Richard Nixon: Resignation Address to the Nation
Exploring the Essential Primary Sources
Table of Contents
Richard Nixon: ResignationAddress to the Nation
Overview
Context
About the Author
Explanation and Analysisof the Document
Audience
Impact
Document Text
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Abstract
Richard Nixon’s Resignation Address to the Nation, delivered in 1974, is a landmark speech in American political history. In addition to marking the first and only time a U.S. president resigned from office, bringing an end to the Watergate scandal and a constitutional crisis that had deeply shaken the nation, the speech presents Nixon’s perspective in his own words and represents a peaceful transfer of power. The Watergate scandal involved a break-in at the Democratic National Committee’s headquarters. Nixon was investigated for his involvement in the attempted cover-up of connections between the men arrested for the break-in and the White House, which amounted to obstruction of justice.
Contents
- George Washington: First Inaugural Address
- George Washington: Proclamation of Neutrality
- George Washington: Farewell Address
- John Adams: Inaugural Address
- Thomas Jefferson: First Inaugural Address
- Thomas Jefferson: Letter to Indiana Territory Governor William H. Harrison
- Thomas Jefferson: Message to Congress about the Lewis and Clark Expedition
- Thomas Jefferson: Second Inaugural Address
- James Madison: War Message to Congress
- James Monroe: First Annual Message to Congress
- John Quincy Adams: Diary Entries on the Seminole Campaign
- John Quincy Adams: Diary Entries on the Adams-Onís Treaty
- James Monroe: Monroe Doctrine
- James Monroe: Special Message to the Senate on the Slave Trade Convention with Great Britain
- John Quincy Adams: First Annual Message to Congress
- Andrew Jackson: On Indian Removal
- Andrew Jackson: Veto Message Regarding the Second Bank of the United States
- Andrew Jackson: Proclamation Regarding South Carolina’s Ordinance of Nullification
- James Polk: Message to Congress on War with Mexico
- James Buchanan: Fourth Annual Message to Congress
- Abraham Lincoln: First Inaugural Address
- Abraham Lincoln: Emancipation Proclamation
- Abraham Lincoln: Letter to James C. Conkling
- Abraham Lincoln: Gettysburg Address
- Abraham Lincoln: Second Inaugural Address
- Andrew Johnson: First Annual Message to Congress
- Andrew Johnson: Veto of the Freedmen’s Bureau Bill
- Andrew Johnson: Veto of the Civil Rights Act
- Articles of Impeachment of Andrew Johnson
- Ulysses S. Grant: Special Message to Congress Announcing Ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment
- Ulysses S. Grant: Special Message to the Senate on Unrest in Louisiana
- Ulysses S. Grant: Special Message to the Senate about the Disputed Election of 1876
- Rutherford B. Hayes: Inaugural Address
- Grover Cleveland: “Principles above Spoils” Letter
- Grover Cleveland: Message to Congress on Hawaiian Sovereignty
- Grover Cleveland: Fourth Annual Message to Congress
- William McKinley: Message to Congress about Cuban Intervention
- William McKinley: “Benevolent Assimilation” Proclamation
- William McKinley: Last Speech
- Theodore Roosevelt: Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine
- Theodore Roosevelt: Brownsville Legacy Special Message to the Senate
- Theodore Roosevelt: Special Message to Congress on Worker’s Compensation
- Woodrow Wilson: Address to a Joint Session of Congress on Trusts and Monopolies
- Woodrow Wilson: Address in Support of a World League for Peace
- Woodrow Wilson: Address to Congress Leading to a Declaration of War against Germany
- Woodrow Wilson: Fourteen Points
- Calvin Coolidge: “Toleration and Liberalism” Speech
- Herbert Hoover: Statement on Public vs. Private Financing of Relief Efforts
- Franklin D. Roosevelt: First Inaugural Address
- Franklin D. Roosevelt: Fireside Chat on Reorganization of the Judiciary
- Franklin D. Roosevelt: Four Freedoms Message to Congress
- Executive Order 8802: Banning Discrimination in Government and Defense Industries
- Franklin D. Roosevelt: “Pearl Harbor” Speech
- Executive Order 9066: Internment of Japanese Americans
- Franklin D. Roosevelt: “Second Bill of Rights” Message to Congress
- Harry S. Truman: Statement Announcing the Use of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima
- Harry S. Truman: Truman Doctrine
- Harry S. Truman: Address to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
- Executive Order 9981: Desegregation of the Armed Forces
- Harry S. Truman: Report to the American People on Korea
- Dwight D. Eisenhower: “Cross of Iron” Speech
- Dwight D. Eisenhower: Atoms for Peace Speech
- Dwight D. Eisenhower: Farewell Address
- John F. Kennedy: Inaugural Address
- Executive Order 10924: Establishment of the Peace Corps
- John F. Kennedy: Remarks at the NASA Manned Spacecraft Center
- John F. Kennedy: Report to the American People on the Soviet Arms Buildup in Cuba
- John F. Kennedy: Civil Rights Address
- Lyndon Baines Johnson: Speech to Congress on Assuming the Presidency
- Lyndon Baines Johnson: “Great Society” Speech
- Lyndon Baines Johnson: Remarks on the Gulf of Tonkin Incident
- Lyndon Baines Johnson: Executive Order 11246: Equal Employment Opportunity
- Lyndon Baines Johnson: Speech to Congress on Civil Rights
- Richard Nixon: “Silent Majority” Speech
- Richard Nixon: Address to the Nation on the Situation in Southeast Asia
- Richard Nixon: Smoking Gun Tape
- Richard Nixon: Resignation Address to the Nation
- Gerald R. Ford: Remarks on Granting Pardon to Richard Nixon
- Jimmy Carter: Report to the American People on Energy
- Jimmy Carter: “Crisis of Confidence” Speech
- Jimmy Carter: Third State of the Union Address
- Ronald Reagan: First Inaugural Address
- Ronald Reagan: “Evil Empire” Speech
- Ronald Reagan: Remarks on East-West Relations at the Brandenburg Gate
- George H. W. Bush: “Read My Lips” Speech
- George H. W. Bush: Address to Congress on the Persian Gulf Crisis
- Bill Clinton: Remarks Announcing the New Policy on Homosexuals in the Military
- Bill Clinton: Remarks on Signing the North American Free Trade Agreement
- Bill Clinton: Radio Address on the Welfare Reform Act
- Bill Clinton: Address to the Nation on Testimony before the Independent Counsel’s Grand Jury
- Articles of Impeachment of William Jefferson Clinton
- George W. Bush: Address to the Nation on September 11, 2001
- George W. Bush: “Axis of Evil” Speech
- George W. Bush: 2003 Address on Military Operations in Iraq
- George W. Bush: 2007 Address on Military Operations in Iraq
- Barack Obama: “A More Perfect Union” Speech
- Barack Obama: First Inaugural Address
- Barack Obama: Address to the NAACP Centennial Convention
- Barack Obama: Remarks on Accepting the Nobel Peace Prize
- Barack Obama: Speech after the Killing of Osama bin Laden
- Barack Obama: Remarks at the Sandy Hook Interfaith Prayer Vigil in Newtown, Connecticut
- Donald J. Trump: First Inaugural Address
- Donald J. Trump: White House Coronavirus Task Force Briefing
- Donald J. Trump: Remarks to Supporters Prior to the Storming of the U.S. Capitol
- Articles of Impeachment of Donald J. Trump
- Joe Biden: Inaugural Address
- Joe Biden: Remarks on the First Anniversary of the Insurrection at the U.S. Capitol
- Joe Biden: Address to the Nation on the President’s Decision Not to Seek Reelection
- Donald J. Trump: Second Inaugural Address
- Donald J. Trump: Executive Order 14257 on Tariffs