Nixon avoided relying directly on his cabinet and instead relied heavily on a close staff led by H.R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman. Nixon struggled with high inflation and unemployment during his first term despite implementing wage and price freezes. The 1973 oil embargo caused by OPEC quadrupling oil prices in response to U.S. support for Israel seriously worsened inflation and led to a recession. Nixon also implemented a "Southern Strategy" of appealing to white southern voters by slowing desegregation and cutting funding for fair housing laws. In foreign policy, Nixon and his National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger pursued détente, relaxing tensions with major communist powers China and the Soviet Union through realpolitik negotiations and
4. +
25.1: Nixon’s Domestic Policy
1. How did Nixon’s personality affect his relationship with his
staff, and his presidency overall?
2.Why was the U.S. vulnerable to OPEC? How did the 1973 oil
embargo affect the U.S.?
3. Describe the first manned moon landing.
Complete chart on top of p. 826
5. +
25.1: Nixon’s Domestic Policy
(pp. 826-831)
Nixon Biography
Born to modest family in California
Lawyer
Member of Congress ‘47-53
Hard on communism, tough on Cold War
Eisenhower’s VP (they didn’t get along real
well)
Lost close election of ’60
Lost gubernatorial election in CA in ‘62
6. +
Nixon in Person
Reserved & remote
Lacked charm & humor
Not a “people person”
Few close friends
Found security w/ his family: wife Pat & two daughters
Enjoyed time away to his estates in FL & CA
Experienced politician
Willing to win at any cost
Anti-East coast, anti-establishment
Believed in strong executive branch
“Imperial presidency”
7. +
Nixon’s Staff
Nixon avoided his Cabinet
Instead relied on his White House staff
Staffers gave extreme loyalty
H R Haldeman (top left)—”I get done what he
wants done and I take the heat instead of him.”
John Ehrlichman (bottom left)—Nixon’s
personal lawyer
The two acted as Nixon’s “Berlin Wall”
Had to pass them before speaking w/ the
President
8. +
Nixon’s Staff
John Mitchell (top right)—
managed Nixon’s presidential
campaign—became Attorney
General
Spoke w/ Nixon multiple
times/day
Henry Kissinger (bottom right)
—former Harvard government
professor—national security
advisor and then Sec. of State
Shaped foreign policy
9. +
Domestic Policy
Vietnam War & domestic
policy were key issues of ‘68
election
In domestic policy, Nixon
broke from JFK & LBJ
As Nixon took office:
Inflation had doubled
between ‘65 & ‘68
Deficit was growing
Unemployment on the rise
1st
priority=halting inflation
Hoped to get gov’t spending
under control
Wanted to avoid price & wage
controls
*See inflation chart on p. 828
10. +
Domestic Policy
During 1st
term, Nixon
struggled to curb spending
Additionally, unemployment &
inflation continued to rise
Nixon was OK w/ deficit
spending; he thought it would
stimulate the economy
Keynesian approach
“I am now a Keynesian in
economics” (1971)
Tried a 90-day freeze on wages, prices, &
rents in ‘71
Tried a 60-day general price freeze in
‘73
Lifted both after pressure from business
world
Inflation soared
John Maynard Keynes,
British economist (1883-1946)
11. +
Oil Crisis
Factors leading U.S. toward
energy crisis in ’70s:
Growing
population=increased need
for energy
Environmental concerns w/
coal
Gas prices had been kept
low w/ gov’t regulations
Oil output in U.S. declined in
’72
When Nixon implemented
price freezes, oil refineries
let supplies run low
When freezes lifted, demand
could not be met
In ’73 Israel went to war w/
Egypt & Syria
U.S. supported its ally, Israel
Arab members of the
Organization of Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC)
responded by banning all oil
trade to U.S.
Embargo lasted from
10/1973 to 3/1974
OPEC quadrupled prices
$3/barrel to $12
Higher prices worsened
inflation
Consumers spent less & a
recession ensued
12.
13. +
Social Programs
Hoped to cut gov’t spending by cutting back or shutting
down social programs
According to Nixon, programs were wasteful & encouraged
“welfare cheaters”
Called for a new partnership between state & federal
governments=“New Federalism”
States would assume greater responsibility for well-being of
citizens
Congress passed a series of bills that granted fed. Funds to state
& local gov’ts
14. +
The “Southern Strategy”
Nixon felt he had little to gain by supporting civil rights
Very few African Americans voted for him in ‘60 & ‘68
Didn’t want to lose white southern voters
Promoted a slowdown in desegregation
Wanted to find the proper “southern strategy” to win over
white southern Democrats
Gained support from Strom Thurmond of S. Carolina
Cut funding to enforcement of fair housing laws
Attempted to end certain provisions of Voting Rights Act in
1970
Openly opposed busing to end segregation in public schools
15. +
Nixon’s Supreme Court
Warren Court of ‘53 to ‘69 had been criticized for
being too liberal & easy on criminals
During Nixon’s 1st
term, 4 of the 9 justices on SC
retired or died
Warren Burger, a conservative, replaced Earl
Warren in 69; served from ‘69 to ‘86
Easily approved by Senate
Appointed 3 other conservative justices:
Harry a. Blackmun; Lewis F. Powell, Jr.;William H.
Rehnquist
16. +
The First Moon Landing
Kennedy promised a man on
the moon by the end of the
‘60s
July 20, 1969—Neil Armstrong
accomplished that mission
“That’s one small step for man,
one giant leap for mankind.”
Watch on TV worldwide
Apollo 11 Crew=Armstrong,
Buzz Aldrin, and Michael
Colins
Aldrin joined Armstrong on 2
hour moon walk
18. +
Nixon’s Foreign Policy
Define: realpolitik, détente, SALT I, ping pong diplomacy
Complete bubble chart on p. 832
Answer following Qs:
What role did Henry Kissinger play in relaxing tensions between
the U.S. & major communist power?
How did Nixon reach an agreement w/ the Soviet Union on
limiting nuclear arms?
19. +
Setting the Scene
Nixon set the tone for a new
direction for foreign policy in
his 1st
inaugural address on
Jan. 20, 1969
He was able to ease Cold War
tensions
Aided by Kissinger he est.
ties w/ China & built better
relations w/ the Soviet Union
20. +
Henry Kissinger
Gained President’s confidence
Appointed Sec. of State in ’73
Helped end U.S. involvement in
Vietnam
Nobel Peace Prize in ‘73
Dominant figure in Nixon
Administration
Talked w/ Nixon daily
Not afraid of tough talk
He & Nixon were both suspicious &
secretive
*Read his bio in the sidebar on p. 833
21. +
Practical Politics
Realpolitik=German term meaning “practical politics”
Making decisions based on maintaining a country’s own
strengths rather than following moral principles
Applied to China & Soviet Union
How does this compare to the policy of containment?
22. +
Kissinger Continued
Ability to use media to shape public
opinion
One of the most popular public
figures of the ‘70s; became a
celebrity
Appeared on 21 Time magazine
covers
Gallup poll in ‘73 made him the
most-admired American
23. +
Relaxing Tensions
Détente=relaxation in tensions
Nixon’s willingness to hold talks w/ China & Soviet Union
shocked many
Nixon had been bitter opponent of Communism in 50s
Bypassing Congress, and sometimes his own advisors, Nixon
& Kissinger reversed the direction of postwar American
foreign policy
Foreign affairs were more complex than a simple standoff
between the U.S. & communism
24. +
Relaxing Tensions
China & the Soviet Union were once allies but had
become enemies
The Communist Party of China denounced the Soviet
variety of Communism
Different interpretations of Marxism
Disagreements between Mao Zedong & Nikita Khrushchev
25. +
A New Approach to China
Since Communist takeover in ‘49, the U.S. had not recognized
the Chinese government
Politically, the U.S. acted as if China did not exist
Instead the U.S. dealt w/ the government of Taiwan
Nixon looked for a way to better relations w/ Communist
China; esp. since China’s relations w/ the Soviet Union had
soured
26. +
A New Approach to China
Nixon’s foreign policy report to Congress in 1970:
“The Chinese are a great and vital people who should not
remain isolated from the international community….U.S.
policy is not likely soon to have much impact on China’s
behavior, let alone its ideological outlook. But it is certainly
in our interest, and in the interest of peace and stability in
Asia and the world, that we take what steps we can toward
improved practical relations with Peking (Beijing).”
27. +
A New Approach to China
Moves designed to improve relations w/ China:
1.Feb. 1970—American & Chinese ambassadors met in Warsaw,
Poland
2. Oct. 1970—Nixon was the first American President to refer to
China by its proper name, the People’s Republic of China
3. March 1971—U.S. gov’t lifted restrictions on travel to China
4. April 1971—An American table-tennis team accepted an
invitation to visit the mainland; “ping-pong diplomacy”
5. June 1971—U.S. ended its 21 year embargo on trade w/ China
6. July 1971—Nixon announced that he planned to travel to
China
28.
29. Kissinger (left) plays ping pong in 2001, marking the 30th
anniversary of “ping pong diplomacy”
30. +
A New Approach to China
Other nations were also officially recognizing the People’s
Republic of China
In October of ’71,Taiwan lost its seat in the United Nations to
the People’s Republic of China
Nixon realized that he could use Chinese friendship in his
dealings w/ the Soviets
Nixon also knew his trip to China would boost his public
support at home
He also thought the trip/friendly relations wouldn’t harm his
political career b/c of his reputation as a strong anti-
Communist
31. +
Nixon Goes to China
Feb. 1972
Met w/ Mao Zedong
Spoke w/ premier Zhou Enlai about international problems
Went to Great Wall & other tourist sites
TV cameras chronicled it all
Basis for diplomatic ties had been established
Most members of Congress & most Americans supported the
trip & Nixon’s efforts in China
32.
33. +
Nixon Goes to the Soviet Union
In ’72, after trip to China,
Nixon went to Moscow
Received a warm welcome
Met w/ Premier Leonid I.
Brezhnev
Several decisions made:
Space exploration, eased
trade limits, & a weapons
pact
34. +
Balancing the Superpowers
Limited Test Ban Treaty of ‘63
had ended above-ground
bomb testing
Arms race continued
Nixon hoped to end nuclear
threat & move away from arms
race
Both U.S. & S.U. had more than
enough weapons to destroy
one another
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks
(SALT I)—started in 1969
In ’72, a treaty to limit nuclear
weapons
5 year agreement to freeze
ICBMs & submarine missiles at
‘72 levels
Also included an agreement
restricting missile defense
systems
35. +
Balancing the Superpowers
SALT I was a triumph for the
Nixon administration
Eased concerns of nuclear war
But did not reduce # of
weapons each nation
possessed
Paved the way for future talks
Nixon— “Perhaps for the first time,
the evolving strategic balance allows
a Soviet-American agreement which
yields no unilateral advantages.The
fact that we have begun to discuss
strategic arms with the USSR is in
itself important. Agreement in such a
vital area could create a new
commitment to stability, and
influence attitudes toward other
issues.”