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Period: to
Nixon, Ford, and Carter Years
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The U.S. achieves the first moon landing
On July 20, 1969, at 10:56 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, Armstrong descended from the Eagle lunar landing craft and set foot on the moon’s surface. Armstrong radioed back the famous message: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” -
Nixon becomes the first U.S. President to travel to China
In July 1971, after extensive secret diplomacy by Kissinger, Nixon made the dramatic announcement that he planned to visit China the following year. He would be the first United States President ever to travel to that country. -
Televised Senate hearings on Watergate begin
In July 1974, the House Judiciary Committee, which included 21 Democrats and 17 Republicans, began to hold hearings to determine if there were adequate grounds for impeachment. This debate, like the earlier hearings, was broadcast on national television. Democrats such as Representative Barbara Jordan raised serious constitutional issues. The country watched anxiously as even Republicans deserted the President. -
Richard Nixon becomes the first U.S. President to resign
Three days later, Nixon appeared on television and painfully announced that he would leave the office of President the next day. On August 9, 1974, Nixon resigned, the first President ever to do so. That same day, in a smooth constitutional transition, Vice President Gerald Ford was sworn in. “Our long national nightmare is over,” he said. -
Gerald Ford signs the Helsinki Accords on European security
On another foreign policy front, President Ford signed the Helsinki Accords, a series of agreements on European security made at a 1975 summit meeting in Finland. The United States, Canada, the Soviet Union, and about 30 European countries pledged to cooperate economically, respect existing national boundaries, and promote human rights. Ford also continued Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) with the Soviet Union, holding out hope for further limits on nuclear weapons. -
U.S. celebrates the bicentennial of the signing of the Declaration of Independence
Americans held a nationwide birthday party to mark July 4, 1976, the bicentennial, the 200th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Throughout the summer, people in small towns and big cities across the country celebrated with parades, concerts, air shows, political speeches, and fireworks. With so many Americans discouraged by Watergate, Vietnam, and the recession, the celebrations could not have been better timed. -
Jimmy Carter negotiates the Camp David Accords to promote peace in the Middle East
At Camp David in September 1978, Carter assumed the role of peacemaker. He practiced highly effective personal diplomacy to bridge the gap between Sadat and Begin. They finally agreed on a framework for peace that became known as the Camp David Accords. Under the resulting peace treaty, Israel would withdraw from the Sinai peninsula, which it had occupied since 1967. Egypt, in return, became the first Arab country to recognize Israel's existence as a nation. -
U.S. boycotts the Moscow summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics boycott of the Moscow Olympics was a part of a package of actions initiated by the United States to protest the Soviet war in Afghanistan. It preceded the 1984 Summer Olympics boycott carried out by the Soviet Union and other Communist friendly countries. -
American hostages held in Iran are set free
On January 20, 1981, at the moment Reagan completed his 20-minute inaugural address after being sworn in as President, 52 American hostages were released by Iran into U.S. custody, having spent 444 days in captivity.[
