was deeply underestimated during the election in part because of Nixon’s commanding leads in the polls. In fact, President Richard Nixon and Vice President Spiro Agnew won a landslide victory over Democratic McGovern and Shriver, winning 49 of 50 states to become President and Vice President for the second term. However, shortly after the election, the story of the scandal was broken wide open, starting with the prosecution of the seven men connected to the break-in. Opening statements in the trial began on January 10, 1973. Judge John J. Sirica presided over the case. The seven men, Barker, Gonzalez, Martinex, Sturgis, McCord, Liddy, and Hunt were charged with various counts of conspiracy burglary, illegal wiretapping, and illegal possession of eavesdropping equipment. All of the men pled guilty except Liddy and McCord. Allegations began to unfold about the White House’s knowledge of the break-in and a possible cover-up that could lead all the way to the President himself. All witnesses placed full responsibility on Liddy. Liddy refused to testify. On January 30, the verdict was announced: Liddy was guilty of six counts and McCord was guilty of eight. Judge Sirica was convinced that relevant details had not been unveiled during the trial and offered leniency in exchange for further information. In March of 1973, just days before the sentencing of the men convicted, Sirica received a letter from McCord alleging a cover-up by the White House. He stated that the defendants were pressured to plead guilty and remain silent. McCord also alleged that Counsel to the President, John Dean and the former Attorney General John Mitchell had instructed the defendants to commit perjury. These allegations drew national attention to the scandal. Instead of revealing what he knew and when he knew it, Nixon attempted to deny all knowledge and cover up everything, a technique he called “stonewalling.” In a CREEP meeting, Presiden...
