Donald Trump, never one to shy away from controversy, ignited a new firestorm on October 12, 2025, when he took to Truth Social to claim that the Watergate scandal—one of the most infamous episodes in American political history—was an "illegal hoax." In a post aimed squarely at Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Trump declared, "The Ukraine Impeachment (of me!) Scam was a far bigger Illegal Hoax than Watergate. I sincerely hope the necessary authorities, including CONGRESS, are looking into this! Adam 'Schiffty' Schiff was sooo dishonest and corrupt. So many laws, and protocols, were violated, and just plain broken!!! President DJT."
The reaction from critics was swift and fierce. According to HuffPost, observers immediately pointed out the glaring historical inaccuracy in Trump's statement. Adam Cochran, a vocal commentator on social media, expressed his disbelief: "The President is calling Watergate, one of the most extensively reviewed, documented and scrutinized crimes in history, a hoax… It shocks me to my core each day, that some people don’t realize he’s a moron!" Others echoed the sentiment. Ron Waxman wrote, "No one, and I mean no one, thinks Watergate was a hoax. Nixon resigned the Presidency and was later pardoned because he committed crimes. Many others went to prison for their actions." Danny P chimed in, "I don’t think this needs to be said but Watergate WAS NOT a hoax! Nixon resigned! Ford pardoned him. It was real. But of course Trump thinks it is. Man alive he is a whiner."
Trump’s post, as reported by Vanity Fair and other outlets, was not just a random aside. Instead, it fits into a broader pattern of efforts by the former—and now current—president to recast key moments of American history, especially those involving his own political legacy. Even after his victory in the 2024 presidential election, Trump has continued to publicly relitigate the circumstances of his two impeachments, often drawing comparisons to historical scandals like Watergate.
Watergate, for those who might need a refresher, was a seismic event in American politics. Nearly fifty years ago, President Richard Nixon’s aides orchestrated a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters, leading to a cover-up that ultimately forced Nixon’s resignation in 1974. The scandal not only ended Nixon’s political career but also sent several of his associates to prison and permanently changed public trust in the presidency. As Vanity Fair notes, the very word “Watergate” has become shorthand for political scandal, with the suffix “-gate” now routinely appended to any controversy, big or small.
Despite this well-documented history, Trump’s Truth Social post attempted to diminish the significance of Watergate while simultaneously amplifying his own grievances about the Ukraine impeachment. In his message, Trump accused Adam Schiff of being "sooo dishonest and corrupt" and insisted that "so many laws, and protocols, were violated, and just plain broken." He called on Congress and other authorities to investigate, framing his impeachment as a greater injustice than Watergate itself.
This latest episode is not Trump’s first foray into historical revisionism regarding his impeachments. As reported by Vanity Fair, in August 2025, the Smithsonian Institution’s “American Presidency” exhibit briefly removed Trump from its impeachment section following a White House–initiated content review. The move, which came after the ousting of an art director, left the exhibit focusing on Presidents Nixon, Andrew Johnson, and Bill Clinton, with revised signage stating that “only three presidents have seriously faced removal” in American history. The Smithsonian later restored Trump to the exhibit, but with notable changes to the description of his impeachment proceedings, particularly in relation to his actions during the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Trump is the only president in U.S. history to have been impeached twice—first in 2019 over the Ukraine affair and again in 2021 following the Capitol riot. Both impeachments were historic in their own right, drawing comparisons to Nixon’s ordeal but also reflecting the increasingly polarized and contentious nature of contemporary American politics. The Ukraine impeachment, which Trump referenced in his Truth Social post, centered on allegations that he pressured Ukraine to investigate political rival Joe Biden, using U.S. military aid as leverage. The House of Representatives impeached Trump, but the Senate acquitted him.
Critics of Trump’s recent claims see his rhetoric as part of a broader strategy to undermine public trust in established historical narratives and democratic institutions. According to HuffPost and Vanity Fair, many view Trump’s attempts to rebrand Watergate as a “hoax” as not only factually incorrect but also deeply troubling for the nation’s collective memory. “Rewriting the national recollection of Watergate will take more than one social media post,” Vanity Fair observed, highlighting the enduring power of the scandal in American consciousness.
Yet Trump’s supporters continue to rally behind his claims, often echoing his language and framing his impeachments as politically motivated attacks orchestrated by opponents like Adam Schiff. Trump’s persistent focus on his own grievances, even after returning to the White House, reflects a political style that prioritizes loyalty and personal vindication over reconciliation or consensus-building.
The controversy also underscores the ongoing battle over historical memory in the United States. With social media enabling rapid dissemination of political messaging, efforts to revise or contest settled historical events have become more visible—and more contentious—than ever before. The Watergate scandal, once considered an unassailable chapter in American history, now finds itself subject to the same partisan reinterpretations that have come to define the Trump era.
For historians and political observers, the stakes are high. If foundational events like Watergate can be recast as “hoaxes” in the public mind, what does that mean for the future of American democracy? Will facts and historical documentation hold, or will the loudest voices on social media succeed in muddling the nation’s understanding of its own past?
As the debate rages on, one thing remains clear: the struggle over how America remembers its history is far from over. Trump’s latest post is just the newest salvo in a much larger fight—one that will likely continue to shape the political landscape for years to come.
