Today In History - An Honorable Man Winds Up Disgraced

On August 8, 1974, Richard M. Nixon announces to the nation, on the nightly news, that he will resign as the President of the United States of America. He resigns officially on the very next day, thus making him the first and only president to have done so in the history of our nation. I call him an honorable man because all of his intentions for America, such as ending Kennedy's war in Vietnam, his entering into diplomacy with China, his efforts in the Cold War, were all honorable because he loved America and her people dearly and sought the best for them during very hard times. I say he wound up disgraced because that is just how he felt about himself after Watergate and after he resigned the presidency on August 9, 1974. He never allowed himself to live it down.

Did he do something wrong with the Watergate scandal, yes he most definitely did so. Did he do any good for America - yes he also most definitely did so. One of the things by which he did good was to finally accept responsibility for his wrong actions and to disgrace and humiliate himself by way of his resignation so that our nation could move on. Can you imagine that any one of the presidents since him would have done so even in the face of as much overwhelming as was piled up against Nixon if any of them had been implicated in a criminal act. Ford - maybe, Carter - no way since he cannot even admit he is an asshole his own incompetence, Reagan - maybe, even probably had he really done something he believed was illegal outside of something to protect National Security, George H.W. Bush - I doubt it, William J. Clinton - if you think he would have resigned in the face of such evidence whom are you trying to kid - he was and remains (in my opinion) one of the most dishonest presidents we have ever elected and in fact repeatedly lied under oath about his affair with Monica Lewinsky, George W. Bush - maybe if his mommy and daddy spanked him first for being a bad boy but I doubt even then that he would have had the courage to do so, Barack H. Obama - In my opinion, I can see no possible way that he would do the right thing and resign even if faced with having been convicted of a crime. That is just the presidents. Just look at folks like Charlie Rangel - I think he probably should have resigned years ago and maybe even turned himself into authorities with a confession that was signed, sealed and delivered.

Yes, Richard Nixon, even though probably guilty of a criminal offense, was an honorable man in that he did the honorable thing. There are not many men or women willing to admit there faults and then take the responsibility for them as he took it for his own misdeeds.

All the best,
Glenn B