Why was the Watergate scandal controversial?

Answer 1

The Watergate Scandal was a threat to the Checks and Balances and Separation of Powers written into the Constitution. No branch, or elected official, or governmental worker is above the law. It turned out that the arrest of five men on 17 June 1972 who were trying to install electronic listening devices in the Democratic Party headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC was just one of several surreptitious activities sponsored by the Nixon Administration. Nixon’s aides had also engineered the burglary of a Los Angeles psychiatrist’s office to try and obtain damaging information about Daniel Ellsberg, a Defense Department employee who leaked the Pentagon Papers, revealing the activities of the administration regarding Vietnam. The press and public began to view Nixon’s administration and activities as “the Imperial Presidency” because Nixon and his advisors became so arrogant in their possession of power. They seemed to believe they were above the law. Nixon even went so far as to claim that if something was done by the president, that means it was not illegal. The public began to distrust the power that had been amassed in the office of the Executive. The separation of powers did not seem to be working as designed by the Founding Fathers. Others saw the resignation of the president of confirmation that the Constitution was working, and even the President was not above the law. The Watergate Affair also served as a civics lesson to the public. Many began to pay close attention to their representatives and to begin to question the leaders in Washington and in local and state offices. An immediate effect was a closer examination of the activities of the executive office by the legislative and judicial branches.

Answer 2

The significance is that not even the president is above the law