It seemed inconceivable when Richard Nixon won a historic presidential election victory in 1972 that his own Republican Party would turn on him two years later and drive him from office.

There was the subsequent Watergate break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters, of course, and the discovery that the president bugged the Oval Office. But it was Nixon’s secret $700,000 slush fund that was the final nail in the coffin.

He used this money from rich friends—including $100,000 from reclusive millionaire Howard Hughes—to pay for the dirty tricks exposed by legendary Washington Post journalists Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein.

Nixon famously declared, “I am not a crook.”

But he was, and that quickly became apparent as his White House scheming unraveled and his clandestine slush fund was exposed.

On Aug. 7, 1974, a Republican delegation composed of Senator Barry Goldwater, Senate Minority Leader Hugh Scott, and House Minority Leader John Rhodes met with Nixon at the White House to deliver an ultimatum.

“There’s not more than 15 senators for you,” Goldwater told Nixon. His impeachment was almost certain.

Nixon announced his resignation the following evening.

When Donald Trump swept into the White House for a second time on the back of a decisive 2024 victory and proceeded to bully his own party into submission in Congress, he also appeared untouchable.

As recently........

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