The nation had weathered a profound constitutional crisis, but the aftershock of the Watergate episode produced a deep sense of disillusionment with the so-called “imperial presidency.” Coming on the heels of the erosion of public confidence generated by the Vietnam War, the Watergate affairs renewed public cynicism toward a government that had systematically lied to the people and violated their civil liberties, said one bumper sticker of the day: “Don’t vote. It only encourages them.”
Nixon’s resignation pleased his critics but also initiated a prolonged crisis of confidence. A 1974 poll asked people how much faith they had in the executive branch of government. Only 14 percent answered “a great deal”; 43 percent said “hardly any.” Restoring credibility and respect became the primary challenge facing Nixon’s successors. Unfortunately, a new array of economic and foreign crisis would make that task doubly difficult.
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