Inevitably, the checks and balance system of the Untied States did do what it was intended to do during the events of the Watergate scandal. To insure that the president can not do as he pleases, our constitution provides a checks and balances system. This system ensures that neither, the Executive branch, Legislative Branch, nor Judicial branch can have absolute power. To maintain that all Americans keep their basic freedoms and rights, this system was put into place during the foundation of our great nation. Without this system, the president could achieve absolute power and completely disregard what he pleases. This system was tested during the events of Watergate, and it passed flawlessly. (63) Nixon even made a statement to the necessity of this system, "It is essential now that we place our faith in that system -- and especially in the judicial system. It .is essential that we let the judicial process go forward, respecting those safeguards that are established to protect the innocent as well as to convict the guilty. It is essential that in reacting to the excesses of others, we not fall into excesses ourselves." (64) Even Richard Nixon himself, who at one point during Watergate tried to undermine this system, promotes its effectiveness. Due to this system, Nixon was unable to with hold any evidence in the Watergate controversy, including tapes that would indefinitely prove his guilt.