Nixon saw his policies on Vietnam , China , and the Soviet Union as central to his place in history . Nixon 's onetime opponent George McGovern commented in 1983 , " President Nixon probably had a more practical approach to the two superpowers , China and the Soviet Union , than any other president since World War II ... With the exception of his inexcusable continuation of the war in Vietnam , Nixon really will get high marks in history . " Political scientist Jussi Hanhimäki disagrees , saying that Nixon 's diplomacy was merely a continuation of the Cold War policy of containment by diplomatic , rather than military means . Historian Christopher Andrew concludes that " Nixon was a great statesman on the world stage as well as a shabby practitioner of electoral politics in the domestic arena . While the criminal farce of Watergate was in the making , Nixon 's inspirational statesmanship was establishing new working relationships with both Communist China and the Soviet Union . " Historian Keith W. Olson has written that Nixon left a legacy of fundamental mistrust of government , rooted in Vietnam and Watergate . In surveys of historians and political scientists , Nixon is generally ranked as a below average president . During the impeachment of Bill Clinton in 1998 , both sides tried to use Nixon and Watergate to their advantage : Republicans suggested that Clinton 's misconduct was comparable to Nixon 's , while Democrats contended that Nixon 's actions had been far more serious than Clinton 's . Another legacy , for a time , was a decrease in the power of the presidency as Congress passed restrictive legislation in the wake of Watergate . Olson suggests that legislation in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks restored the president 's power
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Richard Nixon