​ The Vietnam War and The Nixon Era After Woodstock, the haze of peace and love began to clear. America was still involved in the Vietnam War, and it seemed in 1970 that the country was awakening from the countercultural revolution of the swinging sixties with a serious hangover. In this lecture, we will examine the Nixon era of the White House, Vietnam, and popular culture to grasp what was happening in American society during the early to mid 1970's. An excellent film that documents this period in American history and culture is 1994's Forrest Gump. This film shows pivotal events during the Kennedy, and Nixon years, as seen through the fictitious lead character Gump, who unwittingly experiences some of the most important moments in recent history. The Nixon Presidency and Vietnam Richard Milhous Nixon served as the 37th President of the United States, from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as the 36th President of the United States, from 1953 to 1961 under President Eisenhower. He lost the Presidential campaign to JFK in 1960. He finished his first term as President in 1971, and was re-elected for a second term by a large majority vote in 1972. Nixon originally accelerated the war in Vietnam, but in 1973 terminated US involvement. As we have seen in previous modules, the concept of "containment" applies here. Here containment can be seen in terms of the US government containing communist influence, and keeping it from gaining power was considered the main reason for the war. This is a controversial topic, and there are several theories for why America actually became involved in Laos and Vietnam. The Vietnam War did not officially end until the fall of Saigon, in April of 1975. The Watergate Scandal Nixon's second term witnessed the 1973 oil crisis, the resignation of his vice president, Spiro Agnew, and a continuing series of revelations about the Watergate Scandal. Essentially, the Watergate Scandal was the product of the June 1972 burglary of the Democratic National Committee's headquarters, located in the Watergate Offices in Washington, D.C . Nixon and his cabinet tried to cover up the break-in, which was allegedly to spy on their political opponents. The Nixon administration reportedly believed that there were communist activities taking place in the DNC. The scandal escalated, with Nixon losing much of his public and political support. With impeachment and removal from office looming before him, Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. Gerald Ford, who took his place as president until the 1976 elections, controversially pardoned him after his resignation. He will forever be remembered for saying "I am not a crook!" when trying to justify earning his place as leader of the United States. It has become a joke for many Americans that were alive at the time to experience the scandal, and a popular culture "moment" in history. The 1976 film All The President's Men, covered the Watergate scandal from the perspectives of Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, and was based on their book of the same title. Bernstein and Woodward were reporters for the Washington Post who first investigated the break-in. They discovered that the CIA, FBI, Department of Justice, and the White House had ties to the attempt to cover up the break-in at Watergate. 1970's American Popular Culture: Retroactive One very important point that needs to be stressed in this lecture is that history repeats itself. Moreover, culture is also repetitive in nature, and this can be largely attributed to nostalgia. For example, several television programs and movies in the early 1970's were set in the 1950's. TV shows like "Happy Days", and films like 1973's American Graffiti, became wildly popular, as they reminded people about the "good old days" of the 1950's. The oil crisis of 1973, and the subsequent economic crash the United States endured made many Americans wish they were back in a simpler, happier time. Yet, was it truly a simpler, happier time? That is an important question to ask, and to investigate the answer to. Additional Materials Watergate and Vietnam 50's Nostalgia in the 70's Rasmussen Personal Support Center, call toll-free, 24/7: 1-866-693-2211 Copyright © 2016 Rasmussen College, Inc. All rights reserved.