Bipartisanship is a dirty word in politics today. The two parties never work together. During Nixon's campaign, as we see, the Republican committee to re-elect the President (aptly nicknamed "CREEP"), was actively attempting to sabotage the Democratic candidates.
However, in All the President's Men, the issues aren't Democrat vs. Republican. This is corruption vs. non-corruption. Light side vs. dark side. Frodo vs. Sauron. We learn that Bob Woodward's a Republican. He isn't blindly loyal to his party; he's loyal to his country, and will attempt to root out corruption, even if it is his own political party who's doing it.
Questions about Politics
- How does the Watergate scandal affect the public's perception of Republicans in general? Will this scandal damage their image or help it?
- Does the political alignment of the reporters matter?
- Why did Nixon feel he had to cheat to win the election? How would things have been different if he had played fair?
Chew on This
If All the President's Men were fiction, it could get away with not naming the political parties. The party doesn't matter. The corruption does.
There are also office politics involved inside the newspaper, as reporters jockey for stories, editors attempt to move things around, and everyone tries to decide just how important the story they're working on actually is.