Richard Nixon eventually becoming President of the United States wouldn’t have surprised any adult in 1954.

He was President Dwight Eisenhower’s vice president and only 41 years old. And, obviously, very ambitious.

It would have a mild surprise that Nixon didn’t become president until 1969 – and a little more surprising that he won after losing in 1960 to John F. Kennedy and in 1962 when he ran for governor of California against Edmund “Pat” Brown.

So, would Watergate have been a shock to anyone had you explained it to them in 1954?

I think the answer is no and yes.

No, Nixon displayed some nasty tendencies even before he became Ike’s running mate. His Red-baiting campaigns for Congress in California displayed his bare-knuckles style. His shameless invocation of his daughters’ pet dog, Checkers, to avoid being thrown off the ticket for a potential conflict of interest showed his cunning.

But you have to think Watergate was among the dumbest scandals of all time.

Nixon’s path to re-election was pretty clear in 1972. While his people sabotaged the early Democratic front runner, Edmund Muskie, it would have been difficult for the Democrats to take back the White House. 

And by the time the break-in at the Watergate Hotel took place, the Democrats were weeks away from nominating George McGovern – maybe the best presidential candidate I’ve ever vote for, but a doomed candidate who couldn’t carry his home state of South Dakota.

However, here’s the thing that secures Watergate’s spot on this list:

It’s surprising that this is not close to being the worst political scandal of our lifetime.

That’s all I’ll say for now. Except, look around.