President Gerald Ford

Not only had Nixon become

entangled with the

Watergate Scandal, in

which men under his

leadership broke in to the

Democrat Headquarters, in

the Watergate building, to

steal information, he also

possessed hours upon

hours of recorded

meetings, on tape, that had

the potential to link him to

other forms of illegal

activity.

Though many went to jail for Watergate and other related

scandals, Nixon was pardoned by President Gerald Ford, who

was his Vice President while Nixon was in office.

President Ford Pardons Nixon

-The Watergate Scandal was creating massive

tension in the USA. President Nixon had

resigned office and his Vice President, Ford,

pardoned him of all crimes connected to various

scandals.

-Ford’s initial action as President was

controversial. Many felt that, if others went to jail

for scandals like Watergate, Nixon should as well.

-Therefore, Ford faced massive opposition and

unpopularity at the start of his Presidency in 1974.

A Struggling Economy

-Not only did Ford have deal with the

negative opinion of pardoning Nixon, the

economy also struggled while he was in

office.

-Unemployment was radically increasing and

inflation was drastically growing.

-The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting

Countries (OPEC) had also increased oil

prices, further damaging the economy.

Inflation example: Let’s say a hammer

is $6.00. If inflation stays at 3%, then, in

one year, that same hammer would cost

$6.18. After 20 years, that same hammer

would cost $10.52.

Ford Tries to “Whip” Inflation

-Ford started a Program called WIN, “Whip

Inflation Now.”

-The plan called for the USA to cut back on

foreign oil consumption and government

spending was reduced as well.

-Ford also encouraged Americans to increase

their savings and spend less. These efforts

failed. The economy still struggled under

Ford’s watch.

Despite his “Whip Inflation Now” (WIN) campaign, the

economy still struggled during Ford’s Presidency..

After WW II, when the

Communists took over

China, the USA reduced

cooperation with the

nation to protest their

government system.

Richard Nixon challenged

that approach. He

asserted that it was in the

best interest of the USA

to trade with China, since

China was such a large

nation. This policy was

called Realpolitik.

To the left is a picture of

Nixon standing on The

Great Wall of China.

President Richard Nixon shaking hands with the

Communist leader of China, Mao Zedong.

Ford continued the policy or Realpolitik and continued interactions with

China, despite the fact that China was Communist. Pictured above, The

Communist dictator, Mao Zedong, meets with President Ford

and Henry Kissinger, the Secretary of State.

The USA and China

-Ford continued the “Realpolitik” approach of

Henry Kissinger, who was Secretary of

State.

-Kissinger asserted that the USA must

cooperate with large nations, even if they are

Communist, like China.

-During his Presidency, Ford continued this

Realpolitik approach and interacted

frequently with Communist nations.

During WW II,

the

Democracies

of the world

had originally

teamed up the

Communist

USSR to defeat

Nazi Germany.

When World War II was finished, the USA, Britain, and France grew

concerned. They wanted the nations of the world to accept Democracy.

Yet, it was clear that Stalin wanted Eastern Europe

to be dominated by Communism.

After WW II, the USSR controlled Eastern Europe and Western

Europe was heavily influenced by the USA and Britain. The

Western half of Europe, by in large, practiced Democracy.

The Helsinki Accords of 1974

-During this meeting in Helsinki, Finland, the nations of the

West, such as the USA and Britain, entered into more

dialog with the USSR concerning Eastern Europe and the

Baltic States in particular.

-Ford signed the agreement. It asserted that Eastern

Communist nations would seek more cooperation with the

Democratic Western nations. The goal was to reduce the

clear tensions that developed between the Communist

East and the Democracies of the West.

-Many feared increased cooperation with the USSR meant

the USA was giving in to the USSR’s domination of

Eastern Europe and opened a path for the USSR to annex

the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

After World War II,

Poland, East

Germany,

Czechoslovakia,

Hungary, Romania,

and Bulgaria

became Satellite

Nations that were

controlled by the

USSR.

The Baltic States of

Estonia, Latvia, and

Lithuania remained

disputed areas. The

USSR asserted control of

the areas. Yet, many

believed the Baltic States

should be recognized as

independent nations.

Many were concerned

that the USA’s increased

interaction with the USSR

would eventually result in

a full recognition that the

USSR controlled the

Baltic States and that the

independence

movements for these

areas would end.

Back in the 1940s, President Truman’s goal of “Containment”

was simply to keep Communism from spreading

any further into the world. This policy failed.

Vietnam

Communism expanded to China,

North Korea, Cuba, and Vietnam from

the 1940s to the 1960s.

After World War II, the

Democracies of the world,

including the USA, were

concerned about Communism

spreading in Asia. Eventually,

China fell to Communism as did

North Korea. Then, Communism

spread down to Vietnam. The USA

got involved to try and keep South

Vietnam from falling to

Communism. The war became

very unpopular in the USA as it

lasted from the 1950s to the 1970s.

President Lyndon Johnson and

President Richard Nixon had to

deal with various military

campaigns in Vietnam.

The End of the Vietnam War

-On January 27, 1973, at the Paris Peace Accords, the USA agreed to evacuate its troop presence in Vietnam. This did not end the war. Yet, it ended the USA’s involvement in the conflict.

-President Gerald Ford took power in 1974 and the USA continued to keep American troops out of Vietnam. In April of 1975, the North Vietnamese military seized Saigon, the South’s capital. Ford was the last President to be in office while the Vietnam War was occurring.

-South Vietnam surrendered to the North and fell to Communism in 1975. Over 58,000 Americans had died in the conflict. Millions in North and South Vietnam had been killed as well throughout the war.

The last Americans are evacuated from Saigon, in South Vietnam, as the North seizes the city.

The

End

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