Essay about Richard Nixon - 2082 Words

Richard Nixons presidency is one of the most examined, analyzed and discussed, yet least understood, of all the American administrations in history. While many factors still remain to be discovered, and many mysteries are left to be resolved, we need to do the best that we can to make sense of this secretive president of our past and his era. He is the one American figure about whom very few people dont have strong feelings for. Nixon is loved and hated, honored and mocked . The term Watergate, labeled by Congress in 1974, stands for not only the burglary, but also for the numerous instances of officially sanctioned criminal activity and abuses of power as well as the obstruction of justice that preceded the actual break-in.†¦show more content†¦It was an inspiring speech that would remove the fear that he believed restrained the Americans and the Soviets from better relationships in the past. Meanwhile, in Washington, the Presidents election staff was overcome with a different fear. Despite Nixons high standing position for being reelected, his CREEP staff (Committee to Reelect the President) was afraid that they might not have as much dirt on Nixons opponents as they had on Nixon. The President laid upon his staff the determination to do whatever possible to win the election . With this approval, Nixons staff, headed by G. Gordon Liddy, began planning more ways of attaining information from the DNC. What they named the Plumbers unit was established as a special task force for the President. The Plumbers purpose was to keep any secret information from being discovered by reporters. In one situation, wearing CIA provided disguises, they illegally broke into Dr. Fields office, a psychiatrist, for information on a patient, Daniel Ellsberg, who had given private Pentagon papers to the New York Times 25). It turned out that the doctor had already been visited by the FBI and, taking precaution, removed the files. The White House also came up with an adversary list. Every President from Washington to Johnson has had his list of disapprovals, but Nixons was much more efficient and threatening . The list originated onShow MoreRelatedRichard Nixon : The Silent1491 Words   |  6 PagesRichard Nixon was a president that dealt with many problems while he was in office, such as Vietnam, China, and civil rights. Nixon was a great politician and appeared to want the best for America. In Nixon s silent majority speech he wanted to end the war in vietnam while sparing the â€Å"democratic† citizens in southern Vietnam, but for him to do this he needed to bargain with the citizens of America and the leaders of the western world in order to accomplish his goals without too many problems, suchRead MorePardon of Richard Nixon1193 Words   |  5 PagesControversial Pardon of Richard Nixon HIST102 American History Since 1877 Instructor: 22 February 2014 Former President Richard Nixon is most well-known for his role in the Watergate crisis in the early 1970’s. The Watergate crisis started in June of 1972, when the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters was broke into by members of Nixon’s re-election committee. The press took this breaking news and began to dig deeper into what the Whitehouse (President Nixon) was hiding. Over theRead MoreThe Legacy Of Richard Nixon1104 Words   |  5 PagesRichard Nixon, though created a large credibility gap within the US, he accomplished a lot for the country. He served five years in the presidential office as a republican (1969-1974), and he was the only president to resign from office in history. Although through his presidency he had accomplished many things, such as creating revenue sharing, ending the draft, and creating anticrime laws, he still had a rough time rebuilding his reputation after many assumptions of corruption in his office. ThoughRead MoreThe Presiden cy Of Richard Nixon1856 Words   |  8 Pagesthe 1970s, under President Richard Nixon, the people felt the first serious inflation since after World War II. Also under Nixon, a scandal of political sabotage caused fear and mistrust towards the government. The crises in the 1970s represented the first time in American history when the public perceived their government had fail them and it did through mistrust in the government, foreign crises, and a strong decline in the economy. Under the presidency of Richard Nixon, a wide-spread of fear withinRead MoreEssay Richard Nixon1491 Words   |  6 PagesRichard Nixon Born in 1913 in Yorba Linda, California, Richard Milhouse Nixon was raised in a Quaker home with his four brothers, mother and father. His family led a docile life by abstaining from all dancing, swearing, drinking and other common Quaker practices (Barron 12). Financially, the family struggled and he could not afford to attend Harvard University even with a full-ride scholarship. Instead, Nixon enrolled at Whittier College, a popular Quaker college close to home (Barron 39). NixonRead MoreRichard Nixon Essay628 Words   |  3 PagesRichard Nixon History will inevitably forgive Richard Nixon. Despite his obvious unlawful mistakes, he made a good president. Until 1968, most Americans saw Richard Nixon as a political has-been, a dour pre-McCarthy hunter of Communists. In 1968, however, Nixon won the Presidency by presenting himself as a healer of divisions. He demonstrated that he had greater ability to reinvent himself than any other modern politician. More than any other figure between the death of Franklin D. RooseveltRead MorePresident Nixon : President Richard Nixon Essay1878 Words   |  8 Pagesbe the downfall of President Richard Nixon. Nixon had a significant amount of experience in government before becoming president, which ultimately influenced how domestic policy, economic policy, and foreign policy was shaped during his tenure. I. EXPERIENCE BEFORE THE PRESIDENCY: As documented by the Miller Center, Richard Nixon’s start in national politics began in the late 40s with his successful campaign for the House of Representatives in California (Richard Nixon: Life Before the Presidency)Read More Richard Nixon Essay2727 Words   |  11 PagesRichard Nixon The President of the United States is often considered the most powerful elected official in the world. The President leads a nation of great wealth and military strength. Presidents have often provided decisive leadership in times of crisis, and they have shaped many important events in history. The President has many roles and performs many duties. As chief executive, the President makes sure that federal laws are enforced. As commander in chief of the nations armed forcesRead MoreNixon Vs. President Richard M. Nixon1304 Words   |  6 PagesTrace Haven Mrs. Molzahn American Literature May 17, 2017 Nixon vs. People   Ã‚  Ã‚   President Richard M. Nixon once said, â€Å" I can see clearly now†¦ that I was wrong in not acting more decisively and more forthrightly in dealing with Watergate† (Watergate Quotes). The Watergate scandal began when five men attempted to break into the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate Complex. The government had to create an act in order to have the right to view all surveillance footageRead More Richard Nixon and the Election of 19691107 Words   |  5 PagesRichard Nixon and the Election of 1969   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Richard Nixon, was born on January 9th, 1913, in Yorba Linda, California. Fifty-six years after he was born he became the 37th president of the United States. In the election Nixon only defeated the democratic candidate, Hubert Humphrey, by about 500,000 in the popular vote. Nixon is considered one of the most controversial politicians of the twentieth century. He used his political experience, his background, the communist scare of the late forties