5 Watergate Facts You Probably Didn’t Know

Richard Nixon in 1973
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It’s nearly impossible to live in the United States without learning quite a bit about the infamous Watergate scandal. You probably know that Watergate is the name of a Washington, D.C., hotel, that a politically motivated burglary there led to the first presidential resignation in American history, and that it’s the scandal that caused the suffix “-gate” to be attached to the end of just about every controversy in politics, sports, or pop culture since. But the Watergate story has so many layers and strangely fascinating details, there is always more to uncover, even for those of us who remember the events unfolding in the early 1970s. Here are a few facts you might not know about one of the most surreal episodes in U.S. political history.

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The Slang Term “Big Enchilada” Was Popularized By Watergate

John Ehrlichman, President Richard Nixon’s chief domestic affairs adviser, popularized so many catchphrases, he could have been a pro wrestler. One of these was “the big enchilada,” which he used to refer to U.S. Attorney General John Mitchell. Ehrlichman was caught on tape expressing his hope that Mitchell, as a big name and political heavyweight, could take the blame for Watergate and get the heat off of everyone else. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary now defines “the big enchilada” as a phrase meaning “the most important issue, person, etc.” The Watergate scandal and ensuing trial also popularized the terms “cover-up,” “deep-six,” and “smoking gun,” the latter of which was used to describe the tape Nixon made that reveals he ordered the FBI to stop investigating the break-in.

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7 Ways the Year 1968 Changed America

Protesting the pageant
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It’s been referred to as the year that changed America: In 1968, the United States experienced an unprecedented upheaval of long-held values and practices that left an indelible — and still reverberating — mark on the country. Facing the assassinations of beloved leaders, protests against the Vietnam War and racial inequality, and a major shift in media and pop culture, the nation was forced to confront some of its most deeply rooted issues, and evolve in the process. While the year was marked by tragedy and division, it also led to significant progress in civil rights and political activism, inspiring a generation of Americans to fight for equality and justice, and in turn, reshape the country's social landscape. Here are seven events from 1968 that changed America.

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Richard Nixon Became President After a Divisive Election

The 1968 presidential election is still considered one of the most contentious and divisive elections in U.S. history. In March, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced that he would not be seeking reelection. In the ensuing months, America’s opposition to the Vietnam War escalated, and the stunning assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy sent the country into angry unrest. An already tense political climate was thrown into chaos when anti-war protesters clashed with police outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. In the end, a fraught and uninspiring race between Republican candidate Richard Nixon, Democrat Hubert Humphrey, and segregationist George Wallace ended in a victory for Nixon. The contentious nature of the election contributed to a deepening sense of political polarization in the United States.

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7 Curious Facts About the Roosevelts

Franklin D. Roosevelt smiling
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The Roosevelts are one of American history’s most prolific and influential political families: Leaders such as Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Eleanor Roosevelt not only redefined the eras in which they lived but also shaped the country for decades to come, in some ways changing the very political fabric of the nation. 

The family arrived in pre-independence America around 1649, when Dutch immigrant Claes Martenszen van Rosenvelt and his wife Jennetjke began life in New Amsterdam (later known as New York). Shortly after their arrival in the Americas, anglicized variations of the family surname began appearing, with their son Nicholas — born in 1658 — becoming among the first to bear the name “Roosevelt.” Nicholas also became the first Roosevelt to hold political office in the Americas, serving as an alderman in the West Ward of New York City from 1698 to 1701, and again in 1715. The political clout of the Roosevelt family ballooned from there, reaching new heights in the 20th century when both Teddy and FDR served as President, guiding the country through harrowing times. Meanwhile, FDR’s wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, broke barriers by carving out a new role for women in American society and politics, and spent her lifetime advocating for humanitarian issues. Here are seven facts about this uniquely influential family.

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