Violence, Scandal, and the End of the Cold War 281But the President scored an important breakthrough in foreign af-
fairs when, in February 1972 , he visited Communist China and agreed
to a joint communiqué on the need for greater interaction between
China and the United States. Only a well-known anticommunist like
Nixon could have executed such a historic diplomatic coup. Then, af-
ter extended negotiations in Paris, an agreement between North Viet-
nam and South Vietnam and between the United States and the
Vietcong’s Provisional Revolutionary Government of North Vietnam
was reached on January 27 , 1973 , to end the Vietnam War. Not surpris-
ingly, the fragile South Vietnamese government soon collapsed, the
country was overrun by the Vietcong, and the remaining Americans in
Saigon had to be hurriedly evacuated by helicop ter. It was a soul-searing
defeat for the American nation, and the domino effect so feared by
Johnson did not occur. It should have been a lesson that would not
need to be relearned. Unfortunately, that did not happen. Too many
officials in authority knew little about American history.
After the United States ceased its bombing of Cambodia, the
communist-led Khmer Rouge seized control of the country. Again,
American citizens and the embassy staff had to be rescued by helicop-
ter. A bloody purge ensued, ending on April 17 , 1975 , when the pro-West
forces in Cambodia surrendered to the forces of the Khmer Rouge.
A s the pr esident i a l election of 1972 approached, the adminis-
tration became involved in an operation so stupid and criminal that it
would destroy the reputations of many of the participants. It was one of
the worst scandals in American history, and it began to unfold on the
night of June 17 , 1972 , when five men were caught at 2:30 AM in a
burglary attempt at the office of the Democratic National Committee
in the Watergate, an apartment-hotel complex in Washington adjacent
to the Potomac River. As was quickly learned, these men had connec-
tions to the White House and the Republican National Committee to
Reelect the President (CREEP), and they were attempting to gain in-
formation that could be used in the forthcoming election. Ironically,
Nixon and his running mate, Spiro Agnew, overwhelmingly defeated
the Democratic ticket: Senator George McGovern and R. Sargent
Shriver, a brother-in-law of the Kennedys. Nixon and Agnew won