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Presidential scandals
are not new to American politics — from President John Adams and the
XYZ
Correspondence in 1797 to President Bill Clinton and Whitewater in
1996. But these days it seems that politicians and scandal are more
intertwined than ever before. Are there more political scandals
these days or are we simply more aware of the shenanigans of our
elected officials? |
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Presidential sex scandal Thomas
Jefferson and Sally Hemings |
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President
Thomas Jefferson was accused in one of the first sex-scandals in
Washington. Sally Hemings, Jefferson’s slave, gave birth to a son,
Easton Hemings, who was listed as "white" according to the 1830
Census. |
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Editorial printed in the Boston Gazette:
Thou Sally, thou my house shall keep,
My widower’s tears shall dry!
My virgin daughters - see! They weep -
Their mother’s place supply.
Oh Sally hearken to my vows!
Yield up thy sooty charms -
My best beloved! My more than spouse,
Oh! Take me to thy arms.
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The Whiskey Ring A national tax
evasion |
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The Whiskey
Ring, made public in 1875, involved a national tax evasion
scheme where indictments were brought against 86 government
officials, including the chief clerk of the Treasury Department as
well as President Ulysses S. Grant’s private secretary. |
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The Teapot Dome Bribery scandal
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The Teapot
Dome scandal in 1924, during President Warren G. Harding’s
administration, was one of the most notorious political scandals in
U.S. history. The Secretary of the Interior, Albert B. Fall, was
found guilty of bribery, fined $100,000 and sentenced to one year in
prison. |
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Watergate Bringing down the
President |
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Watergate and the resignation of President
Richard Nixon is still considered the worst political scandal in
U.S. history. Watergate charges included: political burglary, bribery, extortion,
wiretapping, conspiracy, obstruction of justice, destruction of
evidence, tax fraud, illegal use of the CIA and FBI, as well as
campaign contributions and use of taxpayers’ money for private
purposes. More than 30 Nixon administration officials, campaign
officials, and financial contributors pleaded guilty or were found
guilty of breaking the law. Facing impeachment, President
Nixon resigned August 8, 1974.
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Iran-Contra Iran-Contra affair
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Iran-Contra
publicly exposed two secret U.S. Government operations in October
and November of 1986. The operations, providing assistance to the
military activities of the Nicaraguan contra rebels and the sale of
U.S. arms to Iran merged when funds generated from the sale of
weapons to Iran were diverted to support the contra effort in
Nicaragua. The Independent Counsel for Iran-Contra matters concluded
among many things that policies behind both the Iran and contra
operations were fully reviewed and developed at the highest levels
of the Reagan Administration. Major trials were held for former
National Security Advisor Rear Admiral John M. Poindexter and
National Security Counsel staff member Colonel Oliver L. North. Both
were convicted and their convictions reversed on appeal. Fourteen
persons were charged with criminal violations in the affair. |
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Whitewater Land deals gone sour
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Whitewater is
the most recent scandal under the current administration of
President Bill Clinton. During the 1980’s, the Clinton’s invested in
"Whitewater" a land development of riverfront property in Arkansas
that eventually went sour. President Clinton continues to battle the
affair as hearings, trials, convictions and acquittals in the case
keep the scandal front and center in this election year. |
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Presidential scandals have made some presidents
unpopular in how they are remembered. It has also invited
cyber-muckraking in the upcoming 1996 Presidential campaign. Skeleton Closet
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