Cases in American Political Leadership
CMC Gov 124, Spr 1999
MW 2:45
Room P-3
WWW: http://govt.mckenna.edu/jpitney
You know, he came from dirt and I came from dirt. He lost a gubernatorial race and came back to win the Presidency. He overcame a scandal in his first campaign for national office and I overcame a scandal in my first national campaign. We both just gutted it out. He was an outsider from the South and I was an outsider from the West.
-- Richard Nixon on Bill Clinton, 1993
General
Richard M. Nixon, the House member representing Claremont, entered the national arena in 1947. He stayed there until his death in 1994. Few political leaders have cast such a long shadow: his 47 years of political activity covered more than one-fifth of U.S. history. During those years, he left his mark on electoral strategy, foreign and domestic policy, economics, governmental institutions and, of course, political ethics. In this course, we shall see how he has shaped American politics through the present day, His career will serve as a case study of how a political leader gains, exercises, and loses power. Classes
Class sessions will include lecture and discussion. Finish each week's readings before the class because our discussions will involve those readings. We shall also compare the Nixon years to contemporary times, so you must read a good daily newspaper such as the New York Times or Los Angeles Times.
Grades
The following will make up your course grade:
In the latter half of the course, we will have a series of panel discussions in which each of you will portray an important person in Nixon's life. You will then write an essay (see above) analyzing your character's relationship to Nixon. The papers will develop your research and writing skills. The final exam will test your understanding of course material. (In place of the sit-down final, graduating seniors will write a take-home final, due on the last day of class.) Class participation will hone your ability to think on your feet. If you often miss class or fail to prepare, your grade will suffer. Check the due dates for papers, as well as the date of the final exam. Arrange your schedule accordingly. Do not plan on seeking extensions or make-up work. Plagiarism will result in an F for the course and referral to the Academic Standards Committee.
To encourage promptness , I reserve the right to give handouts only to students who are present at the start of class. Latecomers and absentees may have to get copies from other students.
Web Resources:
Required Books
Stephen E. Ambrose, Nixon: The Education of a Politician 1913-1962 (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1987).
Joan Hoff, Nixon Reconsidered (New York: Basic Books, 1994).
A. James Reichley, Conservatives in an Age of Change (Washington: Brookings, 1981).
Richard Scammon and Ben Wattenberg, The Real Majority (New York: DI Fine, 1992 [1970]).
Schedule (subject to change, with notice)
Jan 20: Introduction
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena ..." -- Theodore Roosevelt
Jan 25, 27: Young Man in a Hurry
"While the Franklins were socially oriented, the Orthogonians recruited mostly athletes and men who were working their way through school. The Franklins posed for their yearbook pictures wearing tuxedos; we posed for our pictures wearing open-necked shirts. We were officially dedicated to what, with our collegiate exuberance, we called the four B's: Beans, Brawn, Brain, and Bowels."
Feb 1, 3: Bright Lights and Shadows
"He [Eisenhower] was a far more complex and devious man than most people realized, and in the best sense of those words."
FIRST ESSAY ASSIGNED FEB 1, DUE FEB 10.
Feb 8, 10: Stoned in Caracas
"I saw before me a weird-looking character whose bulging eyes seemed to merge with his mouth and nose in one distorted blob. He let fly a wad of spit which caught me full in the face . . . as I saw his legs go by, I at least had the satisfaction of planting a healthy kick on his shins. Nothing I did all day made me feel better."
Feb 15, 17: Wilderness
"You won't have Nixon to kick around any more, because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference..."
Feb 22, 24: Politics in the 1960s I
"I was ready to take on these social and cultural issues; I was anxious to defend the `square' virtues."
SECOND ESSAY ASSIGNED FEB 24, DUE MAR 10
Mar 1, 3: Politics in the 1960s II
"Let us always respect our courts and those who serve on them. But let us also recognize that some of our courts in their decisions have gone too far in weakening the peace forces as against the criminal forces and we must act to restore that balance."
Mar 8, 10: Nixon in Power
"Politics is battle, and the best way to fire up your troops is to rally them against a visible opponent on the other side of the field. If a loyal supporter will fight hard for you, he will fight twice as hard against your enemies."
Mar 22, 24: Nixonian Governance
"One impression that stayed with me was that while some career government workers were sincere, dedicated, and able people, others became obsessed with their own power and seemed to delight and kicking people around, particularly those in the private sector."
Mar 29, 31: Welfare and Civil Rights
"Tory men and Liberal policies are what have changed the world."
Apr 5, 7: Economic and Foreign Policy
"In foreign policy, it could be said to their credit that Americans are hopeless idealists."
ROLE PAPERS DUE APRIL 14.
Apr 12, 14: Vietnam and Middle East
"And so tonight -- to you, the great silent majority of my fellow Americans -- I ask for your support ..."
Apr 19, 21: Watergate and Impeachment
"I want the most comprehensive notes on all those who tried to do us in. They didn't have to do it. If we had a very close election and they were playing the other side I would understand this. No -- they were doing this quite deliberately and they are asking for it and they are going to get it."
Apr 26, 28: Aftermath
"Always remember, others may hate you -- but those who hate you don't win unless you hate them, and then you destroy yourself."
May 3, 5: Reconsiderations
"Two thousand years ago, the poet Sophocles wrote, `One must wait until the evening to see how splendid the day has been.' There is still some time before the sun goes down, but even now, I can look back and say that the day has indeed been splendid."
FINAL EXAM: TUESDAY, MAY 11 AT 2 PM
For additional reading:
Stephen E. Ambrose, Nixon: The Triumph of a Politician 1962-1972 (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1989) and Nixon: Ruin and Recovery 1973-1990 (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1991). The second and third parts of the trilogy are not nearly as good as the first: Ambrose retrods familiar ground.
Rowland Evans and Robert D. Novak, Nixon in the White House: The Frustration of Power (New York: Random House, 1971). Nice contemporary account of policymaking.
Eric Hamburg,, ed. Nixon: An Oliver Stone Film (New York: Hyperion, 1995), includes annotated screenplay, Watergate documents, and essays. Loony tunes with footnotes.
Victor Lasky, It Didn't Start With Watergate (New York: Dial, 1977). The title says it all: a conservative take on liberal misdeeds.
Bruce Mazlish, In Search of Nixon: A Psychohistorical Inquiry (New York: Basic, 1972). Freud meets Nixon: a monumentally silly book. Read it the same way you would watch Plan Nine from Outer Space.
Roger Morris, Richard Milhous Nixon: The Rise of an American Politician (New York: Henry Holt, 1990). Hostile but extremely well-researched analysis of Nixon's early years. If you want to know about his California roots, start here.
Richard M. Nixon: Six Crises; RN: The Memoirs of Richard Nixon; The Real War; Leaders; In the Arena. Alas, Nixon's own works are now out of print.
Dan Rather and Gary Paul Gates, The Palace Guard (New York: Harper and Row, 1974). Nixon and the press. Guess which side looks better in this book?
William Safire, Before the Fall: An Inside View of the Pre-Watergate White House (New York: Random House, 1975). Nice glimpses of the Nixon people from a speechwriter, now turned pundit.
Theodore H. White, The Making of the President 1960; The Making of the President 1968; The Making of the President 1972. White invented the presidential-campaign book. The 1960 volume still stands as the best-ever book about a single presidential election.
Tom Wicker, One of Us: Richard Nixon and the American Dream (New York: Random House, 1991). A remarkably even-handed analysis but thin research.
Garry Wills, Nixon Agonistes (New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1969). Amid ruminations about philosophy, Wills comes up with strikingly original insights into Nixon's style and character.
Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, The Final Days (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1976). The "inside" story of Nixon's fall: beware unattributed reporting.