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Richard Nixon Birth: January 9, 1913 Death: April 22, 1994 Political Party: Republican Term: 1969-1974(two terms) Vice President: [|Spiro Agnew], [|Gerald Ford] Theme: American Identity Grade: C Once the Soviets launched the Sputnik in the space in early October 1957, there was a huge demand of completion in the United States. The American Identity was very quickly being shaped from where it was in the 30’s to the early 60’s. The race to once again become superior in the Western Hemisphere led the United States to create the Apollo 11 in July of 1969. Sending this object into space created a sense of pride in the American people and form there on out we were seeking new and improved inventions and technology. Nixon accepted the space program very easily and if it wasn’t for the president’s support of the program NASA and other corporations may not be as important as they are to the country today. Leading America into the future is really the whole concept of what the American Identity really is and moving forward is just what we as a country did. Nixon as a whole was an average president. He should earn a C for his time spent in office because of his great interest and involvement in the space program and domestic affairs. He was against discrimination and really was only trying to accomplish a world of peace amongst countries. Although Nixon was working to help with domestic affairs, he spent much of his presidency working out international complications rather than dealing with domestic affairs. Some mistakes like the Watergate Scandal were what brought Nixon’s grade down to a C. Every president has similar goals when first coming into office. Nixon was no different. Many of his goals and intentions for his first term were to create a better quality of life overall. This would be accomplished by creating better housing, jobs, peace, and education. Nixon really wanted world peace and do help push his ideas into reality he went to peace talks with North Korea as an attempt to create a more stable relationship with the communistic country. Taking troops out of Vietnam was also an intention to further peace, however, this really didn’t solve any problems that the US had with Vietnam. Nixon was so caught up with the global affairs that he pretty much forgot that there still was an isolationist group back in the US that would be furious with him. Nixon seemed to complete a good amount of his goals as president in his first term. For his year long second term, Nixon had similar goals as his first inaugural address. Promoting world peace was really still at the top of his list of priorities. He didn’t wish for the United States to fall back into a stage of isolationism like in World War I. Many of the other goals that Nixon had wanted to achieve were never accomplished in his second term due to the Watergate Scandal. After the scandal Nixon was looked down upon by the public and was soon required to leave office only one year into his second term. Having a majority of democratic members in the Senate and Congress really didn’t help Nixon in any way during his presidency. The republican values and morals were quickly shut down by the democrats. Nixon also had a sort of gruff personality which seemed kind of ironic due to his constant efforts to promote peace. These two factors combined made it so that Nixon had a terrible relationship with Congress. Probably the most positive outcome of Nixon’s presidency was his enhancement in relationship with the country of China. China had already been enhancing and becoming a top country in the world for trade. Before Nixon came into office the United States relationship with China was abysmal. Nixon had gone over in 1972 to China in attempt to better that status between the United States and China. This was truly a blessing for the US because afterwards we as a country grew much closer to China and they were much more willing to help us in times of need. This continues on today where China is the leading country that we rely on for industry and trade. The Watergate Scandal was the most negative outcome of Nixon’s presidency and what ultimately made him resign in his second term. The Watergate Scandal resulted from the break in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington D.C. President Nixon attempted to cover up the whole drastic situation by stating that an investigator named Dean had searched and inspected the building when in reality he did no such thing. "I can say categorically that... no one in the White House staff, no one in this Administration, presently employed, was involved in this very bizarre incident." Nixon stated and as a result of this Nixon was forced to resign from his presidency. The aspect that really kept Nixon from not earning a lower grade than a C is his dealings with international affairs. Creating a better, more structured relationship with China, his opinion and goals of world peace, and racial walls being torn down were all reasons for a higher grade. However, Nixon had a few too many screw ups like the Watergate Scandal that ended up in him losing letter grades and his presidency. Nixon should earn a C because of his efforts and outcomes. Works Cited: Miller Center. "Nixon ." //Miller center//. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. . Spartacus Educational. "Richard Nixon : Biography." //Spartacus Educational//. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2011. <http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk