Conservatives, however, did have a deep bench of great writers in those years - but, the circulation of our ideas and arguments was very limited...
National Review, American Spectator, the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal (which was also supporting massive immigration 50 years ago!).
Commentary magazine was often excellent in those years, right or center-right on almost every issue.
Most of the once great Conservative-Libertarian think tanks - Heritage, Cato, American Enterprise Institute - were also just getting started, and they would have significant influence when Reagan got elected.
Re: "The take down of Nixon was one of the most shameful acts in United States history."
I agree. The take down of Newt Gingrich, in 1995, was a close second. The GOP leadership did not lift a finger to protect Newt after the Political Left decided to destroy him. Newt has never been the same guy since that happened.
What Newt and the pubbies didn't realize, was how traumatic the loss of the House was to all demonRATs and how rough they would get for revenge.
The RATs controlled the House for over 40 years and had become so used to the power and corruption, that it's loss was beyond belief.
By the same token, many of the newly elected pubbies were rinos and on the take {just like the demonRATs} and so they were easy to blackmail and publicly shame.
They threw Newt under the bus to save their own corrupt asses.
Here is a shocker:
POLITICIANS ARE CORRUPT.