The Nixon Years: A Crisis of Authority

Mr. ErmerU.S. HistoryMiami Beach Senior HighThe Nixon Years: A Crisis of Authority

The Youth CultureLiberationThe New LeftStudents for a Democratic Society (SDS)University of California at BerkeleyThe Free Speech MovementPeoples ParkThe CountercultureHippies & Haight-AshburyCommunal LivingRejection of traditional valuesDrugs & Free Sex Rock & RollThe Beatles

Mobilization of MinoritiesNative AmericansEisenhowers TerminationFederal government attempts to move Native Americans into mainstreamTribes deprived of legal status, remanded to the state governments, ended in 1958Indian Civil Rights Movement/American Indian Movement (AIM)Declaration of Indian Purpose fights anti-Native prejudiceIndian Civil Rights Act of 1968United States v. Wheeler (1978) calls termination unconstitutionalOccupation movementsLatino ActivismFlood of new immigrants from Latin America after WWIIChicano Activism and La Raza UnidaCesar Chavez and migrant workers rights

Feminism1960s-70s: Feminism emerges as powerful force in American societyKennedys Presidents Commission on the Status of WomenEqual Pay ActTitle VII of the Civil Rights Act of 19641963: Betty Friedans The Feminine MystiqueNational Organization for Women (NOW)1972: Congress approves Equal Rights Amendment to ConstitutionIs not ratified by the states, backlash against feminism1973: Roe v. Wade decision invalidates all laws prohibiting early term abortionsBased on the newly established right to privacy resulting from Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

Nixonian Foreign PolicyNational Security Advisor Henry Kissinger dominates foreign policy of Nixon AdministrationBelief in a multi-polar world, new international order1969: Nixon meets Soviet leaders in Helsinki, Finland for talksStrategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I)1972: Nixon visits China and opens Chinese to tradeHelps Communist Chinas government enter United NationsNixon DoctrineDefend allies in Third World, aid development, but leave basic responsibility of the future of those friends to nations themselvesSix-Day War (1967)Israel vs. Egypt, Syria, JordanIsrael gains new territoriesPalestinian refugee count increases in Jordan and LebanonYom Kippur War (1973)Arab Oil Embargo of 1973United States presses Israel to accept ceasefire in order to keep Arab allies

The Nixon Years at HomeDefends the interests of the Silent MajorityReduce federal interference in local affairsSlowed the pace of school integration by bussingAttempt to dismantle Great Society & New Frontier legislationAbolishes Office of Economic OpportunityAttempt to replace welfare system with Family Assistance PlanDoes not pass the Senate, welfare reform tabledElection of 1972Nixon vs. George McGovern (ultra-liberal democrat)Nixon wins in landslide

Nixon and the Supreme CourtWarren Court of 1950s and 60s seen as too liberalRoth v. United States (1957): limits states ability to ban pornographyEngle v. Vitale (1962): School prayer violates First AmendmentGideon v. Wainwright (1963): right to a trial attorneyEscobedo v. Illinois (1964): right to an attorney before questioningMiranda v. Arizona (1966): authorities must inform suspects of his rightsBaker v. Carr (1962): Apportioning of voting districts to ensure equalityChief Justice Earl Warren retires in 1969, Nixon appoints conservative federal judge Warren BurgerAnother justice spot opens, Senate rejects two conservative nominationsNixon nominates Harry Blackmun, a moderateNixon also appoints two more justices, Lewis Powell and William RehnquistBurger Court not as conservative as Nixon hopedSwann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Eduacation (1971): forced bussingFurman v. Georgia (1972): strict test for capital punishment lawRoe v. Wade (1973)More moderate decisions include Milliken v. Bradley (1974) and Bakke v. Board of Regents of California (1978)Nixon & the EconomyFunding 1960s social programs and Vietnam without raising taxes brings increased deficit spendingleads to inflationDollar begins to lose value relative to other currenciesOrganization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)After Arab Oil Embargo, OPEC raises price of oil by 400%DeindustrializationIndustrial jobs being replaced by knowledge based jobsRising income inequalityStagflation: rising cost of living with decreased economic performanceNixon tries to tackle inflation by decreasing money supply, raising interestWage and price controls for federal agenciesValue of dollar continues to slide

Watergate & the PresidencyChanges to PresidencyNixon seeks, sometimes illegally, to exercise powerJune 17, 1972: seven men arrested for breaking into the Democratic National Committee office at the Watergate buildingWashington Post connects Committee for the Reelection of the PresidentMore illegalities, cover-up discoveredSenate calls for release of Oval Office Recording System tapesExecutive Privilege Saturday Night MassacreUnited States v. Richard M. Nixon, court rules tapes must be turned overVice President Spiro Agnew resigns for his own scandalReplaced by Gerald FordAugust 8, 1974: Nixon resigns office, Ford sworn in as presidentFord pardons Nixon, Our long national nightmare is over

Work on it:On page 442, write and answer questions 1-5