Lesson 6: The Nixon Years

Question 1

Détente Definition

Answer 1

a policy that promotes the ending of strained or hostile tensions between countries

Question 2

Khmer Rouge Definition

Answer 2

the communist party in Cambodia that imposed a reign of terror on Cambodian citizens

Question 3

Richard M. Nixon Definition

Answer 3

Richard M. Nixon (1913–1994) was the thirty-seventh president of the United States, elected in 1968 and again in 1972. He resigned from office in 1974 following a scandal that eroded his credibility and support in Congress.

Question 4

SALT Agreement (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks) Definition

Answer 4

a treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union to limit the number of nuclear warheads and missiles

Question 5

Silent Majority Definition

Answer 5

Americans who were disturbed by unrest in the 1960s but did not protest publicly

Question 6

Stagflation Definition

Answer 6

an economic situation that arises from a combination of rising prices, high unemployment, and slow economic growth

Question 7

Watergate Definition

Answer 7

a political scandal involving illegal activities that ultimately led to the resignation of President Nixon in 1974

Question 8

As President, what did Nixon try to reduce? What did he do with many Great Society programs? What was Nixon’s “New Federalism”?

Answer 8

As President, Nixon tried to reduce government involvement in people’s lives. He cut funds for many Great Society programs, including job training, education, and low-income housing. He also sought to return power to the states. He called this transfer of power the “New Federalism.”

Question 9

During his presidential campaign, who did Richard M. Nixon want to help? What was the silent majority? What was Nixon’s “law-and-order” program, which kept true to his campaign promise?

Answer 9

During his presidential campaign, Richard M. Nixon said that he wanted to help what he called the silent majority. These Americans were disturbed by the unrest of the 1960s but did not protest publicly. They were, Nixon explained, the “great majority of Americans, the nonshouters, the nondemonstraters.” True to his campaign promise, Nixon began a “law-and-order” program. Federal funds were used to help local police departments. Nixon also named four conservative justices to the Supreme Court. They tended to favor dealing harshly with lawbreakers.

Question 10

Who did President Nixon inherit the space program from? What was the first moon landing in 1969? Who is Neil A. Armstrong?

Answer 10

Nixon inherited the space program from Kennedy and Johnson. Its greatest triumph came in 1969 just as Nixon took office. In 1969, two astronauts landed a small craft on the moon’s surface. With millions of television viewers around the world watching, Neil A. Armstrong became the first person to step onto the moon. “That’s one small step for a man—one giant leap for mankind,” he radioed back to Earth. American astronauts visited the moon five more times.

Question 11

How did the American economy suffer under the Nixon Administration? What is stagflation? What are ways Nixon attempted to help the economy? What was the result of these attempts?

Answer 11

During the Nixon years, the economy suffered from stagflation, a combination of rising prices, high unemployment, and slow economic growth. To halt inflation, Nixon froze wages and prices. To stimulate economic growth, he increased federal spending. Still, economic problems would not go away. Increased federal spending caused federal budget deficits; that is, the government spent more than it received in revenues. Early in Nixon’s second term, an oil embargo put added pressure on the economy. Higher energy prices caused the price of goods to rise even more.

Question 12

At first, what had President Nixon been doing in Vietnam? What did he hope to achieve? How did Vietnam and the Vietcong utilize Cambodia in the Vietnam War? In 1969, what did President Nixon order to take place in Cambodia? What type of conflict did this cause in Cambodia?

Answer 12

At first President Nixon widened the war in Vietnam, hoping to weaken the enemy. For years, North Vietnam had used trails in nearby Cambodia to supply Vietcong soldiers in South Vietnam. The Vietcong also escaped to Cambodia when American and South Vietnamese units attacked. In 1969, Nixon ordered the bombing of communist bases in Cambodia. Then, American and South Vietnamese forces invaded by land. These moves helped plunge Cambodia into its own civil war between communist and noncommunist forces.

Question 13

Under pressure at home, what did President Nixon start doing in Vietnam? Where did peace talks take place? In January 1973, what agreement did they reach? After the last American troops left Vietnam in 1974, what did the United States provide South Vietnam with? In April 1975, what did communist forces capture? Under what government was Vietnam united under?

Answer 13

Under pressure at home, President Nixon began to turn the war over to South Vietnam and withdraw American troops. Meanwhile, peace talks were held in Paris. In January 1973, the two sides reached a cease-fire agreement. The next year, the last American combat troops left Vietnam. The United States continued to send large amounts of aid to South Vietnam. Even so, the South Vietnamese were unable to stop a North Vietnamese advance. In April 1975, communist forces captured Saigon. They renamed it Ho Chi Minh City. Soon after, Vietnam was united under a communist government.

Question 14

Who were the Khmer Rouge? How did they treat their people? How many Cambodians died under their authority? In 1979, what did Vietnam do in Cambodia? Until when would a shaky peace be restored in Cambodia?

Answer 14

That year (1975), the communist Khmer Rouge (kuh MER ROOZH) won the civil war in Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge imposed a brutal reign of terror on their own people. More than one million Cambodians starved to death or were killed. In 1979, Vietnam invaded Cambodia and set up a new communist government. It was less harsh than the Khmer Rouge, but it could not end the fighting. Not until the 1990s would a shaky peace be restored in Cambodia.

Question 15

True or False: Between 1975 and 1979, Cambodia suffered under the violent regime of the Khmer Rouge.

Answer 15

True

Question 16

What was the aftermath of the Vietnam War? Who were boat people? How did the American public treat soldiers?

Answer 16

The Vietnam War was a costly conflict. More than 58,000 American soldiers lost their lives. Over 150,000 American soldiers were wounded, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers suffered lingering effects from the psychological stress of the war. More than one million Vietnamese soldiers and perhaps half a million civilians died. The war shattered the Vietnamese economy. After 1975, hundreds of thousands of people fled Vietnam and Cambodia. Refugees from Vietnam escaped in small boats. Many of these boat people drowned or died of hunger and thirst. Others made it to safety. Eventually, many were allowed to settle in the United States. The Vietnam War was a painful episode in American history. Besides its huge cost, the war produced no victory and divided the nation. Some returning soldiers faced protests, and many others came home without a welcome, a much different experience than soldiers who had returned from previous wars to the admiration of the American people. Vietnam left Americans wondering about how far the nation should go to fight communism.

Question 17

Remember: In 1971, while Americans were still fighting in Vietnam, the Cold War showed signs of a thaw. President Nixon moved to ease world tensions. His first move was to seek improved relations with the People’s Republic of China.

Answer 17

In 1971, while Americans were still fighting in Vietnam, the Cold War showed signs of a thaw. President Nixon moved to ease world tensions. His first move was to seek improved relations with the People’s Republic of China.

Question 18

Since 1949, why did the United States not recognize Mao Zedong’s communist government in China? Which Chinese government did the recognize? Where was this government? How did Nixon’s view on recognizing the communist government in China change when he became President?

Answer 18

Since 1949, the United States had refused to recognize Mao Zedong’s communist government in China. Instead, it recognized the Chinese Nationalists, now confined to the island of Taiwan. The United States gave arms and aid to the Nationalists and supported their claim to being the legitimate government of all China. Richard Nixon had long been one of the most outspoken opponents of recognizing the communist government in China. As President, though, Nixon allowed secret talks with Chinese officials that led to new openings for the two countries.

Question 19

After private talks, what did China do to show its goodwill? What did President Nixon do in 1972 that was televised to all Americans? What was the influence of this visit? What did the United Staes and China establish in 1979?

Answer 19

To show its goodwill, China invited the American ping-pong team to a competition in Beijing. To the surprise of many Americans, Nixon then visited the People’s Republic of China in 1972. Television cameras captured the President walking along the Great Wall of China and attending state dinners with Chinese leaders. The visit was a triumph for Nixon and the start of a new era in relations with China. As tensions eased, the United States and China established formal diplomatic relations in 1979.

Question 20

What place did President Nixon visit in May 1972, after his historic trip to China? What was Nixon’s policy of détente? How did détente ease tensions in the Cold War? What was the SALT Agreement (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks)?

Answer 20

President Nixon followed his visit to China with another historic trip. In May 1972, he became the first American President to visit the Soviet Union since the beginning of the Cold War. The trip was part of Nixon’s effort to reduce tensions between the superpowers. This policy was known as détente (day TAHNT). A French word meaning “loosening,” détente represents an end to strained relations between countries. Détente eased the tensions of the Cold War by establishing more trade and other contacts between the superpowers. It also led them to sign a treaty to limit the number of nuclear warheads and missiles. The treaty was known as the SALT Agreement. (SALT stands for Strategic Arms Limitation Talks.)

Question 21

How did Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter continue Nixon’s policy of Détente? Under President Ford, what did American and Soviet astronauts do? What did President Carter do in 1979?

Answer 21

The next two Presidents, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, continued the policy of détente. Trade between the United States and the Soviet Union increased. Under President Ford, Soviet and American astronauts conducted a joint space mission. In 1979, President Carter met with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev (BREZH nef). They worked out the details of a SALT II Treaty.

Question 22

What was the Watergate scandal on June 17, 1972? Despite this, why did President Nixon get re-elected in a landslide victory?

Answer 22

During President Nixon’s second term in office, an event that began while he was campaigning for reelection turned into a major scandal known as Watergate. On June 17, 1972, police caught five men breaking into Democratic party headquarters in the Watergate building in Washington, D.C. The burglars were there to steal information about the Democrats by taking secret documents and wiretapping phones. Though it was suspected that the spies were linked to Nixon, no solid evidence was found at first. The President assured the public that no one in the White House was involved in the break-in. He won the election by a landslide.

Question 23

After his re-election, how did people realize President Nixon’s role in Watergate?

Answer 23

Watergate did not go away with Nixon’s reelection. The American people would learn that Nixon was indeed involved. After the break-in, he gave the spies money to keep quiet about his involvement and enlisted the CIA to obstruct the investigation. However, seven men were charged in the scandal. Of those seven, two were convicted and five pleaded guilty. Despite Nixon’s denials of involvement, a Senate committee began public hearings in May 1973. The hearings revealed that Nixon had made secret tape recordings of conversations in his office. Nixon refused to give the committee the tapes, knowing that the tapes would prove his guilt.

Question 24

In 1973, the same year Nixon was being investigated for his role in Watergate, what scandal did President Spiro Agnew find himself in, forcing him to resign? Who did President Nixon assign to replace him?

Answer 24

In the fall of that same year, another unrelated scandal erupted. Vice President Spiro Agnew was accused of taking bribes and evading taxes. He was forced to resign. The President chose Representative Gerald R. Ford of Michigan to replace him.

Question 25

What led up to Richard Nixon resigning, and becoming the first President to do so?

Answer 25

The following July 1974, Nixon was ordered by the Supreme Court to surrender the tapes. The Watergate crisis came to a head when Nixon continued to hold onto the tapes. A House of Representatives committee passed articles of impeachment against the President. One of several charges was obstructing, or blocking, justice. A month later, on August 5, Nixon handed over the tapes that proved he and several close advisers had tried to cover up the truth about the Watergate break-in. Three days later, before an impeachment trial could begin, Richard Nixon became the first President to resign from office.

Question 26

What challenges did new president Gerald Ford have to deal with after Nixon’s resignation? What decision made him lose much public support?

Answer 26

Gerald Ford, the new President, had a difficult job. He faced a troubled economy and the challenge of helping the nation emerge from a major political scandal. In response to the nation’s troubled mood, President Ford granted Nixon a “full, free, and absolute pardon.” He did so a month after Nixon resigned. Some felt that Nixon should have been brought to trial. Ford, however, wanted to save the country from a bitter debate over Watergate. Ford lost a great deal of public support because of that decision.