1. Essential Question:
Do the negative effects of the Watergate scandal truly deserve to overshadow the positive foreign policy accomplishments of Richard Nixon?
Lesson Plan for Wednesday, March 25, 2008: RQ 29B, Nixon video, Nixon notes

2. The Presidency of Richard Nixon

3. The Republican Resurgence
In 1968, Republicans benefited from the Vietnam disaster & division in the Democratic party:
Richard Nixon (R) ran as the one candidate who could restore order in America
Humphrey (D) was plagued by anti-war protesters
George Wallace (3rd) attacked blacks & liberals
Nixon won by narrow victory

4. Nixon claimed to represent the “silent majority” who worked, paid taxes, & did not protest
Nixon won by narrow victory

5. Nixon won by narrow victory
Nixon was the first candidate to appreciate the new importance of the “Sunbelt”: military bases, high-tech industries, retirement communities, anti-segregationists made the South more conservative than before

6. The End of an Era The presidential election of 1968 ended 30 years of:
Liberal reform—Americans began to favor conservative political leaders
Activist foreign policy—Vietnam proved that Containment failed to be applied to global scale
A “silent majority” seemed fed up with protest, violence, long hair, drug use, & sexual promiscuity

7. Foreign Policy
Nixon proved to be an effective foreign-policy president:
Most foreign policy decisions were made by Nixon & National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger
Developed a plan for détente (a relaxing of Cold War tensions):
An “honorable” exit from Vietnam
Using U.S. trade to induce cooperation from the USSR
Improved relations with China

8. Ending the Vietnam War
Nixon’s plan for an “honorable peace” was “Vietnamization”:
Gradual withdraw of U.S. troops and handing over the fighting to South Vietnamese troops
Privately, Nixon hoped for a “knockout blow” & ordered U.S. troops into Cambodia & Laos
These bombings were conducted without the consent or approval of Congress
In 1973, Congress passed the War Powers Act requiring Congress’ approval to send U.S. forces into combat for more than 90 days & must inform Congress within 48 hours
The effect was the largest series of protests in American history
Protests at Kent State & Jackson State resulted in bloody confrontations between students & National Guard
In the 1968 election, Republican Richard Nixon claimed to have a plan to end the war in Vietnam, but, in fact, it took him five years to disengage the United States from Vietnam. Indeed, Richard Nixon presided over as many years of war in Indochina as did Johnson. About a third of the Americans who died in combat were killed during the Nixon presidency.
Insofar as he did have a plan to bring "peace with honor," it mainly entailed reducing American casualties by having South Vietnamese soldiers bear more of the ground fighting--a process he called "Vietnamization"--and defusing anti-war protests by ending the military draft. Nixon provided the South Vietnamese army with new training and improved weapons and tried to frighten the North Vietnamese to the peace table by demonstrating his willingness to bomb urban areas and mine harbors. He also hoped to orchestrate Soviet and Chinese pressure on North Vietnam.
The most controversial aspect of his strategy was an effort to cut the Ho Chi Minh supply trail by secretly bombing North Vietnamese sanctuaries in Cambodia and invading that country and Laos. The U.S. and South Vietnamese incursion into Cambodia in April 1970 helped destabilize the country, provoking a bloody civil war and bringing to power the murderous Khmer Rouge, a Communist group that evacuated Cambodia's cities and threw thousands into re-education camps.
Following his election, President Nixon began to withdraw American troops from Vietnam in June 1969 and replaced the military draft with a lottery in December of that year. In December 1972, the United States began large-scale bombing of North Vietnam after peace talks reach an impasse. The so-called Christmas bombings led Congressional Democrats to call for an end of U.S. involvement in Southeast Asia.
In late January 1973, the United States, South Vietnam, the Viet Cong, and North Vietnam signed a cease-fire agreement, under which the United States agreed to withdraw from South Vietnam without any comparable commitment from North Vietnam. Historians still do not agree whether President Nixon believed that the accords gave South Vietnam a real chance to survive as an independent nation, or whether he viewed the agreement as a face-saving device that gave the United States a way to withdraw from the war "with honor."

9. Kent State, Ohio student protests

10. Kent State, Ohio student protests
Slides animate on their own

11. Ending the Vietnam War
In January 1973, the U.S. & North Vietnam agreed to a cease fire
By March 1973, U.S. troops were withdrawn
By 1975, the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon fell & Vietnam became unified under the Communist government
Vietnam proved Containment could not be sustained

13. In Search of Détente
In Feb 1972, Nixon became 1st U.S. president to visit & recognize the People’s Republic of China:
These improved Sino-American relations helped eased Cold War tensions & forced the USSR to consider U.S. diplomacy
Presented the U.S. with its 1st economic access to China

14. In Search of Détente
Nixon traveled to Moscow to meet with Soviet leader Brezhnev:
The U.S. agreed to sell the USSR $1 billion worth of grain
USSR agreed to Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT), the 1st Cold War nuclear arms treaty
Kissinger negotiated an end to the Yom Kippur War in between Israel & Egypt
But…the SALT treaty did not target the construction of Multiple Independently Targeted Reentry Vehicles (MIRVs)

15. Nixon’s Covert Operations
Despite Nixon’s public détente with the USSR & China, most foreign policy was covert:
CIA funded the leaders of brutal govts in Iran, South Africa, the Philippines, & Nicaragua
CIA assassinated Chilean president Salvador Allende

16. Nixon’s Domestic Policy
Nixon entered office as a moderate who kept LBJ’s Great Society in place
But, Nixon shifted responsibility for social problems to state & local governments
Nixon reshaped the Supreme Court along conservative lines when 4 justices retired
Replaced retiring chief justice Earl Warren with Warren Burger
Nominated Harry Blackmun, Lewis Powell, & William Rehnquist
named too

17. Nixon’s Domestic Policy
Nixon oversaw the creation of:
Environmental Protection Agency
Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA)
A failed plan to replace welfare benefits with a minimum income
Quotas for minority construction firms for govt projects
Ended the gold standard in 1971
named too

18. Nixonomics The economy was a challenge:
Nixon inherited inflation & deficit spending from the Vietnam War
Nixon’s decrease in government spending & increase in interest rates led to the 1st American recession since 1958
In 1971, Nixon responded with a 90-day freeze on wages & prices & imposed a 10% tax on imports
This “Great Nixon Turnaround” ended the recession

19. The Election of 1972 In 1972, Nixon ran for re- election
Democrat George McGovern was labeled an “outsider” who supported “acid, abortion, & amnesty”
Nixon won in the 4th largest margin of victory in history
But…the Watergate scandal ended the Nixon presidency

20. The 1972 election saw a shift in voting patterns:
Only blacks, Jews, & the poor voted overwhelmingly Democratic while the GOP continued its dominance in the Sunbelt

21. Watergate: A Crisis of Democracy

22. The Watergate Scandal
In 1972, a break-in at Democratic candidate George McGovern’s headquarters revealed a well-funded plan of espionage & sabotage by the Committee to Re-Elect the President (CREEP)
The Watergate cover-up led to Nixon’s resignation & a changed American perception of the gov’t & the role of the media

23. The Watergate Complex

24. Their investigation revealed…
Bob Woodward & Carl Bernstein of the Washington Post broke the Watergate story
Their investigation revealed…

25. The Burglars

26. Formation of the “Plumbers”

27. Daniel Ellsberg’s Pentagon Papers

28. The Watergate Scandal The Watergate scandal began to unravel in 1973:
The discovery that Nixon recorded conversations proved most damning
The Supreme Court ordered Nixon to turn over all tapes to a Senate investigative committee
The House brought 3 articles of impeachment against president
Obstruction of justice, Abuse of power, Contempt of Congress

29. Stonewalling

31. May 2005, Deep Throat was revealed as FBI Deputy Secretary W. Mark Felt

32. May 2005, Deep Throat was revealed as FBI Deputy Secretary W. Mark Felt

33. The Watergate Scandal Impact of the Watergate scandal:
26 members of Nixon’s administration were sent to jail
The press began to be seen as a “watchdog” over the gov’t
An independent judiciary branch was vital to protect individual freedom & national interests
Power shifted from the president to Congress
Teddy Roosevelt began the trend of a stronger president than Congress; a trend that continued throughout the 20th century until Nixon
No president went further than Richard Nixon in concentrating powers in the presidency. He refused to spend funds that Congress had appropriated; he claimed executive privilege against disclosure of information on administration decisions; he refused to allow key decision makers to be questioned before congressional committees; he reorganized the executive branch and broadened the authority of new cabinet positions without congressional approval; and during the Vietnam War, he ordered harbors mined and bombing raids launched without consulting Congress.
Watergate brought a halt to the "imperial presidency" and the growth of presidential power. Over the president's veto, Congress enacted the War Powers Act (1973), which required future presidents to obtain authorization from Congress to engage U.S. forces in foreign combat for more than 90 days. Under the law, a president who orders troops into action abroad must report the reason for this action to Congress within 48 hours.
In the wake of the Watergate scandal, Congress passed a series of laws designed to reform the political process. Disclosures during the Watergate investigations of money-laundering led Congress to provide public financing of presidential elections, public disclosure of sources of funding, limits on private campaign contributions and spending, and to enforce campaign finance laws by an independent Federal Election Commission. To make it easier for the Justice Department to investigate crimes in the executive branch, Congress now requires the attorney general to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate accusations of illegal activities. To re-assert its budget-making authority, Congress created a Congressional Budget Office and specifically forbade a president to impound funds without its approval. To open government to public scrutiny, Congress opened more committee deliberations and enacted the Freedom of Information Act, which allows the public and press to request the declassification of government documents.
Some of the post-Watergate reforms have not been as effective as reformers anticipated. The War Powers Act has never been invoked. Campaign financing reform has not curbed the ability of special interests to curry favor with politicians or the capacity of the very rich to outspend opponents.
On the other hand, Congress has had somewhat more success in reining in the FBI and the CIA. During the 1970s, congressional investigators discovered that these organizations had, in defiance of federal law, broken into the homes, tapped the phones, and opened the mail of American citizens; illegally infiltrated anti-war groups and black radical organizations; and accumulated dossiers on dissidents, which had been used by presidents for political purposes. Investigators also found that the CIA had been involved in assassination plots against foreign leaders--among them Fidel Castro--and had tested the effects of radiation, electric shock, and drugs (such as LSD) on unsuspecting citizens. In the wake of these investigations, the government severely limited CIA operations in the United States and laid down strict guidelines for FBI activities. To tighten congressional control over the CIA, Congress established a joint committee to supervise its operations.

34. Conclusions: Politics After Watergate
The Watergate scandal eroded public trust in their own gov’t
The growing tension between president & Congress prevented strong, effective leadership from meeting foreign & domestic problems in the 1970s
The discontent of the 1960s & 1970s revealed an America at war with itself

35. Ranking Presidential Scandals
Examine & rank order presidential scandals in American history:
Ulysses Grant Crédit Mobilier & Whiskey Ring
Warren Harding Teapot Dome
Richard Nixon Watergate
Ronald Reagan Iran-Contra Affair
Bill Clinton Whitewater & Monica Lewinski Affair