He would continually be challenged by Congress, but the Supreme Court would ultimately uphold his actions as necessary to the security and interests of the nation, its people, and its future. While Lincoln was extremely concerned with public opinion, he was not convinced that the Presidential elections would be the ultimate check. Rather, Lincoln asserted that the success of the actions taken by a government to preserve its interest and peace cannot be measured by the electorate but rather by the final outcome of the actions. Nixon's opinion, however, differed. This, in my opinion, is the dangerous flaw which lead to Richard Nixon's decline.
Great danger lies in placing too much value on popular opinion.
The opinion of the electorate, while important for electing a President, should not have a great deal to do with the process of day to day government decision making. Because people can be too easily convinced and persuaded into believing dangerous popular opinion, too much value should not be place on the opinion of the masses. The public has been wrong on such issues all too often and public opinion has been swayed all too easily over the years. A dependence on public opinion can prove dangerous for a policy maker and divisive for a nation. Nixon would sadly discover this.