The Strange Case of Richard Milhous Nixon

by Jerry Voorhis

Voorhis, Jerry, Strange Case Of Richard Milhous Nixon, The

Genres: History

341 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1972

Reviews

[Christopher Saunders]

Scabrous attack on Richard Nixon penned by Jerry Voorhis, ex-Congressman who became Nixon's first political opponent (and victim) in 1946. Much of the book is a wonky attack on Nixon's policies, arguing that his wild shifts in economic and environmental policies, compulsive spending cuts, neglect for civil rights and welfare programs and his cynical handling of Vietnam were failures spurred by political calculation rather than conviction. (Certainly this will be an eye-opener to modern readers weened on the idea that Nixon was a closet liberal.) The book's effectiveness is somewhat marred by a constant hectoring, sarcastic tone, along with more hysterical complaints about the Military-Industrial Complex, comparing Nixon to Adolf Hitler and medieval Kings and foreseeing imminent dictatorship. Even so, it's hard to gainsay Voorhis when so many of his dark implications came true (especially his comments on the milk pricing scandal, which would be outrageously paranoid if the White House tapes didn't later confirm it). While it lacks the enduring insight of Garry Wills' Nixon Agonistes or Evans and Novak's The Frustration of Power, it has some merit as a contemporary statement of the anti-Nixon case from a progressive Democrat. I apparently read a later reprint as, despite a 1972 publication date listed here and on Kirkus, it includes several chapters on Nixon's reelection and the Watergate scandal.

[Chris]

I didn't know too much about Nixon, really, and this book was informative. It also seemed as though Nixon's ways are more part of politics than I would like to think.