ABSTRACT
This chapter explores domestic policy during Richard Nixon’s presidency. It focuses on six areas: federal spending and the structure of the government; economics; the environment; race, ethnicity, and women; criminal justice; and the Supreme Court. Nixon, often due to prodding from a Congress under control of the Democratic Party, instituted policies that transformed the United States in notable and lasting ways. To the dismay of conservatives in the Republican Party, Nixon’s policies sometimes expanded the power of the federal government. Yet, in other respects, his policies moved the nation in a more conservative direction. His rhetoric, which often denounced federal officials, also strengthened conservatism.
