After he lost the Presidency in 1960 and the California Governorship in 1962, most assumed that Richard Nixon's political career was over. But in 1968 he was renominated by the GOP and he defeated Vice-President Hubert Humphrey in November. After two ignominious defeats, it's hard to see why Republicans didn't dismiss Nixon as a loser and nominate someone else in 1968. Why was Nixon popular enough to be renominated in 1968 despite his losing streak?
Why Was Nixon Nominated in '68 Despite Losing in '60 and '62?
- Thread starter Amadeus
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GeographyDude
Gone Fishin'
For whatever reason, I think the Republicans just had a very thin field of active candidates in ‘68.
Anglocalvinist67
Banned
Nixon had a lot of residual goodwill among party regulars even so, which he was able to leverage in 1968.
He campaigned for Goldwater in 1964 which won him enough credit on the Right wing of the party to hold off Reagan.
Nixon also campaigned heavily for Republicans in their successful 1966 midterm election. BAsically, a lot of Republicans OWED Nixon.
Rockefeller was NOT well liked by party regulars. He was seen as in it for himself.
Reagan was too new in 1968.
Romney was a bad candidate.
Basically, Nixon was the best of the bunch for pulling the party together.
He campaigned for Goldwater in 1964 which won him enough credit on the Right wing of the party to hold off Reagan.
Nixon also campaigned heavily for Republicans in their successful 1966 midterm election. BAsically, a lot of Republicans OWED Nixon.
Rockefeller was NOT well liked by party regulars. He was seen as in it for himself.
Reagan was too new in 1968.
Romney was a bad candidate.
Basically, Nixon was the best of the bunch for pulling the party together.
Vietnam was a quagmire hung on the Democrats and Nixon promised a "secret" plan to end the war. He had name recognition and charisma among those who opposed the counterculture and favored authority whether the war was right or wrong. After election, he would revive the term "silent majority." You also had the unspoken "Southern strategy."
Essentially, 1968 was a perfect storm that allowed Nixon to reemerge and win the nomination a second time. Unfortunate, but it makes sense when you put everything in historical context.
Nixon was pretty much the default candidate. After the defeat of Goldwater in 1964, the GOP was probably not ready for another Goldwater-style conservative like Reagan. OTOH, the Goldwater wing of the party was still there, still dominated the party in much of the South and West, and found progressives like Rockefeller and Romney unacceptable because of their failure to endorse Goldwater in 1964. That really left only Nixon--there just were not any other people from the "center" of the GOP with his stature.
GeographyDude
Gone Fishin'
Maybe no one in the first tier of name recognition.
But no governor, senator, long-time member of the House . . . no former major cabinet official, etc.?
I'm sure there were plenty of moderate Republican office holders who were qualified to be President, but none of them had Nixon's political clout. It's worth noting that Nixon's focus on foreign policy, which failed in 1960, was newly relevant in 1968 due to the Vietnam War. Republicans wanted someone who could unite the party but also demonstrate serious foreign policy credentials, and Nixon fit the bill.
Of course, Republicans should have chosen someone with a better record of electability and personal character. I'm sure that on August 9, 1974 most of the former delegates at the 1968 Republican convention bitterly regretted their choice...
Ok he wasn't a bad candidate in general like he did some amazing things as governor of Michigan but he sadly a bad candidate for that time period
Did Nixon promise a secret plan? I thought "secret plan" was actually Romney mocking Nixon for his lack of specifics.
The "secret" plan was Vietnamization: the replacement of American forces by South Vietnamese forces. So yes, there was a plan and it was implemented. Its weakness was that American strategy relied on air support far above that available to the Vietnamese army.
Yep. I just mean I don't think Nixon ever used the term secret plan.
I'm not sure who or what news agency applied the term secret. But I was 14 in 1968 and I distinctly remember Nixon said he had a "plan." In four years, I would be 18, so war issues mattered very much to me.
Makes sense. I'm going off memory and something William Safire said, and "secret plan" was a derisive comment by Romney.
Probably depends on 1972. The Rockefeller wing will argue that "we can win, they can't". But if Humphrey beats a Rockefeller Republican, the Reaganites will come back in 1976 and say milquetoast moderates aren't a meaningful alternative to Democrats.
GeographyDude
Gone Fishin'
Most people here are aware that Nixon sabotaged LBJ’s Oct. ‘68 peace plan, right? This comes from several sources including Haldeman’s handwritten notes of instructions from Nixon, which a historian found in the Nixon library and publicized in Dec. 2016.
Basically, Nixon used at least two intermediaries to communicate to South Vietnam that they could get a better deal under him.
From Evan Thomas’ book on Nixon I gather that Nixon perceived that LBJ was cheating by attempting this late-campaign peace treaty, and that he, Nixon, was cheating in self-defense. And yes, people do some bad shit when they think they’re cheating in self defense. Sometimes it’s necessary, but it’s a fine line to walk.
In this case, I think it was very unnecessary and history will judge Nixon harshly.