Richard Nixon

Richard Milhous Nixon
37th President of the United States
In office January 20, 1969 – August 9, 1974
Vice President	Spiro Agnew (1969–1973) vacant (Oct.–Dec. 1973) Gerald Ford (1973–1974)
Preceded by	Lyndon B. Johnson
Succeeded by	Gerald Ford
36th Vice President of the United States
In office January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961
President	Dwight D. Eisenhower
Preceded by	Alben W. Barkley
Succeeded by	Lyndon B. Johnson
United States Senator from California
In office December 1, 1950 – January 1, 1953
Preceded by	Sheridan Downey
Succeeded by	Thomas Kuchel
Member of the United States House of Representatives from California's 12th congressional district
In office January 2, 1947 – December 1, 1950
Preceded by	Jerry Voorhis
Succeeded by	Patrick J. Hillings
Born	January 9, 1913(1913-01-09) Yorba Linda, California
Died	April 22, 1994 (aged 81) New York City
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Thelma Catherine "Pat" Ryan
Children	Tricia Nixon Cox Julie Nixon Eisenhower
Alma mater	Whittier College Duke University School of Law
Occupation	Lawyer
Religion	Quaker
Signature
Military service
Service/branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1942-1946
Rank	Lieutenant Commander
Battles/wars	World War II (Pacific Theater)

Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the thirty-seventh President of the United States (1969–1974), and the only president to ever resign from office. He was also the thirty-sixth Vice President of the United States (1953–1961).

Nixon was born in Yorba Linda, California. In 1937 he graduated from Duke University School of Law and returned to California to practice law in La Mirada. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, he joined the United States Navy and rose to the rank of lieutenant commander during World War II. In 1946 he was elected as a Republican to the House of Representatives representing California's 12th Congressional district, then in 1950 was elected to the United States Senate. He was chosen by Republican Party nominee Dwight D. Eisenhower to be his running mate in 1952 and served as vice president from 1953 until 1961. Despite announcing his retirement from politics after losing the 1960 general election and a failed run for Governor of California in 1962, Nixon was elected to the presidency in 1968, and was re-elected four years later.

Under President Nixon, the United States followed a foreign policy marked by détente with the Soviet Union and rapprochement with the People's Republic of China. Nixon successfully negotiated a ceasefire with North Vietnam, effectively ending American involvement in the Vietnam War. In the face of likely impeachment and conviction for his role in the Watergate scandal,^[1] Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. His successor, Gerald Ford, issued a pardon for any federal crimes Nixon may have committed while in office.

Nixon is the only person in American history to appear on the Republican Party's presidential ticket five times, to secure the Republican nomination for president three times, and to have been elected twice to both the vice presidency and the presidency. The thirteen and a half years he spent as either President or Vice President also meant that he was the longest serving individual to have held the nation's two highest executive posts.

Nixon suffered a stroke on April 18, 1994 and died four days later, at the age of 81.

Early life

Richard Nixon was born on January 9, 1913 to Francis A. Nixon and Hannah Milhous Nixon in a house his father had built in Yorba Linda, California. His mother was a Quaker, and his upbringing is said to have been marked by conservative Quaker observances of the time, such as refraining from drinking, dancing, and swearing. His father converted from Methodist to Quakerism after his marriage.^[2] Nixon had four brothers: Harold (1909–1933), Donald (1914–1987), Arthur (1918–1925), and Ed (born 1930).^[3]

The infant Richard stands outside the Nixons' Yorba Linda Home (early 1914)

Nixon's early life was marked by hardships. Two of his brothers died before Richard was 21 and his family's ranch failed in 1922. The Nixons then moved to Whittier, California, the home of his mother's relatives, where his father opened a grocery store.^[3]

Nixon initially attended Fullerton High School in Fullerton, and in 1930 he graduated second in his class from Whittier High School. A lack of money forced Nixon to decline a scholarship to Harvard University^[4] and to Yale University;^[5] and he instead enrolled at Whittier College,^[6] a local Quaker school, where he co-founded a fraternity known as The Orthogonian Society. Nixon was a formidable debater, a stand out in collegiate drama productions, was elected student-body president, and played football, basketball, and ran track.^[6][7] While at Whittier, he lived at home and worked in his family's store;^[6] he also taught Sunday school at East Whittier Friends Church, where he remained a member all his life. In 1934, he graduated second in his class from Whittier, and went on to Duke University School of Law, where he received a full scholarship and graduated third in his class in June 1937.^[6]

Law practice

Although Nixon's first choice was to get a job with the FBI, he returned to California and was admitted to the state bar in 1937. He began working in the law offices of Wingert and Bewley,^[6][8] where he worked on commercial litigation for local oil companies as well as on wills and other corporate matters. By his own admission Nixon would not work on divorce cases, saying that he was "severely embarrassed by women's confessions of sexual misconduct". Nixon found the job of a lawyer unexciting, but thought that it would gain him experience toward a future political career.^[9] In 1938, he opened up his own branch of the law office in La Habra, California,^[10] and the following year he became a full partner in the firm.^[11]

Marriage

In January 1938 Nixon was cast in the Whittier Community Players production of The Dark Tower. There he played opposite a high school teacher named Thelma "Pat" Ryan.^[6][12] Nixon pursued her, but initially Pat was not interested in a relationship. He began dropping in on her at her house unannounced and would take her on Sunday drives to the Quaker Sunday School where he volunteered as the Sunday school teacher.^[13] After several proposals Pat eventually agreed to marry the future president and they wed at a small ceremony on June 21, 1940.^[6]

After a honeymoon in Mexico, the Nixons moved to Long Beach, then settled into an apartment in East Whittier a few months later.^[14] In January 1942, the Nixons moved to Washington, D.C. where Richard took a job at the Office of Price Administration.^[6]

World War II

Lieutenant Commander Richard Nixon of the United States Navy, 1945

Nixon was eligible for a double exemption from military service, both as a Quaker with Quaker parents and through his job working for the OPA, but he soon left that post and was commissioned into the United States Navy in August 1942.^[6] He received training at Naval Air Station Quonset Point, Rhode Island and was assigned to Ottumwa, Iowa, for seven months, before being reassigned as the naval passenger control officer for the South Pacific Air Transport Command, supporting the logistics of the island hopping campaign in the South Pacific.^[15] He began requesting more challenging duties and was given command of cargo handling units in the South Pacific Combat Air Transport Command.^[16][17] Nixon returned to the United States with two battle stars (although he saw no actual combat) and a citation of commendation, and became the administrative officer of the Alameda Naval Air Station.^[18] In January 1945 he was transferred to Philadelphia to help negotiate the termination of war contracts, and there received another letter of commendation, this time from Secretary of the Navy James V. Forrestal. In October 1945, he attained the rank of lieutenant commander.^[18]

He resigned his commission on New Year's Day 1946.^[19]

Congressional career

House of Representatives

Nixon while serving in Congress

Soon after the culmination of World War II, some Whittier Republicans approached Nixon about running for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.^[20] Nixon accepted, and defeated seven term Democratic incumbent Jerry Voorhis in the November election to represent southern California's 12th Congressional district.^[20] He helped finance the campaign with his World War II poker winnings.^[21]

In Congress, Nixon supported the Taft-Hartley Act of 1948, and served on the Education and Labor Committee.^[20] He was part of the Herter Committee, which went to Europe to prepare a preliminary report on the newly enacted Marshall Plan.^[20]

Nixon first gained national attention in 1948 when his investigation on the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) broke the impasse of the Alger Hiss spy case. Nixon believed Whittaker Chambers's allegations that Hiss, a high State Department official, was a Soviet spy. Nixon discovered Chambers saved microfilm reproductions of incriminating documents by hiding the film in a pumpkin (these became known as the "Pumpkin Papers").^[22] These documents were alleged both to be accessible only by Hiss, and to have been typed on Hiss's personal typewriter. Hiss was convicted of perjury in 1950 for statements he made to the HUAC. The discovery that Hiss, who had been an adviser to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, could have been a Soviet spy thrust Nixon into the public eye and made him a hero to many of Roosevelt's enemies, and an enemy to many of Roosevelt's supporters. In reality, his support for internationalism put him closer to the center of the Republican party. This case turned the young Congressman into a national, and controversial, figure.^[20] Due to his popularity, Nixon was easily reelected in 1948.^[20]

Senate

In the 1950 mid-term elections, Nixon challenged and defeated Democratic Representative Helen Gahagan Douglas in an historic landslide to win a seat in the United States Senate.^[23] The campaign was very contentious. Nixon felt the former actress was a sympathizer to left-wing causes and said she was "pink right down to her underwear."^[23] Douglas responded by bestowing upon Nixon the nickname "Tricky Dick".^[23]

As a senator, Nixon took a prominent position in opposing global communism. He traveled frequently, speaking out against what he labeled as "the threat".^[23] He also criticized President Harry S. Truman's mishandling of the Korean War.^[23]

Vice Presidency

Main article: Eisenhower Administration

Due to his anti-communist stance, the 39-year-old Nixon was selected by Republican party nominee General Dwight D. Eisenhower to be the Vice Presidential candidate at the Republican National Convention in July 1952.^[24] In September, the New York Post produced an article claiming that campaign donors were buying influence with Nixon by providing him with a secret cash fund for his personal expenses.^[24] Nixon responded by saying that the fund was not secret and produced an independent audit showing that the funds were used only for political purposes.^[24] Republicans, even those within Eisenhower's own campaign, pressured Eisenhower to remove Nixon from the ticket, but Eisenhower realized he would not win without Nixon.^[25]

Dwight Eisenhower and Richard Nixon at a campaign stop for the presidential election of 1952

Nixon appeared on television on September 23, 1952 to defend himself, in a famous speech. He provided an independent third-party review of the fund's accounting, along with a personal summary of his finances,^[24] The speech became better known for its rhetoric, such as when he stated his wife Pat did not wear mink, but rather "a respectable Republican cloth coat," and that although he had been given an American Cocker Spaniel named "Checkers" in addition to his other campaign contributions, he was not going to give the dog back^[24] because his daughters loved it. This speech became known as the "Checkers speech." It resulted in much support from the Republican party base and from the general public,^[26] thus keeping him on the ticket.^[24] In the 1952 presidential elections, Eisenhower and Nixon defeated their opponents, Stevenson and Alabama Senator John Sparkman, by seven million votes.^[24]

As Vice-President, Nixon expanded the office, making it an important and visible post.^[24][27] Although he had little formal power, he had the attention of the media and the Republican Party. Using these, Nixon and Pat undertook many foreign trips of goodwill with the intent of garnering support for American policies during the Cold War.^[24] On one such trip to Caracas, Venezuela, [anti-American] protesters disrupted and assaulted Nixon's motorcade, injuring Venezuela's foreign minister.^[24] Nixon was lauded and attracted international media attention for his calm and coolness during the events.^[24]

In July 1959, President Eisenhower sent Nixon to the Soviet Union for Moscow's opening of the American National Exhibition.^[24] On July 24, 1959, while touring the exhibits with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, they stopped at a model of an American kitchen and engaged in the impromptu "Kitchen Debate" about the merits of capitalism versus communism.^[24]

Nixon was the first Vice President to step in temporarily, and unofficially, to run the government. Nixon would conduct National Security meetings in the president's absence.^[24] Nixon also stepped in to the Senate to interpret filibuster rules in order to ensure the passing of Eisenhower's 1957 civil rights bill, which would create the United States Commission on Civil Rights and protect voting rights.^[28]

While Vice President, he officially opened the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, Placer County, California. ^[29]

1960 presidential election

Main article: United States presidential election, 1960

Nixon debates John F. Kennedy in the first-ever televised U.S. presidential election debate.

In 1960, Nixon launched his campaign for President of the United States. He faced little competition in the Republican primaries, and chose former Massachusetts Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. as his running mate.^[24] His Democratic challenger was John F. Kennedy, and the race remained close for the duration.^[30] Nixon campaigned on his experience, but Kennedy called for new blood and claimed the Eisenhower-Nixon administration allowed the Soviet Union to overtake the U.S. in offensive missiles (the "missile gap"). Kennedy told voters it was time to "get the country moving again."^[31]

A new medium was brought to the campaign: televised presidential debates. In the first of four televised debates, Nixon was recovering from illness and, wearing little makeup, looked wan and uncomfortable, in contrast to the composed Kennedy.^[24] Nixon's performance in the debate was perceived to be mediocre in the visual medium of television, though many people listening on the radio thought Nixon won.^[32]

That November, Nixon lost the 1960 election narrowly. The final count recorded that he lost by 120,000 votes, or 0.2%.^[24] Nixon's participation in the televised debate, and his decision not to shave beforehand, may have cost him the election.^[33] There were charges of vote fraud in Texas and Illinois, which Nixon supporters unsuccessfully challenged in both states as well as nine others.^[34] The Kennedy campaign successfully challenged Nixon's victory in Hawaii; after all the court battles and recounts were done, Kennedy had a greater number of electoral votes than he held after Election Day.^[34] Nixon halted further investigations, purportedly to avoid a Constitutional crisis.^[34]

Wilderness years

Nixon playing the piano, Beverly Hills, 1962

Following his loss to Kennedy, Nixon and his family returned to California, where he practiced law and wrote a bestselling book, Six Crises.^[24] It recorded his political involvement as a congressman, senator and vice president and used six different crises Nixon had experienced throughout his political career to illustrate his political memoirs. The work won praise from many policy experts and critics. Ironically, Six Crises found a favorable critic in Mao Zedong, who referred to the book during Nixon's visit in 1972.^[35]

In 1962, local and national Republican leaders encouraged Nixon to challenge the incumbent Pat Brown for Governor of California.^[24] Despite initial reluctance, Nixon entered the race.^[24] The campaign was clouded by public suspicion that Nixon viewed the governorship as a political "stepping-stone" to a higher office, some opposition from the far-right of the party, and his own lack of interest in being California's governor.^[24] He lost to Brown by nearly 300,000 votes.^[24] This loss was widely believed to be the end of his career;^[24] in an impromptu concession speech the morning after the election, Nixon famously blamed the media for favoring his opponent, saying, "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference."^[24]

The Nixon family moved then to New York City, where Nixon became a senior partner in the leading law firm Nixon, Mudge, Rose, Guthrie & Alexander.^[24] Though largely out of the public eye, Nixon was still supported by much of the Republican base who favored his knowledge of politics and international affairs.^[24] This reputation was enhanced when Nixon wrote an article in Foreign Affairs entitled "Asia After Vietnam",^[24] and through his work campaigning for Republican candidates in the 1966 Congressional elections.^[24]

1968 presidential election

Main article: United States presidential election, 1968

Nixon campaigns in Pennsylvania, 1968, with his characteristic 'V' salute

Nixon decided again to seek the Republican nomination for President of the United States in the 1968 presidential election. He portrayed himself as a figure of stability during a period of national unrest and upheaval; Nixon won the nomination.^[36] Nixon appealed to what he called the "Silent Majority" of socially conservative Americans who disliked the hippie counterculture and the anti-war demonstrators. Nixon's running mate, Maryland Governor Spiro Agnew, became an increasingly vocal critic of these groups, solidifying Nixon's position with the right.^[37]

Nixon's campaign was assisted by turmoil within the Democratic party:^[36] President Lyndon B. Johnson, consumed with the Vietnam War, announced that he would not seek reelection, Senator Robert F. Kennedy was killed in Los Angeles, and the campaign of his opponent, Democratic nominee Hubert Humphrey, experienced some rough periods following mass protests at the 1968 Democratic National Convention.^[36] At the same time, Nixon appeared to represent a calmer society.^[36] Nixon promised peace with honor, and campaigned on the notion that "new leadership will end the war and win the peace in the Pacific." He did not give specific plans on how to end the Vietnam War, causing the media to intimate that he must have some "secret plan."^[38]

In a three-way race between Nixon, Humphrey, and independent candidate George Wallace, Nixon defeated Humphrey by nearly 500,000 popular votes to become the 37th President of the United States.^[36]

Presidency (1969–1974)

Nixon is sworn in as the 37th President on January 20, 1969, with the new First Lady, Pat, holding the family Bibles.

Nixon is credited with creating the modern day Imperial Presidency, in which the presidency retains a high level of control over government policy and decisions. In the early 1970s, Nixon impounded billions of dollars in federal spending and expanded the power of the Office of Management and Budget.^[39][40]

Although often viewed as a conservative by his contemporaries, Nixon's domestic policies often appear centrist or liberal to later observers, commenting after the end of the Keynesian consensus. While the rightward shift in the Republican Party started in the 1970s, Nixon, like Dwight Eisenhower and Gerald Ford, largely governed in accordance with Keynesian modern liberal principles on domestic issues, especially fiscal policy.^[41] He ran a budget deficit every year he was President except 1969.^[42] As President, Nixon imposed wage and price controls,^[43] indexed Social Security for inflation, and created Supplemental Security Income (SSI). He also had plans to create a universal minimum income and universal health care, but was not able to realize either.^[41] The number of pages added to the Federal Register each year doubled under Nixon. He eradicated the last remnants of the gold standard, created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), promoted the Legacy of parks program, and implemented the Philadelphia Plan, the first significant federal affirmative action program.^[44]

First term

Nixon held few press conferences during his presidency, telling reporters that policy decisions should not be subject to "off-the-cuff responses."^[45] He moved press briefings into first the East Room of the White House and then into the current White House briefing room, which he built over Franklin Roosevelt's old swimming pool.^[46]

Vietnam War

Main articles: Vietnam War and The United States and the Vietnam War

Once in office, Nixon and his aides faced the problem of how to end the Vietnam War.^[36] In July 1969, he visited South Vietnam, and met with President Nguyen Van Thieu and with U.S. military commanders. Amidst protests at home, the president implemented the Nixon Doctrine, a strategy of replacing American troops with the Vietnamese troops, also called "Vietnamization."^[36] Under President Nixon, American involvement in the war steadily declined from a troop strength of 543,000 to zero in 1973.^[36]

Nixon approved a secret bombing campaign of Cambodia in March 1969 (code-named Operation Menu) to destroy what was believed to be the headquarters of the National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam, and later escalated the conflict by bombing Laos, in part to interdict the Ho Chi Minh trail that passed through Laos and Cambodia. Nixon's 1968 campaign promise to curb the war and his subsequent Laos bombing raised questions in the press about a "credibility gap," similar to that encountered earlier in the war by Lyndon Johnson.^[47] In a televised speech on April 30, 1970, Nixon announced the incursion of U.S. troops into Cambodia to disrupt so-called North Vietnamese sanctuaries. The invasion of Cambodia, the subsequent killing, on May 4, of four students during a protest at Kent State University in Ohio and Nixon's perceived callous reaction to the violence, provoked a national student strike that closed down 536 universities, colleges and high schools.^[48] A peace treaty was signed in 1973.^[49]

Ending the draft

Nixon formed the Gates Commission to look into ending the draft.^[50] The Gates Commission issued its report in February 1970, describing how adequate military strength could be maintained without having conscription.^[51] The existing draft law was expiring at the end of June 1971, but the Department of Defense and Nixon administration decided the draft needed to continue for at least some time.^[51] In February 1971, the administration requested of Congress a two-year extension of the draft, to June 1973.^[52][53]

After a prolonged battle in the Senate, in September 1971 cloture was achieved over the filibuster and the draft renewal bill was approved.^[54] Meanwhile, military pay was increased as an incentive to attract volunteers, and television advertising for the U.S. Army began.^[55] With the end of active U.S. ground participation in Vietnam, December 1972 saw the last men conscripted, who reported for duty in June 1973.^[55]

Race relations

The Nixon years witnessed the first large-scale integration of public schools in the South, after the region had stalled in compliance with the 1954 Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education ruling. Strategically, Nixon sought a middle way between the segregationist George C. Wallace and liberal Democrats, whose support of integration was alienating some Southern white Democrats. His plan has since been known as the Southern strategy.^[56] Nixon concentrated on the principle that the law must be color-blind. "I am convinced that while legal segregation is totally wrong, forced integration of housing or education is just as wrong."^[57]

Nixon enforced the law after the Supreme Court, in Alexander v. Holmes County Board of Education (1969), prohibited further delays. Nixon's Cabinet committee on school desegregation, under the leadership of Labor Secretary George P. Shultz, quietly set up local biracial committees to assure smooth compliance without violence or political grandstanding. By fall of 1970, two million southern black children enrolled in newly created unitary fully integrated school districts; this meant that only 18% of Southern black children attended all-black schools, a decrease from 70% when Nixon came to office.^[58] "In this sense, Nixon was the greatest school desegregator in American history," historian Dean Kotlowski concluded.^[59]

Nixon staffer Daniel Patrick Moynihan recommended Nixon advance blacks' status in society through a process called benign neglect.^[60]

U.S. space program

Nixon visits the Apollo 11 astronauts in quarantine

On July 20, 1969, Nixon addressed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin live via radio during their historic Apollo 11 moonwalk. Nixon also made the longest distance phone call to Neil Armstrong on the moon.^[61] (All U.S. Project Apollo moon landings, and the attempted moon landing of Apollo 13, took place during Nixon's first term.) On January 5, 1972, Nixon approved the development of NASA's Space Shuttle program,^[62] a decision that profoundly influenced American efforts to explore and develop space for several decades thereafter.

Under the Nixon Administration, NASA's budget declined.^[63] NASA Administrator Thomas O. Paine was drawing up ambitious plans for the establishment of a permanent base on the Moon by the end of the 1970s and the launch of a manned expedition to Mars as early as 1981. Nixon, however, rejected this proposal.^[64]

Indo-Pakistani War

The Nixon administration backed Pakistani President Yahya Khan during the 1971 crisis in East Pakistan

Nixon strongly supported General Yahya Khan of Pakistan during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 despite widespread human rights violations against the Bengalis, particularly Hindus, by the Pakistan Army. Though Nixon claimed that his objective was to prevent a war, and safeguard Pakistan's interests (including the issue of refugees), in reality the U.S. President was fearful of an Indian invasion of West Pakistan that would lead to Indian domination of the sub-continent and strengthen the position of the Soviet Union,^[65] which had recently signed a Treaty of Friendship with India. He also sought to demonstrate his reliability as a partner to the People's Republic of China, with whom he had been negotiating a rapprochement, and where he planned to visit just a few months later. President Nixon and his national security adviser Henry Kissinger downplayed reports of Pakistani genocide in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and risked a confrontation with Moscow to look tough.^[66] Many, including Kissinger,^[67] have mentioned that the foreign policy "tilt" towards Pakistan had more to do with Nixon's personal like for the dictator and the support to Pakistan was influenced by sentimental considerations and a long standing anti-Indian bias.^[68] The Nixon administration was also responsible for illegally providing military supplies to the Pakistani military despite Congressional objections,^[69] and against American public opinion, which was concerned with the atrocities against East Pakistanis.^[70] His decision to help Pakistan in a war at any cost prompted him to send the nuclear-equipped USS Enterprise to the Indian Ocean to try to threaten the Indian military. Though it did little to turn the tide of war, it has been viewed as the trigger for India's subsequent nuclear program.^[71] During the crisis Nixon was vocal in abusing the Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi as an "old witch" in private conversations with Henry Kissinger, who is also recorded as making derogatory comments against Indians.^[72] Ultimately Nixon's foreign policy initiatives in this matter largely failed, as his attempt at a show of strength to impress China, was at the cost of dismembering their mutual ally, Pakistan, who felt that once again United States had fallen short as an ally in failing to prevent Bangladeshi independence.^[73]

Economic controls and end of the gold standard

Nixon was worried about the effect that increasing inflation and unemployment would have on his re-election chances.^[74] Despite speeches declaring an opposition to the idea, he decided to offer Congress a budget with deficit spending to reduce unemployment and declared, "Now I am a Keynesian."^[74] He was encouraged by the Democratic Congress in August 1970, which passed legislation giving Nixon power to set wages and prices-- they didn't believe he would use it and felt it would make him look indecisive.^[75] Federal Reserve chairman Arthur Burns encouraged Nixon to check the power held by labor unions, which had kept the rate of inflation high despite high unemployment; business owners kept prices high due to fear of wage increases.^[75]

The price of gold had been set at $35 an ounce since the days of Franklin Roosevelt's presidency; foreign countries acquired more dollar reserves, outnumbering the entire amount of gold the United States possessed — this was called "the gold window." In 1971, the British ambassador to the US asked the Treasury to transfer $3 billion into gold.^[74] In August 1971, a retreat to Camp David produced a "New Economic Policy," which would freeze all wage and price increases for a 90-day period. The Camp David plans called for a complete end to the gold standard, which Federal Reserve chairman Burns argued against. Leaving the gold standard would prevent countries from being able to claim gold in exchange for their dollar reserves, but it would also weaken the exchange rate of the dollar against other currencies and increase inflation by driving up the cost of imports.^[74]

Some advisers recalled later that more time was spent deciding when to make a speech announcing the plan than was actually spent creating the plan.^[74] Nixon was afraid to interrupt television viewers watching Bonanza, but he was advised that he must make an announcement before stock markets opened on Monday. Despite the Bonanza pre-emption, the August 15, 1971 speech and the price-control plans were a hit with the public, which felt Nixon was rescuing them from price-gougers and from a foreign-caused exchange crisis.^[74][76] The next day, the Dow Jones measured a then-one day record increase.

The controls (enforced for large corporations, voluntary for others) were the largest since World War II and were overseen by the Cost of Living Council, which relaxed them after the initial 90 days, although unemployment did not decrease.^[74] A Pay Board set wage controls of maximum 5.5% increase a year, and the Price Commission set a 2.5% annual limit on prices.^[77] The public saw wage limits as unfair when no corresponding limits were placed on interest rates.^[77] The limits did help to control wages, but not inflation.^[78] Overall, however, the controls were viewed as succesful in the short term.^[79]

China

Main article: 1972 Nixon visit to China

President Nixon greets Chinese Party Chairman Mao Zedong (left) in a historic visit to the People's Republic of China, 1972

Relations between the Western powers and Eastern Bloc changed dramatically in the early 1970s. In 1960, the People's Republic of China publicly split from its main ally, the Soviet Union, in the Sino-Soviet Split. As tension along the border between the two communist nations reached its peak in 1969 and 1970, Nixon decided to use their conflict to shift the balance of power towards the West in the Cold War.^[80] The Nixon administration improved relations with China in order to gain a strategic advantage over the Soviet Union. In 1971, a move was made to improve relations when China invited an American table tennis team to China; hence the term "Ping Pong Diplomacy".^[81] Nixon sent Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on a secret mission to China in July 1971, after which a stunned world was told that Nixon intended to visit Communist China the following year. In February 1972, President and Mrs. Nixon traveled to China, where the president was to engage in direct talks with Mao Zedong. This visit ushered in a new era of Chinese-American relations.^[36] During this visit he privately stated that he believed “There is one China, and Taiwan is a part of China.”^[82][83][84] Fearing the possibility of a Sino-American alliance, the Soviet Union yielded to American pressure for détente.^[85]

Soviet Union

Richard Nixon at the peak of his popularity in 1972

Nixon used the improving international environment to address the topic of nuclear peace. Following his successful visit to China, Nixon embarked on a trip to the Soviet Union, where he met with Soviet Leader Leonid Brezhnev.^[36] He engaged in intense negotiations with his Soviet counterpart, and out of this "summit meeting" came agreements for increased trade and two landmark arms control treaties: SALT I, the first comprehensive limitation pact signed by the two superpowers,^[36] and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, which banned the development of systems designed to intercept incoming missiles. Nixon and Brezhnev proclaimed a new era of "peaceful coexistence," in which détente (cooperation) would replace the hostility of the Cold War.^[86] Nixon also extended the Nixon Doctrine from Vietnam to his policy toward the Soviet Union, believing that helping Iran become stronger would check the Soviets' power.^[87]

To win American friendship, both China and the Soviet Union cut back on their diplomatic support for North Vietnam and advised Hanoi to come to terms.^[88][89][90] Nixon later explained his strategy:

1972 Re-election

Main article: United States presidential election, 1972

In 1972, Nixon was re-elected in one of the biggest landslide election victories in US political history, defeating Senator George McGovern and garnering over 60% of the popular vote. He carried 49 of the 50 states, losing only in Massachusetts and the District of Columbia.^[92]

Second term

On October 10, 1973, Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned amid charges of bribery, tax evasion and money laundering. Nixon chose Representative Gerald Ford, Republican Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, to replace Agnew.^[93]

Economy

After he won re-election, Nixon found that inflation was increasing, and the legislation authorizing price controls expired April 30, 1973. Democrats in Congress wanted to impose national rent controls, freeze interest rates, and lower prices, but Nixon opposed their proposals.^[78] The Senate Democratic Caucus recommended a 90-day freeze on all profits, interest rates, and prices.^[79] Nixon re-imposed price controls in June 1973, echoing his 1971 plan, as food prices rose; this time, he focused on agricultural exports and limited the freeze to 60 days.^[79] Nixon's speechwriter, William Safire, later wrote that Nixon made the decision against his economic advisers' recommendations in a "dramatic move so as to appear 'Presidential.'"^[79] This time, the controls were a dismal failure. Business owners now saw the controls as permanent rather than temporary, and voluntary compliance decreased.^[79] The controls produced food shortages, as meat disappeared from grocery stores and farmers drowned chickens rather than sell them at a loss.^[79] The Congressional Quarterly wrote: "You may have chicken prices at 59 cents a pound during the freeze, but you may not have any chickens."^[79] The price controls became unfavorable with the public and with businesspeople, who saw powerful labor unions as preferable to the price board bureaucracy.^[79] The controls were slowly ended, and by April 30, 1974, the control authority from Congress had lapsed.^[79] However, the controls on oil and natural gas prices persisted for a few years.^[74]

Nixon also dramatically increased spending on federal employees' salaries while the economy was plagued by the 1973–1974 stock market crash.^[94][95]

Expansion of federal government

During the Nixon Administration, the United States established many government agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Supplemental Security Income program (SSI), the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA),^[74] and the Office of Minority Business Enterprise. In addition, the Post Office Department was abolished as a cabinet department and reorganized as a government-owned corporation: the U.S. Postal Service. One of Nixon's economic advisers, Herbert Stein, wrote: "Probably more new regulation was imposed on the economy during the Nixon administration than in any other presidency since the New Deal."^[74]

Nixon proposed in 1971 to create four new government departments superseding the current structure: departments organized for the goal of efficient and effective public service as opposed to the thematic bases of Commerce, Labor, Transportation, Agriculture, et al. Departments including the State, Treasury, Defense, and Justice would remain under this proposal.^[96] In his 1974 State of the Union address, Nixon called for comprehensive health insurance.^[97] On February 6, 1974, he introduced the Comprehensive Health Insurance Act. Nixon's plan would have mandated employers to purchase health insurance for their employees, and in addition provided a federal health plan, such as Medicaid, that any American could join by paying on a sliding scale based on income.^[97][98][99]

Yom Kippur War and 1973 oil crisis

Israel, a powerful American ally in the Middle East, was supported by the Nixon administration during the Yom Kippur War. When an Arab coalition led by Egypt and Syria— allies to the Soviets— attacked in October 1973, Israel suffered initial losses and pressed European powers for help, but (with the notable exception of the Netherlands) the Europeans responded with inaction. Nixon cut through inter-departmental squabbles and bureaucracy to initiate an airlift of American arms. By the time the U.S. and the Soviet Union negotiated a truce, Israel had penetrated deep into enemy territory. A long-term effect was the movement of Egypt away from the Soviets toward the U.S. But the victory for its ally and the support provided to them by the U.S. came at the cost of the 1973 oil crisis; the members of OPEC decided to raise oil prices in response to the American support of Israel.^[100]

After Nixon chose to go off the gold standard, foreign countries increased their currency reserves in anticipation of currency fluctuation, which caused deflation of the dollar and other world currencies. Since oil was paid for in dollars, OPEC was receiving less value for their product. They cut production and announced price hikes and an embargo targeted at the United States and the Netherlands, specifically blaming US support for Israel in the Yom Kippur War for the actions.^[101]

On January 2, 1974, Nixon signed a bill that lowered the maximum U.S. speed limit to 55 miles per hour (90 km/h) in order to conserve gasoline during the 1973 energy crisis.^[102] This law was repealed in 1995, though states had been allowed to raise the limit to 65 miles per hour in rural areas since 1987.^[103][104]

Watergate

Main article: Watergate scandal

Nixon bids farewell to his staff, August 9, 1974, as his daughter Tricia Nixon Cox and son-in-law Edward Cox look on

The term Watergate has come to encompass an array of illegal and secret activities undertaken by Nixon or his aides during his administration. These activities did not come to light until several men were caught breaking into Democratic Party headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C. on June 17, 1972. The men were subsequently linked to the White House. This became one of a series of major scandals involving the Committee to Re-Elect the President, including the White House enemies list and assorted "dirty tricks". The ensuing Watergate scandal exposed the corruption, illegality and deceit displayed by some of those within the Nixon administration.^[105]

Nixon himself downplayed the scandal as mere politics, but when his aides began resigning, Nixon's alleged role in ordering a cover-up came to light in the press, courts, and congressional investigations. He had accepted illicit campaign contributions,^[106] and had harassed opponents with executive agencies, wiretaps, and break-ins. Unlike the tape recordings by earlier Presidents, his secret recordings of White House conversations were revealed, subpoenaed, and showed details of his alleged complicity in the cover-up. Nixon was named by the grand jury investigating Watergate as "an unindicted co-conspirator" in the Watergate scandal.^[107]

The Fords escort the Nixons across the South Lawn of the White House to the waiting presidential helicopter before Gerald Ford takes the oath of office, August 9, 1974

Richard Nixon's Resignation Letter to his Secretary of State, August 9, 1974

One piece of evidence, an audio tape of conversations held in the White House between the President and various aides on June 20, 1972, features an unexplained 18½ minute gap.^[108] The first deleted section, of about five minutes, has been attributed to human error on the part of Rose Mary Woods, the President's personal secretary, who admitted accidentally wiping the section while transcribing the tape. The gap, while not conclusive proof of wrong-doing on the part of the President, cast doubt on Nixon's claim that he was unaware of the cover-up at this stage. Although not discovered until several years after he had left office, transcripts of an earlier June 20, 1972 conversation between Nixon and White House Special Counsel Charles Colson clearly show Nixon's early involvement in obstructing justice in the Watergate investigation.^[109]

Nixon lost support from some in his own party as well as much popular support after what became known as the Saturday Night Massacre of October 20, 1973. As the Watergate story continued to dominate headlines, Nixon tried to reassure a suspicious public by continuing to deflect himself from any wrongdoing. On November 17, 1973, during a televised question and answer session with the press, Nixon said,

The House Judiciary Committee, controlled by Democrats, opened formal and public impeachment hearings against Nixon on May 9, 1974. Despite his efforts, one of the secret recordings, known as the Smoking Gun Tape, was released on August 5, 1974, and revealed that Nixon authorized hush money to Watergate burglar E. Howard Hunt and had administrations officials try to have the FBI investigation stopped. In light of his loss of political support and the near certainty of both his impeachment and conviction, Nixon resigned the office of the presidency on August 9, 1974, after addressing the nation on television the previous evening.listen

He never admitted to criminal wrongdoing, although he later conceded errors of judgment. During the Watergate scandal, Nixon's approval rating fell to 23 percent.^[111]

A defiant Nixon displays the 'V-for-victory sign' as he departs the White House after resigning

Supreme Court appointments

Nixon appointed the following Justices to the Supreme Court of the United States:

• Warren E. Burger (Chief Justice) — 1969
• Harry Andrew Blackmun — 1970
• Lewis Franklin Powell, Jr. — 1972
• William Rehnquist — 1972

Pardons

Further information: List of people pardoned by a United States president

President Nixon issued 926 pardons or commutations.^[112] Among notable cases were labor leader Jimmy Hoffa (sentence commuted on condition)^[113] and mobster Angelo DeCarlo (convicted of extortion; served 1 1/2 years; pardoned due to poor health), this pardon was later investigated, but no evidence was found of corruption.

During his entire presidency, Nixon decided to grant a clemency in over 20% of requests.^[114]

Later life

Following his resignation, Nixon and Pat returned to their home, La Casa Pacifica, in San Clemente, California.^[115] The Nixons later moved to New York City in 1980, and Saddle River, New Jersey in 1981.^[115]

Nixon visits then-President Ronald Reagan and first lady Nancy Reagan at the White House, 1988

As a result of Watergate, Nixon was disbarred by the State of New York. He had attempted to resign his license, but the State refused to let him do so unless he admitted wrongdoing in Watergate.^[116] He later resigned his other law licenses. On September 8, 1974, however, he was pardoned from any wrongdoing by his successor, President Gerald Ford. This ended any possibility of an indictment.

In his later career, Nixon traveled extensively, both domestically and internationally. He undertook trips to Europe, the Middle East, Russia, Africa, and Asia.^[115] In 1981, he joined former Presidents Ford and Jimmy Carter as representatives of the United States at the funeral of Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat.^[115] He later joined Japanese Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone in Japan, Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in China, and Communist leader Mikhail Gorbachev in the Soviet Union.^[115] On his return from the Soviet Union trip, Nixon sent President Ronald Reagan a lengthy memorandum that contained foreign policy suggestions and his personal impressions of Gorbachev.^[115]

Official White House portrait of Richard Nixon

Nixon authored ten books in his later life and maintained a routine schedule of speaking engagements and writing.^[115] Nixon gained great respect as an elder statesman^[115] in the area of foreign affairs, being consulted by both Democratic and Republican successors to the presidency.

On July 19, 1990, the Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace in Yorba Linda, California opened as a private institution, with Nixon and Pat Nixon in attendance. They were joined by a throng of people, including former Presidents Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush, and their spouses Betty, Nancy, and Barbara, respectively.^[117] From the time of its original dedication until July 11, 2007, the property was owned and operated by a private foundation and was not part of the National Archives' presidential libraries system. On July 11, the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum was officially welcomed into the federal presidential library system. In January 1994 he founded the Nixon Center, a policy think tank ranked as one of the top 30 in the United States in 2007.^[118]

Pat Nixon's death

Pat Nixon died on June 22, 1993 of health problems, including emphysema and lung cancer. Her funeral services were held on the grounds of the Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace in Yorba Linda, California during the week until her burial on June 26. Richard Nixon was deeply distraught the entire time, but was comforted by his family as well as former presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, and First Lady, Nancy Reagan.^[119][120]

Death and funeral

Main article: Death and funeral of Richard Nixon

The graves of Patricia and Richard Nixon

Nixon suffered a severe stroke at 5:45 p.m. EDT on Monday, April 18, 1994, while preparing to eat dinner in his Park Ridge, New Jersey home.^[121] It was determined that a blood clot resulting from his heart condition had formed in his upper heart, then broken off and traveled to his brain. He was taken to New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan, initially alert, but unable to speak or to move his right arm or leg.^[121] Damage to the brain caused swelling (cerebral edema) and Nixon slipped into a deep coma. On Friday, April 22, 1994, he died at 9:08 p.m., with his daughters at his bedside; he was 81.^[121]

Nixon's funeral took place on April 27, 1994, the first for an American president since that of Lyndon B. Johnson in 1973, which was presided over by Nixon during his presidency. Speakers at the service, held at the Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace (now Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum), included then-President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, Senate Minority Leader Bob Dole, California Governor Pete Wilson, and the Reverend Billy Graham.^[122] Also in attendance were former Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and their respective first ladies.^[123] Nixon was buried beside his wife, Pat, on the grounds of the Nixon Library. He was survived by his two daughters, Tricia and Julie, and four grandchildren.^[121] In keeping with his wishes, his funeral was not a state funeral, though his body did lie in repose in the Nixon Library lobby prior to the funeral services.^[124]

Public perception

Nixon's career was frequently dogged by his personality, and the public perception of it. Editorial cartoonists such as Herblock and comedians often exaggerated Nixon's appearance and mannerisms, to the point where the line between the human and the caricature version of him became increasingly blurred. He was often portrayed with unshaven jowls, slumped shoulders, and a furrowed, sweaty brow.

Nixon meets Elvis Presley in December 1970

He frequently brandished the two-finger V sign (alternately viewed as the "Victory sign" or "peace sign") using both hands, an act that became one of his best-known trademarks. Due to his uptight image, many Americans were shocked to hear that the President had a much gruffer, aggressive side, revealed by the sheer amount of swearing and vicious comments seen on the transcripts of the president's White House tapes. Some experts have described him as having a narcissistic and paranoid personality.^[125]

Following the publication of the Watergate tapes, the news media focused on the anti-semitism Nixon displayed during conversations with H. R. Haldeman. During these conversations, Nixon repeatedly demanded to know who in various government organizations was Jewish, saying that Washington and the IRS was "full of Jews" and, when speaking generally of Jewish people, said that "Most Jews are disloyal"^[126] and that "you can't trust those bastards".^[127] Several Jewish people worked for the president including Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger, speechwriter Ben Stein and economic adviser Herbert Stein.

Legacy

James MacGregor Burns observed of Nixon, "How can one evaluate such an idiosyncratic President, so brilliant and so morally lacking?"^[128] Even George McGovern, 11 years after Nixon defeated him for the presidency, commented: "President Nixon probably had a more practical approach to the two superpowers, China and the Soviet Union, than any other president since World War II. ... I think, with the exception of his inexcusable continuation of the war in Vietnam, Nixon really will get high marks in history."^[129]

Bibliography

Further information: Richard Nixon bibliography

References

External links

• White House biography
• Nixon Presidential Materials at National Archives
• Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace, Yorba Linda, California
• The Nixon Center, Washington, D.C.
• whitehousetapes.org: The Nixon Tapes
• The Watergate Tapes
• Interactive Site on Nixon's Visit to China
• Account of the day Nixon had his fatal stroke in April 1994
• Nixon's will
• Richard Nixon at the Internet Movie Database
• Richard Nixon at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Works by Richard Nixon at Project Gutenberg

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