Parallel Scandals

The 45^th Anniversary of Watergate was two days ago on June 17. The events that could possibly be leading up to Trumps Impeachment is eerily similar to the events that led   up to President Nixon’s Impeachment. A few vice-presidents became President too. There was Harry Truman, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush. Will Pence become President too? It could be possible since now President Trump is under investigation for obstruction of justice in the Russian probe. It is a Federal crime and to prove wrongdoing the new FBI Director would have to find that Trump had the specific intent to impede an investigation or judicial proceeding. Normally that would be difficult to prove intent since intent is largely what someone is thinking but Trump put his own foot in his mouth when he told Comey to stop investigating Flynn and when Trump admitted to firing Comey because of the Russian investigation. That is revealing the intent to obstruct justice.

The case has to go in front of Congress that is a Republican Congress so will they impeach their boy? As in Watergate, leaking of classified information is never appropriate. Yet Trump met with Russian officials just days after Comey’s firing and leaked to them information about our informants from Israel. It is about time that we are finally talking about the crime and not just about the leak of information. Trump calls all this investigating a “witch hunt” that is the exact term Nixon called his investigation back in 1973. Both Nixon and Trump denied doing any illegal activities. They both attacked the media and called them “the enemy.” They both fired the investigators. Nixon fired the Special Counsel, Archibald Cox and Trump fired the FBI Director Comey. Just watch the old movie called All the President’s Men to refresh yourself on President Nixon’s demise. It was two reporters from the Washington Post, Mr. Woodward and Mr. Bernstein that took down Nixon. Trump calls his revealing reporters also today from The Washington Post dealers of “fake news.”

People care and are interested in this scandal. Over 20 million viewers tuned into the testimony of Comey in the morning on a weekday. America cares and wants to know. Participation defines our democracy. Watergate began with the break in at the Democratic Headquarters and ended with Nixon’s resignation. Nixon’s demise became the Political story of the century. Nixon’s story was a plot of espionage, lies and secret dealings. Watergate was the name of an office building where police was called to investigate a break in. On June 17, 1972, there was a break in at the Democratic National Committee’s Headquarters that had their office in the Watergate Building. Police did not expect to find Republicans there. They thought they would find a typical robbery. Instead they found that at the center of it all were two men, G. Gordon Liddy an ex-FBI Agent who had been hired in President Nixon’s Campaign to run covert operations and James McCord the security chief of the committee to re-elect the President. This sounds very similar to Flynn, Trump’s National Security Advisor, who was dealing with the Russians and Manifort, Trumps Campaign Director, who knew about the interference into the election by the Russians on Trump’s behalf.

The guys from the Nixon scandal were to get negative information out there about the Democratic Candidate as Trump’s guys did against Hillary. Breaking into Watergate proved their intent. Police found 10 people not looking like the typical robber in Watergate but men with bugging devices, tear gas pens, many rolls of film, locksmith tools and consecutively numbered 100 dollar bills all stuff used to obtain political information. Trump’s people did their crimes with e-mails and cyber computer intrusion into the election process. Then and now it is the journalists that are piecing the story of the crimes committed together. Typical burglars are not the important guys from the CIA but the night the burglars from Watergate were being arrested it was James McCord the security chief and CIA Agent working for Nixon’s Campaign that was arrested. Flynn was one of Trump’s big shots who has been found to collude with the Russian intervention into our election process.

Nixon and Trump are part of political break-ins and dirty tricks to insure their election. Nixon and Trump took steps to end the further investigations into the crimes. Nixon tried to stop an FBI investigation into the money the burglars had for bribery purposes. Trump fires Comey and admits it is because of the FBI investigation into Flynn and the Russians and the bribery there for influence. Both Presidents involvement is for their own Political purposes and not for any reason to protect the American people. Both administrations can have the motto,  ”follow the money” and illegal things will be revealed. They found a $25,000 check from Nixon’s campaign money that went to one of the burglars. The Russians were heavily financing Trump’s boy Manifort.  The money trails in both administrations show collusion. Nixon’s Attorney General John Mitchel was the highest law official in America who controlled the secret fund that paid for undercover activities against Nixon’s political opponents. Trump’s appointee, Jeff Sessions conveniently never remembers the answers to specific questions under oath concerning his involvement. During Nixon's investigation John Elirkerman had memory loss too. Comey had detailed notes during Trump's investigation and John Dean's elaborate and meticulous testimony during Nixon's investigation made the investigation not to go away.  Dean testified 60,000 words describing instructions involving paper shredding, hiding possible evidence and money laundering instructions to him by Nixon's people.  Comey's details recently provided the need to investigate Trump and move forward.

Nixon’s Watergate scandal was the first of its kind in American history. Nixon even had tapes where he colluded to crimes in his recorded voice. Nixon was never indited despite the evidence on the tapes and in the documents that made it clear that there was a criminal as our leader in the White House.  Nixon never acknowledged guilt and could have survived with an apology. Trump won't admit any wrongdoing ever. Trump's saga is all too familiar and an embarrassment to our Country. Nixon and Trump was elected and they both rejected the investigations as a waste of time “witch hunt.” Both investigations lead straight to the White House. Trump apparently has not learned the lessons taught from Watergate. He needs to know he can not F with our Democracy!