FROST/NIXON THE COMPLETE INTERVIEWS Clip 9

[midnightflower11]

we just learned about this, the watergate scandal, in my history class a few weeks ago. this shocks me every time i see this. "well when the president does this, it means that it is not illegal" that is proof right there that nixon was and is guilty of having those two men go to into watergate. he basically said "yes i told those men to go into that building" and convicted himself guilty! yes, he didnt say those exact words or anything else but that's enough proof for me that he's guilty.

[ZRN959]

uhh, no?

[TBahr15]

To me, I think Ron Howard had the right idea to make this scene dramatic. Because no President should ever say that. And back then when he did say that it was a shocker to the American people. I think Howard did great on the movie. And him having Frost look surprised was a nice touch.

[ChickenNoodlesOwn]

he didn't even struggle saying it, he just recited it as if it were law

[graemeoliver84]

@ChickenNoodlesOwn Whereas in the film, Nixon is at the end of his tether and it becomes almost like the "You can't handle the truth!" scene in A Few Good Men. I'm not really criticising the filmmakers for doing this, it's just funny how different it is. In fact Nixon's nonchalance here is perhaps more telling than the desperation of Frank Langella's Nixon.

[graemeoliver84]

It's funny how the film turned this into a big dramatic moment.

[tigerhawk474]

@graemeoliver84 Its actually really misleading... Really bad.. sensationalizing and with that educating..

It is really skewed.. they are truly doing what he did.. Lying..

[graemeoliver84]

@tigerhawk474 I think you have to allow some dramatic licence with films like that, as long as they aren't completely distorting the truth.

[ddtpfri]

@CHABOTKID2008 I dont expect everyone to share it. But really who cares how the two parties duke it out as long as the best one wins?

[ddtpfri]

@CHABOTKID2008 Nixon was only trying to contain the issue from being a political mess, much like Lincoln suspending the the Writ of Habeas Corpus. Nixon was trying to focus on securing the nation and wanted Watergate to fade away, which he wasn't involved. He could have spent hours making sure the right people got punished, but whoopty doo, I would rather him focus his time on the economy and the Vietnam War. I could careless what poltical parties do to each other, watergate waste of time

[thetruthis9]

george w. bush's entire presidency was founded on this premise...

[musicloverSF]

Watergate was just a cover up of something else going on, the CIA just wanted to deviate people's attention from what was really happening; they got it. Nixon was just a scapegoat and he had to keep it to himself or else he would be silenced just like they did with Kennedy. Yes ladies and gentlemen our government, the senate and the pentagon are run by "OTHERS"

[Databug13]

This is what happens when you take a comment out of context. Terrible editing.

[ddtpfri]

What people over look is that Abraham Lincoln felt the same way and did many illegal things that he felt were in the best interest of the nation and felt they were ok because of that. Suspending the Writ of Habeas Corpus is a big example. No one tried to impeach Lincoln though

[rickbrownell]

Chop up this historic interview a little more, why don't ya. If you want to see real truth, check out the full Nixon/Frost interviews at the National Archives. Gain a little perspective. Villains and heroes sometimes wear the same masks.

[PHOG1]

wait wut.. did he just.. presidents are not answerable to the law? well i must say that explains a hell of a lot.

[CHumga]

meh the movie took that quote out of context...and this clip TRIED TO and ALMOST took it out of context.

It was clear though that they were merely talking definitions, however controversial Nixon's definition may have been.

[rhcp800]

But you gotta admit, Clinton wasn't that bad of a president, people just use the fact that he cheated on his wife (and they're fine now).

[zoomflesh]

"owned" as the young people of scotland say these days lol

[GenVK]

Nixon may have been wrong in this situation.....but at least he was honest to what he believed. Try getting any modern politician to do that. They don't want to risk their "political careers". Fuck the "political careers"! People will vote for you again if you actually step up and help people, no matter if it's considered "political suicide" or not. So, in summary, good job, Mr. Nixon.

[Cubano92]

WE need to bring back a dead president like Lewis Black said, Im thinking we bring it back with the New Deal 2.0 and get the dust that remains of ol' FDR to lead the nation!

[NYPDmos]

FDR was a flop, and so was the New Deal - read your history books. The only thing that pulled us out of the depression was WW 2!

[Cubano92]

@NYPDmos no shit copper, it was a joke notice how i said LEWIS BLACK. Its a funny ya know like comedians do. not a very good one i guess.

[davleuv]

I think Bush was able to pass the "Patriot Act," which takes away our constitutional right to privacy away from us and ILLEGALLY take us to war with Iraq becuase he believed that in the words of Richard Nixon "that when the President does it it is not illegal."

[mfe111]

yeah, nixon was evil, thats why we need a leader like mao, castro or stalin to take command and fix all the problems away.

[Cubano92]

@mfe111 belive me castro is not a good choice in the slightest, look at pitctures of cuba pre-revolution and now, he took everything for himself and his cronnies and left the people, the ones he did this for, sucking shit off the steets, if you tried to leave cuba in the 50's and 60's like my relatives, good luck to you if you got caught they'd shoot you in the back of the head, throw your corpse in a mass grave and set fire to you and the rest of your dead "countrymen" he deserves to die, now.

[sicjedi]

Nixon, and all evil presidents like him (really just puppets of the bankers), are in utter contempt of We the People, the United States, and--in particular--the United States Constitution, which reads:

"This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land ... [The President] shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed."

[clarkeyinit]

You fukkin commie

[prezjackie]

@sicjedi Nixon wasn't as bad as his reputation. He was actually quite a brilliant statesman and accomplished far more than most presidents. I'm not a Nixon lover per se, in fact I'm a Democrat, but I can recognize from a historical perspective that his positives outweighed the negatives. But that's just my opinion. Don't go quoting me the Constitution. I can reprint that as well and draw conclusions from it like any other person with half of a brain.

[CHumga]

@sicjedi

all presidents are "like him".

Watergate was more of a cover-up than it was a scandal.

It was a cover up to suggest that only Nixon and a few select presidents committed crimes during office when the truth is that ALL presidents commit crimes.

[sicjedi]

HEY contemptuous, piece-of-filth TRAITOR, Remember your Oath of Office?

"I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

[fishhead06]

"When the President does it, it's not illegal." I didn't know that the executive branch was exempt from US law! Now I understand why Bush was allowed to openly flaunt the US Constitution.

[Outlaw1257]

@Fishhead; Interesting that you mention that. Had Bush43's "Patriot Act" been in force at the time of Watergate, Watergate would notvhave been a crime at all!!

[ronniepage]

frost is ugly dude, nothing like the good lookin actor in the movie god damn

[wpjake88]

Hollywoods` job is to dramaticize what happened!!

Why the f**k would they just reenact the interview?

There would just be a god damn youtube link...

Its about the events that conspired to build up to that point, and to them i`m sure the crazy ass build up music was playing in their heads.

I had no interest in this subject before the movie, naive on my part, but it sparked my interest.

Holly wood did its job, we just have to iron out the drama.

[Torus202]

The movie was clearly dramatized, but that just goes without saying.

The real Frost Nixon interviews would have been much more compelling If Hanz Zimmer put a musical score over it as well.

[ronniepage]

bit over-dramatic don't ya think.

[Torus202]

lol, yes probably

[morry27]

@Torus202

The film is superb, both Sheen and Langella are outstanding

It is difficult not to have over-dramatized such a factual film but I think they got it spot on

[Torus202]

I agree, I loved the film. I wish I knew more about the actual interviews before the movie.

David Frost wasn't on for too long here when I was young, I knew very little about him, but now wish I could have seen more of his earlier variety shows.

[LazySocialist]

the movie was not supposed to be a reenactment of the interviews, it was more based on the characters and conflict between the two interviewees

l2film retards.

[devilndeep]

You are moron to equate Nazism. That man fought agaisnt tyranny in

[Metrader]

The MOVIE, script

DF: Wait Wait just so I understand correctly (NOT SAID)

DF: Are you really saying (not said) that in certain situations the President can decide whether its in the if its in the best interest of the nation and do something illegal?

RN: Im saying when the President does it that means its not illegal

DF: Im Sorry? (NOT SAID)

RN: Thats what I believe (NOT SAID)

[devilndeep]

The Movie wasn't even real to what really happen!

That is the problem with the schools today, they teach nothing and leave it up to Hollywood

This is why we are repeating history again today, and we are doomed to forget..

[Metrader]

However, I thought the film would be very factual but if you watch this actual exert against the movie,

(also, in the movie, DF gets very excited when asking this question, however he was very calm when he asked it.

Cant Hollywood EVER follow fact????

[Metrader]

Not for one to try to appear boring here however, the actual against the movie is not accurate.

The actual transcript here is basically;

DF: So what in a sense you are saying is that there are certain situations where the President can decide that its in the best interest of the nation or something and do something illegal?

RN: Well when the President does it, that means it is not illegal

DF: By definition?

RN: Exactly!!

[darkprose]

When I heard this line from Ron Howard's film, I had to see how Nixon delivered it. And it was as priceless and unbelievable as in the film. Nixon never disappoints me. He was more than often disappointing, but, that's a different thing.

[alternativegem]

And therefore Bush (and puppet masters) did the same - If the president allows the torture of human beings in a concentration camp named Guatanimo it's not illegal. When a human has a gap between who they think they are and where society sees them, there is delusion. When deluded we act in our own interest, not in that of others. A team of deluded, colluding humans will reach levels of immorality far greater than an individual - Stanford prison experiment & Milgram experiment - clinical proof.

[darkprose]

I'm glad you mentioned that Standford thing -- it most likely applies here, too. The funny thing, as well, is that, in a sense, the Stalinists would say, "yes, we are doing horrible things now, but there will be a final judgment which will show it to have been necessary," and, then, as you say, Bush & Co with the unlawful war and tens of thousands of civilians dead (like Cambodia) and a tragedy used to fuel a war, etc, "History," too, is always given final judgment.

[AlbinoScout]

Under Bush and still to this day we're a country who breaks the laws put forth by the entire world by committing war crimes. And we neglect to take care of our own people and provide basic human necessities like health care. Despite having been the richest country in the world. There's no excuse for it & it is reminiscent of the people we've criticized in the past. Our form of gov't is broken. It only benefits the rich. ex. The insured are currently in the process of fucking over the uninsured.

[cloudylemon11]

Clinton should have said this too when he was put on the spot. "When the president does it, it's not sex".

LOL

[mkbk189]

He honestly would've been the best president in my book for doing that

[AlbinoScout]

He was the best president.

[ManfredDeJesus]

Why? Don't you know that during the Yom Kippur crisis when the US received a military ultimatum from the USSR, Nixon was so drugged and incoherent that Kissinger decided it was best not to tell him about it...

[AlbinoScout]

I was saying Clinton was the best president.

[billyguns2]

@AlbinoScout John Tyler was the best president, with Harding, Coolidge and Jackson not far behind; I like Cleveland, Jefferson, Madison and Monroe too. JFK would have changed the country forever, and that's why his murderers took him out and bought off Jackie.

[iDraw3G]

ROFL

[rhcp800]

@cloudylemon11 Clinton was the best president who ever lived. He never got us into a war, he saved the Alaskan forrests, and much more. Read Bill Clinton's "My Life", and it will totally change your view on him. I agree, he made one mistake, but come on! Give him a break!

[thecourthansen]

@rhcp800 disagreed. reading someone's memoirs is never a good ground to pass judgement on them. what former president isn't going to shed a good light on themselves in a biography they wrote themselves? clinton just got lucky because he followed the first bush administration. the reagan economy had slowed down right as bush won, and bush was pinned with all the blame for it. clinton was only elected because he knew that the only way to beat bush in a debate would be to talk about the economy.

[rhcp800]

@thecourthansen, It's called an autobiography, and also, I guess you are right in one factor, his trade policies were bad. But, overall he wasn't the 'best' president. I agree with you on that one.

[thecourthansen]

@rhcp800 i'm really not trying to rag on you or anything. but if you're into ex-president's memoirs, check out Ulysses S. Grant's if you haven't already. They are really well written (edited by mark twain) and, despite being gigantic in length, are actually pretty fun to read. he writes with a sense of humor that you wouldn't really expect from a book written in the 1870s.

[rhcp800]

@cloudylemon11 And if you didn't mean that he was a bad president, I misunderstood you and I'm sorry.

[Lakaior]

@cloudylemon11 Getting head isnt sex buddy

[prezjackie]

@cloudylemon11 The funny thing is that Nixon never cheated on his wife. In fact, he was too faithful. Anyway, thought your idea was funny! If I ever meet Clinton again, I'll ask him that. He's a good ol' boy, maybe he'll get a kick out of it.

[jasonblu]

Illegal, Legal, Right, Wrong. God's economy aside for a moment, these are things that a SOCIETY as a whole decides on. Thus, when a SOCIETY picks a President (which they did in Nixon by a landslide) they are saying "this man speaks for us - he is our leader. He is our Standard.". People don't really understand the implications and power we endorse by crowning a President. Once "crowned" he is, in a sense, infallible. If he does fall, the SOCIETY once again acts and impeaches him. Vote wisely!

[mkbk189]

What point are you making? No one expects Nixon to be infallible in his decisions or judgments, but we certainly do expect the head of the Executive Branch to be crimeless.

[MIDRATZ]

I am offering some apologetics on Nixon's behalf. What is "Illegal" today may not be tomorrow. It's up to current society. When current society therefore elects a President they in effect give him licence to make decisions for their future welfare on their behalf - past laws by past electorates are now maleable since they no longer represent the current society. Nixon believed that what he was doing was for the greater good of the people though it broke past electorates definitions of legal.

[darkprose]

"I am offering some apologetics on Nixon's behalf."

I don't think you should do that. How about...let's see you...offer an apology for the Nazi's extermination of Jews, Christians, Gypsies, et al?

I think your understanding of what happens when we elect a President is lacking, too. Unless the President has some kind of crystal ball in which he can see into some as-of-yet nonexistent context in which his actions might be "moral," which, of course, is a great way to justify anything.

[instereovideos]

That's a really foolish thing to say. A president is a representative, he is not "crowned," that's ridiculous. The reason for separation of powers is so that (in theory) a president never feels that he can act outside of the law. We only "endorse" the powers that the constitution gives the executive branch when we elect a president. He's subject to the law in the same way that everyone else is, that's what keeps the rest of us free.

[AlbinoScout]

We don't crown a president. That implies the president has more power than he really does. But you're right about the meaning of the position. The world looks at the President and says this is who America is. Which is why when we elect mentally disabled rednecks the world thinks that's what Americans are. And it's hard to refute that when they do it twice. Americans are stupid and emotional. Particularly when it comes to politics.

[XxbambachxX]

Jesus... I just finished watching Frost/Nixon just now. What a line! It shows a lot about how he was raised and what he believed in!

[hippocampuszosterae]

Actually, I liked Langella's Nixon better than Nixon's Nixon! lol

[awuahnsiah]

Yes and the movie's frost was much more handsome......lol

[lordOFbrooklyn]

burn in hell nixon

[GZppln]

Nixon was a nasty man...just a horrible man...

[Gutflop]

Well isn't that a warped view on power