The Life and Politics of Richard Nixon 1913-1994 President of the United States 1969-1974

Richard Milhous Nixon Born in Yorba Linda, California Product of The Great Depression Very poor, very religious upbringing Lost two brothers to Tuberculosis Forced to turn down scholarships to elite universities due to financial limitations Yale Harvard Attended Whittier College and , later, Duke University Many activities Debate Team Football Basketball Track Student Body President

Service Record Lawyer Lt. Commander in the United States Navy Congress Senate Vice-President President Passionate Communism Fighter

Congress and Communism Elected to California’s 12th District in 1946 Gained popularity and credibility with Republicans and Anti-Roosevelt Democrats with the Alger Hiss case Hiss, a State Department Official was accused of being a spy Nixon worked day and night to prove Hiss was a liar and a spy While Hiss was convicted of perjury, he was never convicted of spying Nixon became a leader in the Republican party

Senate Campaign Challenged Democrat Incumbent Helen Douglas Very bitter campaign “She is pink, right down to her underwear!” Douglas referred to Nixon as “Tricky Dick” because of his underhanded campaign tactics Elected to the Senate in 1950 Used the Senate as a means to fight Communism

Vice-President Because of his popularity, he was selected to run for Vice-President with Dwight Eisenhower in 1952 Almost removed from the ticket when it was alleged that he accepted gifts from donors for his personal use Eisenhower was urged to remove Nixon, but was reluctant, fearing that he couldn’t win without him “Checkers Speech” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9LcAJOsFGg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjHoH2m3iKA

Vice-Presidency “Checkers Speech” was a hit, and the momentum propelled Eisenhower and Nixon to the White House Expanded the role of the Vice-President Visited many foreign countries for debate and diplomacy “Kitchen Debate” in Moscow Took place in the Soviet Union at an exposition showing off life in America Debate between Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and Nixon about communism and capitalism Nixon proved to be a gifted debater and statesman

Election of 1960 Nixon ran to succeed Eisenhower in 1960 One of three Republicans in the primaries One of the other Republicans was Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater Opposed Senator John Kennedy Nixon seemed to have the upper hand More experience in politics Older More established

The Nixon Kennedy Debates After securing the nomination, Nixon attacked Kennedy on issues of foreign and domestic policy He attacked Kennedy’s inexperience and tapped into his own experience with foreign policy and national security When it came to the issues, Nixon was essentially flawless The first televised Presidential Debates Changed all of that Still frame from the 1960 Presidential Debate

The Debates Nixon’s campaign had been suspended while he was recovering from an infection Upon being cleared by doctors, he began to vigorously make up for lost time Not enough time to recover Physically very weak and tired He insisted on campaigning until just hours before the first debate

The Television Kennedy, who was young, attractive, and fresh knew how to use the media of television to his advantage He looked energetic and confident People saw him as Presidential Nixon, still weak and tired from his infection, refused stage make up and any physical prep for the debate He looked sick, tired and uncomfortable People saw him as old… This debate was a turning point in the entire election https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rryq8zi4OMg

The Election of 1960

The Outcome Winner, winner, Chicken Dinner! Aw, Nuts! Vice-President Richard Nixon (R-CA) Senator John Kennedy (D-MA) Electoral Votes: 219 Popular Vote: 34,108,157 Electoral Votes: 303 Popular Votes: 34,220,984

Kennedy wins a close one… Kennedy’s victory isn’t certain until late in the night of November 8, 1960 The election is a extremely close Substantial margin of victory for Kennedy in the Electoral College Kennedy wins by .1% of the popular vote, the closest vote in American history. Accusations of voter fraud and irregularities plague the outcome Lyndon Johnson in Texas Mayor Richard Daly in Chicago “Dick, they stole this one fair and square…”

Nixon Post election Series of political disasters, culminating in an unsuccessful run for California Governor in 1962 After his defeat he retreat from politics, vowing to never run again “You won’t have Nixon to kick around anymore…” Plagued by self pity and doubt Was basically written off as a politician until the election of 1968. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JA1edgj1U5E