Even though he left public life more than 40 years ago, Richard Nixon is still a controversial figure. He had a meteoric rise in politics, and an even steeper fall. Nixon was considered to be a complex and transitional politician (Miller Center of Public Affairs 19). He had a number of positive accomplishments during his presidency, especially in foreign policy, but his methods were often less than completely ethical.
Biography
Richard Milhous Nixon was born January 9, 1913, the second of five children, in Yorba Linda, CA, a small farming community (“Richard Nixon Biography” 1). His father was a failed lemon farmer, later a service station owner, and his mother was a Quaker (Miller Center of Public Affairs 1). Growing up poor and losing two siblings at a young age, Nixon had a difficult childhood.
Nixon graduated from Whittier High School in California, where he participated in the student government and excelled in debate (Miller Center of Public Affairs 1). After graduating from Duke University Law School, he went back to Whittier and practiced law. It was there that he met his future wife, Thelma Catherine “Pat” Ryan. The couple was married in 1940 and had two daughters, Tricia and Julie (“Richard Nixon Biography” 1).
In 1942 Nixon moved to Washington, D.C. where he continued working as an attorney. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War II, but saw no combat and resigned his commission in 1946 (“Richard Nixon Biography” 2). His political career began shortly after that, when he was elected to Congress in 1948 and served on the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). He played a leading role in the investigation of Alger Hiss, who was accused of spying for the Soviet Union, and gained the reputation for being fervently anti-Communist (“Richard Nixon Biography” 2).
Nixon’s meteoric political rise continued when he was elected to the Senate in 1950. Because of some questionable campaign tactics, he earned the nickname “Tricky Dick,” which would stick with him for the rest of his career (Miller Center of Public Affairs 2). After he was elected as Eisenhower’s vice president in 1952, a story appeared in the NY Post, reporting that Nixon had a secret slush fund, financed from campaign donations, and that he was using it for personal purposes. Nixon acknowledged the fund – it was not illegal – but denied using it improperly. From this incident, Nixon developed a deep distrust of the media, which would continue to grow during his presidency (“Richard Nixon Biography” 2; Rosen 24).
After narrowly losing the presidential race to John F. Kennedy in 1960, Nixon returned to California to practice law (“Richard Nixon Biography” 3). He ran for governor in California in 1962, but lost by a wide margin, and he told the country that he was finished with politics. However, he moved to New York and continued to work as an attorney as he began to cultivate a network. In 1968 he again ran for president, and this time he won in a close race (Miller Center of Public Affairs 5).
Political Philosophy
Nixon began his presidency in a time of controversy and unrest in the United States. The American involvement in Vietnam had escalated, and protests against the war were becoming more prominent. The cold war with the Soviet Union and China was at its coldest, segregation was still dominant, and the American economy was in trouble.
Vietnam was the major national issue as Nixon began his presidency. More American troops were sent to fight there, and more were dying there. Nixon promised during his campaign to bring “peace with honor” (“Richard Nixon Biography” 4). However, efforts to end the war peacefully were unsuccessful. Determined to get the US out of the war, Nixon starting bringing the troops home (Sestanovich 99). To support the withdrawal, as well as to encourage peace talks, Nixon stepped up the air attack on North Vietnam and ordered the illegal bombing of North Vietnamese support areas in Laos and Cambodia and the incursion of US soldiers into Cambodia (“Richard Nixon Biography” 6). These actions prompted another wave of citizen protests.
Nixon carried out these actions without Congressional approval. His aids “were awestruck at the lying and skullduggery surrounding and concealing the plans for the secret bombing of Cambodia” (Weiner 39). He authorized warrantless wiretaps and spied on American citizens, all in the name of national security, as he defined it. He believed these actions were not illegal because he was the president.
“Politics was a war for Richard Nixon, a war in which all was fair” (Weiner 16). Paranoia and distrust marked Nixon’s time in office. His distrust of the media grew with the negative coverage of the Vietnam War and increased even more when secret documents about the war were leaked to the press (Rosen 24). Nixon also believed that foreign governments were behind the anti-war protests in a number of universities. His paranoia led to the secret taping in the Oval Office and the break-in at the Democratic headquarters in the Watergate Hotel.
Accomplishments as president
During the Nixon administration, a flurry of regulations were introduced and imposed. Domestically, Nixon created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to make work places safer (“Richard Nixon Biography” 4). In an effort to appease Southerners in his party, he helped support school segregation through locally controlled committees. Nixon also created a Presidential Task Force on Women’s Rights and appointed a greater number of women, against the advice of others in his administration (“Richard Nixon Biography” 6).
Ever the politician, Nixon supported issues for political reasons. Nationwide, concern over the environment was growing, and “President Nixon sensed a political opportunity and a need” (“Richard Nixon Biography” 5). He responded by proposing an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), while strengthening the Clean Air Act. However, he also vetoed the Clean Water Act and impounded billions of dollars after Congress overrode the veto.
Although it passed a large number of domestic regulations, Nixon’s administration gained much more notoriety because of its foreign policy. Working closely with his assistant for national security affairs, Henry Kissinger, Nixon took control of the country’s diplomatic relations. Nixon and Kissinger’s “foreign-policy achievements stand alone” (Sestanovich 101).
Despite his staunch anti-Communist beliefs, “Nixon saw opportunities to improve relations with the Soviet Union and establish relations with the People’s Republic of China” (Miller Center 12). He to get credit for easing Cold War tensions with the two countries, while also using these relations to pressure North Vietnam to end the war (Miller Center 12).
Nixon tentatively reached out to China during his first year in office. Following an invitation from the Chinese government for an American table tennis team to travel there for an exhibition, Nixon made a highly publicized trip to China in 1972 (Miller Center 12). This was closely followed by an American president’s first visit to Moscow. The improved relations with the Soviet Union allowed the negotiation and signing of a Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty and an Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, but had no impact on Vietnam (Miller Center 13).
Impact on American Society
The impact of Richard Nixon on American society was profound and is still being felt today, both positively and negatively. The effects of some of his domestic and foreign policies contributed to current events. Unfortunately, Nixon’s biggest impact on American society was a result of the scandal that caused his impeachment and subsequent resignation from the Presidency of the United States.
Domestically, Nixon’s accomplishments in some areas, such as race relations, women’s rights, and the environment, are continuing to be felt today through the evolution and expansion of the policies and regulations started during his administration. Although he’s not responsible for starting desegregation, Nixon’s actions advanced its reversal. Also, the Women’s Rights Movement has only grown since Nixon helped bring it to the forefront.
Nixon was also a major contributor to the rise of the conservative movement and its representative, Ronald Reagan (Rosen 22). “A generation of the American right arose with Nixon; through them, his influence resounds down the decades” (Weiner 28). Many future prominent political figures served under Nixon, including George H. W. Bush and Dick Cheney. His appointments to the Supreme Court, Rehnquist and Scalia, helped shaped American law for decades (Weiner 28).
Larger impacts occurred in international relations. Nixon’s diplomatic efforts with the Soviet Union and China were successful in helping ease the tensions of the Cold War. The positive diplomatic relations between America and its former adversaries continues today. China is now more open than ever and communists no longer govern the countries of the former Soviet Union.
However, the biggest legacy of Richard Nixon may well be cynicism and distrust of the government. In 1972, Nixon and his top aides attempted to sabotage the Democratic Party by, among other tactics, breaking in to the Democratic headquarters in the Watergate hotel (Miller Center 9). Nixon covered up his role in the break-in by denying knowledge of it. He also refused to release the secret tape recordings made in the Oval Office, claiming executive privilege. After the Supreme Court demanded the tapes be released, the cover-up disintegrated, and Nixon became the only president impeached by the House in 1974 (Miller Center 11).
Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. He and his wife returned to their home in San Clemente, California where Nixon wrote books and published his memoirs. His wife passed in 1993, and Nixon followed her shorty after. He died on April 22, 1994 (“Richard Nixon Biography” 8).
The Watergate scandal, as well as his other political maneuverings, incited a great distrust in the government and other bureaucratic institutions by the American public. Nixon’s paranoia and scheming caused the majority of a generation of citizens to become cynical towards all authority and to question the motives of any leadership. His distrust of the press also caused a lot of people today to question the media’s purposes. Nixon also left the country with a new term; the suffix -gate is now used to indicate a scandal.
Annotated Bibliography
Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia. Richard Nixon. n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2016.
The Miller Center of Public Affair’s essay includes a general biography of Richard Nixon’s life, both during and outside of his presidency. The author argued that Nixon was a transformational figure in the history of the United States in the areas of politics, diplomacy and the military. Emphasis is placed on Nixon’s political actions and foreign affairs accomplishments.
"Richard Nixon Biography." The Biography.com website. n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2016.
This article provides an inclusive summary of the life of Richard M. Nixon, from his birth in 1913 to his death in 1994. All aspects of his biography are given appropriate space, while none are strongly emphasized, and the article is completely objective. The author does not render an opinion, either good or bad, about any facets of Nixon’s life.
Rosen, James. "Nixon at 100." National Review 65.1 (2013): 22-26. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.
In this article, Rosen argued that current members of the Republican party should revive their interest in Richard Nixon. Despite his mishandling of the Watergate scandal, Nixon helped define the new Republicans and ushered in the conservative movement. Rosen contended that Nixon deserves more credit for his part in creating the American Right.
Sestanovich, Stephen. "The Long History of Leading from Behind." Atlantic 317.1 (2016): 94-107. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.
This article discusses the foreign policy activities of Richard Nixon and his advisor Henry Kissinger. Sestanovich investigated Nixon’s foreign policy through the varied viewpoints of four recently published books on the topic. Comparisons were also made between Nixon’s and Obama’s administrations on their handling of international relations.
Weiner, Tim. One Man Against the World: The Tragedy of Richard Nixon. New York: Henry Holt and Company, LLC, 2015. Print.
In writing this book, Weiner had access to all of Nixon’s secret tapes and documents. He portrayed the former president as an insecure and dangerous man whose paranoia and political deceptions pulled the country apart. This book is focused almost entirely on Nixon’s actions during his presidency.
Works Cited
Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia. Richard Nixon. n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2016.
"Richard Nixon Biography." The Biography.com website. n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2016.
Rosen, James. "Nixon at 100." National Review 65.1 (2013): 22-26. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.
Sestanovich, Stephen. "The Long History of Leading from Behind." Atlantic 317.1 (2016): 94-107. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.
Weiner, Tim. One Man Against the World: The Tragedy of Richard Nixon. New York: Henry Holt and Company, LLC, 2015. Print.
