During his presidency, Nixon:
- indexed Social Security for inflation
- imposed wage and price controls
- created Supplemental Security Income
- created the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency)
- created the OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
- implemented the Philadelphia Plan (the first affirmative action plan)
- established the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
- established the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Foreign Policy:
His main operative was National Security Council director Henry
Kissinger; his favorite mode of operation was secret, back-channel
diplomacy. Frequently, the two men acted without the permission or the
knowledge of the State Department.
He was the first president to visit China, where he proposed a relaxed
attitude towards the republic.
He wanted a future that included better relations between the world
powers: Soviet Union, USA, China, West Europe, Japan.
He wanted these nations might to revenue-draining defense expenditures
and prevent the occurrence of costly Third World conflicts such as the
Vietnam War.
Proposed the "Nixon Doctrine" : The United States, he said, would
support democratic third world nations by providing them with
financial and military aid, but not troops. In October of that year,
Nixon called for a cease fire in Vietnam and a unilateral withdrawal
of American troops. Hanoi refused his overture, but Nixon continued
with "Vietnamization" -- supporting South Vietnam with equipment and
money while gradually withdrawing American troops from the war.
Arms Race: As an alternative to the arms race, Nixon proposed to the
Soviets that the two nations settle for a "strategic parity" in
nuclear weapons. If each side possessed enough weapons to guarantee
the destruction of the other, neither would dare to start war, and the
peace would hold.
Domestic Policy:
Nixon transformed th BoB into the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) and the created the Domestic Council within the White House.
The OMB, as its new name implied, was designed to enhance the
President?s ability to manage the wider executive branch, installing a
new level of political appointees above the agency?s cadre of career
analysts. The Domestic Council, formed by Reorganization Plan No. 2 in
March 1970, was ostensibly a forum for cabinet-level members, chaired
by the President. But the real power lay in the Council?s staff; in
this regard, it purposefully paralleled the evolution of the National
Security Council. Domestic Council director John Ehrlichman became
part of the Nixon White House policy triumvirate, along with chief of
staff H.R. Haldeman and national security adviser Henry Kissinger. OMB
and the Council overlapped in many ways, cooperating on some issues
and competing on others.
Budget:
Nixon ramped up federal spending and took other actions to juice the
economy and financial markets, but the economy soon collapsed in a
harsh recession. Nixon also halted circulation of high-denomination
U.S. currency in 1969 by executive order.
Congress during presidency:
He had a "divided congress" and thus, had marginal control
91st Congress 1969-1971
Senate: 58 Democrats 42 Republicans
House: 243 Democrats 192 Republicans
92d Congress 1971-1973
Senate: 54 Democrats 44 Republicans 2 Ind.
House: 255 Democrats 180 Republicans |
