THE Rise and Fall of the Nixon Presidency

1. THE Rise and Fall of the Nixon Presidency

2. Richard Nixon • President of the U.S. from 1969-1974. • Vice President under Eisenhower from 1953-1961. • Served in the Congress from 1946-1952. • Only President to resign from office (after Watergate Scandal). • Republican and Anti-Communist.

3. The Election of 1968 • Richard Nixon only narrowly won the 1968 election. • The 1960's began as an era of optimism and possibility and ended in disunity and distrust. • The Vietnam war and a series of assassinations and crises eroded public trust in government and produced a backlash against liberal movements and the Democratic party.

4. FOREIGN POLICY GOALS:1969-1974 “After a period of confrontation, we are entering an era of negotiation.” Nixon’s 1st Inaugural Address

5. Foreign Policy Goals • Strategic arms limitation • Peaceful negotiation with foreign powers • “Rapprochement” with China • “Détente” with the Soviet Union • Reduced commitments of manpower to foreign nations (Nixon Doctrine) • “Peace with honor” in Vietnam • Minimal public support for the war • Major reason for Nixon’s election

6. The Nixon Doctrine (1969) • America will honor its treaties and provide aid to its allies, including protection against nuclear powers. • However, in other cases of aggression, such as insurrections or non-nuclear threats, America’s allies are expected to use their own manpower for their own defense. • America will still provide economic and limited military aid in such cases. • Most direct application: “Vietnamization”

7. Rapprochement • Nixon began to consider a reopening of relations, or “rapprochement,” with the PRC. • Reasons for rapprochement: • Trade with China— huge market • Main reason: increase Sino-Soviet tension

8. Ping-Pong Diplomacy • The American ping-pong team received a surprise invitation to visit the PRC in April, 1971. • The trip was a diplomatic success! • The American public became more willing to open up relations with the PRC. • America lifted its 20-year trade embargo on China.

9. NIXON GOES TO CHINA (1972)

10. NIXON GOES TO CHINA • Goals: • Attempt to pave the way for a formal opening of diplomatic relations with the mainland (rapprochement). • Also want to impress the Chinese and make them a potential trade partner and possibly ally vs. the U.S.S.R. • Results: • Immediately after the trip, Kissinger moved to establish regular contact with the PRC. • However, formal diplomatic relations were not established until January 1, 1979, under the Carter administration.

11. Detente • Détente focused on peaceful negotiations and weapon limitations between the two nations. • Unlike previous administrations, Nixon and Kissinger hoped to negotiate for the mutual benefit of both the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. as opposed to demanding that the U.S.S.R. give into U.S. demands.

12. SALT I • One of the major components of détente was the creation of the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I). • On May 26, 1972 at the Moscow Summit Meeting, Nixon and Soviet General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev signed the SALT I treaty. • The Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty had permanent restrictions on ABMs. • The treaty on offensive missiles covered major issues with offensive missiles for a five year period.

13. NIXON GOES TO THE U.S.S.R. • In 1972, Nixon made a trip to Moscow to meet with Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev. In 1973, Brezhnev visited the White House. • This was the first ever meeting of these countries’ leaders not outside of U.S.S.R. or U.S. borders, showing the steps that détente had taken to ease tensions.

14. Nixon the Conservative Believed the federal government was too large Impounded federal funds Firm stand against crime and drug use Appealed to “Silent Majority” Nixon the Liberal Increased funding for programs such as food stamps and increased Social Security payments Took special interest in environmental issues Created a new org. to prevent work-related injuries and deaths A 90-day freeze of wages and prices. Advanced affirmative action Nixon’s Politics

15. Nixon’s Domestic Policies • New Federalism • Thought federal government was too large • Solution was called the New Federalism • Key feature was the concept of revenue sharing • Believed that local governments could spend taxpayers money more effectively • Southern Strategy • Nixon wanted to expand his support in the Democratic south • Tried to weaken the 1965 Voting Rights Act • Urged a slowdown in forced integration • Opposed busing • Wanted local governments to take action themselves Environmentalism • Environmental concerns had been growing. • Massive Earth Day demonstrations in 1970 • Signed the Clean Air Act • Act sought to regulate levels of air pollution created by factories and other sources. • Worked to establish the (EPA) Environmental Protection Agency

16. The Election of 1968 • Nixon campaigned as a champion of the "silent majority," • Vowed to restore: • respect for the rule of law, • reconstitute the stature of America • dispose of ineffectual social programs • provide strong leadership to end the turmoil of the 1960's.

17. The White House Plumbers • The White House created a unit to ensure internal security. • This unit was called the Plumbers because they stopped leaks. • In 1971 they burglarized the office of Daniel Ellsberg’s psychiatrist, seeking material to discredit him. Howard Hunt G. Gordon Liddy James McCord Chuck Colson

18. The Watergate Break-in • The Plumbers turned their activities to political espionage in 1972. • On 17 June 1972, 5 men were arrested while attempting to bug the headquarters of the Democratic Party inside the Watergate building in Washington D.C. • One of the men arrested, James McCord, was the head of security for the Republican Party. • The Nixon campaign denied any involvement.

19. Woodward, Bernstein and the Washington Post • Watergate came to public attention largely through the work of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, investigative reporters from the Washington Post. • Woodward and Bernstein, aided by an enigmatic source nicknamed “Deepthroat” kept the story in the public consciousness until Nixon’s resignation.

20. Watergate & the Nixon Campaign • The break-in was eventually tied to the Nixon reelection campaign through a $25,000 check from a Republican donor that was laundered through a Mexican bank and deposited in the account of Watergate burglar Bernard Barker. • Attorney General John Mitchell, head of Nixon’s “Committee to Re-Elect the President,” (CREEP) controlled a secret fund for political espionage.

21. The Election of 1972 • Despite the growing stain of Watergate, which had not yet reached the President, Nixon won by the largest margin in history to that point.

22. Senate Investigation and the Oval Office Tapes • The Senate began hearings into Watergate in May 1973. • The hearings were televised in their entirety. • They focused on when the President knew of the break-in. • In June 1973, former White House legal counsel John Dean delivered devastating testimony that implicated Nixon from the earliest days of Watergate.

23. The Smoking Gun Tapes • When the Supreme Court forced Nixon to surrender the tapes. • Nixon was implicated from the earliest days of the cover-up: • authorizing the payment of hush money • attempting to use the CIA to interfere with the FBI investigation. • One tape has an 18 ½ minute gap. • “The smoking gun tapes,” were released in August 1974.

24. The Saturday Night Massacre • Nixon fires: • Special Prosecutor • Attorney General • Deputy Attorney General • The Washington Post reported on the “Saturday Night Massacre.” Archibald Cox

25. Nixon Resigns • On 27 July 1974, the House Judiciary Committee approved Articles of Impeachment against Nixon. • The House was to vote on the matter soon. • On 5 August 1974, when the “smoking gun tape” became public, a delegation from the RNC told Nixon that he would not survive the vote in the Senate. • On 9 August 1974, Richard Nixon became the first American president to resign.