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Certainly, in an atomic age, peace must be the first priority of every U.S. President. Nixon undoubtedly is right in expecting history to rate him highly if he advances that goal. Yet in devoting so much of his energy and Government resources to that task, he runs the risk of a different historical judgment. While Nixon's overwhelming victory suggests that the majority of Americans are more than content with their lot, the problems have not disappeared, the decay of the cities, the welfare mess, the unwieldy and often unfair tax system, the creaking disability of Government on all levels, the economic as well as moral stresses on American society. Nor would the demands of the black minority, while relatively muffled now, be indefinitely stilled.
Nixon's vast mandate was among other things a vote for the general competence he has often shown in office, and the promise of more of it in more areas. The voters were asking Nixon, finally unfettered by any worry about how he might fare in another election, not merely to maintain the status quo, but to demonstrate now his capacity for leadership at home as well as abroad.