JD Vance downplays Watergate, says it would be a '12-hour news story' today

Vice President JD Vance used an appearance at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum on Thursday to argue that the Watergate scandal, which ended a presidency in 1974, would barely cause a stir in today's political and media landscape.

Dismissing Watergate's gravity

Speaking in Yorba Linda, California, during an event for his new memoir "Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith," Vance told the audience that the series of scandals would now be swiftly forgotten.

“If Watergate happened tomorrow, it would be like a 12-hour news story. The idea that it would have taken down a presidency is crazy.”

The Watergate scandal began in 1972 with a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters by operatives linked to Nixon's re-election campaign. The subsequent cover-up and the release of audio recordings proving Nixon's involvement led the House to approve articles of impeachment, prompting Nixon to resign on 9 August 1974, the only American president ever to do so.

Parallels between Nixon and Trump

Vance, who described Nixon's legacy as "experiencing a certain renaissance," drew a parallel between the forces that drove Nixon from office and the opposition faced by Donald Trump.

“If you look at the story of how the deep state took down Richard Nixon, it's not all that different from what the same groups of people, the same institutions, tried to do to Donald Trump in the first Trump administration.”

He referenced the two impeachment trials Trump faced during his first term, framing both presidents as victims of entrenched bureaucratic and institutional resistance.

Personal identification with Nixon

Beyond the political comparisons, Vance highlighted what he sees as similarities between his own career and Nixon's early trajectory, presenting himself as a figure targeted by the same media hostility.

“Young senator, vice president, writes some best-selling books, is hated by the media. It kind of sounds like JD Vance. I've always liked Richard Nixon.”

The vice president, who is widely regarded as a probable candidate for the 2028 presidential election, has aligned himself closely with Trump while also cultivating a personal narrative of outsider grievance.

Reactions and historical record

The remarks prompted criticism, with a former director of the Nixon library describing the Watergate evidence as "overwhelming" and suggesting Vance should show more discernment as a lawyer. Commentary in several outlets noted that the modern Republican Party's tolerance of conduct that once would have ended a career might explain why such a scandal would not topple a president today, rather than any lack of gravity in the original events.