JD Vance is giddy with admiration for Richard Nixon, downplaying the Watergate scandal that ended his presidency and comparing the ousted president to Donald Trump.
The vice president spoke at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in California earlier this week as part of his media blitz for his latest memoir.
‘As I joked … backstage, if Watergate happened tomorrow, it would be like a 12-hour news story,’ Vance said when asked about the scandal.
‘The idea that it would have taken down a presidency is crazy.’
The Watergate scandal stemmed from a 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington and the Nixon administration’s efforts to cover up its involvement.
Ultimately, Nixon was forced to resign in 1974 to avoid impeachment from his own party.
Vance also went on in the same interview to compare Nixon to Trump over their foreign policy.
‘One of the other lessons of Richard Nixon is it’s not just that he got out of Vietnam, but that he got out of Vietnam from a position of strength. Okay?’ Vance said.
The vice president spoke at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in California earlier this week as part of his media blitz for his latest memoir
Nixon resigned to avoid the impeachment process whereas Trump remained in office throughout both accounts
Trump was impeached by the House for his action on January 6th, 2021 prior to the Capitol riot
He continued, ‘It’s one thing to tuck tail and run. It’s another thing to clearly define an objective, to accomplish that objective and then to ensure that you don’t allow mission creep to transform a victory into a defeat.’
Vance also referenced efforts by lawmakers to investigate and twice impeach Trump during his first term in the White House.
Nixon resigned to avoid the impeachment process whereas Trump remained in office throughout both attempts.
Lawmakers of Nixon’s era chose not to move forward with impeachment following his resignation. His vice president and successor, Gerald Ford, later issued a controversial pardon.
‘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 and the first Trump administration,’ Vance told the crowd.
‘There is a parallel.’
Vance, 41, also went on to compare himself to Nixon, who likewise became vice president in his early forties after serving as a senator from California.
‘Young senator, vice president, writes some best-selling books, is hated by the media,’ Vance mused.
‘It kind of sounds like JD Vance. … I’ve always liked Richard Nixon.’
