Presidential Personalities and Public Popularity

Paper Summary:

The paper compares the presidential scandals of Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton. First the paper reviews the Watergate scandal, and explains that this was just the tip of the iceberg, analyzing the machinations behind the break-in and reasons for it and its subsequent cover-up, and finding extensive criminal wrongdoing to be at the heart of the matter. Next, the paper focuses on President Clinton's sexual escapades, and analyzes why the press played up the story yet Clinton survived the impeachment process. Following this, the paper reviews various analyses of presidential personality and public perception, comparing the two Presidents, and focusing finally on the Meyer's Briggs Type Indicator of personality to show that Clinton was an Artisan while Nixon was a Guardian. The American public will, the paper informs us, love an Artisan despite his flaws, but respect a Guardian only in the absence of visible flaws. In conclusion, the paper finds that it is both the public perception of the respective Presidents' personalities, and the presence or absence of criminal wrongdoing, which caused Clinton's name to be praised while Nixon's is derided.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Nixon and Watergate
Clinton and Travel Gate etc.
Presidential Personalities
Conclusion
Footnotes
Bibliography

From the Paper:

"History tells us that most likely, Nixon did not know in advance about the break-in and that his press secretary dismissed it as a "third-rate burglary." President Nixon lied when he assured the nation that "The White House has had no involvement in this particular incident". By the time of the press conference, he knew that several present and former White House employees were linked to the Watergate burglars. Nixon already had begun to cover those links by the time he asserted the White House's lack of involvement."

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