President Nixon: Toughing It Out with the Law

Authors

William W. Van Alstyne, Duke Law SchoolFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1973

Keywords

Nixon, Watergate, president, executive privilege, executive power, authority, separation of powers

Abstract

This paper examines President Nixon's handling of the Watergate scandal, arguing that Nixon's stance of "toughing it out with the law" was a common ploy used during his administration to extend the breadth of the issue in question. This expansion deflected attention away from the issue of the Constitutional limits on a president's power and was used to justify a broad spectrum of powers Nixon exercised during his presidency.

Citation

William W. Van Alstyne, President Nixon: Toughing It Out with the Law, 59 ABA Journal 1398-1402 (1973)