Richard E. Nixon (yes I know his middle name was “Milhous”, I am using the “E” the way Archie Bunker used to refer to him as “Richard E. Nixon”) in addition to being a creep, was one of the worst presidents we ever had. Nixon was no conservative, in fact he was the last of the New Deal presidents. Nixon set the blueprint that people such as Bush 41, Bush 43, McCain, and Romney followed – tossing out red meat meaningless rhetoric to the “base” all the while governing (or as in the case of McCain and Romney) as a Republican progressive. Mr. Tobin points out that just because the Left hates you, does not necessarily mean that you are a conservative. LBJ would concur if he were alive as would George W. Bush. Mr. Tobin also makes a very interesting point that Nixon’s detente with the U.S.S.R. enabled the Soviet expansion of the 1970’s and probably allowed the Soviet Union to survive longer then it should have. Nixon’s most favorable foreign policy decision was his resupply of Israel during the Yom Kippur War – an action to which all freedom loving peoples should be forever grateful. As we note the 100th anniversary of Richard Nixon’s birth (January 9), we need to reflect on the deeper legacy of the influence of Richard Nixon in today’s Republican Party.
by Jonathan S. Tobin
For many people, Richard Nixon’s centennial is yet another excuse for trotting out Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein and reliving one of the great triumphs of 20th century liberalism. Richard Nixon was the bête noire of a generation of Democrats and the process by which he received what they believed were his just deserts seemed to vindicate every epithet that had ever been thrown at a man who first came to the country’s attention as a dedicated opponent of Communism. As Politico notes, unlike other former presidents who have their fans, the tribe of Nixonians is pretty small. That’s because Republicans as well as Democrats associate him primarily with Watergate, rendering any good or bad done during a long political career to the margins of history.
Yet there is more to his legacy than the tapes and the break-in. The more one thinks about his record as president the less there is to like. That’s because the 37th president is someone who teaches us that character is a fungible quality in politics. The lack of it not only allows a president to violate the law and to misuse his power. It also can lead to the abandonment of principle with regard to political issues. Though there is always the temptation for conservatives to take up the cudgels for anyone liberals hate (a factor that helped Nixon retain the loyalty of many Republicans during his career) he also ought to be remembered as an example of a Republican who betrays the voters in a vain attempt to gain popularity. [……..]
Evaluating Nixon’s presidency is hard work for anyone who wants to talk about anything but Watergate. But as much as Nixon provided liberals with a target, it should also be remembered that he gave conservatives an example to avoid too. That’s because Nixon’s principle domestic achievements as president were important milestones in the descent of America into the malaise of big government liberalism.
While his creation of the Environmental Protection Agency is most often cited as an interesting historical irony, it was just one of many excursions into the creation of the superstate that conservatives of our own day are struggling to cut back. Nixon’s willingness to use his war powers was seen as an “imperial presidency” by his liberal opponents, but the same tendency led him to breach every principle of conservative governance to impose wage and price controls on the economy. […….]
[……] His trip to China and the establishment of ties with Beijing are rightly praised as a bold stroke that discomfited the Soviets. But the abandonment of his anti-Communist roots was not limited to that initiative. It was Nixon’s championing of détente with Moscow that kept the evil empire alive for longer that it should have. It was also primarily responsible for the dark decade of Soviet expansionism and proxy wars around the globe that followed. Far from being a foreign policy genius, as some would have it, his cynical realpolitik approach did as much damage to the world as his liberal economic schemes did at home.
Nixon isn’t the only example of a Republican who abandoned conservative ideas when he got personal control of the federal leviathan. But there is no better example of the consequences of such folly. Nixon’s presidency will always be seen as a tragic failure because of his resignation in disgrace. But even if we leave that aside, his presidency ought to remain a toxic example for future generations of conservatives.
Read the rest – The Lessons of Nixonian Politics
