Inside Nixon’s Plan for Redemption

Elizabeth Drew has a must-read piece on Richard Nixon’s plan to remake himself as a statesman after his resignation from the presidency in 1974.

“He was determined to become someone people listened to–a senior statesman, a sage. And the best way to be considered a sage, Nixon understood, was to establish one’s credentials as an expert in foreign policy, a man known to world leaders. Domestic policy didn’t cut it the same way: Lectures and articles on education or the environment didn’t attract the Brahmins and the business leaders Nixon wanted to attract, didn’t occupy nearly as much space on the stage. No splashy trips.”