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Richard Nixon Legacy

Decent Essays

When people think of Richard Nixon the Watergate scandal may come to mind. Impeachment might also come to mind, but contrary to popular thought he was never truly impeached. Notably, the only impeached presidents are Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton. Yet, Nixon has a strong public disapprobation. Most of Richard Nixon’s legacy remains surrounded by negativity, but is there anything positive or noteworthy regarding Nixon’s presidency? Due to the Watergate scandal, people tend to overlook many aspects of Richard Nixon, to include, his background, his actual involvement in Watergate, and his legacy. So, who exactly was the Richard Nixon? In a very broad sense, he was the 37th president of the United States. Before his tenure as the 37th president, according to Conrad Black, “Richard Nixon, under his father’s influence, was already interested in politics, and already a Republican,” by 1920 (11). Likewise, Nixon’s early interest in politics that would lead to his election as a California congressman, in 1946, and sequentially, a state Senator, in 1950. Like many other US presidents, Richard Nixon had a rich history in politics before winning the presidency. But unlike other presidents, Nixon already had controversy surrounding him before he ever reached the oval office. In 1952, Nixon was amidst rumors of questionable funding, …show more content…

According to Tony McConnell, Nixon was the first president to consider a basic income and was the originator of the Environmental Protection Agency (28). Just like any other president, Nixon made his own policies and impacts on America. Another noteworthy topic of Nixon’s legacy is his foreign policy. McConnell notes that “it could only have been… [Nixon] to make common cause with the Chinese against the Soviet Union” (29). Nixon established nuclear arms control with Russia during the Cold War and establish the diplomatic openings with

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