Was Richard Nixon A Closet Liberal?

I get so tired of pieces like this one, which, in some misbegotten bipartisan spirit, attempt to paint Nixon's Presidency as some latter-day liberal paradise.  As someone who lived through it, I can assure you that, even without that little blip called Watergate, it was no such thing.

Yes, Nixon enacted some liberal programs and laws.  Keep in mind, however, that he did so in a very different political environment, one which included not only liberals but the New Left, including some who believed in violence to promote their views. Nixon, as well as other conservatives, was intimidate by all of this to attempt to co-opt it.

If there's any real lesson in Nixon's Presidency, it's this:  fight like hell for what's right--and against those who oppose it.