[WARNING: Long post inspired by the anniversary of Nixons resignation. Enjoy the start of your weekend.] 40 years ago this evening, my family was in the midst of a road trip, driving thru north-central PA, listening to the radio. A news report informed us that President Nixon would address the nation at 9pm, & the expectation was that he would resign due to the Watergate scandal. My parents were adamant: we HAD to see this historic moment on TV, but since we were driving through the mountains, there werent a lot of options. My father decided that our best bet would be to get to the next small town & find a mom-&-pop TV/appliance store (this was before big-box stores killed them off, & every town had at least 1 of these) & watch it there. We roared into the next town, my dad drove down its main street, and, bingo, appliance store -- but it had already closed. The owner/manager was still inside, & my folks were able to get him to turn on one of the display TVs in the front window, so we stood on the sidewalk with our car radio turned way up & watched the leader of the free world resign in disgrace. The next day at noon, the man selected by Nixon after the resignation of VP Spiro Agnew -- Gerald Ford -- became the first & only person to assume the office of President without ever being elected. Barely a month later, Ford granted Nixon a full pardon, eliminating any prosecution or conviction for crimes committed during his presidency -- & probably guaranteeing Fords defeat when he sought (re-)election in 1976. For me as an oddly politically-aware 9-year-old -- on the front edge of the generation now commonly referred to as Generation X -- the whole thing was a foundational experience. When people ask me whats the difference between the Baby Boomers & Gen X, I usually say something like, The president when they were kids was JFK. Ours was Nixon. The president of their youth said, Ask not what your country can do for you ... Ours snarled, I am NOT a crook. Their youthful idealism was challenged by harsh reality. Ours never existed. One less thing to lose, I suppose.
Posted on: Sat, 09 Aug 2014 00:31:00 +0000
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