Chapter 25 = Nixon, Ford, Carter (1969 1981) · Nixon’s biggest successes were in foreign policy....
Transcript of Chapter 25 = Nixon, Ford, Carter (1969 1981) · Nixon’s biggest successes were in foreign policy....
Chapter 25 = Nixon, Ford, Carter
(1969 – 1981)
Section 1 = Nixon’s Domestic Policy (Richard Nixon, 1968 –1974)
Hubert Humphrey, Democrat Richard Nixon, Republican
Election of 1968 – Nixon Wins
Nixon – The Man
1. Nixon was a reserved man who was uncomfortable around people.
2. Seemed to have no sense of humor and seldom smiled.
3. Had lots of political experience (VP for Eisenhower / Congressman from CA)
4. Had a mean side & did whatever was necessary to defeat his enemies.
Nixon was one of
the first presidents
to be made fun of in
popular culture.
Known as “Tricky
Dick,” comics
often poked fun at
his inability to
laugh and his
speaking blunders.
(L to R) David Eisenhower, Julie Nixon Eisenhower, President Nixon, Thelma Catherine (Pat) Nixon, Tricia Nixon Cox and Edward Cox
Nixon’s Domestic Policy
1. The economy suffered from inflation and unemployment during Nixon’s presidency.
2. Although Republicans usually tried to balance the national budget, Nixon started using **deficit spending (spending more $ than the nation takes in through taxes) in an attempt to stimulate the economy.
3. Nixon tried to please Conservatives, who wanted budget cuts, by cutting programs like urban renewal, job training, & education.
4. Nixon started **New Federalism, which was a partnership between the federal and state governments. The federal government transferred more money to state governments. The states were then more responsible for well-being of their citizens.
Nixon’s Advisors
President Nixon did not rely on his cabinet advisors like most presidents do. He relied more on his White House Staff since he felt they were more loyal to him.
H.R. Haldeman {top left} was a former advertising executive who served on Nixon’s campaign. He became Nixon’s Chief of Staff. Haldeman’s quote = “I get done what he wants done and I take the heat instead of him.”
John Ehrlichman {bottom left} was Nixon’s personal lawyer and became his top domestic advisor.
These two men were known as “the Berlin Wall” since they served as the gateway between Nixon and those who wanted to talk to him.
Nixon’s Advisors
John Mitchell {left} was a lawyer that had managed Nixon’s campaign. Nixon made him the Attorney General of the U.S. He was a close advisor.
The 1973 **Arab Oil Embargo
American oil production began to decline in 1972. America depended on foreign imports for 1/3 of its oil.
In 1971, Nixon placed a 90 day freeze on wages, prices, and rent - - to stop inflation. The price freeze cut profits on oil and American refineries cut their supply to the minimum.
In 1973 Israel fought a war against the Arab nations of Syria and Egypt. The U.S. supported Israel.
**OPEC {Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries} is a group of Arab oil countries that imposed an **oil embargo on the U.S. in 1973. Embargo means they refused to sell ANY oil to the U.S. This was done to penalize the U.S. for supporting Israel in the 1973 Arab-Israeli War.
The 1973 **Arab Oil Embargo
**OPEC also set the prices charged for oil and decided how much oil would be produced. OPEC caused the price of oil to quadruple!!
Higher oil prices led to higher prices on food and gasoline. As a result, the American economy went into a recession.
{left} King Faisal, leader of Saudi Arabia in 1973
Nixon’s **Southern Strategy
Not many African-Americans supported Richard Nixon.
His ** Southern Strategy was a plan to win the votes of
White southern Democrats by slowing down the Civil
Rights Movement.
Nixon:
1. Delayed the integration of schools by refusing to
enforce mandatory busing)
2. Tried (but failed) to end the Voting Rights Act of 1965
3. Cut funding for fair housing laws (low cost rent).
The First Moon Landing
In 1969, American astronauts
flew to the moon on board the
rocket known as **Apollo 11.
**Neil Armstrong became the
first man to walk on the moon.
**Eagle was the lunar landing
craft that took the astronauts
from the orbiting space
capsule to the moon and back.
The U.S. now took the lead in
the space race!
The crew of the Apollo 11 (L to R) Neil
Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz
Aldrin.
Apollo 11 Rocket
Apollo 11 Orbit Module
Eagle Lunar Landing Vehicle Neil Armstrong Walking on the Moon
Sec. 2 = Nixon’s Foreign Policy
Nixon’s biggest successes were in foreign policy. He used a policy of
**détente which means to be more cooperative & ease tensions with other
nations, especially American enemies like China and the Soviet Union.
**Henry Kissinger, Secretary of State, became one of Nixon’s main
advisors.
Kissinger followed a policy known as **realpolitik. This policy meant that
the U.S. would make decisions based on what would keep America
strong, not on what looked good in terms of moral principles.
**Henry Kissinger {bottom left} was a Harvard University government professor who became first, National Security Advisor, and later Secretary of State. He was responsible for much of Nixon’s foreign policy success.
Nixon applied the policy of **détente to China and the Soviet Union.
These two enemies of the U.S. had once been united by their communist
form of government. By the 1970s they became enemies. Nixon saw
(example of **Realpolitik) that making friends with China would help keep
these two communist powers separate. It was also obvious that the U.S.
could benefit from trade with China.
The U.S. had not recognized the Chinese government since 1949, when it
became communist. In 1971, the U.S. sent a ping pong team to play in a
tournament in China and later that year America ended its trade embargo
on China.
In 1972, President Nixon travelled to China and met with **Mao Zedong,
the Chinese leader. Most Americans were happy that Nixon opened trade
and relations with China.
Nixon’s Foreign Policy
Nixon’s Foreign Policy
Later in 1972, Nixon also
travelled to the Soviet Union
and met with Soviet Premier,
Leonid Brezhnev. The two
signed the **SALT I (Strategic
Arms Limitation Treaty) which
froze the number of nuclear
missiles each country had.
The **SALT I agreement was
important because it opened
the door to cooperation in
other areas.
Top left: Nixon meeting
With Chinese Premier,
Mao Zedong.
Top Right: Nixon meeting
with Soviet Premier,
Nikita Khrushchev.
Bottom: Nixon meeting
with Elvis!
President Nixon meeting with Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev
Section 3 = **The Watergate Scandal
• Nixon wanted to win reelection in 1972 by a landslide so he
would have a mandate to pass his programs.
• He created an Enemies List and tried to harass these people.
• 1969 - Nixon thought someone on his staff had leaked
information to reporters so he had **wiretaps placed on the
phones of some staff & some reporters (was legal at the time).
• 1971 – A former Defense Department official, Daniel Ellsberg,
leaked a Pentagon study of the Vietnam War to the New York
Times newspaper. It was published and became known as **the
Pentagon Papers. The papers showed that previous presidents
lied to Americans about the war.
• Nixon was afraid secret information about his negotiations with
the Chinese & Russians would be leaked.
Daniel Ellsberg - - former
Defense Department official
who delivered the “Pentagon
Papers” to the New York Times
newspaper.
**The Plumbers
• Nixon approved a plan to hire
people, known as **the
plumbers, to stop the leaks.
• **The plumbers were E.
Howard Hunt, a former CIA
agent, and G. Gordon Liddy, a
former FBI agent.
• They broke into the office of
Daniel Ellsberg’s psychiatrist,
looking for damaging
information to use against
him.
E. Howard Hunt
G. Gordon Liddy
Nixon = Tricky Dicky
Examples:
1. Edmund Muskie was a candidate for Pres. In 1972. Nixon’s staff
wrote a letter claiming his wife was an alcoholic. Muskie broke
down in tears, on TV.
2. Sent hecklers to disrupt Democratic campaign meetings.
3. Planted spies on the campaigns of major democratic candidates
for president.
**The Watergate Scandal
• 1972 - **The plumbers (working for Nixon’s Reelection
Campaign) broke into the Democratic Party Headquarters at the
Watergate Apartments. They put wiretaps on the phones to find
out damaging information about the Democrats.
• A security guard caught them and all 5 were arrested.
• They were carrying money that the FBI traced back to Nixon’s
campaign.
• Nixon made a huge mistake by contacting the CIA. He told them
to try to stop the FBI’s investigation.
• Nixon’s staff paid the plumbers “hush money” & coached them
on how to lie to the jury.
• 1972 - Nixon won re-election by a landslide, over **Senator
George McGovern, the democratic candidate.
Senator George McGovern, of South Dakota, was the
Democratic Party’s candidate for president in 1972.
He was solidly defeated by Richard Nixon.
**The Watergate Scandal
• At the Watergate Trial, all of the 5 burglars were found guilty. **Judge
John J. Sirica felt that the truth had not come out. He gave the burglars
the maximum prison sentence (40 yrs.) in order to force them to talk!
Sentences would be reduced if they cooperated with the coming senate
Watergate hearings.
• **Bob Woodward & Carl Bernstein were news reporters for the
Washington Post newspaper. They did research & started to uncover
the story.
• In 1973, the Senate Watergate Hearings began. Many of the burglars
told the truth in exchange for reduced sentences.
• Nixon forced his top two aides, H.R. Haldeman & John Ehrlichman to
resign in an attempt to protect himself.
• In the hearings it came out that Nixon had a tape recorder that taped all
meetings and phone calls in the Oval Office.
Carl Bernstein (left) and Bob Woodward (right) are the two
Washington Post newspaper reporters that exposed the Watergate
Scandal.
**Special Prosecutors & “The Saturday Night
Massacre”
In an attempt to prove himself to be honest, President Nixon agreed
to appoint a special Watergate prosecutor.
Archibald Cox, a Harvard law professor, was chosen as the **special
prosecutor. A special prosecutor works for the U.S. Justice
Department, but carries out an *independent investigation of those
that have been accused of illegal actions (in this case, the
President). Special prosecutors are thought to be more truthful
since the government has less control over them.
Archibald Cox asked for President Nixon’s tape recordings of calls
from the White House. Nixon refused and Cox kept asking for them.
Nixon fired Archibald Cox and this caused a series of firings and
resignations that became known as “The Saturday Night Massacre”
since it happened on a Saturday (Oct. 20, 1973).
**Special Prosecutors & “The Saturday Night
Massacre”
Next Leon Jaworski was appointed as **special prosecutor and he
also requested the tape recordings from the White House! In
response, Nixon released edited transcripts of his conversations.
The transcripts made Nixon look more suspicious.
In July of 1974, the House (of Representatives) Judiciary Committee
started hearings to determine whether or not to **impeach President
Nixon. The hearings were broadcast on television and made Nixon
look bad. The committee voted to impeach Nixon for: obstruction of
justice, abuse of power, and refusal to obey a congressional order to
turn over the tapes of his conversations.
On August 5, 1974, Nixon followed the Supreme Court order to turn
over the tape recordings, but 18 ½ minutes of tape had been cut out.
Still, the tapes proved that Nixon was involved in the Watergate
Scandal.
On August 9, 1974, President Nixon became the first president ever
to resign the presidency!!
Archibald Cox, Special
Prosecutor # 1
Leon Jaworski, Special
Prosecutor # 2
Nixon’s job
approval
throughout his
presidency.
Nixon will forever be remembered for the statement he made as he left the presidency, “I am NOT a crook.”