Richard Nixon’s Shadow: His
Biography and Popular Culture
Popular Images of Richard Nixon
Then Senator Kennedy and
Vice President Nixon, 1960.
President Nixon and Elvis
Presley, 1970.
Nixon the Cartoon Character
The Simpsons
http://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=YG_2bzqh8dg
Futurama
http://www.youtube.com/w
atch?v=_t8hpEKb4gk
Richard Nixon as a Halloween Mask
My sister and I, Halloween
1995.
-More
Info on the Mask:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Richard_Nixon_mask
Biography of Richard Nixon
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Born January 9,
1913 in Yorba Linda,
CA.
“I was born in a
house my father
built.”- Opening line
from The Memoirs of
Richard Nixon.
Growing up in Southern
California: Nixon the Underdog
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Came from a lower-middle
class Quaker family.
Richard was the second of
five boys. His brother
Arthur died at age 7.
Lived in Yorba Linda until
1922, but then moved to
Whittier after his family’s
ranch failed.
His father Frank opened
up a grocery store/gas
station in Whittier.
His early-childhood has
been used by some
historians to explain his
political career.
College, Early Career and World
War Two: Nixon the Underdog
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Nixon receives a
scholarship to Harvard,
but stays in Whittier to
help at the store. He
attends Whitter College.
His brother, Harold
passes away in 1933.
He then attends Duke’s
School of Law, and
graduates in 1937.
Marries Pat Nixon in
1940.
Serves in the Navy
during WW2.
Richard Nixon as the
Anticommunist Crusader
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In 1946 Nixon is elected to
Congress, defeating the
Democrat, Jerry Voorhis.
In 1948 he becomes
famous for his role in the
Alger Hiss case.
In 1950 he is elected
senator of California,
defeating Helen GahaganDouglas. Labels Douglas
“pink” for being “soft on
communism.”
His critics start to label him
“Tricky Dick” for
controversial campaign
tactics.
Nixon as the first TV PoliticianThe Checkers Speech 1952
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1952: Nixon is selected by
Eisenhower as the VicePresidential Candidate.
With the hopes of
defending himself against
charges of corruption,
Richard Nixon makes a
televised speech on
September 23, 1952.
http://www.youtube.com/w
atch?v=XhQD2UFCIbY
The speech arguably
saves his political career.
Nixon the Vice President
Nixon often represents
the United States
abroad during the
Eisenhower Years
(Kitchen Debate, South
America Trip).
 His relationship with
Eisenhower is complex
(ex.- Ike and Dick).
 Nevertheless, he
becomes one of the
more influential vicepresidents in US history.

1960 Election
Nixon wins the GOP
nomination and
selects Henry Cabot
Lodge as his running
mate.
 JFK chooses LBJ.
 Election is mostly
known for the
televised debates.
 Religion was also a
main issue.
 In the end, JFK wins
by less than 120,000
votes.

The Kennedy-Nixon Debates
1960: Nixon as the Loser.
1962 California
Gubernatorial Election: Nixon as
The Loser Part 2
Richard Nixon’s
concession speech
after losing to Pat
Brown in 1962:
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=6AmDkAV0
KeI
 JFK conversation:
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=yeA41pyRZ
Y8
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Wilderness Years (1963-1967)
After his defeat in 1962,
Nixon moves his family
to NYC and becomes a
private attorney.
 He brings a case to the
Supreme Court (Time v.
Hill, 1966)
 He rehabilitates his
image during the 1966
midterm elections.
 Some begin to see him
as a bridge candidate
within the GOP.

1968 Election: Nixon as the
Comeback Kid
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After his “wilderness
years,” Nixon decides to
run again in 1968.
Many see Nixon as a
sensible moderate when
compared to the New Left
and New Right.
Some argue that this is a
“New Nixon”.
http://www.youtube.com/w
atch?v=8qRZvlZZ0DY
Backed by a much more
united GOP, Nixon defeats
Humphrey by about
500,000 votes.
Nixon Presidency (1969-1970):
Nixon the Moderate
Nixon starts to advocate a different kind of
foreign policy. He calls for a “Structure of
Peace” and advocates the “Nixon Doctrine”
 Also promises to end the draft, and bring
an end to the Vietnam War.
 Shows no signs of overturning liberal
reforms, and in some cases expands on
them.
 First Term is marked by many moderate
appointments within his administration.

Nixon the Moderate:
Domestic Policy
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The E.P.A.is created in
1970. Nixon also signs
the Clean Air Act.
Emphasizes Native
American Sovereignty.
Desegregates schools
in the South.
Title IX is signed into
law.
Proposes a progressive
health care plan.
White House Tapes and
some memos
complicate Nixon’s
legacy.
Nixon and Vietnam
By 1969, the Vietnam
War was becoming
increasingly unpopular.
 By 1969, approximately
30,000 American soldiers
had died in Vietnam, with
more than 500,000
stationed in SE Asia.
 Nixon promises to end
the war.
 “Vietnamization”- Nixon’s
policy of gradually
bringing troops home,
while escalating aerial
bombings of North
Vietnam.

Silent Majority Speech November
3,1969
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In the fall of 1969,
antiwar protests grow
and become more
mainstream.
On October 15, 1969Moratorium to End the
War in Vietnam.
Nixon responds with
the Silent Majority
Speech.
http://www.youtube.co
m/watch?v=v3K2N7F
ZSXc
Cambodia/ Antiwar Protests
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On April 30, 1970, Nixon
announces the invasion of
Cambodia.
On May 4, 1970 4 students
are killed at Kent State
University
Days later, hundreds of
thousands of antiwar
protesters demonstrate in
DC.
Bud Krogh, advisor to the
President on the
demonstrations:
http://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=A8J43gni2bk
http://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=oDYi3o8Wf3A
Nixon at the Lincoln Memorial
with Antiwar Protesters
End of the Vietnam War
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On January 27, 1973,
the American war in
Vietnam officially ends.
Nixon promises to
support South Vietnam
if peace is violated.
North violates treaty
throughout 1973-74.
On April 30, 1975, North
Vietnam enters Saigon.
Vietnam continues to
this day to divide the
nation.
Nixon the Diplomat: China and the
Soviet Union (and Vietnam)
Nixon visits China in February
1972 and signs the Shanghai
Communique.
Nixon and Brezhnev sign the
SALT treaty in May 1972. New
policy is known as “Détente.”
Pentagon Papers and the
Creation of the Plumbers Unit
Following the release of
the Pentagon Papers by
Daniel Ellsberg, Nixon
authorizes the creation
of “the Plumbers Unit,” a
team of ex-CIA men
who closely monitored
Ellsberg and other
political opponents.
 On Septemer 3, 1971
the Plumbers broke into
Ellsberg’s psychiatrist’s
office in Beverly Hills
(“Watergate West”). The
plan was approved by
John Ehrlichman.

Other Dirty Tricks and the
Enemies List
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The Plumbers were
also responsible for
a host of other “dirty
tricks during the
1972 Democratic
Primaries.
Nixon also orders
his assistants to
pressure the IRS to
audit political
enemies from fall
1971-fall1972.
Watergate Break-In(s)
Forrest Gump(1994)
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=6aZ8vNagvks
 The famous Watergate
Break-In was actually
the second break-in.
The burglars were trying
to replace a broken
recording device that
was installed during the
first break-in.
 Burglary is initially
dismissed as “third
rate”.

What did Nixon do?
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During the summer of
1972 Nixon and his
advisers suggest
various cover-up
scenarios and find
ways to provide hush
money for the
Watergate burglars.
Nixon also attempts to
use the CIA to disrupt
the FBI’s investigation
of the Watergate breakin.
1972 Election
The Democrats
eventually choose Sen.
George McGovern
(South Dakota) after a
competitive primary
season and a chaotic
convention.
 Nixon is able to depict
McGovern as a radical
and picks up many
Democratic voters.
 Nixon wins in a
landslide (49 out of 50
states.

1973: The Watergate Tapes and
John Dean
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On April 30, 1973, several of
the President’s men resign
(Haldeman, Ehrlichman,
Dean, and AG Kleindeinst).
In the summer of 1973 John
Dean talks to the Senate
about the Watergate scandal.
John Dean’s Opening
Statement during the Senate
Watergate Committee:
http://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=-cVdsMJ-nEg
In 1973 former deputy
assistant to the President,
Alexander Butterfield tells
investigators that there is a
White House taping system.
Saturday Night Massacre
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In the fall of 1973, Attorney
General Elliot Richardson and his
deputy William Ruckelshaus
resign after they refuse to fire
Watergate Spec. Pros Archibald
Cox.
After they resign, Nixon appoints
Robert Bork Attorney General
who then fires Cox.
The mainstream media fully turns
against Richard Nixon and calls
for his resignation.
The WH is eventually forced to
appoint Leon Jaworski who
continues the investigation. He
ironically puts even more
pressure on the President to
release the Watergate tapes.
“I am not a crook.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=sh163n1lJ4M
Yom Kippur War
October 1973
On October 6, 1973, the
Arab states launch a
suprise attack on areas
controlled by Israel
since 1967.
 Both the US and the
Sov. Union give massive
support to their allies.
This nearly leads to a
direct confrontation
between the two
superpowers.
 Kissinger is able to
negotiate a peace and
the war ends on
October 25, 1973.

United States v. Richard Nixon,
1974
Nixon argues that he
does not have to turn
over his tapes because
of “executive privilege.”
 Nevertheless, on July
24, 1974 the Supreme
Court rules in an 8-0
decision that Nixon must
turn over the tapes.
 After the transcripts are
released, Nixon is told
by Republican leaders
that impeachment and
forced removal from
office are both
practically inevitable.

Nixon Resigns and is then
Pardoned
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Nixon resigns on August 9,
1974.
Nixon’s resignation speech
to the nation:
http://www.youtube.com/w
atch?v=ZEOGJJ7UKFM
His farewell speech to his
staff:
http://www.youtube.com/w
atch?v=u0VXZ7495lI
Gerald Ford pardons
Nixon less than a month
later and ends the
investigation. It may have
cost Ford the 1976
election.
Post-Presidency
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In 1977, Nixon grants
several televised
interviews with David
Frost. It’s the beginning of
an ongoing effort to
rehabilitate Nixon’s image.
In 1978, he releases his
best-selling memoir, RN.
Writes several more bestselling books in the 1980s
and 90s, mostly on foreign
policy.
Invited back to the White
House in 1993 by Pres.
Clinton.
Dies on April 22, 1994.
Nixon as More Than Just
Watergate
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Most of the literature on
Nixon in 70s and 80s was
quite negative in assessing
his presidency.
In the 1990s, historians
begin to reevaluate Nixon.
They focus on his
domestic reforms, highlight
his diplomatic
accomplishments and view
Watergate as a tragic
mistake.
Bill Clinton’s speech at
Nixon’s funeral echoes this
newer view of Nixon:
http://www.youtube.com/w
atch?v=GjfZmBLeJvY
Nixon’s Shadow Lives On
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Obama is Nixon:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/
fact-checker/post/mitch-mcconnellscampaign-ad-tying-obama-to-nixonover-the-irsscandal/2013/05/30/bfe90034-c97411e2-8da7-d274bc611a47_blog.html
Bush is Nixon:
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http://www.commondreams.org/views0
5/1230-39.htm
Suffix-Gate:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sca
ndals_with_%22-gate%22_suffix
Nixon in the polls (2010):
http://www.gallup.com/poll/145064/ken
nedy-highest-rated-modern-presidentnixon-lowest.aspx
Last Liberal or Pre-Reagan
Conservative?
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Historians and Political
Commentators have tried
to label Nixon both a
conservative and a liberal.
Domestic record is
arguably to the left of
Obama.
Nixon’s rhetoric, Supreme
Court picks, and some of
his own staff members
connect him to the
conservative movement.
Nixon is a complex figure.
We should consider the
historical context of the
1960s and 70s before we
attach any labels.
Nixonland?
Historian/Journalist Rick
Perlstein published
Nixonland in 2008.
 The book argues that Nixon
played a major role in
dividing the nation
(Franklins vs. Orthogonians
or Red vs. Blue).
 Although the book has been
criticized for oversimplifying
certain parts of the
1960s/70s, its thesis raises
some interesting questions
about the connections
between the Nixon era and
today.

In Popular Culture
Whether it’s in the movies, on
TV, or even in video games,
Nixon’s image is for the most
part either tragic, goofy,
villainous or all three. It is
rarely positive.
 Examples include Oliver
Stone’s Nixon, Frost/ Nixon,
Dick, Call of Duty, and many
more.
 Our Nixon, a new
documentary that recently
aired on CNN features WH
Super 8 Footage and some of
the Nixon Tapes, ends up
focusing on Nixon’s dark side.

The Nixon Presidential Library
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The Nixon Presidential
Library opened in Yorba
Linda in 1990. There were
no presidential records, only
pre- and post-presidential
papers.
The Old Watergate Gallery
(Taken down in 2007)
http://www.nixonlibrary.gov/t
hemuseum/exhibits/oldwate
rgatetour.php
In 2007, the Nixon
Foundation reached an
agreement with the National
Archives (NARA) to bring
the Presidential records to
Yorba Linda.
The New Watergate Gallery
New Watergate Gallery
opened up on March 31,
2011:
http://www.usatoday.co
m/news/nation/2011-0401nixonlibrary01_ST_N.ht
m
 The Nixon Foundation’s
response to the
Watergate Gallery:
http://blog.nixonfoundati
on.org/2011/04/the-newwatergate

Final Questions
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What is the real legacy
of Richard Nixon?
Which image has the
most merit?
With a complex legacy,
how do you remain
balanced while still
presenting the facts?
How have presidents
used their own bios in
their political careers?
What are some of the
main factors in shaping
a president’s legacy?