Spiro Agnew

Spiro Theodore Agnew, born Spiro Anagnostopoulos (November 9, 1918 – September 17, 1996) in Towson, Maryland, was the thirty-ninth Vice President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1973 under President Richard M. Nixon.

Resignation

On October 10, 1973, Agnew became the second Vice President to resign the office. Unlike John C. Calhoun, who resigned to take a seat in the Senate, Agnew resigned and then plead nolo contendere (no contest) to a criminal charge of tax evasion, part of a scheme where he allegedly accepted $29,500 in bribes during his tenure as governor of Maryland. Agnew was fined $10,000 and put on three years' probation. He was later disbarred by the State of Maryland. His resignation triggered the first use of the 25th amendment, as the vacancy prompted the appointment and confirmation of Gerald R. Ford as his successor. Ford hadn't been Nixon's first choice, however. Nixon's top three choices were Texas Governor John Connally, New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller and California Governor Ronald Reagan. Nixon thought Connally was too unpopular, and Rockefeller and Reagan unlikely to be confirmed by both Houses of Congress.

Related Topics:
October 10 - 1973 - John C. Calhoun - Senate - Nolo contendere - Disbarred - 25th amendment - Gerald R. Ford - Nixon - Texas Governor - John Connally - New York Governor - Nelson Rockefeller - California Governor - Ronald Reagan

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Agnew had been widely expected to succeed Nixon as the Republican Party's presidential nominee in the 1976 election before the Watergate scandal broke out. Agnew had always blamed Nixon for releasing the accusations of bribes and tax evasion in order to divert attention from the growing Watergate scandal that was engulfing Nixon's administration. Ending up, Nixon was forced from office but Agnew's earlier resignation and criminal charges ruined his hopes of becoming President. The two men never spoke again, although Agnew did attend Nixon's funeral in 1994.

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After he left the White House, Agnew became an international trade executive with homes in Rancho Mirage, California, Crofton, Maryland and Ocean City, Maryland.

Related Topics:
Rancho Mirage, California - Crofton, Maryland - Ocean City, Maryland

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Agnew died suddenly on September 17, 1996 at the age of 77 at Atlantic General Hospital, in Berlin, Maryland in Worcester County (near his Ocean City home) only a few hours after being hospitalized and diagnosed with an advanced, yet to that point undetected, form of leukemia. He is buried at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens, a cemetery in Timonium, Maryland in Baltimore County.

Related Topics:
September 17 - 1996 - Berlin, Maryland - Leukemia - Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens - Cemetery - Timonium, Maryland - Baltimore County

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