In June 1972, police in Washington, DC, apprehended five burglars in the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate Hotel. Some of the burglars had ties to the CIA, and one of the burglars was the security coordinator for President Nixon’s re-election campaign at the time of the break-in. Although the ties to the White House were suspicious, no one knew at the time of the break-in whether the president or his staff were involved. Over the next two years, investigations by the press, Congress, and federal law enforcement uncovered a scandal that forced Richard Nixon to resign the presidency. In this lesson, students evaluate four documents from the time to answer the question: Was President Nixon involved in the break-in at the Watergate Hotel?
Image: "Wanted" poster showing portraits of members of the Watergate affair from 1973. From the Library of Congress.
