Unit11: 1970’s
Nixon and Watergate

Nixon elected in 1968
promised to get U.S. out
of Vietnam but escalated
the war. (Credibility Gap)
 “Plumbers” were men
who would burglarize
and search for Nixon.
 Nixon used the FBI, IRS,
and CIA to find
information on people.
 CREEP- Committee to
Reelect the President
Nixon in 1972
 New
Federalism- President Richard Nixon
promoted the idea of new federalism which
was a policy plan to turn over the control of
some U.S. federal programs to state and
local governments and institute block
grants and revenue sharing.
 Realpolitik- Realpolitik is a political
system that's not based on beliefs,
doctrines, ethics, or morals, but rather on
realistic, practical ideas. Richard Nixon's
diplomacy with China in the 1970's was an
example of realpolitik.
Henry Kissinger

Key advisor to Nixon

1973- Kissinger won the
Nobel Peace Prize for talks
with North Vietnam
Kissinger and Nixon start a
new relationship with China.


Ping-Pong Diplomacy- The
first groups to travel to China
were the US ping-pong team.
(US lost)

Détente- “Being friendly”, a
relaxation of tensions with
China and Soviet Union.
During the 1970’s
20, 1969- 1st man on the moon
 The economy suffered problems.
 Inflation, energy crisis, industry suffered,
unemployment, and a stagnant economy
were all part of the early 70’s.
 School bussing
 July
 Watergate
Watergate
Office Building- June 17, 1972:
five men broke in at the headquarters of
the Democratic National Committee.
 They each had ties to the president
(Nixon). Nixon denied knowing any of this.
McGovern, the Democrat running against
Nixon, tried to convince the people and
press Nixon was to blame.
 The
press was “indifferent” towards the
break-in. They reported it as a “caper”.
The voters didn’t even know or said to
care of the Watergate break-in.
 Nixon won the election of 1972 with the
popular vote of 60.7%.
 During the Watergate affair with Nixon,
foreign affairs were left to Kissinger.
 Watergate will later cause Nixon’s
downfall.
The Watergate Scandal Timeline:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Burglars broke into Watergate office
building.
Nixon ordered cover-up of crime.
The Press investigated.
The Senate investigated.
Special prosecutor subpoenaed the
tapes of Nixon’s phone conversations.
Continued…
6. Nixon refused to hand over the tapes.
7. Supreme Court ordered Nixon to release tapes.
(There was an 18 ½ min space deleted on the
tapes dated June 23rd, 1972)
8. House drew up a bill of Impeachment.
9. Nixon resigned.
10. Ford took office.

Watergate burglary had been planned,
authorized, and financed by high officials in the
Nixon campaign.
 “I am not a crook!”, Nixon
Washington Post
 Only
the Washington Post covered the
Watergate scandal.
 Bob Woodward (29 yrs old)
 Carl Bernstein (28 yrs old)
 Deep Throat- source that helped the
reporters uncover the scandal (W. Mark
Felt the #2 FBI guy, did not reveal himself
until May 31, 2005!).
All the President’s Men
Mitchell- Nixon’s campaign
manager; Attorney General
 G. Gordon Liddy- Member of White
House staff. Burglars had been in direct
contact with him.
 H. R. Halderman- Chief of Staff
 John Ehrlichman- Chief of Domestic
Affairs
 John
How was Watergate Discovered?
 Link
between Watergate burglars and the
White House: one of the burglars had the
phone # of E. Howard Hunt at the White
House in his pocket.
 Frank Willis- young security guard
noticed a piece of tape covering the lock
on a parking garage door leading to the
Watergate building. He called the police.
 Cover-up- President Nixon’s order to keep
the truth of Watergate from coming out.
 Hush-Money- bribes to suspects

1973- Spiro Agnew (Vice President) resigns.
“On October 10, 1973, Spiro Agnew became the second Vice
President to resign the office… Agnew resigned and then
pleaded nolo contendere (no contest) to criminal charges of
tax evasion and money laundering, part of a negotiated
resolution to a scheme wherein he accepted $29,500 in
bribes during his tenure as governor of Maryland… When
Agnew moved from Annapolis to Washington, D.C., he
continued to demand payments. Angered, the construction
men turned government's witnesses. Agnew was fined
$10,000 and put on three years' probation. The $10,000 fine
only covered the taxes and interest due on what was
"unreported income" from 1967.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiro_Agnew

Nixon appoints House Minority leader, Gerald
Ford, as vice president.
“…the thirty-eighth President of the United States,
serving from 1974 to 1977, and the fortieth Vice
President of the United States serving from 1973
to 1974. He was the first person appointed to the
vice presidency under the terms of the 25th
Amendment, and became President upon
Richard Nixon's resignation on August 9, 1974.
Ford was the fifth U.S. President never to have
been elected to that position, and the only one
never to have won a national election at all. He
is the longest lived president in U.S. History. “
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Ford
Nixon’s Resignation

August 9, 1974Nixon will resign at
noon.
 Wrote a letter to
Kissinger.
 Ford becomes
president, pardons
Nixon in 1974.
(Why?)
Causes and Effects of Nixon
Administration:
1.
C: Nixon campaign funds obtained illegally
E: Congress established federal financing of
election campaigns.
2. C: “Imperial Presidency”, too much presidential
power
E: Congress passed law limiting presidential
control over budget
3. C: Nixon used CIA to discredit opponents
E: Congress passed laws restricting autonomy
of CIA
 1974
Presidential Election Campaign
Fund- established federal financing of
presidential campaigns. Designed to limit
the role of contributions, and rules
restricting power of CIA.

Barbara Jordan- Texas,
Democrat, 1st African
American woman elected to
Congress from a southern
state.

Significant role in
impeachment trial.
Gerald Ford (1974-1977)



Stagflation – high
unemployment and inflation
OPEC – use of oil as a weapon
Helsinki Accords – recognized
post WWII borders and
promised to respect human
rights
Jimmy Carter

Peanut Farmer from
Georgia
 Soft-spoken and
down to earth that
made him not play the
“insider” games of
DC.
 “Fire-side” chats like
FDR
 Human Rights
 Energy
crisis- National Energy Act- tax
on gas-guzzling cars, removed price
controls on oil and natural gas produced in
the US, and extended tax credits for the
development of alternative energy.
 Texas Oil Boom- late 1970’s OPEC
raised the price of oil, this boomed Texas
economy and demand for domestic oil
 Carter
was big on Human Rights
 April 22, 1970 1st Earth Day; started with
Nixon and continued
 Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA)- pollution control
 Panama Canal- December 31, 1999
 Soviet-Afghanistan War- 1979-1989 US
intelligence armed Afghan rebels and
trained them in terrorist tactics. These
rebels would later turn on the US.

Camp David Accords1978- Egyptian
President Anwar elSadat and Israeli prime
minister Menachem
Begin



12 days of negotiations
Israel withdrew from the
Sinai Peninsula
Egypt recognized Israel
as a country
 Iran
Hostage Crisis- November 4, 1979
to January 20, 1981


444 days
52 Americans hostage in the US embassy in
Tehran
Election of 1980
 Jimmy
Carter Democrat
 Ronald Reagan Republican
1970’s Fads
Pop Culture of the 1970’s
Chapter 24 Study Guide:
10 Matching
12 Multiple Choice
Matching:
EPA
Camp David Accords
Stagflation
Inflation
Détente
Watergate
Multiple Choice:
 Phyllis Schlafly
 Jimmy Carter
 Nixon
 Communist China
 OPEC
 Iran Hostage Crisis