What you’ll learn to do: describe political turmoil and changes of the 1970s

Figure 1. Address book of Watergate burglar Bernard Barker, discovered in a room at the Watergate Hotel.

In 1972, President Nixon faced an easy reelection against a Democratic Party still struggling to determine its purpose and identity. But even before his landslide victory, evidence had surfaced that the White House was involved in the break-in at the Democratic National Committee’s headquarters at Washington D.C.’s Watergate office complex. As the investigation unfolded, the depths to which Nixon and his advisers had sunk became clear. Some twenty-five of Nixon’s aides were indicted for criminal activity, and he became the first president to resign from office. His successor, Gerald Ford, was unable to solve the pressing problems the United States faced or erase the stain of Watergate.

Jimmy Carter’s administration began with great promise, but his efforts to improve the economy through deregulation largely failed. Carter’s attempt at a foreign policy built on the principle of human rights also prompted much criticism from those favoring a harder line against the Soviet Union. On the other hand, he successfully brokered the beginnings of a historic peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. Remaining public faith in Carter was dealt a serious blow, however, when he proved unable to free American hostages held by a fundamentalist regime in Tehran.