Watergate brought Nixon further into the impeachment process than the shorthand “he just quit” suggests. In late July 1974, the House Judiciary Committee approved three articles recommending impeachment: obstruction of justice, abuse of presidential power and failure to comply with committee subpoenas. These were distinct charges concerning conduct in office, not simply embarrassment about a campaign burglary. [1]
The committee approved Article I on July 27 by 27–11, Article II on July 29 by 28–10 and Article III on July 30 by 21–17. Its proposed resolution uses the language that Nixon “is impeached.” That is the wording submitted for the House to consider, not evidence that the House itself adopted it. [1]
The distinction changes the historical answer. Nixon resigned before the full House voted. He therefore was never formally impeached by the House, never tried for removal by the Senate, and never acquitted in such a trial. The official House account expressly identifies the unfinished full-House vote. Describing him as an “impeached president” skips the required constitutional step. [2]
The process was serious nonetheless. Approval of three articles showed that accusations had passed a prolonged committee inquiry and secured votes across party lines on the first two articles. The absence of a final vote does not erase that finding, just as a committee recommendation cannot substitute for the verdict the Senate never rendered. [1][2]