Richard Nixon

“I let the American people down.”.

Richard Nixon in OfficeElected president in1968

participated in 1st televised presidential debate against JFK in 1960 but lost

ran as the spokesperson for Middle America or the silent majoritygained southern voters this

wayset up the Environmental

Protection Agency after incident at Three Mile Island

Nixon and the EconomyStagflation: dual condition

ofstagnating economy (high

unemployment)inflationary pressures

(rising prices)Stagflation occurred due to

deficit spending, especially on Vietnam and welfare

foreign competition rising prices, especially in

oil prices

Nixon and The Cold WarWhen the US and China got friendly, Russia

wanted to negotiate due to fears of an allianceSoviet Union and US sign the Strategic Arms

Limitation Treaty (SALT I) which froze the deployment of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and placed limits on antiballistic missiles (ABMs)Did not end the arms race between US and USSR

but was a huge step towards that goalStarted a détente in which the USSR and US

were trying to solve their issues not intensify them, new foreign policy promoted by Nixon

Nixon and VietnamOrdered the bombing of

Cambodia secretively without Congressional knowledge even though he had promised to gradually withdraw troops (Vietnamization)

Led to Congress repealing the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution and limited the president’s ability to commit troops (War Powers Act)

The Fall of Nixon: Watergate Scandal

Democratic Party headquarters (Watergate) was broken in to

connected to Nixon, he helped cover-up the break-in

Nixon denied any wrongdoing…few believed him

Problems ContinueVP Spiro Agnew

resigned over another scandal (tax evasion)

Nixon nominated Gerald Ford to be his new VP (25th Amendment)

“I am not a

crook!”

“If the president does it, it’s not illegal.”

Then tape recordings within the Oval Office were uncovered…tapes would prove Nixon’s involvement in break-in…

Nixon refused to release the tapes… US vs. Nixon required he give up tapes but when he did parts were missing…he resigned

Damaged the reputation of the presidency and shook peoples confidence

Showed that no person, even the President, was above the law

Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein of the Washington Post

covering the story getting inside info

from anonymous source, Deep Throatupon his death in

2008, discovered to be Mark Felt (FBI 2nd in command)

Who is shown hanging from the tapes in the cartoon above?

What scandal is being portrayed in the cartoon?

What connection does the man pictured above have with the tapes he is hanging from?

What was the lasting impact of the scandal?