The enduring impact of Henry Kissinger and Richard Nixon on the 20th century and beyond

Recently, America’s intellectual and political landscape was shaped by influential leaders with extraordinary gravitas.

President Richard Nixon and his National Security Adviser and later Secretary of State Henry Kissinger were two such leaders who collaborated to advance America’s interests — especially during a critical period of time.

Both men have passed away, but their intertwined legacies live on.

I began working for former President Nixon right after college, during the final years of his life.

One day, as I sat with him in his office, a call from Kissinger came in.

I got up to let him take the call in private, but he signaled for me to stay in my chair. “Henry!” he shouted. “How is everything?”

It’s often said that Nixon was the Doer and Kissinger was the Thinker.

But the truth is that both were thoughtful and decisive individuals.

Nixon was a unique political leader with exceptional intellect, and Kissinger was an academic who could effectively implement policies in the real world.

They complemented each other well.

Kissinger wrote his PhD dissertation at Harvard on 19th-century European balance-of-power politics and remained committed to a realist approach to international affairs.

This philosophy aligned with Nixon’s own views, and the president, already impressed with Kissinger’s intellectual prowess and foreign-policy work, brought him into the White House.

Nixon initiated the opening to China to counter growing Soviet power and help end the Vietnam War; he assigned Kissinger to oversee the secret negotiations that made it happen.

While our resources were being depleted in Vietnam, Nixon established a temporary détente with Moscow; he sent Kissinger to negotiate the details.

Nixon supported Israel while seeking peace in the Middle East; he sent Kissinger to conduct “shuttle diplomacy” that ended the Yom Kippur War.

Nixon designed a “peace with honor” to end the war in Vietnam; Kissinger negotiated the terms.

All these policies faced criticism but contributed to a more stable global environment during a time of great instability at home.

For his efforts leading to the Paris Peace Accords, Kissinger — along with his North Vietnamese counterpart — was awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize.

The prize was denied to Nixon, Kissinger’s boss, due to the intense opposition towards him.

The establishment’s animosity towards Nixon was so strong that they continuously tried to attribute Nixon’s vision and policies to Kissinger.

Kissinger executed skillfully, but the strategic brilliance was all Nixon.

Both men were forward-thinking and fascinated by great-power politics, how the global chessboard changed, and how the United States should maintain its superpower status.

But what was beneficial for the United States in the 1970s became detrimental as China began to rise, became wealthier, and engaged in tactics against the US.

Kissinger continued to advocate treating China as a strategic partner rather than the adversary it had become.

His close ties to the CCP led to justified criticism that he was aiding and abetting our most dangerous enemy.

He also supported globalism, including empowering Klaus Schwab, his World Economic Forum, and other transnational organizations focused on undemocratic global governance at the expense of American power.

His failure to combat the dangers of the CCP and globalism brought him deserved criticism.

Nevertheless, Kissinger continued to warn of the growing threat of unchecked artificial intelligence.

When I last saw him at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Dinner on Oct. 19, he spoke about the potential and dangers of AI.

As the son of German Orthodox Jews who escaped Nazi persecution, Kissinger, like Nixon, was a survivor.

It’s no wonder they worked so well together.

Nixon was the Architect. Kissinger was the Craftsman.

Together, they dominated the last half of the 20th century in ways that will echo far into the 21st.

Monica Crowley served as assistant secretary of the Treasury from 2019-2021 and is the host of the Monica Crowley Podcast.