A remarkably interesting letter (“Eyes Only”) that Richard Nixon sent to then-President Bill Clinton in March 1994, after Nixon returned from a trip to Russia and Ukraine, has been declassified and made public. Luke Nichter writes about Nixon’s letter in the Wall Street Journal:
Nixon anticipated a more belligerent Russia, the rise of someone like Vladimir Putin, and worsening relations between Moscow and Kyiv.
Nixon emphasized the importance of Ukraine, writing:
You will be urged to scatter the available aid money all over the former Soviet Union. This would be a mistake. You have very limited funds. All the other nations in the near abroad are important. But Ukraine is in a different class–it is indispensable.
Back to Mr. Nichter:
Nixon also warned Mr. Clinton about presidential personnel. “I learned during my years in the White House that the best decisions I made, such as the one to go to China in 1972, were made over the objections of or without the approval of most foreign service officers,” he wrote. Nixon evidently didn’t think Mr. Clinton was being served well by his own people. “Remember that foreign service officers get to the top by not getting into trouble. They are therefore more interested in covering their asses than in protecting yours.”
Nixon also pointed out that few foreign service officers know anything about economics.
Nichter’s column is good, but I encourage you to read Nixon’s letter in its entirety. It is certainly the most interesting thing I have read today.
The letter is also a reminder that Nixon was a patriot, and I think Clinton was, too. These lines seem to come from another galaxy, far away and long, long ago:
First, the good news. Everyone I talked to in the four countries I visited spoke with great respect for you, and in Kohl’s case, with genuine affection. Not one mentioned Whitewater. Some of the American media tried to get me to make a statement on it, but I turned them all off by stating that I never commented on domestic issues when I am traveling abroad.
Contrast that with Joe Biden’s disgustingly partisan overseas press conferences. Nixon continued:
I went on to say that what was most important is that we do not allow that issue or any other domestic issue to divert attention from our major foreign policy priority–the survival of political and economic freedom in Russia. I emphasized that on this issue there should still be continued strong bi-partisan support for the President’s leadership.
As I said, a far-away galaxy, long, long ago. Nixon had his faults, but he was a patriot, he was smart, and he didn’t sell out his country in exchange for millions in foreign bribes.
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