Unit 12 1970’s Conflict and Change Nixon, Ford and Carter

Nixon Presidency 1969-1974

Nixon Presidency (1969-1974) Richard Nixon began what is known as the Imperial Presidency --Presidential power and influence reaches its peak Radio & TV allow direct access to voters President uses more advisers (instead of cabinet members that need Congressional approval) move the country in a more conservative direction.

Nixon Presidency (1969-1974) Nixon began US withdrawal from Vietnam In 1972 Equal Rights Amendment (cannot deny equal rights on account of sex) approved by Congress, but never ratified by the states

Nixon: Constitutional Issues During Nixon’s term in office you had several Supreme Court decisions that protected the constitutional rights of Americans -White v. Regester: Supreme Court ruling that ruled that lines drawn for voting districts in Texas discriminated against racial/ethnic groups. States must create voting districts that do not intentionally dilute the voting power of minorities -Wisconsin v. Yoder: US Supreme Court struck down a Wisconsin state law that required Amish students to attend school beyond 8th grade because it violated Amish parent’s religious beliefs under the 1st amendment and conflicted with Amish values and ways of life. Roe v. Wade: Supreme Court strikes down state laws outlawing abortion, legalizing abortion in the United States

Nixon: Deals with Inflation To deal with Inflation(rising prices) Nixon did 3 things: 1) Nixon imposed temporary price and wage controls 2) He took the US off gold standard with a shift toward fiat money Fiat money is currency that a government has declared to be legal tender, but is not backed by a physical commodity. The value of fiat money is derived from the relationship between supply and demand rather than the value of the material that the money is made of. 3) Nixon cut federal spending and eliminated several Great Society programs and gave the money to state and local governments.

Nixon: Domestic Policy Nixon ended the draft, increased anti-crime laws, and broadened environmental laws and agencies. Environmental Protection Agency-a government agency that protects Americans’ health and the natural environment by setting and enforcing pollution standards Endangered Species Act--requires the Fish and Wildlife Service to list plants and animals that are threatened with extinction and then take steps to protect them

Nixon: Foreign Policy Nixon believed that the President’s most important role was directing foreign policy. He was greatly assisted by his closest advisor Henry Kissinger in deciding US foreign policy during the 1970’s.

Nixon: Foreign Policy USSR Nixon wanted to pursue a policy of détente (relaxing tensions) with the Soviet Union (USSR). Nixon signs SALT I, an agreement to limit the development of missile systems. He also sold American grain to the Soviet Union to ease food shortages. Also when war breaks out in the Middle East, the U.S. and USSR both help to arrange a ceasefire.

Nixon: Foreign Policy OPEC Supported Israel in the Yom Kippur War (1973) where Israel was attacked by Egypt and Syria This support of Israel led to the 1973 oil crisis where OPEC countries did not trade oil with the U.S. as a result Nixon lowered the maximum U.S speed limit to 55 miles per hour to conserve gasoline during the crisis

Nixon: Foreign Policy (CHINA) Since China became Communist in 1949 the US had refused to have any diplomatic ties with them In 1972, Nixon became the first U.S. president to visit the Chinese mainland The opening of relations with China was Nixon’s greatest foreign policy achievement.

Accomplishments U.S astronauts landed on the moon—1969 Nixon approved the development of NASA’s Space Shuttle program

The Fall of Nixon

Nixon: Appointment of Ford In 1973 Nixon’s Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned when it was discovered that he took bribes as governor. Using the 25th amendment Nixon appointed Gerald Ford as his new Vice President

Nixon: Watergate Scandal in 1972 a group of former CIA agents working for Nixon’s re-election for President were caught breaking into Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate Complex in Washington DC. Members of the Committee to Re-elect the President CRP, aka CREEP -This incident is going to cause the greatest scandal of Nixon’s presidency.

WATERGATE Two Washington Post reporters, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, investigated the story Woodward and Bernstein relied on an FBI informant known as “DEEP THROAT” to link the men to Nixon and the White House—”Follow the money”

Nixon: Watergate Scandal Nixon immediately begins to cover up the investigation of Watergate by saying that it involved National Security. The links between the White House and the break-in are reported by the two reporters. This causes both the Senate and attorney general to launch investigations.

Nixon: Watergate Scandal During the investigation aides to the President testified that Nixon had secretly recorded all of his White House conversations. The Senate asks for the tapes and Nixon refuses claiming executive privilege. (Congress has no right to question the executive branch without presidential approval) It goes to court and in US v. Nixon (1974) the Supreme Court said that Nixon must turn over the tapes, reaffirming the principle that no one is above the law.

Nixon resigns When the tapes become public, they reveal that Nixon had lied about his role and involvement in the cover-up. The House of Reps moves to impeach Fearing removal from office Nixon becomes the first President to resign.

Impact of Watergate… Lowered public confidence in government too much power for president leads to abuse (congress passes laws to restore balance between executive and legislative) shows US gov’t is based on laws and checks and balances two party system works, can watch each other reaffirms role of press in uncovering govt misconduct Supreme Court preserves its independence

Ford Presidency 1974-1976

Ford’s Presidency

Ford Presidency (1974-1976) Gerald Ford becomes President of the United States in 1974 when Nixon resigns only President who was appointed and not elected One of his first acts as president was to pardon Richard Nixon, this greatly angered many Americans

Ford: deals with stagflation Ford faces the problem of Stagflation Partially created by the rise of oil prices Stagflation is when inflation (rising prices) meets stagnation (sluggish economy)

Ford: Oil Crisis Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) was formed in 1960 In 1973 OPEC imposes an oil embargo on U.S. and Western Europe for supporting Israel in 1973 war Price of Oil in US skyrockets, and has a significant impact on US economy Prices on food, gasoline, electricity, and heat increase across the nation

Ford: Foreign Policy Ford continued Nixon’s détente policy with Soviet Union Leads to Helsinki Accords where US, Canada, and most of Europe recognize post WWII borders and respect for human rights

Carter Presidency 1977-1981

Peanuts for Jimmy

Carter: election of 1976 Jimmy Carter campaigned and was elected on a promise to clean up Washington D.C. He also wanted US to set a moral example to other nations

Carter: Domestic Policy Created the Department of Energy to deal with energy crisis US began to create a strategic oil reserve in case of national emergency, tax on large cars Dealt with stagflation by cutting federal spending

Carter: Domestic Policy Community Reinvestment Act—required banks to make credit available in poor communities Wanted to prevent the decay of low-income neighborhoods

Carter: Foreign Policy Carter signs the Panama Canal Treaty which returned the canal zone, except for the canal, over to Panama By the end of the century (12 AM December 31 1999) Panama had total control over the canal and canal zone

Carter: Foreign Policy (ISRAEL) After the holocaust, Israel had been the homeland of the Jews since 1948 -U.S. policy had traditionally been very supportive of Israel in the form of economic & military aid

Carter: Foreign Policy (ISRAEL) In 1977 Carter invited Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Menachem Begin of Israel to Camp David for peace talks Created the Camp David Accords which states that Israel returns the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt, and Egypt offers a peace treaty and normal diplomatic relations with Israel

Carter: Foreign Policy USSR Carter initially continues Nixon’s policy of détente After the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, U.S.-Soviet Relations deteriorated U.S. halted grain sales to USSR, boycotted 1980 Olympics, and postponed SALT II

Carter: Iran Hostage Crisis Iran Hostage Crisis begins with the overthrow of the Shah of Iran and his relocation to the US Iranian students following Ayatollah Khomeini seized the U.S. Embassy and held the staff hostage for 444 days

Carter: Iran Hostage Crisis U.S. imposed sanctions Launched a failed rescue attempt but the inability to free the hostages damages the U.S.’s image and credibility across the world The hostages are finally released on Jimmy Carter’s last day in office.

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