Richard Nixon

Richard Nixon started his presidency as a very positive influence on the American people. His campaign was based on restoring law and order to the country. After the era of the counterculture, that is exactly what everyone needed. After being elected, he worked on and succeeded in building a beneficial relationship with China. Nixon was the first president to travel to China and open a trading agreement. Not only did he fix the country's foreign policy but he also began an environmental movement. He created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and put the Clear Air and Clean Water Acts into effect. Although Nixon did many good things for the country, he also put himself and the country to shame. Civil Rights was not a big issue to the president since the time of his election. Many of the minority groups were very unhappy with him, and he even stopped bussing to integrated schools. Most importantly is the Watergate Scandal which made him one of the worst presidents in my eyes. Nixon started a special fund raising campaign that would not be reported the nation's funds. With this money he hired "Plumbers" that installed wiretaps in the Watergate apartments where the Democrats were staying during the Convention. He ended up resigning due the evidence of brides given out to keep people/FBI quiet, the money being traced back to Nixon's campaign, James McCord testifying against him, and the tapes of his all the White House's activities with missing parts. All in all, I believe that even though he helped the country in many ways, he took full on advantage of his power and made the country lose faith in the government.

#6 Jackie Robinson Question

I believe that Jackie Robinson deserves to be ranked as the greatest civil rights figure in American History because allowing an African American to play sports during this time was unheard of. Robinson was the first African American to play Major League baseball. He was disliked by most the white audience, but pushed through the negativity and prolonged. He was one of the best players on the team, and even then people still didn't give the support he deserved just because the color of his skin. Through all the hatred and his brave decision to keep playing, he showed that even though his skin was a different color he deserved to be there just like everyone else. This shows a lot of courage which is why he deserves to be known as the greatest civil rights figure.