Richard Nixon, his presidency crumbling under the weight of the Watergate scandal, sat alone in the Oval Office, the weight of his decision heavy on his shoulders. He knew it was over. The evidence mounted, the public's trust shattered, and his party had abandoned him. He picked up the phone and dialed his cherished Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, to deliver the news: he was resigning, effective noon the next day. The once-unthinkable had become inevitable.