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Resume
- 1942 - 1946: Military Service - United States Navy - World War II
- 1947 - 1950: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
- 1950 - 1953: United States Senator from California
- 1953 - 1961: 36th Vice President of the United States
- 1969 - 1974: 37th President of the United States
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Chronology
- 1913: Born in Yorba Linda, California
- 1925: Younger brother Arthur died after a short illness
- 1925: Forbidden to play sports after a spot was found on his lung, although it was scar tissue from an early bout of pneumonia
- 1934: Graduated from Whittier College
- 1937: Graduated third in his class at Duke University School of Law
- 1937: Admitted to the bar and began practicing with the law firm Wingert and Bewley in Whittier
- 1940: Married Thelma "Pat" Ryan
- 1942: Moved to Washington, D.C., where Nixon took a job at the Office of Price Administration
- 1942: Inducted into the Navy, although he could have claimed exemption from the draft
- 1946: Resigned his commission on New Year's Day
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Notables
- Only president to resign the office
- Lost to JFK in the 1960 presidential election
- Lost a race for Governor of California in 1962
- Had success as a debater in school
- Grew up poor and under tough conditions
- Eisenhower groomed him into being his successor by giving him critical assignments in both foreign and domestic affairs
- First televised presidential debates showed Nixon as pale in contrast to the photogenic JFK
- More interested in foreign affairs than domestic policies
- Decrease in the power of the presidency as Congress passed restrictive legislation in the wake of Watergate was part of his legacy
- Believed you should keep your troubles to yourself, and distanced himself from other people
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Laws / Acts / Events
- Escalated America's involvement in the Vietnam War, then subsequently ended U.S. involvement in 1973
- His administration embraced policies that transferred power from Washington to the states
- Launched initiatives to fight cancer and illegal drugs, impose wage and price controls, enforce desegregation of some Southern schools, and establish the Environmental Protection Agency
- Scaled back manned space exploration, although he presided over the lunar landings beginning with Apollo 11
- Revelations about the Watergate scandal and other misconduct by members of the administration caused Nixon to resign in the face of almost certain impeachment and removal from office
- Supported the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947, a federal law that monitors the activities and power of labor unions
- Criticized Truman's handling of the Korean War, supported statehood for Alaska and Hawaii, voted in favor of civil rights for minorities, and supported federal disaster relief for India and Yugoslavia
- He voted against price controls and other monetary restrictions, benefits for illegal immigrants, and public power
- Helped shepherd the Civil Rights Act of 1957 through Congress
- Desired closer relations with China
- Decided the Vietnam War could not be won and hastily moved to conclude it, which happened in 1973
- Nixon administration strongly supported Israel, but Nixon believed that Israel should make peace with its Arab neighbors and that the US should encouragei t
- Yom Kippur War resulted in the 1973 oil crisis, in which Arab nations refused to sell crude oil to the U.S. in retaliation for its support of Israel
- Endorsed the Equal Rights Amendment
- 1972: Approved a five-year cooperative program between NASA and the Soviet space program, culminating in the 1975 joint mission of an American Apollo and Soviet Soyuz spacecraft linking in space
- Watergate scandal was largely about sabotaging the Democrats
- Vice President Agnew resigned admit allegations of bribery, tax evasion and money laundering, and Nixon chose Gerald Ford to replace him