History: 37th President Richard Nixon

In April 1974, Nixon announced the release of 1,200 pages of transcripts of White House conversations between him and his aides. Despite this, the House Judiciary Committee, controlled by Democrats, opened impeachment hearings against the President on May 9, 1974. These hearings resulted in bi-partisan votes for Articles of Impeachment, the first vote being 27-11 in favor on July 27, 1974 on obstruction of justice. On July 24, the Supreme Court (including 5 Republican-appointed Justices, three of them appointed by Nixon) then ruled unanimously in the case of United States v. Nixon that the tapes must be released to Jaworski; one of the secret recordings, known as the Smoking Gun tape, was released on August 5, 1974, and revealed that Nixon knew of the cover-up from its inception and had suggested to administration officials that they try to stop the FBI's investigation. In light of his loss of political support and the near certainty of impeachment, Nixon resigned the office of the presidency on August 9, 1974, after addressing the nation on television the previous evening.
The resignation speech was delivered on August 8, 1974, at 9:01 p.m. Eastern time from the Oval Office and was carried live on radio and television. The core of the speech was Nixon's announcement that Gerald Ford, as Vice President, would succeed to the presidency, effective at noon Eastern time the next day. Around this announcement, he discussed his feelings about his presidential work and general political issues that would need attention once he left. He never admitted to criminal wrongdoing, although he conceded errors of judgment. During the Watergate scandal, Nixon's approval rating fell to 23%. On May 28, 2009, speaking to Republicans in Litchfield Beach, South Carolina, Ed Nixon said that his brother did not resign "in disgrace" but "resigned in honor. It was a disappointment to him because his missions were cut short." He also said that his brother "held the office of president in high regard."