Teapot Dome

            The most known scandal of the Harding administration is known as the Teapot Dome. This scandal involved Secretary of Interior Albert Fall. Albert Falls goal had to do with oil. The oil that Fall had wanted was in three large oil fields that had been set aside as reserves for naval use in case of a shortage. Fall wanted these reserves to be put in use, and President Harding agreed with him on the two points, that the possibility that the oil fields were being drained by nearby, privately owned wells, and the growing Japanese naval threat in the Pacific. The transfer of the oil reserves to the Interior Department was done on May of 1921 (McDonnell, 321). .
             Fall leased all of Naval Oil Reserve Number Three in Wyoming, known as Teapot Dome to Sinclair. There were rumors that Albert had leased Teapot Dome in secret. With these rumors, the Senate opened an investigation of the leasing of Teapot Dome. The investigation was headed by Senator Thomas Walsh. When the investigation continued, Walsh got Fall to admit that he did lease out Teapot Dome secretly, but that it was in the interest of national security. On top of that, Fall admitted that he was about to lease out to Doheny's company in exchange for storage tanks and pipelines to be built on West Coast and at Pearl Harbor. .
             This event, which began to be known as a scandal, ended up to benefit America. The secret leases that did not benefit Fall, actually helped America. The exchange that Fall had with Doheny for storage tanks and pipelines to be built on the West Coast and at Pearl Harbor was beneficial to America's future. .