Spiro Agnew was an extremely colorful figure. He studied chemistry and law at Johns Hopkins University and successively became a human resources manager, lawyer and local politician. And he was very versatile. Originally on the side of the civil rights movement, he later took tough action against it as governor of Maryland after the race riots. He originally sympathized with the Democrats, but then switched to the Republican camp.
His greatest success came on January 20, 1969, when he was sworn in as Vice President. But Richard Nixon didn’t completely trust him. In any case, he didn’t get into his inner circle. Nevertheless, he was appointed as Nixon’s deputy for his second term.
But at the same time his disaster began. Allegations that he had accepted bribes totaling $100,000 as governor of Maryland in connection with the awarding of state contracts became increasingly louder. He defended himself against this with his typical tirades, but it didn’t help. The resignation took place on October 10, 1973. In 1982 he was ordered to return the funds.
An episode that came to light in 2019 in connection with a television show is particularly spicy: In 1989, Spiro Agnew received $2 million from Saudi Crown Prince Fahd ibn Abd al-Aziz to carry out propaganda against Israel.
Agnew died on September 17, 1996 at the age of 77. With the way he speaks and appears in public, he can be seen as a “lightning rod for public opinion,” as Wikipedia writes.
The photo was taken on August 8, 1973. In his usual manner, Spiro Agnew scolded a reporter during a press conference in Washington. He is slandered, mocked and dismissed as irrelevant.
(J21)
2023-10-10 16:13:31
#resignation #Spiro #Agnew
