American singer
Elvis Presley meeting then-president
Richard Nixon on December 21, 1970. During the meeting, the singer expressed his patriotism and his contempt for
hippies, the growing
drug culture, and the
counterculture in general. Presley then asked Nixon for a
Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs badge, to signify official sanction of his patriotic efforts. Nixon gave Presley the badge and expressed a belief that Presley could send a positive message to young people and that it was therefore important he retain his credibility.
Photograph: Oliver F. Atkins