Nixon: Good or Bad President?

[TeenageRepublican]

I think that Nixon, like all presidents, was human. He had flaws because he was human.
But, I respect Nixon more than I respect Bill Clinton.

Nixon resigned and just stepped down because he knew what he did was wrong. Clinton didn't resign. He just went on and on and on about how he had no sex with Monica.

Besides Watergate, was he a good president? I personally think he was. He knew the only way to get peace and justice in Vietnam was to win the war but I guess some other people thought Communism was the answer.

[Timberwolf]

Have you ever wondered WHY car manufacturers offer "cash back" and "rebates" instead of just putting their cars "on sale"?

It's because of the price freezes Nixon put in place which just about ruined the auto industry. You see, if anyone has their goods "on sale" and another round of "price freezes" is put in place, those prices don't change until the freeze is rescinded. A rebate or cash back offer can be ended.

He also finished the process of taking us off the gold standard...a VERY bad move. Paved the way for the double-digit inflation during Carter's administration (don't get me wrong, Carter is to blame. But, had our currency been tied to gold, it wouldn't have been as bad).

He did get us out of Vietnam. During his 1st term, NASA landed the first man on the moon.

Here's an interesting link concerning Nixon. (http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAnixon.htm)

[jayson]

He also finished the process of taking us off the gold standard...a VERY bad move. Paved the way for the double-digit inflation during Carter's administration (don't get me wrong, Carter is to blame. But, had our currency been tied to gold, it wouldn't have been as bad).

I've attached a visual aid to really drive home your message. Note the correlation between years and expenditures.

It should come as no surprise that once the dollar was no longer tied to a tangible good, the bureaucrats in DC started spending OUR money like drunken sailors. Yes, even Republicans.

Taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_federal_budget

[ThomasMore]

Smart at Realpolitik. So-so on military and foreign affairs (detente and Nixon in China were clever, but I remain unsure whether they were good). Horrible on domestic policy. Dumb to get tied up with Watergate.

Overall grade: 4/10.

The alternative, Hubert Horatio Humphrey "HHH" in 1968 would have been worse, and the 1972 alternative, George McGovern would have been a Jimmy Cartastrophe.

http://www.campaignbuttons-etc.com/hhh5C.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee207/adamlevin1/McGovern2008.jpg

[Neil Peart]

Hubert Horatio Humphrey "HHH" in 1968

http://www.campaignbuttons-etc.com/hhh5C.jpgTriple H for President!

http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/pictures/t/tripleh/61.jpg

[DesertFox]

had our currency been tied to gold, it wouldn't have been as bad Sure it would. Every bit as bad. All the politicians would have had to do was declare a dollar's worth of gold worth $10 million. Identical result.

You are right in one sense: A gold standard helps keep inflation in check by giving a ready reference that everybody can understand. Without that reference, anything goes. For that reason inflation wouldn't have been as bad as quickly had we stayed on the gold standard.

Inflation is always caused by too many dollars chasing too little value. You end it by either squeezing out the excess dollars (as in 1981 under Volcker) or by holding the money supply even whilst private entrepreneurs, bit by bit, increase the value (goods and services) in the economy.

[TeenageRepublican]

Okay. I'll admit that I've been given not much information him about except about the war and Watergate.
I have heard he was a great vice president to Eisenhower though.

[MrSanity]

Tricky Dick was a flaming lib. And a corrupt mofo as well.

[Timberwolf]

JFK and RMN were fast friends. In fact, Kennedy told the democrats in 1960 to either nominate him for the democrat ticket or he was going to work on Nixon's campaign.

[Elgalad]

The others have covered Nixon's political flubs pretty well, but I do want to clarify one thing in your OP, TR.

Nixon did not resign because he felt guilty about doing something bad. He resigned because he got Caught breaking the law and was told in very clear terms (by the Republican leadership in both houses of Congress) that he Would be removed from office if he didn't resign. He really had no choice.

Nixon's "crime", is still misrepresented by many in the media to this day. He did not order his people to spy on the Democrats during the 1972 election.. at least there has Never been any proof that he did.. but what he Did do was to attempt to cover up the break-in as soon as he found out about it, and he misused the FBI and other government offices in the attempt as well.

For the nation's highest Executive, that was absolutely inexcusable.

Clinton should have been forced out of office as well, but the circumstances were very different.. Clinton openly and blatantly lied under oath before a Federal Grand Jury. The motivation to lie does not matter, nor does it matter what the question was about. He lied under oath. Yet just like Nixon, the media continues to misrepresent it as him 'being impeached for having sex.'



-Elgalad

[TeenageRepublican]

Thanks for explaining Nixon. I had no clue about this.

Sheesh, and people think Bush is bad...

[EveningStar]

Nixon resigned and just stepped down because he knew what he did was wrong.
He resigned because he learned that he would be removed from office. Impeachment by the House was a certainty. The necessary two-thirds vote in the Senate was also a certainty.

[EveningStar]

The others have covered Nixon's political flubs pretty well, but I do want to clarify one thing in your OP, TR.

Nixon did not resign because he felt guilty about doing something bad. He resigned because he got Caught breaking the law and was told in very clear terms (by the Republican leadership in both houses of Congress) that he Would be removed from office if he didn't resign. He really had no choice.

Nixon's "crime", is still misrepresented by many in the media to this day. He did not order his people to spy on the Democrats during the 1972 election.. at least there has Never been any proof that he did.. but what he Did do was to attempt to cover up the break-in as soon as he found out about it, and he misused the FBI and other government offices in the attempt as well.

For the nation's highest Executive, that was absolutely inexcusable.

Clinton should have been forced out of office as well, but the circumstances were very different.. Clinton openly and blatantly lied under oath before a Federal Grand Jury. The motivation to lie does not matter, nor does it matter what the question was about. He lied under oath. Yet just like Nixon, the media continues to misrepresent it as him 'being impeached for having sex.'



-Elgalad
Oops. I should have scrolled down and read your post before I made mine.

On Aug. 7, 1974, Rep. John Rhodes, who served 30 years as a congressman from Arizona, Sen. Barry Goldwater of Arizona and Senate Minority Leader Hugh Scott of Pennsylvania went to an office in the Old Executive Office Building for a now-famous meeting with President Nixon.

Rhodes at the time was House minority leader, a position he held from 1973 through 1980. He succeeded Ford as minority leader when Ford became vice president. Goldwater at the time was the only remaining GOP presidential nominee and was a senior statesman of the party.

The three discussed with Nixon the likelihood that he would not survive an impeachment vote by the House and the fact that his support in the Senate, if he were subjected to a trial, would be slim.

http://www.wzzm13.com/news/fordfullstory.aspx?storyid=67625

[norman]

I think Nixon was a fair President because he closed the window on the gold standard advocates (a cause of the Great Depression) and visited China. He was wrong for Watergate so he will never be considered great or good but fair is a tolerable description.

I like the US paper standard (currency backed by US Treasuries) as it is crucial in keeping macroeconomics in the US positive sum. The Federal Reserve has adequate tools to fight inflation that it does not need a scarce-mineral-that-has-to-be-dug-out-of-the-earth standard.

[jayson]

I think Nixon was a fair President because he closed the window on the gold standard advocates (a cause of the Great Depression) and visited China. He was wrong for Watergate so he will never be considered great or good but fair is a tolerable description.

I like the US paper standard (currency backed by US Treasuries) as it is crucial in keeping macroeconomics in the US positive sum. The Federal Reserve has adequate tools to fight inflation that it does not need a scarce-mineral-that-has-to-be-dug-out-of-the-earth standard.

I'm tempted to set you straight, but if you are drinking that much kool-aid, I believe my attempts would be in vain.

[TeenageRepublican]

What? How come Norman gets to have kool-aid? Damn... TR misses out again... :(

[norman]

I'm tempted to set you straight, but if you are drinking that much kool-aid, I believe my attempts would be in vain.

Thanks for resisting the temptation to set me straight. You are right; your attempts indeed would be in vain.

I have not read Ron Paul's A Case for Gold and do not intend to read it. The influences of Keynes, younger Friedman and Bernanke run strong in me.

The kool-aid is great. Have some.

[Timberwolf]

No thanks...I'll stick 'with' the Austrians....

[norman]

No thanks...I'll stick 'with' the Austrians....

The Austrians have had a lasting impact. I think of them as microeconomists rather than macroeconomists.

[bigred1says]

Oh, Yeah!!!!

[TeenageRepublican]

What. The. Hell.

Talk about thread drift...

[DeclinetoState]

Nixon was run out of Washington by many politicians who were as corrupt as he was, if not much more so. Unfortunately, the city is still full of corrupt politicians, some of whom were there when Nixon was in office.