Nixon's first term (1969-1973)

[Dancing with Myself]

For me it's a wash. But the good overdone the bad.

He didn't end the war like he said and bombed more than anyone figured. He didn't handle the economy well at all (but in his defense he never claimed to be an economic president,) the DEA and "war on drugs," which never got anywhere and his paranoia overstepped so many bounds and did him in. Those were his biggest failures in that term.

But he did have a good deal of positives. In terms of foreign relations he was really good and did a lot for us. That was his #1 goal and desire and he did well. China and Russia was a lot of it but he had some successes elsewhere. He ended the draft and lowered the voting age both were things that should have been done years earlier.  Then he had the environmental acts (minus the clean water act which passed after he vetoed it,)  and Title 9 as well.  The riots of the late 60's settled down as the hippie culture died out and the country didn't have such epic and halting violence like Johnson had.

Overall in hindsight it was a successful 4 years but it was far from perfect. He didn't have the easiest go at first but it seems things turned around for him right before Watergate which killed it. He deserved to be re-elected even if the Dems nominated the worst ticket possible in '72.