News
Henry Kissinger’s Path to the RN White House
Henry Kissinger was the National Security Advisor to RN from late 1968 throughout his presidency. During his time in office he worked closely with RN to develop the policies that would open Communist China to the United States and help bring the Vietnam War to a...
The Push for Anti-Busing Legislation
During a press conference on April 29, 1971, a reporter asked President Nixon if he approved of “the mandatory use of busing to overcome racial segregation” ruled by the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Swann v. Charlotte Mecklenburg. An unmarked provisional Q &...
The Powers of the President to Nominate
Article II of the Constitution of the United States assigns the powers of the president. The powers defined are not nearly as extensive as those defined of Congressional power in Article I, but, nevertheless, the President holds significant roles in the federal...
RN Appoints Daniel Patrick Moynihan
When RN won the election in 1968, he was interested in populating his cabinet with Democrats so that he would have better rapport with Congress. He created a committee that would oversee domestic policy issues, specifically those that dealt with poverty and income...
Strengthening U.S.-Japanese Ties
Japanese Prime Minister Eisaku Sato meets with President Nixon at the Western White House in San Clemente on January 6, 1972. In 1971, Washington and Tokyo maintained a strong economic and security relationship, but as with any alliance, the relationship was tested by...
The Challenge of Peaceful Desegregation
An excerpt from a 1969 statement by both Robert H. Finch, Secretary of the Department of Health Education and Welfare, and John N. Mitchell, Attorney General, gives us a perspective on the challenges still facing the nationwide integration of schools since the...
Support from General Abrams
At the onset of 1969, the Nixon administration had yet to form a definitive plan to bring peace to Vietnam, largely as a result of the North Vietnamese's continued intransigence and a time period occupied by necessary fact gathering and policy option studies. This...
Reforming The Selective Service
Today the Selective Service system is on stand-by. Every male in America between the ages of 18 and 25 must register with the Selective Service System, but never has any individual since the Vietnam War era been conscripted into service. The first and last experience...
Nixon, The Supreme Court, and Busing
The two terms of President Nixon’s administration faced a myriad of issues related to Civil Rights. One among these, which consistently provoked RN’s reaction, was that of busing, a system the Supreme Court mandated throughout the country in order to end racial...
Planning the Surprise – Media and the Trip to China
Often termed “The Week that Changed the World,” President Nixon’s 1972 trip to China was founded upon intense planning. Geopolitics were at the fore, but society’s reaction to the trip formed a complementary component, and great strategy went into determining the role...