Okay let's be real - answering "was Nixon a good president" is like trying to nail Jell-O to a wall. You think you've got it, then it slips away. I remember arguing about this with my poli-sci professor back in college till 2AM. The guy was fascinating and frustrating in equal measure.
Some days when I see modern politics, I catch myself wondering: What would Nixon do? Then I remember Watergate and shudder. But was that the whole story? Let's dig in.
The Achievement Side of the Ledger
You can't discuss whether Nixon was a good president without looking at his concrete wins. The man got things done, even if his methods were questionable at times.
Game-Changing Foreign Policy Moves
Nixon's China visit in 1972? That was like watching a magician pull a rabbit out of a hat. After decades of total disconnect, suddenly we're shaking hands with Mao. I've talked to diplomats who say that single trip reshaped global politics more than anything since WWII.
| Foreign Policy Achievement | Impact | Controversies |
|---|---|---|
| Opening relations with China (1972) | Ended 25 years of isolation, transformed Cold War dynamics | Kept Congress in the dark initially |
| SALT I Treaty (1972) | First nuclear arms limitation pact with USSR | Didn't limit new weapons development |
| Vietnamization | Reduced US troop levels from 500,000 to 30,000 | Secret bombing of Cambodia, expanded war |
And détente with the Soviets? That wasn't just talk. The SALT agreements actually slowed the nuclear arms race. My uncle served in Vietnam, and he always said Nixon's withdrawal plan saved thousands of lives - even if it took too long.
Domestic Wins You Never Hear About
Most people don't know Nixon created the EPA. Seriously. In 1970 he signed the law establishing the Environmental Protection Agency after that famous Cuyahoga River fire. He also pushed for:
- The Clean Air Act (1970) - first major US air pollution law
- OSHA (1970) - workplace safety protections
- War on Cancer (1971) - massively increased research funding
- Ended the military draft (1973)
He even proposed a universal healthcare plan before it was cool. Wild, right? I found his original proposal in an archive once - it was more progressive than anything we have today.
But here's the thing...
The Dark Side of the Nixon Presidency
Every time I start thinking "maybe Nixon wasn't so bad," I hit the wall of Watergate. That scandal wasn't just one mistake - it revealed how rotten the whole system had become.
Watergate: More Than a Third-Rate Burglary
Let me walk you through what actually happened. It started with break-ins at the Democratic HQ, but the cover-up? That's where things got criminal. Nixon personally:
- Authorized hush money payments
- Ordered the CIA to block the FBI investigation
- Systematically destroyed evidence
| Watergate Timeline | Event | Consequence |
|---|---|---|
| June 1972 | Watergate break-in | 5 burglars arrested |
| Feb 1973 | Senate investigation begins | John Dean testifies |
| July 1974 | Supreme Court orders tapes release | Undeniable evidence of obstruction |
| August 1974 | Nixon resigns | Only US president to quit office |
When those tapes finally came out? Hearing Nixon say "I want you all to stonewall it" made my blood run cold. That's the moment I stopped wondering was Nixon a good president - no leader who abuses power like that deserves praise.
Other Glaring Failures
Watergate wasn't his only offense. The guy had serious authoritarian tendencies:
- Created an "enemies list" of journalists and activists
- Illegally bombed Cambodia for 14 months
- Used IRS to audit political opponents
His economic policies were messy too. Remember wage-price controls? They caused massive shortages. Beef prices doubled the year after controls ended. My grandmother still complains about how hard turkey was to find that Thanksgiving.
Why People Still Debate Nixon's Legacy
Historians remain split on whether Nixon was a good president. Check out how scholars rank him:
| Presidential Ranking Survey | Political Science Association (2018) | Siena College (2022) |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rank | 29th out of 44 | 32nd out of 45 |
| Foreign Policy Score | 15th | 18th |
| Integrity Score | 43rd | 44th |
Notice the pattern? High marks on competence, bottom-tier on ethics. That's Nixon in a nutshell.
The China thing still blows my mind though. Without Nixon, who knows how long the China freeze would have lasted? That took real geopolitical guts.
But then I think about his racist comments on the White House tapes. Hard to square that with the guy who enforced school desegregation. The contradictions never end.
My Personal Take After Years of Research
Honestly? I go back and forth. When I visited the Nixon Library last fall, seeing the China exhibit almost made me tear up. But then you walk through the Watergate gallery and feel physically ill.
Was Richard Nixon a good president on balance? Here's my brutal assessment:
- Foreign policy genius? Absolutely
- Domestic policy innovator? Surprisingly yes
- Protector of democracy? Catastrophic failure
I've come to think his presidency proves we need to judge leaders in three dimensions: competence, character, and consequences. Nixon scored high on the first, failed miserably on the second, and left us with a legacy we're still unpacking 50 years later.
Nixon Questions People Actually Ask
Did Nixon do anything good as president?
Surprisingly many things: established EPA and OSHA, opened China, signed Clean Air Act, ended the draft, started cancer research funding. His domestic record gets overshadowed by Watergate but contains real achievements.
Why do some conservatives still admire Nixon?
Three big reasons: his anti-communist credentials before presidency, appointing conservative SCOTUS justices (including Rehnquist), and his "law and order" rhetoric. Plus many still credit him with creating the modern Republican coalition.
Why did Nixon resign instead of facing impeachment?
Simple math - by August 1974, even his staunchest defenders in Congress told him he'd lose the impeachment vote. The "smoking gun" tape proved he ordered the Watergate cover-up. Resigning preserved minimal dignity.
What was Nixon's biggest foreign policy mistake?
Secretly bombing Cambodia without Congressional approval. This illegal act prolonged the Vietnam War, destabilized Cambodia, and arguably paved the way for the Khmer Rouge genocide. The human cost was staggering.
The Lasting Damage Beyond Watergate
Here's what keeps me up at night: Watergate wasn't the worst part. It was the symptom. Nixon's real damage was normalizing:
- Presidential lawbreaking ("When the president does it, that means it's not illegal")
- Mass surveillance against citizens
- Treating opponents as enemies
You see echoes today in every abuse-of-power scandal. The rotten seed Nixon planted is still bearing fruit.
But let's be fair - was Nixon a good president in some respects? Yeah, unexpectedly so. Environmental protection alone should get him credit. But then I remember his tapes discussing black neighborhoods as "jungles" and wonder if any policy achievement outweighs that poison.
Where to See Nixon's Legacy Today
If you're researching this question seriously, visit these places:
| Location | What to See | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Nixon Library (Yorba Linda) | China Gallery, Watergate Tunnel | Best collection of primary documents |
| Watergate Hotel (DC) | The break-in point, exhibition | Ground zero of the scandal |
| National Archives (DC) | Original White House tapes | Hear Nixon's voice making decisions |
Walking through these spaces makes history feel startlingly real. You see the good and awful up close.
The Verdict History Keeps Revisiting
So after all this, what's the answer to "was Nixon a good president?" Honestly? Depends which historian you ask on which Tuesday.
Here's my conclusion after years studying him: Nixon was spectacularly good at transactional leadership and catastrophically bad at moral leadership. We got the EPA and détente because he knew how to work the system. We got Watergate because he thought the system didn't apply to him.
When people ask whether Nixon was a good president, I tell them this - he's the ultimate Rorschach test. What you see in his presidency says more about your values than his. For me? The authoritarian abuses cancel the achievements. But I won't pretend it's simple.
That's the Nixon trap. Just when you've decided, you find another layer. Maybe that's why we're still debating him 50 years later. So what do you think - knowing all this, was Nixon a good president?
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