Richard Nixon and the Quest for a New Majority
Robert Mason
Publisher: University of North Carolina Press
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press
Published: 10/2005
Pages: 304
Subject: Political Science, History
| University of North Carolina
Print ISBN: 9.78E+12
eBook ISBN: 9780807875926
DESCRIPTION
Nixon's "silent majority" speech of 1969 not only undermined the growth of the antiwar movement, Mason shows, but also identified a constituency for Nixon to cultivate in order to secure reelection. However, the implementation of his new-majority project was hindered by the resort to dirty tricks against political opponents and the ineffectual pursuit of a policy agenda. Although some Nixon initiatives were enacted, says Mason, they were not substantial enough to rival the Democrats' bread-and-butter issues. While Nixon built Republican strength at the presidential level, Mason argues that he did not succeed in mobilizing popular support for broad-based political conservatism.