Mike Pence Failed in His Most Important Duty
The vice president is supposed to be prepared to step into the nation’s highest office if necessary.
In the throes of Watergate, Vice President Spiro Agnew was caught up in an unrelated corruption scandal. He pleaded guilty and resigned his office on October 10, 1973.
To that point, Agnew had served as a useful insurance policy for Richard Nixon, in the manner of the joke Charles II is sometimes reputed to have made to his even more unpopular brother when the latter warned him against plots. “Never fear James; they will not kill me to make thee king.”
Agnew’s replacement—former House Minority Leader
