What Happens to the Economy With a President In Crisis? Lessons from Watergate Days

I've had people ask me, so I went back to refresh my memory. Yes, it was very bad news as the Watergate scandal unfolded and Nixon was eventually forced to resign. The economy slipped into a recession beginning in November of 1973, with the unemployment rate rising from a low of 4.6 percent in October of 1973 to an eventual peak of 9.0 percent in May of 1975.

Unemployment Rate: 1970 to 1980

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Having put these numbers on the table, I'm not sure how much of th...