The Nixon Administration,

3. The Nixon Administration, • Objectives: • 1. Describe Nixon's domestic agenda. • 2. Discuss Nixon's foreign policy achievements.

4. Did You Know? • President Nixon rarely talked to Vice President Spiro Agnew about government issues or policies.

5. Appealing to Middle America • Many Americans supported the government and longed for an end to the violence of the 1960s. The 1968 Republican presidential candidate, Richard Nixon, appealed to the people whom he called "Middle America." He promised them peace in Vietnam, law and order, a streamlined government, and a return to conservative values. • The Democratic nominee, Hubert Humphrey, and a third party-candidate, George Wallace, could not stop Nixon. He won, receiving 43.4 percent of the popular vote.

6. Much of Nixon's success in the election came from the South. Nixon had promised to appoint conservatives to the federal courts, to name a Southerner to the Supreme Court, to oppose court-ordered busing, and to choose a vice president acceptable to the South. As a result, a large number of white Southerners left the Democratic Party and voted for Nixon. • After his election victory, Nixon began the Southern strategy to win even more Southerners to the Republican Party. He took steps to slow desegregation.

7. To keep his promise of law and order, Nixon set out to battle American crime. Nixon criticized the Supreme Court regarding expanded rights for accused criminals. He appointed several conservative judges to the Supreme Court, including one from the South. • Nixon's Republican leaders dismantled several federal programs and gave more control to state and local governments. Under Nixon's New Federalism program, Congress passed a series of revenue-sharing bills that provided federal funds to state and local agencies. Intended to give state and local agencies increased power, it actually led to a greater dependency on federal funds.

8. In 1969 Nixon proposed replacing the existing Aid to Families with Dependant Children (AFDC) welfare program with the Family Assistance Plan. The plan would give needy families a guaranteed yearly grant of $1,600. The program won House approval but was later defeated in the Senate.

9. Why did Richard Nixon appeal to "Middle America" in the 1968 presidential election? • He aimed many of his campaign messages to "Middle America." He promised them "peace with honor" in Vietnam, law and order, a streamlined government, and a return to more conservative times.

10. Nixon's Foreign Policy • President Nixon's administration focused mainly on the subject of foreign affairs. • Nixon chose former Harvard professor Henry Kissinger as his national security adviser. Nixon and Kissinger put their foreign policy in place and attempted friendlier relations with the Soviet Union and China.

11. Nixon was anti-Communist but came to reject the idea of a bipolar world with the United States and the Soviet Union confronting each other. Nixon felt the "multipolar" world would need a different approach. With the help of Kissinger, Nixon created the approach of détente, or relaxation of tensions between the United States and its two major Communist rivals—the Soviet Union and China. Nixon argued that the United States had to build a better relationship with its rivals to ensure world peace.

12. To ease tensions with China, Nixon lifted trade and travel restrictions and withdrew the Seventh Fleet from defending Taiwan. In February 1972, Nixon took a historic trip to China, where both leaders agreed to better relations between the nations. • After learning of the negotiations between the United States and China, the Soviet Union suggested an American-Soviet summit, or high-level diplomatic meeting, in May 1972. Nixon became the first president to visit the Soviet Union. During the summit, the countries signed the first Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I) to limit nuclear arms. The countries agreed to increase trade and the exchange of scientific information.

13. The Watergate Scandal, • Objectives: • 1. Describe the character of Richard Nixon and the attitude of his White House. • 2. Explain the Watergate scandal and discuss its effects.

14. Did You Know? • Television covered the Senate Watergate hearings from May-November 1973. The hearings were popular among daytime television viewers.

15. The Roots of Watergate • The Watergate scandal began as the Nixon administration attempted to cover up its involvement in the break-in at the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters, as well as other illegal actions committed during Nixon's re-election campaign. • Richard Nixon had become defensive, secretive, and resentful of his critics during his long and difficult climb to the presidency. He went as far as creating an "enemies list," naming people from politicians to members of the media.

16. In an effort to win re-election, Nixon and his team looked for ways to gain an edge anyway they could. On June 17, 1972, five Nixon supporters broke into the Democratic Party's headquarters to locate campaign information and install wiretaps on telephones. Discovered by a security guard, the burglars were arrested.

17. One of the burglars, James McCord, was an ex-CIA official and a member of the Committee for the Re-election of the President (CRP). As the questions about the break-ins began, the cover-up started. Although it is thought that Nixon did not order the break-in, it is believed that he did order the cover-up. • Most Americans believed the president when he claimed he had no involvement in the break-in, and Nixon won re-election in 1972.

18. Why was Nixon's hope of re-election uncertain? • Although he had a high approval rating after the summit meetings, the unpopular Vietnam War still dragged on. Nixon's staff was worried about the close margin of the 1968 victory.

19. The Cover-Up Unravels • In 1973 the Watergate burglars went on trial. Defendant James McCord agreed to cooperate with the grand jury investigation and the Senate's Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, established under Senator Sam J. Ervin of North Carolina. McCord's testimony created a floodgate of confessions, and officials and White House staff exposed illegalities.

20. Counsel to the president, John Dean leveled allegations against Nixon himself. John Dean testified before Senator Erwin's committee that Attorney General John Mitchell ordered the Watergate break-in and Nixon was active in its cover-up. • On July 16, White House aide Alexander Butterfield testified that Nixon had ordered a taping system installed in the White House to record all conversations to help him write his memoirs once he left office. These tapes were sought by all groups investigating the scandal. Nixon refused to hand over the tapes, pleading executive privilege—the principle that White House conversations be kept confidential to protect national security.

21. In the fall of 1973, Vice President Spiro Agnew was forced to resigned after it was discovered he had taken bribes from state contractors while governor of Maryland. The Republican leader of the House of Representatives, Gerald Ford, became the new vice president. • Nixon released edited transcripts of the tapes in April 1974, claiming they proved him innocent. Investigators went to court again to force Nixon to turn over unedited tapes. In July the Supreme Court ruled that Nixon had to turn over the unedited tapes.

22. Nixon released edited transcripts of the tapes in April 1974, claiming they proved him innocent. Investigators went to court again to force Nixon to turn over unedited tapes. In July the Supreme Court ruled that Nixon had to turn over the unedited tapes. • The House Judiciary Committee voted to impeach, or officially charge Nixon of presidential misconduct. On one of the tapes was found evidence that Nixon had ordered the CIA to stop the FBI's investigation of the break-in. • On August 9, 1974, Nixon resigned, and Gerald Ford became the 38th president of the United States.

23. What did the House Judiciary Committee charge against Nixon? • Nixon was charged with obstructing justice in the Watergate cover-up, misuse of federal agencies to violate the rights of citizens, and defying the authority of Congress by not turning over the tapes and other materials the committee had requested.

24. The Impact of Watergate • Watergate prompted the implementation of several new laws limiting the power of the executive branch and reestablishing a greater balance of power. • The Federal Campaign Act Amendments limited campaign contributions and set up an independent agency to administer stricter election laws. • The Ethics in Government Act required financial disclosure by high government officials in all three branches of government.

25. The FBI Domestic Security Investigation Guidelines restricted the bureau's political intelligence-gathering activities. • Watergate left Americans distrustful of public officials. Other Americans felt that Nixon's impeachment and resignation proved that in the United States, no one is above the law.

26. What did the Watergate scandal do to Americans? • It left many Americans with a deep distrust of public officials. Some Americans felt that Nixon's impeachment and resignation proved that in the United States, no one is above the law.

27. Ford and Carter, • Objectives: • 1. Explain the reasons for economic troubles in the United States during the 1970s. • 2. Discuss Jimmy Carter's domestic and foreign policies.

28. Gerald Ford −became President in 1974 after Nixon’s resignation • pardon − officially forgiveness • Jimmy Carter − a former governor of Georgia who was elected President in 1976 • Christian fundamentalist − a person who believes in a strict, literal interpretation of the Bible as the foundation of the Christian faith

29. amnesty − political pardon • televangelist − minister who preached on television

30. What accounted for the changes in American attitudes during the 1970s? • Compared to the turbulent 1960s, the 1970s appeared uneventful. • However, the 1970s brought many social, economic, and cultural changes. Many felt those changes put America on the wrong track.

31. The Economic Crisis of the 1970s • During the 1970s, the economic prosperity of the 1950s and 1960s began to disappear. • The economic troubles began under Lyndon Johnson's leadership. He increased federal deficit spending to fund the Vietnam War and the Great Society program without raising taxes. Pumping large amounts of money into the economy created inflation, or a rise in the cost of goods.

32. In 1973 the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced an embargo, or the stopping of shipping, of petroleum to countries that supported Israel. The price of a barrel of crude oil increased from $3 in 1973 to $30 in 1980. • Even before the embargo, President Nixon and Congress imposed price controls on gasoline and heating oil. After OPEC raised its prices, the price controls created an oil shortage.

33. Increased international competition for manufactured goods added to the economic problems. U.S. factories closed, and workers lost their jobs. The U.S. economy faced "stagflation"—the economic dilemma that combined rising prices with economic stagnation. Nixon focused on controlling inflation by cutting spending and raising taxes. Congress and many Americans opposed Nixon's idea of a tax hike, as well as his other ideas on how to end stagflation.

34. On September 8, 1974, President Gerald Ford granted a full pardon to Richard Nixon. Ford's approval rating plunged from 71 percent to 50 percent. • By 1975 the American economy was in its worst recession since the Great Depression. Ford attempted to revive the economy, but his Whip Inflation Now (WIN) plan failed. He tried to limit federal authority, balance the budget, and keep taxes low. He also vetoed more than 50 bills that Congress had passed during the first two years Ford had served there.

35. Ford continued the foreign policy of Nixon. In August 1975, Ford met with leaders of NATO and the Warsaw Pact to sign the Helsinki Accords. Under the accords, the parties recognized the borders of Eastern Europe established at the end of World War II. The Soviets promised to uphold certain basic human rights but later went back on this promise, which turned many Americans against détente. Southeast Asia also continued to be a concern for Ford when Cambodia seized an American cargo ship, the Mayaguez.

36. Vice President Gerald Ford became President after Nixon’s resignation. He faced the worst economic problems that America had experienced since the Great Depression. • Although Ford worked hard to solve the country’s problems, his Whip Inflation Now (WIN) program did not succeed. As unemployment grew, his popularity declined rapidly.

37. The struggling economy and frustrations over Gerald Ford’spardon of Nixon led to Jimmy Carter’s win of the presidential election in 1976. • Carter cast himself as an outsider and had the support of Christian fundamentalists. • He presented himself as a “citizens’ President” with no ties to professional politicians, which appealed to many voters after the Watergate scandal.

38. Crises and Carter’s inexperience reduced the effectiveness of his presidency. • Having no close allies in Washington, his legislative bills in Congress rarely passed without changes. • Carter grappled with the energy crisis and inflation. • He granted amnesty to Americans who had evaded the draft during the Vietnam War. This was highly unpopular with many Americans.

39. Carter Battles the Economic Crisis • President Carter focused most of his attention on the energy crisis. His efforts were unsuccessful. • Carter proposed a national energy program to conserve oil and to promote the use of coal and renewable energy sources. He had Congress create the Department of Energy.He asked Americans to reduce energy consumption, which most Americans ignored.

40. Scholars have suggested that Carter's difficulties in solving the nation's economic problems were the result of his lack of leadership and inability to work with Congress. A 1979 public opinion poll showed that Carter's popularity had dropped lower than President Nixon's rating during Watergate.

41. President Carter proposes to improve the economy • He tried to end the recession and reduce unemployment by increasing government spending and cutting taxes. • Inflation increased, however, so he decided to delay the tax cuts and vetoed spending programs he had proposed to Congress. • He reduced the money supply and raised interest rates

42. He tried to rally American support for a war against rising energy consumption. • He proposed a national energy program to conserve oil and to promote the use of coal and renewable energy sources. • He created the Department of Energy. He asked Americans to reduce energy consumption.

43. The "Me" Decade: Life in the 1970s pg 722 • Daily question: answer each question on a separate piece of paper. • What fell to an all-time low in 1976?

44. Did You Know? • During the 1970s, children's programming on public broadcasting focused on educational shows, such as Sesame Street and Zoom!

45. Writer Tom Wolfe labeled the 1970s the "me decade," referring to the self-absorbed attitude of the American people. • Some young Americans looked for fulfillment through an array of secular movements and activities that made up the New Age movement. Believers in the movement felt that people were responsible for and capable of everything. They believed spiritual enlightenment could be found in common practices.

46. Some Americans looked to new religions or cults. Many new religions originated in Asian and centered on the teachings of a guru, or a mystical leader. One of the best known gurus, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, led a religious movement known as transcendental meditation, in which it was thought that with daily meditation and silent repetitive mantras, peak intelligence, harmony, and health could be reached.

47. By 1970 60 percent of all women between the ages of 16 and 24 had joined the workforce. American family life changed with the increase in women working outside of the home. • This resulted in smaller families, parents and children spending less time together, and a rise in divorce rates which nearly doubled.

48. Why did some young Americans look to the New Age movement for fulfillment? • Some young men and women were disenchanted with the conventional religions of their parents.

49. fitness • The seventies was also a time of an increased interested in personal fitness. • In the 1970 New York marathon, just over 100 people participated, by 1980, more than 14,000 ran the marathon. • Body building became popular in large part to Arnold Scharzenegger. He became a popular actor and later would become governor of California.

50. Cultural Trends in the 1970s pg 724 • Television changed during this time, reflecting many of the changes taking place in society. The Mary Tyler Moore Show placed an unmarried woman with a meaningful career at the center of the show. • Taboo subjects like racism were addressed in the 1971 show All in the Family. By carefully mixing humor and sensitive issues while not preaching to the audience, the show made viewers examine their own feelings about social issues.