proposition of breaking in to DNC headquarters. After all, with McGovern as his opposition, he had the election in the bag largely from the outset; he stood to gain nearly zero from the break-in.

It was by no means certain that Mcgovern was going to win when the burglary took place Muskie and others were still in the running. Obviously had the break in not taken place then Nixon would have remained in the White House as he migh had he immediately done something about it or come clean. Did Nixon have fore knowledge of the break in no oner knows but his subsequent behaviour suggests he may have.

The problem seems to be that Nixon being Nixon his reactions would have resulted in him leaving office premarturely
 
If no Watergate. I think you would get another close election in 76. Its hard for a party to win 3 Presidential elections in a row. But not impossible. The conservative mind set was starting to over take America but the Democrats were still in charge . I think that Reagan would have been in a dog fight with a variety of candidates like in 1980. But I think he would have pulled it off. The Democrats would have seen this has their year like in OTL. But Carter would had a lot harder time. I can see him being the eventual VEEP candidate. With out Watergate , would Frank Church get involved a little earlier? Out side of Ted Kennedy who was seen has the dominate candidate in 76 for the Democrats? Wallace still had his standing and outside of Carter what Southern could knock him out? So if no Democrat can catch a head wind does , Jerry Brown come in and blow past the the others to win? That I could see happening. So we have Brown, Carter vs Reagan and ? That is the question. Maybe Bush, Maybe Connally, Haig? How about Dole? So in my mind it would be Dole. I can see Reagan, Dole beating, Brown, Carter. It might come down to California.
 
one thing that politicians cannot accept is that the way to diffuse a scandal is simply to own up to it. The harm is rarely caused by the act itself, but the coverup and the hunt to uncover the coverup. Nixon epitomizes this.

Nixon could have easily survived by simply throwing an aide under the bus and accepting that his administration went astray. It's like when Clinton was nailed for smoking pot, or Gore was hit up for snorting coke, or Bush was nailed for being an alcoholic. They all owned up to it (none of them completely), and that was the end of it. Clinton was then castrated for refusing to admit to having an affair. Admission usually takes the wind out of any scandal.
 
one thing that politicians cannot accept is that the way to diffuse a scandal is simply to own up to it. The harm is rarely caused by the act itself, but the coverup and the hunt to uncover the coverup. Nixon epitomizes this.

Nixon could have easily survived by simply throwing an aide under the bus and accepting that his administration went astray. It's like when Clinton was nailed for smoking pot, or Gore was hit up for snorting coke, or Bush was nailed for being an alcoholic. They all owned up to it (none of them completely), and that was the end of it. Clinton was then castrated for refusing to admit to having an affair. Admission usually takes the wind out of any scandal.

When did Al Gore say he snorted cocaine?
 
one thing that politicians cannot accept is that the way to diffuse a scandal is simply to own up to it. The harm is rarely caused by the act itself, but the coverup and the hunt to uncover the coverup. Nixon epitomizes this.

Nixon could have easily survived by simply throwing an aide under the bus and accepting that his administration went astray. It's like when Clinton was nailed for smoking pot, or Gore was hit up for snorting coke, or Bush was nailed for being an alcoholic. They all owned up to it (none of them completely), and that was the end of it. Clinton was then castrated for refusing to admit to having an affair. Admission usually takes the wind out of any scandal.
The problem is this is not a case of Nixon with a personal fault; this is a case of admitting culpability on a systematic campaign of political espionage and sabotage.

The thing is the evidence from the Watergate burglary clearly pointed to men employed by the White House (James McCord, Howard Hunt). Keep in mind these same burglars ransacked the home of Daniel Ellsberg's (the leaker of the Pentagon Papers who was on trial for the leak at the time) psychiatrist's office looking for info on Ellsberg. Remember that the burglars (through Hunt) asked for hush money to keep quiet or they would name names (which they did IOTL). Nixon would have no choice but to raise that money, otherwise they reveal details on the first burglary and Ellsberg gets off on a mistrial (which also happened IOTL).

"Admission usually takes the wind out of any scandal."

Not in this case. The sheer size and extent of the Plumbers' activities, if they came out before the election, would destroy Nixon politically or at least weaken him substantially.

Let's face it, Nixon would never dream of not covering up the scandal; his paranoid nature would not even consider it.
 
If Nixon was President today, his political party would protect him
by refusing to investigate Watergate. Those were different times for
the 24/7 media networks like Fox would do anything in their power
to protect his Presidency.

Back then though 1,2,3 though, he'll survive until 1976 for despite
his human weaknesses, he was a very capable man possibly to
the political left of both Bill Clinton and Barack Obama which is
why he was able to make a political comeback in the 90's.
 
[*](this is probably ASB) Once the impeachment proceedings had begun, trying to order the Army to disperse Congress?
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I saw a documentary about Nixon on BBC a while back in which James Schlesinger recalled being summoned to the White House at the height ofWatergate for Nixon to ask him what the nearest military units to Washington were, he replied that was the USMC garrison at Quantico, he then asked where the 82nd Airborne was based and how quickly they could be in Washington. Schlesinger was so unnerved that when he got back to the Pentagon he called in the Joint Chiefs and then several lower echelon commanders and ordered them not to carry out any direct Presidential orders unless he agreed to them. Earlier on in the programme Kissinger recalled how Nixon would often order "heat of the moment" instructions that he would then countermand. So he may well have tried to pull such a stunt only to look up and see the tanks surrounding the White House...
 
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