1. The Nixon Years:
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2. 1969 had its moments… July: Neil Armstrong landed on the moon
Aug: Woodstock Festival
Oct: “Miracle Mets” won the World Series
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4. Woodstock
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6. Max Yasgur’s farm Upstate New York
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7. The main stage under construction
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9. Janis Joplin
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10. The Grateful Dead
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12. Jimi
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13. Crosby, Stills, & Nash
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14. Joe Cocker
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15. Watching from backstage
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16. Carlos Santana
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18. After the rains
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19. The Who
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20. Richie Havens
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21. The Jefferson Airplane
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22. Alvin Lee of Ten Years After
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23. Country Joe and the Fish
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24. About 500,000 people gathered in upstate NY for 3 days of peace and music in the summer of ‘69
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25. Nixon and Vietnam
Nixon’s chief advisor on foreign affairs was U.S. Sec. of State Henry Kissinger
“Vietnamization”: turning over control / responsibility to the South Vietnamese
U.S. begins withdrawal…25,000 troops out in summer of ’69
(Over next 3 years: down from 500,000 to 25,000)
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26. But…
Even as troops were coming home, Nixon ordered bombing of Laos and Cambodia
1970: ordered invasion of Cambodia
Immediate reaction on college campuses…students went on strike (more than 1,200 campuses struck)
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27. Kent State University
Student protesters set fire to the ROTC building…
The Ohio governor called in the Nat’l. Guard
On May 4, 1970 the 2 sides confronted one another: students threw rocks and bottles
Guardsmen answered by firing 65 shots into the crowd, killing 4 and wounding 13 others
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29. “Peace with honor”
It was important to Nixon for the U.S. to exit the war honorably…to avoid the humiliation of having lost the war
The Paris Peace Talks had begun before Nixon took office but negotiations were difficult and often stalled
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30. Main goals of the negotiations:
U.S. Wanted:
All communist troops out of So. Vietnam
Return of American POWs
N. Vietnamese wanted:
Immediate withdrawal of US troops
Coalition gov’t. in the South to include Vietcong
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31. The Pentagon Papers
Classified gov’t. documents on U.S. in Vietnam leaked to NY Times
Co-author Daniel Ellsberg at the eye of the storm
Nixon tried to block publication (NY Times v. United States)…Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Times
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32. End of the War Paris Peace Accords: January, 1973
American troops coming home
N Vietnam to keep troops in S. Vietnam
NLF to become legit political party in S. Vietnam
N. Vietnam to return American POWs (Sen. John McCain was one of them)
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33. Peace finally…or not
Spring of 1975, N. Vietnamese launched attacks against the South
Without U.S. support, the ARVN was doomed
American Embassy in Saigon overrun
Vietnam unified under 1 flag…the flag of communist North Vietnam
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34. Evacuation of the US Embassy: Saigon 1975
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35. Re-election and Downfall
Nixon re-elected in 1972
Would not see the end of his 2nd term…
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36. Watergate Watergate was a hotel & office complex in the D.C. area
Democratic Nat’l. Committee HQ’s at W-Gate
5 “burglars” were caught bugging the Dems offices
Who put them up to this and why???
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37. The trail leads to the White House
The burglars were tied to Nixon’s Committee to Re-Elect the President (“CREEP”)
Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein dug deeper and deeper
Their investigation linked knowledge of the illegal activities to high ranking members of Nixon’s staff…and to the Oval Office itself!
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38. Closing in on Nixon
March, 1974: grand jury indicts 7 of Nixon’s aides on charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and perjury…Nixon’s 2 top advisors were amongst the 7 indicted
July, 1974: House Judiciary Comm. approved 3 articles of impeachment, charging Nixon with obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of Congress
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39. Why was Nixon about to be impeached?
It was clear that he knew of the break-in at DNC
He approved a cover-up of the break-in and other campaign “dirty tricks”
He tried to block the FBI’s investigation
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40. Resignation Rather than face impeachment, Nixon resigned in disgrace
His VP, Gerald R. Ford was sworn in as Pres. soon thereafter
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41. Nixon says goodbye
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42. Effects of the Watergate scandal
25 members of RMN’s administration served jail terms
Americans disillusioned with politics and the “imperial” Presidency… presidents acting above the law, like emperors
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