"The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” -Proverbs 16:9. Charles Colson was working as Special Aide to President Richard Nixon but he was so committed to his position that he went to almost dangerous lengths to please the President. Everyone agrees that Colson was the ideal man to be Nixon’s right hand man. Many agree that Charles Colson should have been devoted to President Nixon but others say he should not have been devoted to President Nixon. Colson should have been devoted to President Nixon for three reasons: his duty, his morals, and his future. The first reason Colson should have been devoted to President Nixon was his duty. Chuck Colson had a duty as Aide to the President to be unfailingly devoted to the president, it was his job. If he was disloyal, he could face the possibility of being fired or demoted. As a well known government man, Colson would never disrespect any official who out ranked him, …show more content…
The President deserved the devotion showed to him by Colson because he had experience in the government. Beyond that, President Nixon always had good intentions, even in all the things that led to his resignation. This was a reason Colson should have been devoted to him. Lastly, Nixon was a friend of Colson, no matter how professional their friendship was. The third reason Colson should have been devoted to President Nixon was his future. Being put on trial and sent to jail was a major character building moment as a Christian for Charles Colson. This would not have happened if he were not as blindly devoted to President Nixon. Chuck Colson also met a multitude of new people due to his constancy in his position with Nixon. If Colson hadn’t followed the path God made for his life then he would have never started his foundation, Prison Fellowship. All of the amazing things in Chuck’s life started with his commitments to President
...t and only friend can he move the way he does to make it vs. Bush's refusal to meet with Cindy Sheehan, what a tragic story the mother of a soldier killed in Iraq. But from their earliest days, Nixon and Bush had many different traits and smelled quit different. Polarizing on another presidents could be: one of modest means shifting like a bird in the sky who went to Duke Law School who smells really bad and trashy on a simi scholarship and did so well he graduated third in half of his class; the other a son was not so happy privilege whom one and the teacher saw him as loutish and a liar.
While he used these characteristics to persuade others to act illegal and conduct crimes, he still modeled the characteristics of an exemplar leader which include: modeling the way; inspiring a shared vision; challenging the process; enabling others to act; and encouraging the heart (Kouzes & Posner, 2006). He set the example of how he wanted his administration and those that worked directly with/under him to act. He employed and persuaded others to behave and act in a “by any means necessary” manner. This can be seen from the documentary which details and shows how those closest to him and the Plumbers acted and thought in a manner that was modeled by President Nixon. He further inspired a shared vision by uniting his followers to believe that they were working to keep confidential information safe, that other governmental agencies could not be trusted, and united his follower to believe in his purpose and vision for the country. According to Kouzes and Posner (2006), “leadership is the ability to move people, to change their minds and hearts and actions” (Kouzes & Posner, 2006, p. 67). This is evident within the documentary on which some of those involved in these covert affairs were described as Christian men with good values and hearts, whom never participated in the women, alcohol and corruption that surrounds
Historians on the opposing side believe that Nixon had a choice, but he choose the wrong one. He wanted to cover up the Watergate Scandal, and that was the turning point of his presidency. Maurice H. Stans explains, “Nixon was not a party to the Watergate break-in. That has been established, especially by the White House tapes beginning in June 1972, which showed his initial consternation at learning about it.” (Nixon 178) He could have turned the guilty party to the police, but he thought that it would end up hurting him.
By searching the internet, I was interested in the Supreme Court case United States v. Nixon. I chose this case because it raised the controversy of balancing the presidential privilege and the judicial review. Also, it made other branches of government reconsider the power of the president. Because of this case, Nixon, the 37th US president, had to resign from his office. Therefore, he became the only president who resigns during his term in the US history (Van Alstyne, 1974).
The politics of the ultratight resonated deeply with Richard Nixon. Nixon had cut his political teeth as a young Red-hunting member of the House Un-American Activities Committee in the 1950s. His home district in Orange Country, California, was widely known as a Birch Society stronghold. The Los Angeles-area Birch Society claimed the membership of several political and economic elites, including members of the Chandler family, which owned and published the Los Angeles Times. According to the writer David Halberstam (1979, 118) the Times, which was once described as “the most rabid Labor-bating, Red-hating paper in the United States,” virtually created Richard Nixon.
Another very important factor was Nixon’s previous experience in politics. After graduating from Duke University, Nixon joined the navy during World War II. After returning from the war Nixon jumped right into politics. He answered a Republican Party call in the newspaper. They were looking for someone to run against the five-term Democratic Congressman Jerry Voorhis. John Ehrlichman once said of Richard Nixon, “He is like a race horse specially trained to run a particular race and no good for pulling wagons. He’s for running the race to be president, and that’s what he lived for (Matusow 1).” That just gives you an idea about Nixon’s attitude. He would do whatever it took in order to win. The style of Nixon’s first campaign for congressman set the tone for the early part of his political career. An example would be that while running against Voorhis he accused him of being a communist. He even had campaign workers make calls to voter...
...ver actually happened. Instead of America feeling betrayed, they look to him as a hero and a great man. (chapter 2, page 13) By creating that diametric story line, Moore uses the citizen’s acceptance of Nixon to show how unethical and twisted their world is.
[1] Watching Oliver Stone’s Nixon (1995) and the director’s earlier film JFK (1991), it is difficult to have kind thoughts about Richard Nixon. Stone’s investment in the figure of the president manifests itself in two ways: first, in the director’s fixation on Nixon as a symbol of the corrupt political landscape after President John Kennedy’s assassination, and, second, his fixation on Nixon as a symbol of a failed patriarch or an ineffective father figure who led the country into further turmoil. Stone has argued that he hoped to elicit sympathy for Nixon, but I will show that the director’s emphasis on Nixon as an epic tragedy, especially in conjunction with the Beast thesis, does not allow for sympathy or understanding of the man or his politics.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take." Proverbs 3:5-6. In the book, Born Again, Chuck Colson was as deadly to political opponents as a lion is to prey. Colson was largely targeted by the media and dragged through the mud, after a scandal that led to an investigation of Nixon's White House administration. He had become a public scapegoat for the media. Through a long and taxing process, Colson was indicted and put in jail. However, through the straining process, he had found a path to God
The years leading up to the 1972 election were filled with new political tactics. Going into the election year, President Nixon seemed like he could never lose the second term election after successfully negotiating with Vietnam, Beijing, and Russia to improve international relations (Emery 4). Raising international toughness made Nixon seem like the most worthy person to stay president. Fred Emery analyses in his novel Watergate: The Corruption of American Politics and the Fall of Richard Nixon, the president was also setting up the first summit meeting in history with Soviet Union Presidents (3). There seemed to be nothing capable of holding the seemingly responsible man back. However, this assurance came with massive consequences. The absolute certainty that Nixon would be reelected fueled the lies and abuse of power by the Nixon government (Emery 195). As the outlook of landslide winnings took over the White House, the moral reasoning, “the end justifies the means” became more prevalent. Nixon was obsessed with winning and being successful. Under his command his staff did whatever possible to ...
President Nixon wrote this letter to Cuck Colson only one year before Colson was indicted for conspiring to cover up the Watergate burglaries. Not even Colson could tell you how this all started, but in his character as a young man it was evident that he could and would do anything necessary to complete a task that he set out to accomplish. Colson was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and graduated as valedictorian of his High School class of 1949. He rejected a full scholarship from Harvard University, and attended Brown University, also on scholarship, and then George Washington University Law School, graduating from both with honors. After graduation he spent a few years in the Marine Core, but then settled down to practicing law. He soon became involved in politics, and was particularly enthralled with campaign managing, as he had dabbled in it while still in Law school. In 1969, Chuck Colson was appointed Special Counsel to President Nixon (Wikipedia 2013). During his time in the White House he became known as the “hatchet man” because he did whatever it took to accomplish what the president wanted. In 1973 he resigned just after Nixon was elected for his second term, and was planning on returning to his law practice. That summer he gave his life to the Lord, and was a changed man. He was indicted the following March, and sentenced to one to three years in prison for his involvement in the Watergate Scandal. While in prison his relation...
In the movie, Frost meets Caroline Cushing on the plane on his way to meet Nixon for the first time, While on the plane they flirt, and Frost invites Cushing to accompany him to meet Nixon. They start dating soon after, and she stays with him during the entirety of the interviews. Nonetheless, that is not the true story, according to Caroline Cushing, her and Frost had been dating for five years before the interviews occurred. Since, they had just met each other in the movie Cushing was not really considered a part of the team. In history, Cushing was very much a member of Frosts team, by being moral support, and helping obtain the money to produce the interviews. Another relationship that is slightly altered to add drama to the movie is that between Frost and Nixon. Peter Morgan, the director of the movie, made Frost and Nixon’s relationship as two people fighting against each other, when only one can be a true winner. As Elizabeth Drew, and many other people believe, it is portrayed as David and Goliath- like, as the good guy, in this case Frost, always prevails. But, since the interviews were a way to make improvements to both of their reputations, Frost and Nixon kind of depended on each other. In the last second half of the Watergate Scandal interviews, Frost approaches the questions he asks Nixon with empathy and gentleness, like he is more of a therapist than a reporter. They might have not been best friends, but they both wanted the same time, which lead to at least a certain amount of respect for eachother. The dynamic created between them in the movie was that as close to enemies, always trying to be superior and one up the other. However, in history they were kind and respected each other. Some inaccuracies in the protrals of some relationships that occur in the movie v. real
Nixon’s hamartia, a fatal flaw that leads to the character’s downfall, was his hunger for power and insecurity. Many people have reported that he would lash out at his enemies. The cause of the Watergate Scandal, the incident when burglars broke into the Democratic National Committee’s office and tried to wiretap phones and steal documents, was Nixon’s insecurity. He didn’t think he was going to be reelected and resorted to unethical actions. This event forced Nixon to resign from office, thus displaying that his insecurity led to his downfall.
In conclusion President Nixon had some ups and downs like most Presidents. He was the first modern President that brought out globalized criticism, and where the White House conflicts became the household problems. If anyone wonders where America stands, or even how we got here, Nixonland will be a good place to start.
It is clear that Richard Nixon was elected as a conservative. He promised themes of “law and order” (Lecture 24, November 14), pandered to what he called the “silent majority” (Silent Majority Speech, 1969) and promised to end the unpopular Vietnam War, a product itself of liberal policies and ideals. He offered a sharp contrast in rhetoric between the soaring “we can do it all” language perpetuated by Kennedy and Johnson (Lecture 25, November 19). But how truly conservative was “Tricky Dick’s” presidency? Did the man who was elected specifically to end the seemingly endless chaos of the sixties actually prolong the national nightmare?