The Nixon Presidency  The Election of 1968  The divided Democrats settled on Hubert Humphrey  Former Alabama Governor, George Wallace ran as an independent  Wallace’s pro-war, anti-hippie, anti- civil rights message appealed to many northerners as well

The Nixon Presidency

 After losing to JFK in 1960, he lost a run for California governor in 1962  “You won’t have Nixon to kick around anymore…”  Nixon was resurrected in 1968

The Nixon Presidency  Nixon governed as a moderate Republican (not a Goldwater Republican)  Supported affirmative action  Eventually supported the EPA and OSHA  Increased Social Security payments

Nixon and Vietnam  VIETNAMIZATION – “Peace with Honor” Reduce U.S. troops on the ground in Vietnam while turning over more responsibility to the South Vietnamese  1969 – Secret bombings of Cambodia  1970 – Nixon tells the public Student protests across country May 4, 1970 Kent State (Ohio) May 14, 1970 Jackson State (Mississippi)

The Nixon Presidency  “Playing the China Card”; Ping- Pong Diplomacy  China and the Soviet Union had increased tension in the early 70’s  Nixon and Kissinger chose to court the Chinese  Nixon made a historic visit to Communist China in 1972  Only a staunch anti-communist could do this

The Nixon Presidency  Détente with the Soviets  SALT I  Leonid Brezhnev

Watergate  June 17, 1972  Burglars arrested at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C.  Home of the Democratic National Committee  They had cameras and tape recorders with them…not your typical burglars

Watergate  One of the burglars, James McCord, was a former CIA agent and on the payroll of CREEP  The Nixon White House denied any connection  Two reporters from the Washington Post refused to let the story die (Woodward and Bernstein)

Watergate  Election of 1972  Despite the Washington Post’s coverage of the story, Nixon won a huge landslide  China, Détente, Near peace in Vietnam

Watergate  The story snowballed in 1973 and Congress began investigating the president  “What did the president know and when did he know it?”

Watergate  The investigations in 1973 and 1974 revealed the following Two of Nixon’s closest aids (Hunt and Liddy) were guiding the burglars that night via walkie-talkie The Attorney General had a secret fund to discredit Democratic candidates (forging letters, false news leaks…Dirty Tricks!!...“Tricky Dick”) Nixon received illegal campaign contributions from major corporations in 1972

Watergate Hunt and Liddy burglarized the office of Daniel Ellsberg’s psychiatrist in order to discredit him Nixon suggested that hush money be paid to the burglars Nixon used public money to install “security” at his private homes in California and Florida

Watergate  During all of this, VP Spiro Agnew resigned after being indicted for receiving bribes while Maryland governor  Congress limited the president’s war-making power and reasserted its own power with the War Powers Act of 1973 (has NOT been strictly enforced)

Watergate  And then the bombshell of bombshells…  Nixon taped his conversations!!!!

Watergate  The tapes would eventually reveal what is commonly known as the “smoking gun”  On June 23, 1972 Nixon gave an order to the CIA to tell the FBI to back off of any investigation into Watergate (on grounds of national security)  Obstruction of Justice

Watergate  Go to 20 th Century program on the last weeks of the Nixon presidency