30.2 Coming Apart, Coming Together

The Nixon Presidency and Foreign Policy

Richard Nixon's presidency marked a pivotal shift in American politics and foreign policy. Elected in 1968 amid social upheaval and war fatigue, Nixon promised to restore order and end the Vietnam War with honor.

His foreign policy achievements, including détente with the Soviet Union and opening relations with China, reshaped Cold War dynamics. But his presidency was ultimately overshadowed by the Watergate scandal, leading to his resignation and a deep crisis of confidence in American government.

Factors in Nixon's 1968 Victory

Nixon won in 1968 by positioning himself as the candidate of stability during one of the most chaotic years in American history. Several factors worked in his favor:

• Backlash against the counterculture and social upheaval of the 1960s. Many Americans felt threatened by rapid social changes, from the civil rights movement to anti-war protests to the sexual revolution. Nixon campaigned on "law and order," appealing to what he called the "silent majority" of conservative, middle-class voters who felt their values were under siege.
• Dissatisfaction with Vietnam. By 1968, the war had produced over 30,000 American deaths, rising costs, and no clear path to victory. The Tet Offensive in January 1968 shattered public confidence that the war was being won. Nixon promised "peace with honor," claiming he had a secret plan to end the conflict.
• Skilled use of television and media. Nixon presented himself as a mature, experienced leader, a sharp contrast to the chaos surrounding the Democratic campaign. His team carefully staged TV appearances and advertising to project calm authority.
• Democratic Party divisions and George Wallace's third-party candidacy. The Democrats were split between a liberal anti-war faction and a conservative pro-war faction. Meanwhile, George Wallace ran as an independent on a segregationist platform, pulling Southern conservative voters away from the Democrats and further fragmenting the opposition.

Democratic Party Fragmentation of 1968

The Democratic Party essentially tore itself apart in 1968, and understanding why helps explain how Nixon won and how American politics realigned for decades afterward.

• Ideological divisions ran deep. The liberal wing, represented by Eugene McCarthy and Robert Kennedy, strongly opposed the Vietnam War and pushed for progressive social policies. The conservative wing, represented by Vice President Hubert Humphrey, supported the war effort and favored more moderate, incremental reform.
• Assassination of Robert F. Kennedy. Kennedy's murder in June 1968, just months after Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, left a leadership vacuum in the party and deepened the sense of national trauma.
• The chaotic Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Anti-war protesters clashed with police outside the convention hall in scenes broadcast on national television. Police used tear gas and batons against demonstrators, and the violence alienated many young voters who already felt the party had ignored their voices.
• Election outcome. Humphrey won the nomination but couldn't unite the fractured party. He lost narrowly to Nixon, and the Democrats' disarray contributed to a broader political realignment that would benefit Republicans for years to come.

Nixon's Economic Policies

Nixon inherited an economy strained by Vietnam War spending and rising inflation. His responses were sometimes bold but produced mixed results.

• New Economic Policy (1971). Nixon imposed temporary wage and price controls to combat inflation. More dramatically, he ended the convertibility of the U.S. dollar to gold, effectively dismantling the Bretton Woods system of fixed international exchange rates that had been in place since World War II. This was a massive shift in global finance.
• Revenue sharing with states and localities. This program sent federal tax dollars directly to state and local governments, giving them more control over how the money was spent. It reflected Nixon's goal of decentralizing federal power.
• Spending cuts and tax increases. Nixon tried to balance the budget by cutting Great Society programs and raising taxes on businesses, though these measures had limited success.
• Economic outcomes. Wage and price controls brought short-term relief, but deeper problems emerged. By the mid-1970s, the economy was hit by stagflation, a painful combination of high inflation and high unemployment that traditional economic tools struggled to fix. The 1973 OPEC oil embargo made things worse, triggering a severe recession in 1973–1974.

Nixon's Foreign Policy

Nixon, working closely with National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger, pursued a realist foreign policy that prioritized strategic advantage over ideology. His major moves reshaped the Cold War.

• Détente with the Soviet Union. Rather than confrontation, Nixon pursued a policy of easing tensions with the USSR. The centerpiece was the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I), signed in 1972, which placed limits on the growth of both nations' nuclear arsenals. This didn't end the arms race, but it established a framework for managing it.

• Opening relations with China. Nixon's 1972 visit to the People's Republic of China was a dramatic diplomatic breakthrough. The U.S. and China had been hostile since the Communist revolution in 1949. By reaching out to Beijing, Nixon exploited the growing Sino-Soviet split, the deepening rivalry between China and the Soviet Union. This gave the U.S. leverage with both communist powers.

• Vietnam War strategy. Nixon's approach to ending the war unfolded in stages:

  1. He gradually withdrew U.S. troops under a policy called "Vietnamization," which shifted combat responsibility to South Vietnamese forces.
  2. He simultaneously escalated air strikes and bombing campaigns (including Operation Linebacker) to pressure North Vietnam into negotiations.
  3. The Paris Peace Accords, signed in January 1973, ended direct U.S. military involvement. South Vietnam fell to the North in 1975.

• Impact on the Cold War. Nixon's foreign policy created a more stable balance of power by improving relations with both the Soviet Union and China. The risk of direct superpower conflict decreased, even as proxy conflicts continued around the world.

Social and Cultural Changes

The late 1960s and 1970s saw American society pulled in competing directions, with movements for change clashing against a growing conservative reaction.

• The counterculture continued to challenge traditional values in music, fashion, sexuality, and lifestyle, though its influence was already beginning to fade by the early 1970s.
• Protest movements gained momentum. Civil rights demonstrations, anti-war rallies, and the women's liberation movement all pushed for fundamental changes in American law and culture. These movements achieved real legislative victories but also generated significant opposition.
• American society grew more polarized. Divisions between conservatives and liberals deepened on issues like race, gender roles, law enforcement, and the war. This polarization shaped voting patterns and party alignments for decades.
• A conservative backlash took shape. Many Americans, particularly in the South and suburban areas, resisted what they saw as rapid, destabilizing social change. Nixon tapped into this backlash effectively, and it would grow into a powerful political force through the 1970s and into the Reagan era.