Download Modern America

Modern America
1980-2000
The Election of 1980
The Republicans selected the charismatic movie actor and governor of California, Ronald
Reagan, who had barely lost to Ford in 1976
He was well known and his greatest asset was his ability to “work” the media
His conservative policies seemed desirable to many Americans who could relate to him
He was especially strong with the “neoconservatives,” people who advocated strong
right-wing ideals and free market capitalism
In addition, Reagan promised optimism, which differed sharply from the drab realism of
Carter
The Democrats nominated the incumbent Jimmy Carter who had to face a tough primary
from Senator Edward Kennedy
Reagan won the electoral vote in a landslide
At the same time the Republicans gained control of the Senate
The Reagan Revolution
Reagan won because voters from the inner cities (traditional Democratic strongholds) did
not turn out to vote – while voters in the affluent suburbs had the highest participation
On the day of the inauguration day the Iranians released their hostages
Only months after the inauguration there was an unsuccessful attempt on the life of the
president
The failed assassination only served to boost the popularity of the president
Reagan made four promises to the American people: a) lower taxes, b) reduce federal
spending on welfare, c) increase the size and capabilities of the military, and d) nominate
more conservative judges for the federal courts
Reaganomics (Supply-side economics)
The administration advocated supply-side economics to eliminate a decade of stagflation
Supply-side economics advocated cutting taxes and removing government regulations
Reagan believed that if entrepreneurs were free to invest and speculate then they would
be more successful, which in turn would generate revenue for the government
This economic philosophy had proved very successful during the twenties
This philosophy, however, contradicted the Keynesian doctrine – favored by the
Democrats – that government spending would improve the economy
As the principles of Reaganomics became more accepted several southern Democrats
shifted their political alliance to help pass the economic programs
The southern Democrats, labeled “boll weevils” also helped cut the budget
In August 1981 Congress passed the Economic Recovery Tax Act which cut personal
income tax 25% over three years for everyone and lowered the maximum tax rate from
70% to 50%
The Budget
A major difference between the 1920s and the 1980s was that government spending was
kept in check during the 1920s
In the 1980s government spending sent the deficit spiraling out of control
As the government was giving the people tax breaks they were also increasing spending,
especially on the military
Reagan told the public that his goal was to “help those who help themselves” but he also
promised to help those who really needed help – his goal was to eliminate those from
welfare who were capable of looking after themselves
Reagan and the Cold War
Reagan intended to make the United States the undisputed military power in the world
and he referred to the Soviet Union as “the evil empire”
Support for this philosophy increased when it became obvious the Soviets would not be
leaving Afghanistan (They had invaded in 1979)
Reagan believed that if the Soviets continued to spend money in the arms race they
would soon go bankrupt
One of the most controversial proposals was the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)
labeled by its critics “Star Wars”
The idea was to use satellites to intercept and destroy rockets fired towards the United
States
In 1985 the defense budget had ballooned to $300 billion
The Middle East
In 1982 the Israelis (with U.S. approval) invaded Lebanon and destroyed bases which had
been used to attack Israel
Within months the United States was involved in shipping the PLO from Lebanon and in
supply a large peace keeping force
In 1983 a suicide bomber drove a truck packed with explosives into the marine base
killing 241 Americans
After the attack the president pulled the peacekeepers out of Lebanon
Central America
By 1981 a full-scale civil war was taking place in El Salvador
The American government sent supplies and advisors to Central America to help
President José Napoleón Duarte in his fight against the leftist guerrillas
In Nicaragua, the Sandinistas – with support from Cuba – overthrew the government of
the dictator Anastasio Somoza
The Reagan administration solicited help from Nicaraguans who wanted to overthrow the
Sandinistas – this group was called the Contras
As the trouble escalated neighboring countries brokered a peace arrangement which
called for the withdrawal of foreigner advisors and an end to the importation of weapons
by the Nicaraguan government
In October 1983, Reagan sent American troops to Grenada to remove a military council,
which was sympathetic to the communists
Almost 2,000 American marines easily secured the island and “liberated” the few
American students at a medical school
The U.N. Security Council condemned the action
The Election of 1984
The Republicans again nominated Reagan with George Bush as his running mate
The Democrat Jesse Jackson became the first African American to make a serious run for
the presidency and sought the support of all minority groups under his Rainbow Coalition
But in the end t he Democrats nominated Walter Mondale of Minnesota and for the first
time a woman appeared on the ticket
Mondale’s running mate was Geraldine Ferraro of New York
When Mondale accepted the nomination he told the American people both he and Reagan
would raise taxes and doomed his campaign from the start
In fact Reagan had secretly signed a bill to raise taxes the day before Mondale spoke and
then he promised the American public he would not raise the taxes any more
Reagan won in a landslide
Arms Limitations
In 1985 Reagan flew to Geneva to talk with the new Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev
Gorbachev had openly talked about his desire to ease the Cold War tension (and the
escalating costs) through glasnost, (openness) and perestroika, (restructuring – referring
the economy)
Geneva was the first of a series of meeting, which resulted in the signing of the INF
agreement in 1987
Both countries agreed to destroy all intermediate range missiles
In 1988 Gorbachev further reduced tension when he ordered Soviet troops out of
Afghanistan
The Iran-Contra Affair
1986 started badly for the Reagan government – the space shuttle Challenger exploded a
few minutes after taking off killing all seven astronauts
In November the Democrats regained control of the Senate giving them control of both
Houses
At the same time as the election there were reports from Lebanon that the American
government had secretly being selling arms to Iran to secure the release of American
hostages held in Lebanon by groups with ties to Iran
This contradicted the administration’s edict that they would never negotiate with
terrorists
Over the following months other parts of the story began to be revealed
Oliver North, who worked for the National Security Council (NSC) had been running a
clandestine organization from the basement of the White House
It was claimed that North was using the profits from the sale of weapons to Iran to fund
the activity of the Contras in Nicaragua – all of which was very illegal
North had started to work with the approval of National Security Advisors Robert
McFarlane and his successor Admiral John Poindexter and the head of the CIA William
Casey
Poindexter resigned, North was fired, and Casey resigned for health reasons and died of a
brain tumor shortly thereafter
The president denied any knowledge of the affair
A joint House-Senate investigation found an unbelievable trail of lies, deceptions, and
illegal activities
North was found guilty of some minor charges, which were later overturned on appeal
Poindexter was sent to jail for six months for lying to Congress and obstructing justice
The president escaped association with the events but his popularity plummeted
The Election of 1988
Despite the Iran-Contra affair, the increasing federal deficit, Reagan nominating
conservatives for the Supreme Court, and the Stock Market crash of 1987 – when the
market lost over $500 billion in value, and the federal bail-out of the savings and loans
institutions which cost over $500 million the Democrats still could not win the White
House
The Republicans nominated George Bush who had been the loyal Vice President and
former head of the CIA with Dan Quayle as his running mate
The leading Democrat was Gary hart who was forced to drop out of the race after it was
revealed he had had an affair
The Democrats finally chose Michael Dukakis the governor of Massachusetts who had
governed the state during the booming 1980s
Bush promised “a kinder, gentler nation” “read my lips: no new taxes”
For the most part the Republicans gathered the more affluent voters while the Democrats
gained the inner-city vote and minority vote
In the end the Republicans won but the Democrats retained control of Congress
Only 50% of those eligible to vote bothered to cast a ballot – the lowest number since
1924
Foreign Policy
In his first year as president bush faced unprecedented global changes
In 1989, prodemocracy students in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, were brutally suppressed
by the Chinese authorities
Over a hundred protestors were killed and the brief attempt to seek democratic change
was halted
When Polish shipyard workers demanded to be allowed to form a union they formed
Solidarity – which was immediately banned by the Kremlin-backed Polish government
Gorbachev repudiated the Brezhnev Doctrine and told the world that Russia would no
longer interfere in the internal affairs of Communist countries
In the elections of 1989 the Polish people elected Lech Walesa – the leader of Solidarity
– to head the government
The Soviet Union did not act
Other Communist countries: Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Bulgaria soon followed the
lead of Poland and elected non-Communist governments
While most of these countries held new elections in many cases the same people who had
held power got re-elected after they broke their ties to the Communists
On November 9, the main symbol of the Cold War was removed when the East Germans
started to tear down the Berlin Wall and allowed unrestricted access to West Germany
In 1990 East and West Germany were unified
In December 1989, President bush ordered American troops to Panama to remove the
dictator Manuel Noriega who had been shipping drugs to the United States
The End of the Cold War
With the fall of the Berlin Wall and free elections in Eastern Europe it seemed like the
Cold War was over but ethnic conflict threatened more wars
As Gorbachev’s fame increased abroad so his opposition increased at home
In 1991 a coup led by military hardliners tried to usurp power
They arrested Gorbachev and kept him prisoner in vacation home
The coup was finally suppressed when Boris Yeltsin, the president of the Russian
republic stood up to the conspirators and asked the western powers to support his efforts
Within days the attempted revolt was over and many of the conspirators committed
suicide
Gorbachev was released from house arrest, but Yeltsin emerged as the most popular man
in the country
When most of the states in the Soviet Union sort independence, Gorbachev could only
stand back and watch
The first to declare their independence were the Baltic states of Latvia, Estonia, and
Lithuania
In 1991 Russia joined nine other republics to form the Commonwealth of Independent
States (CIS)
Yeltsin disbanded the Communist party and thereby ended to Cold War
Post-Cold War Realities
With the end of the Cold War the American government no longer needed to maintain
excessively high military spending
Cut backs in spending resulted in the closure of military bases and forced the Pentagon to
re-evaluate its position
In other countries, such as Yugoslavia, independence was followed by Civil War and the
widespread killing of innocent people in the name of ethnic cleansing
Iraq
President Bush faced his greatest problem when Iraqi invaded Kuwait in 1990
The Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein hoped to make Kuwait another province of his country
and add the vast oil reserves to his assets
Bush denounced the invasion and pledged to confront Hussein
The United Nations Security Council voted 14-0 to denounce the aggression leaving
Hussein with few allies
The U.N. passed Resolution 661 applying a trade embargo against Iraq
The United States shipped thousands of troops to Saudi Arabia to protect American
interests in that country
American reservists were called up in what was called “Desert Shield”
The Iraqis were told to withdraw by January 15, 1991 or face the consequences
On November 29, 1990 the U.N. supported the use of force to remove the Iraqis from
Kuwait
While all the political talk was going on the United States was preparing for war and
solidifying its alliances with other countries
When Hussein refused to leave Kuwait a combined force from 28 countries (mostly
American) embarked on Operation Desert Storm
Within days the Iraqi army was in disarray and retreating and Hussein was forced to
admit defeat
With Hussein out of Kuwait the coalition withdrew its forces
Domestic Policies
In 1990 the president signed the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibited
discrimination against people with physical and mental disabilities
In 1991 Thurgood Marshall retired from the Supreme Court – Bush nominated Clarence
Thomas
Thomas was very conservative and came under attack from African American groups and
he was accused of sexual harassment – the Senate confirmed him regardless of the
accusations
By 1992 the economy was starting to turn for the worse and Bush realized he had other
option but to break his campaign promise about taxes
Congress did ratify the Twenty-seventh Amendment which prohibited Congress from
raising their own salaries and future pay raises could not go into effect until the Congress
was in session
The Election of 1992
In 1992, the Democrats nominated the governor of Arkansas Bill Clinton who portrayed
himself as a “New Democrat” and who appealed to the baby-boomers
Clinton selected Senator Albert Gore, Jr. of Tennessee as his running mate
The Republicans again went with the Bush/Quayle ticket and emphasized family values
The election saw the appearance of Ross Perot, a Texas billionaire who entered the race
as an independent
Clinton won the election, but Perot gained almost 20% of the popular vote (mostly from
disillusioned Republicans)
Democrats also won both the House and the Senate
Domestic Policies
The Clinton administration supported the passage of the North American Free Trade to
create a free-trade zone with Canada and Mexico, claiming that more trade would help
the economy and create jobs
The ideas was passed despite some serious opposition
Clinton appointed his wife, Hilary to oversee any changes to the nation’s health and
medical system
But the end result was a new system that few people liked – the plan to use his wife had
backfired on the president
In 1993 Congress passed the Family and Medical Leave Act, which allowed workers in
companies with more than 50 employees to take 12 weeks unpaid leave
Also in 1993 Congress passed the Brady Bill, which required a 5-day waiting period
before a person could buy a handgun
In 1994 Congress passed the Anti-Crime Bill, which provided more funds for crime
prevention and also prohibited the sale of most assault rifles
Terrorism
During the early 1990s the United States witnessed an increase in size and scope of
terrorist activity within the United States
In 1992 a white supremacist held off federal agents at his cabin in Idaho
When the shooting stopped the man’s wife and child had been killed
At Waco in 1993 a religious sect known as the Branch Davidians held off federal agents
for days
The Davidians, led by David Koresh, refused to let agents serve a warrant on the sect
As agents entered the compound the Davidians opened fire killing several agents
After a 50-day standoff the agents attacked the compound with armored vehicles and tear
gas
The house caught fire and killed at least 70 of the occupants including women and
children
On the second anniversary of the Waco disaster a massive truck bomb exploded outside
the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people
The FBI arrested Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols and another man who pleaded
guilty of producing explosives
All 3 men hated the government and belonged to militias
“Contract with America”
The Republicans managed to prevent much of the Democratic agenda from being passed
The democrats had promised health care reform and tax relief for the middle class –
neither was passed
By 1994 the Republicans sensed the opportunity to take advantage of the situation
In the elections the Republicans captured the House and the Senate (first time since 1952)
The new Speaker of the House was Newt Gingrich of Georgia
Gingrich attacked Clinton on every issue and he allied the Republican party to the
Christian Coalition
The Republicans ran on a platform of restoring conservative values and they pledged to
create a “Contract with America”
The “Contract” was a 10-point plan aimed at less government regulation, less biggovernment, a balanced-budget, and welfare reform
But the reforms were too ambitious and the “Contract” lost momentum
Many of the Republican demands increased local and state spending and by 1996 the
American public did not want to hear any more conservative ideas
The 1990s were a time of unprecedented economic gains, thanks mostly to the dot.com
boom
Technology companies made fortunes as people invested in the Internet and associated
stock
As the people made money they had little interest in the Republican message
In 1995 the deadlock between the two parties was so great that Congress was shut down
Foreign Policy
Foreign policy was not high on Clinton’s list of priorities
He did send American troops to Somalia in 1993, but then withdrew them
Also, in 1993 secret talks between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)
took place in Oslo
The basis of the talks was the restoration of Palestinian self-rule in the Gaza Strip and in
Jericho
The formal agreement was signed at the White House with President Clinton presiding
Following this agreement other agreements concerning Middle East issues also reached
conclusion
Israel and Jordan agreed upon their common border
Even though Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish fanatic
in 1995 the talked continued
When the Mexican government ran into financial problems in 1995, Clinton provided
them with $20 billion in aid
As the trouble in Yugoslavia escalated Clinton showed little interest in getting America
involved
In 1995 he did send American troops as part of the NATO peacekeeping force
The Election of 1996
The Democrats again nominated Clinton and Gore who had weathered the storm and
were now reaping the benefits
The Republicans nominated Senator Bob Dole of Kansas
Ross Perot ran again as an Independent but had little impact
Clinton won the election, but the Republicans retained control of Congress
The Second Term
Allegations of impropriety had dogged Clinton since his election in 1992
He was accused of being involved in a real estate deal in Arkansas when he was
governor, which went bad and ended up with the bankruptcy of the Whitewater Land
Corporation
Impeachment
But the biggest scandal was in 1998 when it was discovered he had had a sexual
relationship with a White House intern called Monica Lewinsky
When he was asked about the incident the president lied under oath
Once he had been trapped and investigated by a special prosecutor, Clinton was forced to
make a confession and admit his affair
The special prosecutor, Kenneth Starr gave the House of Representatives enough
evidence to impeach the president
In 1998 the House passed two articles of impeachment: perjury and obstruction of justice
The Republicans ruthlessly attacked the president and demanded impeachment
In the elections of 1998 the Republican majorities were reduced because most people
were less concerned about the president than they were about their own financial
situation
They did not want the good times to stop because the president was impeached
In 1999 the impeachment process started in the Senate
Clinton was found not guilty on both issues
The Election of 2000
With Clinton unable to run again the Democrats turned to Clinton’s Vice President, Al
Gore and selected Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut as his running mate
The Republicans nominated Governor George W. Bush of Texas – son of the former
President Bush
Bush selected Dick Cheney as his running mate
Ralph Nader ran as a third party candidate
Gore worked hard to solicit the vote of the working class, especially women
Bush advocated “compassionate conservativism”
When the popular vote was counted Gore had over 500,000 more votes than Bush, but
when the electoral votes were counted everything rested on the outcome of the Florida
vote
Bush won Florida by slightly more than 500 votes
The Democrats asked for a manual recount because some of the voting punch-card
ballots had not been counted
The Supreme Court in Florida ordered a manual recount, so the Republicans appealed to
the Supreme Court
In Bush v. Gore the Supreme Court ruled on a 5-4 decision along party lines that the
recounting had to stop – making Bush the winner
Their decision was based on the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment because
not all votes were being counted the same
When Gore accepted the Court’s verdict the election was over – Bush had won by 5
electoral votes – the closest election since 1876