What if August 8, 1974 was just another hot, humid DC summer day?

What if Watergate wasn’t a word synonymous with scandal?

What if Nixon stayed?

Coming April 10th, If Nixon Stayed reimagines the course of history. Using newly-released archival materials, expert interviews and historical analysis, this podcast takes a deep-dive to explore what could have been if President Nixon continued the success of his 1972 landslide election victory to complete his second term and fulfill his bold vision of peace and prosperity for a new American century.

“Therefore, I should resign the presidency effective at noon tomorrow.” When President Richard Nixon somberly delivered those words on August 8, 1974, as millions of Americans watched on primetime tv, he made history. For many, that’s one of the few things they know about the 37th president. But that same president less than two years earlier won one of the biggest landslide victories in the history of US presidential elections. 

In his second inaugural address, President Nixon laid out a bold vision for his second term stating, “Let us pledge together to make these next four years the best four years in America’s history, so that on its 200th birthday American will be as young and as vital as when it began, and as bright a beacon of hope for all the world.” 

This six-part series envisions how world history could have been altered with a completed second-term of Nixon’s presidency including: a different outcome in Vietnam, a reshaping of Middle East alliances, the creation of a big tent Republican party, an ambitious reduction of the federal bureaucracy and an expansion of visionary domestic programs in areas including healthcare and energy.

Fifty years after President Nixon’s historical resignation, it’s time to challenge assumptions about the past, explore what could have been, and contemplate how the ripples of history shape the future.