He was pretty lucky to get off with just a resignation.
-without a doubt. And you're right, he had likely accepted this fate well in advance. Still, the footage prior to the speech is something that even the best acted scene from hollywood could never fully produce. It's an enormously important moment, this is someone that is about to "voluntarily" relinquish the (arguably) most powerful position in the world in a matter of minutes. The range of human emotions that take place in those moments are vast, even though they are veiled by light natured comedy and familiarity. It's like watching a man prior to facing the firing squad for a treason everyone knows he committed tell a "knock-knock joke". Everyone in the room (including the joker) wants to pretend that the joke is funny and timely, but everyone knows it's being told by a dead man.