MetaFilter posts tagged with RichardNixon

Richard Nixon watched 'All In the Family'

geos — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 16:25:57 -0800

Richard Nixon watches [transcript] 'All in the Family.'

The Future of Snail Mail

Secret Life of Gravy — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 07:41:41 -0800

Shrinking the United States Postal Service: What happens to Netflix? The second largest employer in the United States, the USPS ran up a $2.8 billion budget deficit last year, even after such cost-cutting moves such as quietly removing foreign mail from registered mail status. The Chairman of the Postal Regulatory Commission believes cutting service to 5 days a week could save $1.9 billion, with Tuesday-- the lightest day-- being the most likely choice. Change is nothing new to the USPS, but up until now it has been a history of expansion: In article one of the US Constitution, congress was given the power "To establish Post Offices and post Roads." 1775. Benjamin Franklin became the first Postmaster General. 1831. The Post Office had more post masters than soldiers. 1863. Delivery expands beyond post office to post office. City dwellers may now receive mail at their homes. 1869. Railway Mail Service is inaugurated and by 1930 mail is carried by more than 10,000 trains. 1896. Rural Free Delivery becomes an official service, uniting the entire country. 1912. Parcel Post is authorized, allowing for delivery of packages of more than 4 pounds. 1971. President Nixon signs the bill making the the Post Office Department into the Postal Service, which among other things removes the Post Master General from the line of Presidential Succession, and turns the USPS into an independent agency like the CIA and NASA.

Don't get the impression that you arouse my anger. You see, one can only be angry with those he respects

KokuRyu — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 19:59:46 -0800

Soon to be a Ron Howard movie (trailer here), portions of the Frost/Nixon interviews can be found online. More Nixon interviews can be found here. The entire series of Frost/Nixon interviews from 1977 will soon be released on DVD. English playwright and screenwriter, Peter Morgan wrote the play Frost/Nixon, as well as the upcoming Ron Howard movie. Morgan also wrote the movies The Queen (and its "prequel" The Deal) and The Last King of Scotland. Eleanor Wachtel, host of CBC's Writers and Company speaks with Peter Morgan here (ram file).

I said BOWLing at the White House...

jessamyn — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:47:43 -0800

Long discussed, searched for and even relocated, the White House Bowling Alley has been closed to league members since 9/11. The most avid (p)residential bowlers? Lady Bird Johnson and Richard Nixon. (his ball, previously) But what does Barack Obama think about it? "The bowling alley, I understand, offers us some potential for expansion..." [related Fox News take]

Greatest Interviews of the 20th Century

Kattullus — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 13:50:54 -0800

The Greatest Interviews of the 20th Century according to The Guardian. The interviews are with Princess Diana, John Lennon, Marlon Brando, Dennis Potter, Francis Bacon, Marilyn Monroe, Sex Pistols, Malcolm X, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Margaret Thatcher and Fidel Castro. You know who else is interviewed? That's right, Nixon. Oh, and there's a Hitler interview, too. Apparently he likes tea. So do I. Funny ol' world. [via Neil Gaiman]

National Security Archive

plep — Thu, 10 Feb 2005 05:11:24 -0800

George Washington University's National Security Archive carries a collection of declassified US documents and articles on Saddam Hussein; Mexico, Cuba and other Latin American countries; Nixon's meeting with Elvis; the CIA and Nazi war criminals; etc.

Send me someplace sunny...

Shane — Thu, 14 Oct 2004 10:07:06 -0800

Campaign Contributions and U.S. Ambassadors
In 1972 President Nixon appointed thirteen noncareer ambassadors to Western European countries; eight of them had contributed at least $50,000 to his reelection campaign...(-Source, scroll to item 2.)
In 1980 a federal law was created to combat this, stating that ambassadors must "possess clearly demonstrated competence, including, to the maximum extent practicable, a useful knowledge of the principal language or dialect of the country in which the individual is to serve, and knowledge and understanding of the history, the culture, the economic and political institutions and the interest of that country and its people. … Contributions to political campaigns should not be a factor in the appointment."
Currently 1/4 to 1/3 of U.S. Ambassadors are noncareer appointees, not experienced diplomats, causing criticism since the attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center. Critics point out that neither the Pentagon, the CIA nor any other U.S. government agency must shoulder the burden of a significant cadre of "nonprofessionals" encumbering senior field positions. (-Source.)

HERE is the current tally of Embassy Row and their campaign contributions, including Clark Randt, Jr, former Geo W Yale fraternity brother who defended Bush against drug allegations during Bush's last campaign. "Rangers" and "Pioneers" abound. Mauritius is sunny, tropical, and expensive. (Inspired by this AskMe question.)

Four Years at a Time

snarfodox — Sun, 08 Aug 2004 11:25:40 -0800

"The President wants me to argue that he is as powerful a monarch as Louis XIV, only four years at a time, and is not subject to the processes of any court in the land except the court of impeachment." - James D. St. Clair, arguing before the Supreme Court in 1974.

The court didn't agree, returning an 8-0 decision and as a result, thirty years ago today Richard Nixon announced his resignation. The next day at 11:35AM it became official and Gerald Ford, the first unelected Vice-President in history was sworn in under the provisions of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution as the 38th President of the United States.

But what if Nixon had chosen to respond differently? What if he had vowed not to resign? Article II of the Constitution makes the President the Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy. Could the Supreme Court really have forced Nixon to comply with their order? What if the President had viewed the Court's order as an attempted coup d'etat?

Watergate

plep — Wed, 07 Jan 2004 09:42:25 -0800

Watergate: The Scandal That Brought Down Richard Nixon , at watergate.info. Extensive.

Nixon ordered the Watergate break-in.

zaelic — Sun, 27 Jul 2003 17:09:12 -0800

Nixon Ordered the Watergate Break-in. Jeb Stuart Magruder, the deputy director of Nixon's 1972 campaign, revealed in a PBS documentary to air on Wednesday that Nixon personally ordered the bungled break-in at the luxury Watergate Hotel complex. It took 30 years, but the truth finally comes out.

Authors au naturel

starkeffect — Fri, 27 Jun 2003 16:05:52 -0800

Don Swaim has posted numerous unedited interviews recorded in the 1980's with famous authors, including Anthony Burgess (who has some troubles recalling "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"), Douglas Adams, William S. Burroughs, and many more... even Richard Nixon. (RealAudio)

The King Meets Tricky Dick

jonp72 — Wed, 08 Jan 2003 11:27:05 -0800

Since it's Elvis Presley's 68th birthday today and Richard Nixon's 90th birthday tomorrow, it's only natural to herald the December 21, 1970 meeting that has inspired a novel, a Showtime made-for-cable movie, musical novelties, and a mini-memoir from a Nixon staffer. The National Archives has received so many requests for photos of Elvis shaking hands with Nixon that they posted this online exhibit.

Is Gore the New Nixon?

Artifice_Eternity — Mon, 25 Nov 2002 07:38:30 -0800

Is Gore the New Nixon? The disembodied heads of Al Gore and Tricky Dick shared the screen in Futurama's season premiere. But the kinship between the two men goes deeper. Nixon won the White House twice, in spite of his critics and his own lack of charisma. Gore's done it once -- why not a second time? The Situation Room's analysis (which was inspired by Frank Rich's piece on Gore in Saturday's NY Times) offers food for thought, as the first outlines of the 2004 campaigns begin to take shape.

aaronshaf — Thu, 28 Feb 2002 23:42:14 -0800

"I'd rather use the nuclear bomb," Nixon responded. "That, I think, would just be too much," Kissinger replied. "The nuclear bomb. Does that bother you?" Nixon asked. "I just want you to think big."

raysmj — Thu, 15 Nov 2001 12:22:30 -0800

McGovern was right, says right-winger Conservative columnist Cal Thomas, upon reading a new Michael Beschloss book about the LBJ tapes, says Nixon's 1972 opponent was right in opposing the war, as were Senate critics. Says, in a column printed on a Heritage Foundation site, that the book should serve as a warning to fellow conservatives who won't tolerate dissent or any differing viewpoints. Via kausfiles.

muffin — Sun, 27 Aug 2000 00:21:22 -0800

So Nixon supposedly took drugs and beat his wife? If that's true, he was really going for the trifecta with the whole Watergate thing.

aaron — Mon, 14 Aug 2000 20:44:27 -0800

Enough of these pansy-assed candidates. Gore? Bush? Nader? Feh on them all, clueless newbies, no real experience. It's time for a candidate who's been there. A candidate who's a true stateman. A candidate who is tan, rested and ready! It's time for us to rise up and say Nixon 2000!