Nixon Era, Governing to the Right

1968 Presidential Election Electoral Vote

Nixon’s “Mandate”

Nixon’s 1968 “Mandate” A “Minority” President: 43% of Popular Vote George Wallace won 14% of popular vote and 5 Southern states on “states’ rights,” “anti civil rights” platform Nixon promised “peace with honor” in Vietnam But Congress was solidly Democratic

Nixon’s Political Challenge Extricating the United States from Vietnam Working with the Democratic Congress Addressing the emerging problems with the slowing economy: unemployment, rising inflation and trade deficit caused by Johnson’s spending policies Defining a conservative domestic agenda on social welfare, civil rights, poverty, the environment, and law and order.

Securing A Republican Majority: Political Realignment The Republicans needed to draw voters away from the Democratic Party by identifying constituencies disaffected with the policies of the Kennedy/Johnson era. –The Southern Strategy to convert white southern Democrats to the Republican Party –Working Class White Ethnics: convert labor Democrats to Republicans –Suburbanites

The Demagogic Appeal to the “Silent Majority” Vice President Spiro Agnew attacked the “excesses” of sixties liberalism and radicalism, labeling opponents of Nixon’s policies: –"nattering nabobs of negativism," –"pusillanimous pussyfoots" –"hopeless, hysterical hypochondriacs of history" –"effete corps of impudent snobs"

Political Divide according to Nixon Pro Nixon Voters: “The Silent Majority” –the middle class, –blue collar workers –Sunbelt residents, –ethnics (e.g., white ethnics) The Opposition: –Advocates of “forced busing” –Hippies –“Welfare chiselers” –People “soft on crime” –Antiwar activists –Drug users –Advocates of sexual permissiveness

Political Practice Vietnam War –Escalation of the conflict with May 1970 Cambodian invasion –Change the selective service system to a lottery system –Vietnamization of the fighting: e.g., reduce American casualties –Punish the North Vietnamese into negotiating –Ignore antiwar protests

Political Practice Domestic: New Federalism –Replace “welfare” with a work incentive program, “workfare” - not implemented – Revenue sharing: distribute federal revenue to state and local governments rather than through federal programs –War on drugs: create the DEA –Promote environmental improvement, creating the Environmental Protection Agency and laws to promote clean air, clean water, recycling, protection of wilderness and natural resources

Political Practice Civil Rights: –Enforce affirmative action, including in blue collar trade unions –Title IX guaranteeing equality in sports in educational institutions –Used the Justice Department to oppose busing to desegregate schools. Courts continued to support desegregation, including using busing.

Political Practice Rhetoric:Nixon appealed to conservative rhetoric, and used Agnew to mobilize the Republican ‘base’ Reality: He governed closer to the center, and compromised and supported Democratic initiatives. In return, he dampened the liberal thrust of the Kennedy/Johnson initiatives

Clouds on the Economic Horizon From the US economy had unprecedented prosperity By 1970, the European and Asian economies devastated by WWII had “caught” up with the American economy, and had newer, more advanced technologies or production in many cases Johnson’s deficit spending on the Vietnam war undermined the U.S. dollar which had supported the international monetary system since 1945

Clouds on the Economic Horizon 1945: Bretton Woods agreement made the US the guarantor of world monetary stability by pegging the dollar to gold at $35 an ounce. By 1971, US could not sustain the system and went off the gold standard, effectively devaluing the dollar

1970

1969

1972 Presidential Election Electoral Vote

1976 Presidential Election Electoral Vote

1980 Presidential Election Electoral Vote