Question 1

True or false: Nixon lost the 1960 presidential election to John F. Kennedy by a razor-thin margin.

Accepted Answer

True. The popular vote was just 0.17% apart; many believe voter fraud in Illinois and Texas cost Nixon the win.

Question 2

True or false: Nixon played the piano and once performed on a TV show.

Accepted Answer

True. He played piano for fun and even appeared on 'The Jack Paar Show' in 1963, playing his own composition.

Question 3

True or false: Richard Nixon was the first U.S. president to visit China while in office.

Accepted Answer

True. Nixon's 1972 trip to China broke decades of isolation and reshaped global diplomacy, a stunning pivot from his anti-communist past.

Question 4

True or false: Nixon was a Quaker and never drank alcohol.

Accepted Answer

False. Though raised Quaker, Nixon did drink occasionally, and his Quaker faith didn't prevent him from using profanity on the White House tapes.

Question 5

True or false: Nixon established the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970.

Accepted Answer

True. Despite his conservative reputation, Nixon signed the executive order creating the EPA, a landmark environmental move.

Question 6

True or false: Nixon was the only president to have a pet alligator in the White House.

Accepted Answer

False. That was John Quincy Adams, who kept an alligator in a bathtub. Nixon had dogs, including the famous Checkers.

Question 7

True or false: Nixon was impeached by the House of Representatives for obstruction of justice.

Accepted Answer

False. The House Judiciary Committee approved articles of impeachment, but Nixon resigned before the full House voted, so he was never formally impeached.

Question 8

True or false: Nixon resigned because he personally ordered the Watergate break-in.

Accepted Answer

False. No evidence shows Nixon ordered the break-in; he resigned over the cover-up and obstruction of justice after the tapes revealed his involvement.

Richard Nixon Trivia Questions