Mid-Term Elections: 1970
Richard Nixon became President of the United States on January 20, 1969, marking one of the greatest political comebacks in history. After having failed to win the presidency in 1960 and the governorship of California in 1962, a petulant Nixon had told the press that they wouldn't "have Nixon to kick around" any more. He was wrong. He entered the Oval Office as president eight years later than he had hoped, and during turbulent times. The nation was losing the War in Vietnam, and the war had become unpopular in the media and in the minds of the public. The nation was awash with protests and the issue of race was becoming a divisive one. Crime was increasing and the United States was losing international prestige as pessimism was on the rise.
In his inaugural address, Nixon declared the words that would one day grace his tombstone: "The greatest honor that history can bestow is the title of peacemaker." Nixon said that his presidency would usher in an era of "Détente", the easing of tensions among super-powers. The following day, speaking to a group of his former campaign workers, he promised that he would wake up early and go to sleep late in order to confront the challenges facing the nation. Later that month, after naming his formal political rival George W. Romney to the post of Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Nixon visited a section of Washington DC with a predominant African-American population that had been torn apart by riots during the previous year. He stood in front of Jimmie's Pool Room early that morning and shook hands with the crowd. One man referred to the President as his "soul brother". He also appointed a Democrat, future New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, as his White House Urban Affairs Advisor Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
It was on the international stage that Nixon was most interested in however. On February 3, it was announced that Nixon planned to visit a number of western European countries in the next two months. Three days later he sought promises from the nation's military commanders concerning the safety of South Vietnam prior to agreeing to troop withdrawals in Vietnam. On February 10, Nixon's Press secretary Ron Ziegler announced that Nixon would travel to West Berlin, despite plans by East Germany to limit routes to the city due to the upcoming West German presidential election. On the same day Nixon hosted a White House state dinner honoring Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies, who was visiting Washington. Later that month Nixon traveled to Europe, vising Great Britain, West Germany, and spending the largest amount of time in France, meeting with President Charles de Gaulle.
In late March of 1969, Nixon also spoke to a luncheon of the National Association of Broadcasters, where he told the group that private negotiations were taking place on the subject of peace in Vietnam, but that he could not release details of the talks. Nixon began the month of April by telling the nation, through his Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird, that South Vietnam would see a reduction in the number of B-52 bombing missions. Laird also announced that peace negotiations connected to Vietnam were taking place, and that "signs of progress" have occurred.
But the war would ultimately take its toll on Nixon's popularity. At the time Nixon took office, there were over 500,000 American soldiers in Southeast Asia. Over 30,000 U.S. military personnel serving in the Vietnam War had been killed since 1961, with approximately half of those deaths occurring in 1968. The war became more widely unpopular in the United States. Anti-war protests were taking place on a regular basis and these sometimes became violent. Nixon wanted to end the American role in it without the appearance of an American defeat. In mid-1969, Nixon began efforts to negotiate peace with the North Vietnamese, but negotiators were unable to reach an agreement. With the failure of the peace talks, Nixon implemented a strategy of "Vietnamization." This consisted of increased U.S. aid and Vietnamese troops taking on a greater combat role in the war. He began phased troop withdrawals by the end of 1969, sapping the strength of the domestic anti-war movement.
In early 1970, Nixon sent U.S. and South Vietnamese soldiers into Cambodia to attack North Vietnamese bases, expanding the ground war out of Vietnam for the first time. He had previously approved a secret B-52 carpet bombing campaign of North Vietnamese positions in Cambodia in March 1969 (code-named Operation Menu), without the consent of Cambodian leader Norodom Sihanouk. These incursions into Cambodia were met with intense disapproval and increased anti-war protests. One of these, known as the Kent State shootings, took place on May 4, 1970 when members of the Ohio National Guard opened fire on protesters and killed unarmed Kent State University Students and wounded nine others. The killings took place during a protest against the expanding involvement of the Vietnam War into neutral Cambodia by United States military forces. The incident marked the first time that a student had been killed in an anti-war gathering in United States history. Twenty-eight National Guard soldiers fired approximately 67 rounds over a period of 13 seconds. The students killed were Allison Beth Krause, 19, Jeffrey Glenn Miller, 20, and Sandra Lee Scheuer, who died on the scene. William Knox Schroeder, 19, was pronounced dead at Robinson Memorial Hospital shortly afterward.
When the 1970 mid-term elections were held on November 3 to elect the members of the 92nd United States Congress, voters had enough of the Vietnam War, and had lost faith in Nixon's ability to broker a peace agreement. Nixon and Vice President Spiro Agnew campaigned heavily for Republican candidates. In an October speech he declared, "My friends, I say that the answer to those that engage in disruption--to those that shout their filthy slogans, to those that try to shout down speakers--is not to answer in kind, but go to the polls on election day, and in the quiet of that ballot box, stand up and be counted: the great silent majority of America."
Nixon's appeal failed. The Democratic Party retained its Senate majority and increased its majority in the House. In the House of Representatives, the Democrats picked up twelve seats at the expense of the Republican Party. Democrats won 255 seats in the House, to 180 for Republicans. In the Senate, Republicans picked up two seats and James L. Buckley won election as a member of the Conservative Party of New York. Democrats held 54 seats in the senate to 44 for Republicans, with Buckley and one other independent.
Nixon began his presidency appearing to be someone with a considerable amount of ability and promise on the international stage, as well as someone not adverse to making progress on number of issues typically considered to be within the province of liberals. But as the war dragged on and the economy worsened, and as Nixon became more fixated with his re-election and with getting even with his political enemies, his presidency would take on a much darker appearance.
In his inaugural address, Nixon declared the words that would one day grace his tombstone: "The greatest honor that history can bestow is the title of peacemaker." Nixon said that his presidency would usher in an era of "Détente", the easing of tensions among super-powers. The following day, speaking to a group of his former campaign workers, he promised that he would wake up early and go to sleep late in order to confront the challenges facing the nation. Later that month, after naming his formal political rival George W. Romney to the post of Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Nixon visited a section of Washington DC with a predominant African-American population that had been torn apart by riots during the previous year. He stood in front of Jimmie's Pool Room early that morning and shook hands with the crowd. One man referred to the President as his "soul brother". He also appointed a Democrat, future New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, as his White House Urban Affairs Advisor Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
It was on the international stage that Nixon was most interested in however. On February 3, it was announced that Nixon planned to visit a number of western European countries in the next two months. Three days later he sought promises from the nation's military commanders concerning the safety of South Vietnam prior to agreeing to troop withdrawals in Vietnam. On February 10, Nixon's Press secretary Ron Ziegler announced that Nixon would travel to West Berlin, despite plans by East Germany to limit routes to the city due to the upcoming West German presidential election. On the same day Nixon hosted a White House state dinner honoring Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies, who was visiting Washington. Later that month Nixon traveled to Europe, vising Great Britain, West Germany, and spending the largest amount of time in France, meeting with President Charles de Gaulle.
In late March of 1969, Nixon also spoke to a luncheon of the National Association of Broadcasters, where he told the group that private negotiations were taking place on the subject of peace in Vietnam, but that he could not release details of the talks. Nixon began the month of April by telling the nation, through his Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird, that South Vietnam would see a reduction in the number of B-52 bombing missions. Laird also announced that peace negotiations connected to Vietnam were taking place, and that "signs of progress" have occurred.
But the war would ultimately take its toll on Nixon's popularity. At the time Nixon took office, there were over 500,000 American soldiers in Southeast Asia. Over 30,000 U.S. military personnel serving in the Vietnam War had been killed since 1961, with approximately half of those deaths occurring in 1968. The war became more widely unpopular in the United States. Anti-war protests were taking place on a regular basis and these sometimes became violent. Nixon wanted to end the American role in it without the appearance of an American defeat. In mid-1969, Nixon began efforts to negotiate peace with the North Vietnamese, but negotiators were unable to reach an agreement. With the failure of the peace talks, Nixon implemented a strategy of "Vietnamization." This consisted of increased U.S. aid and Vietnamese troops taking on a greater combat role in the war. He began phased troop withdrawals by the end of 1969, sapping the strength of the domestic anti-war movement.
In early 1970, Nixon sent U.S. and South Vietnamese soldiers into Cambodia to attack North Vietnamese bases, expanding the ground war out of Vietnam for the first time. He had previously approved a secret B-52 carpet bombing campaign of North Vietnamese positions in Cambodia in March 1969 (code-named Operation Menu), without the consent of Cambodian leader Norodom Sihanouk. These incursions into Cambodia were met with intense disapproval and increased anti-war protests. One of these, known as the Kent State shootings, took place on May 4, 1970 when members of the Ohio National Guard opened fire on protesters and killed unarmed Kent State University Students and wounded nine others. The killings took place during a protest against the expanding involvement of the Vietnam War into neutral Cambodia by United States military forces. The incident marked the first time that a student had been killed in an anti-war gathering in United States history. Twenty-eight National Guard soldiers fired approximately 67 rounds over a period of 13 seconds. The students killed were Allison Beth Krause, 19, Jeffrey Glenn Miller, 20, and Sandra Lee Scheuer, who died on the scene. William Knox Schroeder, 19, was pronounced dead at Robinson Memorial Hospital shortly afterward.
When the 1970 mid-term elections were held on November 3 to elect the members of the 92nd United States Congress, voters had enough of the Vietnam War, and had lost faith in Nixon's ability to broker a peace agreement. Nixon and Vice President Spiro Agnew campaigned heavily for Republican candidates. In an October speech he declared, "My friends, I say that the answer to those that engage in disruption--to those that shout their filthy slogans, to those that try to shout down speakers--is not to answer in kind, but go to the polls on election day, and in the quiet of that ballot box, stand up and be counted: the great silent majority of America."
Nixon's appeal failed. The Democratic Party retained its Senate majority and increased its majority in the House. In the House of Representatives, the Democrats picked up twelve seats at the expense of the Republican Party. Democrats won 255 seats in the House, to 180 for Republicans. In the Senate, Republicans picked up two seats and James L. Buckley won election as a member of the Conservative Party of New York. Democrats held 54 seats in the senate to 44 for Republicans, with Buckley and one other independent.
Nixon began his presidency appearing to be someone with a considerable amount of ability and promise on the international stage, as well as someone not adverse to making progress on number of issues typically considered to be within the province of liberals. But as the war dragged on and the economy worsened, and as Nixon became more fixated with his re-election and with getting even with his political enemies, his presidency would take on a much darker appearance.