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 Richard Nixon Date of Birth: January 9, 1913 - April 22, 1994 Political party: Republican Term in Office: January 20, 1969 - August 9, 1974 Vice Presidents: Spiro Agnew (1969-1973) and Gerald Ford (1973-1974)

Stepping into office after the assassination of Kennedy, Richard Nixon took on the responsibility of being President of the United States of America in stride with confidence and ambition. Throughout his presidency, Nixon was able to push through welfare reforms and contribute to more positive relation with foreign countries. Until the Watergate Scandal, Nixon held a pretty good reputation. Unfortunately, the scandal left many questioning the integrity of the nation's leader and Nixon resigned. Nixon was never convicted for being a part of the scandal and made many beneficial decisions for the country. Because of this, Nixon deserves the grade of a B- for his time in office.

Nixon's main goal in office was to create stronger unity within America while improving a severely struggling Vietnam economy and restoring peace in the country as well. The United States was note ably divided among the opinions of America being involved with the war in Vietnam. From the beginning of his presidency, Nixon began to remove American troops from Vietnam hoping to gradually take all troops out of the territory for good. South Vietnamese began to learn to stand on their own to feet and fight for themselves and not rely on the United States for protection. This pleased the American people and started to seal the gap that had started splitting the nation apart. When Nixon improved foreign relations with China and Russia, more Americans came together and the country was in full unity. Nixon accomplished his goals.

Upon entering the White House, Nixon had many connections in politics which allowed him to have a fluent relationship with Congress at the start of his presidency. In the early 1970's Nixon and Congress passed many reform movements such as Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Safe Drinking Water Act pf 1974 which came from Nixon's New Economic Policy plan. When the Watergate Scandal exploded Nixon only had 18 approvals and was facing impeachment when he decided to resign. However, until the Watergate Scandal, Nixon and Congress worked very well together and produced may efficient and beneficial Acts for the nation.

Without doubt, Nixon's most positive decisions during his presidency came when handling foreign affairs. When Nixon took the "Journey for Peace" (Bejing, China), and a trip to Moscow, he was able to reduce the tensions between Russia and China and help prevent further damage from taking place. The dramatic decrease in American troops overseas from the late 1960's to the mid 1970's shows how serious Nixon was about his commitment in completely withdrawing and letting South Vietnam represent themselves. Nixon was able to persuade the Soviet Union into a detente, as a final push at ameliorating foreign affairs. In 1972, SALT was agreed upon and ultimately led to the end of the Cold War, relieving the United States. Nixon was able to create a more positive foreign relations, essentially helping the nation.

Although the Watergate Scandal is more then likely the most memorable that came out from Nixon's presidency, it as also, without doubt, the worst. The scandal involved five members of CREEP(Committee for Re-election of the President), breaking into the National Democratic Headquarters and trying to tap the election of 1972. The members were caught in action and immediately Nixon was looked upon as a suspect. When Nixon finally released the tapes, after the election, it was noted that large section of a phone call, including Nixon, was missing. Congress was ready to impeach Nixon from office was he took it upon himself to resign. To this day, Nixon continues to deny any involvement in the scandal.

Nixon's legacy should not be most remembered for the Watergate Scandal but, instead, for his involvement in improving foreign affairs. Most influencial would be Nixon's improvement of relations with China and his prominent withdraw of troops from Vietnam. America's trade with China was very important. Without it, America's economy would not have climbed anywhere close to the place it did. The stern decision to remove United States troops from Vietnam prevented possible further quarrels between America and other nations and it taught South Vietnamese to stand up and protect themselves and not to rely on American support.

In conclusion, Nixon surely developed many improvements for America. While the Watergate Scandal brought the views of Nixon down, it is clear that as a result of Nixon's presidency America was better off. Because of Nixon's positive foreign relations and fast with drawl of American troops from Vietnam, the United States was able to get back on its feet and take steps to becoming a better united nation. For these reasons, it is clear that Nixon deserves a B- for his time spent in office.

Works Cited

"American President: Richard Milhous Nixon." Miller Center of Public Affairs. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 May 2010. <[]>.

Degregorio, William A.. The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents, Seventh Edition (Complete Book of Us Presidents). 7 ed. Fort Lee: Barricade Books, 2009. Print.