THE MAKING OF A NATION 217 - Richard Nixon, Part 1

THE MAKING OF A NATION - October 31, 2002: Richard Nixon, Part 1

By Jeri Watson

VOICE 1:
This is Rich Kleinfeldt.
VOICE 2:
And this is Stan Busby with THE MAKING OF A NATION, a VOA Special English program about the history

of the United States.
(Theme)
Today, we begin the story of America's thirty-seventh president, Richard Nixon.
VOICE 1:
Richard Nixon was sworn-in as president in January, nineteen-sixty-nine. It was

a difficult time in the United States. American forces, allied¹ with the army of
South Vietnam, were continuing to fight against the communist forces of North
Vietnam. Thousands of soldiers and civilians² were dying. Yet the Americans and
South Vietnamese were making little progress. Critics of the war said they were
making no progress at all.

Detail from a 1968 painting by
Norman Rockwell.
(Image - National Portrait Gallery)
VOICE 2:

At home, there were demonstrations³ against the war. There were demonstrations against racial injustice⁴. Friends
and families were in dispute as they took opposing positions on these issues. Fighting the war also meant there
was less government money to spend on social problems. Former President Lyndon Johnson had proposed new
legislation to help poor people and minorities. In some cases, Congress approved less money than he had
requested. In other cases, lawmakers did not approve any money at all.

VOICE 1:

Richard Nixon seemed well prepared to deal with the difficulties of being president. He was known for his ability
to fight, to lose, and to keep trying. Nixon was born in California. His family was poor. When he was about ten
years old, he harvested vegetables to help earn money for his family. He earned the money he needed to go to
college. Then he decided⁵ to study law. He was among the top students in his class. During World War Two, he
served in the United States Navy in the Pacific battle area. When he came home, he campaigned for and won a
seat in the Congress.

VOICE 2:

As a member of the House of Representatives, Nixon became known throughout the nation for his part in the
Alger Hiss⁶ case. Alger Hiss was a former official in the state department. He had been accused of helping⁷ provide
secret information to the Soviet⁸ Union. He denied the accusation⁹. Nixon demanded a congressional investigation¹⁰
of the case. Other members of the House thought it should be dropped. Nixon succeeded and led the
investigation. Later, Hiss was tried and found guilty of lying to a grand jury. He was sentenced to prison.

VOICE 1:

Some Americans disliked Richard Nixon for the way he treated people during the investigation. They felt that
some of his attacks were unjust. Fear of communism was very strong at that time. They thought he was using the
situation to improve his political future. The future did, in fact, bring him success.


In nineteen-fifty, he ran for the Senate. He competed against Helen Gahagan Douglas. He accused her of not
recognizing the threat of Communism in America. Nixon won the election. In nineteen-fifty-two, the Republican
Party chose him as its candidate for vice¹¹ president. Dwight Eisenhower was the candidate for president.

Eisenhower and Nixon won a huge victory over the candidates of the Democratic Party. They won again in
nineteen-fifty-six.

VOICE 2:

During his eight years as vice president, Nixon visited sixty countries. He faced violent protesters during a visit
to south American in nineteen-fifty-eight. He was praised for acting¹² bravely under dangerous conditions. A year
later, he visited the Soviet Union. He and Soviet Premier¹³ Nikita Khrushchev had a famous debate about world
peace. Nixon became very angry. At one point, he said to Khrushchev, "You do not know everything."

VOICE 1:

In nineteen-sixty, Nixon accepted the Republican Party's nomination¹⁴ for president. He had many years of
political experience and had gained recognition as vice president. Many people thought he would win the national
election easily. But he lost to the young John Kennedy. It was the closest presidential election in American
history since eighteen-eighty-four. After losing to Kennedy, Nixon moved back to California. He worked as a
lawyer. In nineteen-sixty-two, he ran for governor, and lost.

((Music Bridge))

VOICE 2:

It seemed that Nixon's political life was over. He moved again, this time to New York City. He worked as a
lawyer. But he made it clear that he would like to return to public life some day. Many Republicans began to see
Richard Nixon as the statesman they wanted in the White House. By then, president Johnson had decided not to
run for re-election. His Democratic Party was divided. The Republicans believed they had a good chance to win
the election of nineteen-sixty-eight.

VOICE 1:

Nixon campaigned hard against the Democratic candidate, Hubert Humphrey. Humphrey was vice president
under president Johnson. Throughout the campaign, he had to defend the policies of the Johnson administration.
The policies on Vietnam had become very unpopular. Some Americans felt the war should be expanded. Many
others demanded an immediate¹⁵ withdrawal¹⁶.

VOICE 2:

Both Humphrey and Nixon promised to work for peace in Vietnam. On election day, voters chose Nixon. He won
by a small number of popular votes. But he won many more electoral votes than Humphrey. On the day after his
victory, he spoke¹⁷ to a gathering¹⁸ of supporters.

NIXON: "I saw many signs in this campaign. Some of them were not friendly. Some were very friendly. But the
one that touched me the most was ... a teenager held up the sign: 'bring us together'. And that will be the great
objective of this administration, at the outset, to bring the American people together. "

VOICE 1:

Once in office, President Nixon proposed legislation to deal with problems at home. He called his proposals the
"New Federalism". One proposal was for revenue sharing. Under this plan, the federal government would share
tax money with state and local governments. For three years, Congress blocked its passage. In nineteen-seventytwo, the revenue sharing plan was finally approved. Lawmakers also approved legislation for some of President
Nixon's other ideas. One changed the way American men were called into military service.

VOICE 2:

The new law said young men would now be called to serve by chance, with a lottery¹⁹. This was a big change.


Many people had criticized the earlier system. They said it had taken too many poor men and too many men from
minority groups. These were the men who were fighting, and dying, in Vietnam. Congress also approved a
change to the Constitution. The amendment²⁰ would permit younger people to vote. It decreased the voting age
from twenty-one years to eighteen years. Supporters of the amendment said that if citizens were old enough to
fight and die in the nation's wars, they were old enough to vote in the nation's elections, too. The amendment
became law when three-fourths of the states approved it in nineteen-seventy-one.

VOICE 1:

One of President Nixon's most important proposals was to build a system to defend against enemy missiles. He
said the system was needed to protect American missile bases. The issue caused much debate. Critics said it
would add to the arms race with the Soviet Union. Congress approved the plan in August nineteen-sixty-nine.

VOICE 2:

Nixon's first appointments to the nation's highest court also caused much debate. He named two conservative
judges from the southern United States to serve on the Supreme²¹ Court. Congress rejected the nomination of the
first one, Clement²² Haynsworth. Lawmakers said his court decisions had been unfair to black Americans.
Congress also rejected the nomination of the second one, G. Harold Carswell. Lawmakers said he was not
prepared for the job.

VOICE 1:

President Nixon faced these disappointments, and others. Yet he still had moments of great celebration during his
first term. One came on July twentieth, nineteen-sixty-nine. On that day, he and millions of people around the
world watched as two American astronauts became the first humans to land on the moon. We will continue the
story of Richard Nixon next week.

(Theme)

VOICE 2:

This program of THE MAKING OF A NATION was written by jeri watson. This is Stan Busby.

VOICE 1:

And this is Rich Kleinfeldt. Join us again next week for another VOA Special English program about the history
of the United States.

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1 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

2 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

3 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

4 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 hiss   

v.发出嘶嘶声；发嘘声表示不满

参考例句：

• We can hear the hiss of air escaping from a tire.我们能听到一只轮胎的嘶嘶漏气声。
• Don't hiss at the speaker.不要嘘演讲人。

7 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

8 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

9 accusation   

n.控告，指责，谴责

参考例句：

• I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
• She knew that no one would believe her accusation.她知道没人会相信她的指控。

10 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

11 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

12 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

13 premier   

adj.首要的；n.总理，首相

参考例句：

• The Irish Premier is paying an official visit to Britain.爱尔兰总理正在对英国进行正式访问。
• He requested that the premier grant him an internview.他要求那位总理接见他一次。

14 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

15 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

16 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

17 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

18 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

19 lottery   

n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事

参考例句：

• He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
• They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。

20 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

21 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

22 clement   

adj.仁慈的；温和的

参考例句：

• A clement judge reduced his sentence.一位仁慈的法官为他减了刑。
• The planet's history contains many less stable and clement eras than the holocene.地球的历史包含着许多不如全新世稳定与温和的地质时期。