The Death of Nixon

LUCAS FOSTER
Nixons Death
On April 18, 1994, Nixon suffered a stroke while at his home in Park Ridge, New Jersey
Nixon slipped into a deep coma and died four days later on April 20, 1994 at age 81
Nixons Funeral
Nixons funeral took place five days later on April 27, 1994 in Yorba Linda, California
The service was held at the Nixon Presidential Library
Nixon was eulogized by a number of prominent politicians and major American figures including
Bill Clinton, Henry Kissinger, Bob Dole, Billy Graham, and former California governor Pete Wilson
(Washington Post)
Former Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H.W. Bush and their wives also attended
(Washington Post)
As he had requested, Nixon did not receive a full state funeral, though up to 42,000 are reported
to have waited to see Nixons body, forming a line that was three miles long (Frick)
Nixons Legacy
Nixons Legacy was defined in large part by the number of self-created disasters that he face
However, as John F. Stacks of Time Magazine stated, Nixon worked hard to recover and rebuild
after each disaster (Time)
Nixon attempted to reclaim a respected place in American public life and did so by traveling
and thinking and talking to the worlds leaders in an effort to be seen as an elder statesman
(Time)
In some ways, Nixon did accomplish this goal, as he was consulted regularly by then President
Bill Clinton, who met with him frequently and openly sought his advice
Nixons Legacy contd.
Nixons legacy as a respected elder statesman clashed with the fact that, to many, he was still
seen as a crook, a political monsterand a very dangerous enemy(The Atlantic)
Almost all of the coverage of Nixons death mentioned Watergate and, although Nixon wanted
to be judged by what he accomplished, historians noted that what he will be remembered for
is the nightmare he put the country through in his second term and for his resignation
(Ambrose)
Moreover, Nixons continuing of the Vietnam War was and is seen by many as inexcusable
All in all, many historians agreed that no simple verdict regarding Nixon was possible, as he
was an idiosyncratic president (Aitken)
Nixons Impact on the Republican Party
One of Nixons most lasting accomplishments was his Southern Strategy, which some historians
credit for causing the South to become and remain a Republican Stronghold
In terms of Foreign Policy, Nixon is credited for steering the Republican party along a middle
course, somewehre between the competitive impulses of the Rockefellers, the Goldwaters, and
the Reagans, which was considered to be a sensible anti-Communist course against the excess
of McCarthy (Parmet, Gellman)
Moreover, Nixon is remembered for his impact on environmental and regulatory policynamely,
for his creation of the EPA and his enforcement of the 1973 Endangered Species Act
Bibliography
Aitken, Jonathan. Nixon, a Life. Washington, D.C.: Regnery History, 2015. Print. p. 577
Ambrose, Stephen E. Nixon. Norwalk Conn.: Easton, 1991. Print. p. 592
Frick, Daniel E. Reinventing Richard Nixon: A Cultural History of an American Obsession. Lawrence: U of Kansas, 2008.
Print. p. 206
Gellman, Irwin F. The Contender, Richard Nixon: The Congress Years, 1946-1952. New York: Free, 1999. Print. p. 460
Parmet, Herbert S. Richard Nixon and His America. New York: Smithmark, 1995. Print. p. viii.
Randolph, Martin Weil and Eleanor. "Richard M. Nixon, 37th President, Dies." The Washington Post. WP Company, 23
Apr. 1994. Web. 16 July 2017.
Stacks, John F. "Richard Nixon: Victory in Defeat." Time. Time Inc., 02 May 1994. Web. 16 July 2017.
Thompson, Hunter S. "He Was a Crook." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 29 Apr. 2016. Web. 16 July 2017.