Nixon would go, but that the power of the President to do anything he wanted in the name of ‘national security’ would stay–this was underscored by a Supreme Court decision in July 1974″ which affirmed the “confidentiality of presidential communications”

During the 1970s, the political corruption was exposed. The government has lost the trust of the population. At this point, Watergate scandal exposed, at first, Nixon lied again and again, tried to cover his involvement. The resignation was the final act of the Watergate scandal that was fundamentally about abuse of power. Nixon was caught using the power of the presidency to obstruct justice. We cherish the idea that no one is above the law and that idea was violated.  When Nixon resigned, everything stills the same as Nixon administration. And so the faith in the presidency was damaged. People reduced the amount of trust to the government.

However, I think Zinn mentions it because it is ironic; Zinn argues that the resignation of Nixon and the exposure of Watergate Scandal during the decade were done by the government in order to regain support for the government from the American people.  When Gerald Ford took office and said the nightmare was over. In reality, government tried to get back the trust from the population without making fundamental changes to the system. Nothing changed.  Foreign policy remained the same, and one of Ford’s first acts was to pardon Nixon. Even though Nixon resigned from office and was considered for impeachment due to the Watergate affair, his policies were still continued to be used. The best quote to summarize what happened after Nixon’s resignation regarding his policies was stated by a Wall Street financer: “What we will have is the same play with different players”.