Society in Transition

#Nixon's Presidency

#New Federalism

Under the label of “new federalism,” Nixon shifted responsibility for many social programs from the federal government to state and local authorities. It is often associated with conservative and libertarian ideologies, and advocates for a more limited role for the federal government in areas such as welfare, education, and law enforcement. The idea is to give more autonomy to states and localities to govern themselves and make decisions that best suit the needs of their citizens.

He developed the concept of revenue sharing, by which federal funds (via grants) were dispersed to state, country, and city agencies to meet local needs in the form of block grants. Again, these governments could use the money as they saw fit.

#Nixon's Southern Strategy

Nixon devised a political strategy to form a Republican majority by appealing to the millions of voters who had become disaffected by antiwar protests, Black militants, school busing to achieve racial balance, and the excesses of the youth counterculture. Nixon referred to these conservative Americans as the “silent majority.” Many of them were Democrats, including southern whites, northern Catholic blue-collar workers, and recent suburbanites who disagreed with the liberal drift of their party.

To win over the South, Nixon asked the federal courts in that region to delay integration plans and busing orders. He also nominated two Southern conservatives to the Supreme Court. The courts rejected his requests and the Senate refused his nominees.

His southern strategy played well with Southern white voters. The success of Nixon’s southern strategy became evident in the presidential election of 1972 when the Republica...