Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until 1974. He had no strong preference for a vice presidential candidate, and Republican officeholders and party officials met in a 'smoke-filled room' and recommended Nixon to the general, who agreed to the senator's selection. Nixon's performance in the debate was perceived to be mediocre in the visual medium of television, though many people listening on the radio thought Nixon had won. Whether the Nixon campaign interfered with any ongoing negotiations between the Johnson administration and the South Vietnamese by engaging Anna Chennault, a prominent Chinese-American fundraiser for the Republican party, remains an ongoing controversy. While notes uncovered in 2016 may support such a contention, the context of said notes remains of debate. It is not clear whether the government of South Vietnam needed much encouragement to opt out of a peace process they considered disadvantageous.