Today in history: The death of a president

April 22, 1793: President George Washington declared the U.S. would remain neutral in the face of emerging conflicts in Europe. He warned that any citizen who tried to undermine this would be prosecuted.

April 22, 1994: Richard Nixon died. He was the 37th president, serving between 1969 and 1974. In 1968, Nixon promised to "bring us together" as a nation. But Watergate helped tear it apart; he became the only president to resign. Although Nixon is remembered for Watergate, he had notable successes both at home and abroad. He reached out to China, embarked on "détente" with the Soviet Union, and ended the Vietnam war.

At home, Nixon exempted 9 million low-income citizens from paying taxes, while raising taxes on the rich. He sharply boosted Social Security benefits, created the Environmental Protection Agency, and fought for cleaner air and water.

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Nixon was one of just two men to run on national tickets five times. The other was Franklin D. Roosevelt. FDR ran for VP in '20 and POTUS in '32, '36, '40, and '44. Nixon ran for VP in '52 and '56, and POTUS in '60, '68, and '72. Both Nixon and FDR won four of their five respective national races. When FDR ran for VP in 1920, he lost. Nixon, when he ran for POTUS in 1960, lost.

Quote of the day

"I let the American people down." — Richard M. Nixon

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