Transcript Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993

Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
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Two Views: Liberal and Conservatives
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Liberals – Favored government intervention to help the needy.
Conservatives – Favored allowing the free market, private
organizations, and individuals take care of the needy.
Both agree on core American values such as freedom and
equality.
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Ideas and Goals of Liberalism – Government should play a
bigger role in improving the lives of Americans
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Social programs that helped the poor , unemployed , elderly
Laws that protect the rights of minorities & women.
Greater government regulation of industry.
Foreign policy = cooperating w/ international organizations, UN.
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Ideas and Goals of Conservatism – A large central
government endangered economic growth and individual
choice.
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Liberal policies of the 60s and 70s left a legacy of rising inflation
and enormous waste.
Criticized the liberal solution of “throwing money” at social
problems.
Sought to reduce taxes and limit government regulation of
industry in order to promote economic growth.
Neoconservatives or Traditionalist – warned about the dangers
posed to society by abandoning traditional values in favor of the new
freedoms exemplified by the counterculture and advertized by mass
media.
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Anticommunism Conservatism – No more détente w/ USSR.
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40s and 50s - bipartisan foreign policy aimed at containing
communism, and both favored significant role for the gov’t in
domestic affairs.
60s and 70s – Liberal dependency of the role of gov’t in domestic
affairs.
1980s – New Right resurgent Conservative movement made up of a
coalition of several different groups w/ varying ideas and goals.
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Revival of the Republican Party = Unraveling of Democratic
Party
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Vietnam and violence of the 1960s divided America
Watergate, oil crisis, Iran hostage crisis – no faith in gov’t
Decline in northern industry – dampened the bright outlook for
the future
Great Society – Support for no higher taxes, but when the economy
slipped, liberal ideas lost their pull, and conservative beliefs became
more attractive.
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The New Right Chimes IN – Liberal policies were the cause of
stagflation
– Policies taxed citizens and businesses too heavily and spent too
much $$ on the wrong programs.
– Complained about unfunded mandates- programs required but
not paid for by the federal government.
– Criticized federal welfare programs – awarded lack of effort.
The great Society programs made poverty worse. Decline in the
traditional family.
– Affirmative action promoted reverse discrimination
– “Sagebrush Rebels” wanted the Fed Gov’t to release control of
Western Lands to the states and let them decide how best to use
the lands resources for economic advantage.
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Moral Majority – founded by the Reverend Jerry Falwell, was a
political organization working to fulfill religious goals.
– Opposed the Supreme court decisions which forbade religious
teaching in schools (1962 - Engle v. Vitale), and legalized
abortion (1973 – Roe v. Wade)
– Condemned Equal Rights Amendment and homosexuality.
– Boosted the Republican Party’s chances of winning the
presidency by reaching out to Americans who traditionally not
participated in the political process.
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Demographic trends also boost Conservatism
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Movement to the suburbia – which struggled during stagflation
Move from the Rust Belt to Sun Belt turned the Deep South from
democratic to republican. Opposed 60s civil rights movement.
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Ronald Reagan – The Great Communicator
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Illinois farm boy that landed in Hollywood
Switch political affiliation in 1960s
Governor of California
Opposed big government
Supported strong military
Faith in traditional values
Radiated in optimism
Would usher in a new era of prosperity and patriotism.
Won the 1980 election over Jimmy Carter and John Anderson
in a landslide electoral vote victory. (only won 50.6% of the
popular vote)
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With the close election victory in 1980, the Reagan revolution
would bring a significant shift in the political direction of the
nation.
– “Reaganomics” – Sometimes called the theory of Supplyside economics.
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Rests on the assumption that if taxes are reduced, people will
work more and have more money to spend, causing the
economy to grow.
The government will then collect more taxes.
But in order to cut taxes and balance the budget, Reagan
would need to reduce federal spending on programs favored
by both democrats and republicans.
Economic Recovery Act of 1981 – Reduced taxes by 25%
over 3 years.
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
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Economic Recovery Act of 1981 – Reduced taxes by 25% over 3
years.
• Richest Americans received the biggest tax cut. Why?
– Would use the money they saved to invest back in the
economy in the form of new businesses.
– Cut $40 billion from federal budget. Mostly on social programs.
– Deregulation – removal of governmental control over industry.
Deregulated airline, tele-communications, and banking
industries. Also cut funding for federal agencies that oversaw
many other agencies.
Despite Reagan’s economic policies, the economy experienced a
severe recession from 1980 – 1982. 10% unemployment!
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Loss of blue collar jobs, and farms to oversea competitions.
Policies to fight inflation from the 1970s
Increase in immigration, both legal and illegal
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Reagan also increased defense spending, in place of détente.
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Budget Deficit – Shortfall between the amount of money spent
and the amount taken in by the government. ($79 b to $221 B
in 5 years).
National Debt – Amount of money the federal government
owes to owners of government bonds.
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But he did not get the cuts in government spending in order to pay for it.
Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act of 1985 – balance budget by 1990.
• Record high federal budget deficit in the early 1990s
• Savings and Loan (S&L) crisis – In 1989 banks failed due to
fraudulent behaviors and risky loans. Deregulation to blame for
risky investments. Spent $200 billion to bail out failed banks.
With the economic upswing in1983 Reagan uses that momentum to
win 1984 election against Walter Mondale and the 1st woman VP
nominee, Geraldine Ferraro. But not Congress
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Reagan leaves legacy by trying to overturn the liberal slant on the
supreme court.
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Appoints conservative justices Sandra Day O’Connor, 1st female justice,
Antonin Scalia, and Anthony Kennedy.
Appoints well-known conservative William Rehnquist as Chief Justice.
Challenging domestic issues Reagan faced:
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Professional Air Traffic Controller Organization (PATCO) Strike Instead of negotiating with them, Reagan fired the federal workers for
going on strike.
Social Security – More older people, but not enough money to pay
social security – Social Security Reform Act – increased minimum age
of retirement and increased payroll taxes to help pay it.
Public education – showing lower scores on standardized tests. Public
schools were not preparing students well enough.
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Reagan provided the voucher program which gave parents government
check to help pay for private schools. Hoped to force public schools to do
better.
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End of the Cold War – Reagan believed the US messed up
during the Vietnam War. Instead of taking on Communism
head on we chose détente, and we had lost our way as a nation
in the 1960s and 1970s
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Need to stop communism in its tracks. Roll back the USSR in Eastern
Europe and elsewhere. China, Cuba, and Vietnam weren’t going
anywhere. Help the oppressed in EE fight the Soviets
Peace would come through strength. Relations between two
superpowers heated up. But Reagan’s foreign policies would eventually
help end the Cold War.
Challenge the Soviets as much as possible w/out provoking a
war, by using a foreign policy that would topple communist
nations.
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build new nuclear missile systems and use covert opperationagainst
Soviet troops around the world.
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Reagan builds up the U.S. military – Largest military build-up
in history.
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Billions to develop and produce B-1 and b-2 bombers, MX Missile
systems, and other projects.
Reagan placed a new generation of nuclear missiles in Europe.
Reagan supported build-up because he believed the Soviets could not
afford to keep up.
Believed this applied particularly to the Strategic Defense Initiative
(SDI) – a proposed program in which land and space-based lasers
would destroy any missile aimed ant the U.S. before it could reach their
targets. Dubbed “Star Wars” b/c it was so unrealistic.
Reagan can also fight communism by supporting Anti-Communist
Forces around the globe.
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Supported the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan, to drive the Soviets out of
Afghanistan in 1988.
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
B-1 Bomber
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
– B-2
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
– MX Missile
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
– Strategic Defense Initiative
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
– Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START I)
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
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Backed the Anticommunist Counterrevolutionaries, Contras, in
Nicaragua.
Supported right wing government in El Salvador battle leftist guerillas.
Mikhail Gorbachev – In 1985 became the president of the
Soviet Union. New Era in the Soviet Union.
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Pursued the twin policies of Glasnost, “a new openness’, and
Perestroika – reforming the Soviet system. (Moving away from statecontrolled industry)
• Initiated b/c the Soviet economy was in shambles.
– No food
– Factories could not compete w/ Western counterparts.
– Military spending – Afghanistan was draining the economy.
– Could not match military build-up by U.S.
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Because of this, both leaders would meet 4 times between 1985
– 1989. These were big deals.
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Soviet Union began experimenting with the free-enterprise system.
Began talks on negotiation for START Treaty I – Strategic Arms
Reduction Treaty. Would reduce the number of nuclear weapons in the
world.
The Cold War Ends
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The Berlin Wall comes down.
Russian Satellite nations since WW II, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and
Hungary held democratic elections
USSR disintegrated into several smaller republics
Communism ends in Eastern Europe
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The Berlin Wall had been a symbol of hard line Communism
since its construction in 1961-1962. Separation between
Democratic West and Communist Eastern Europe.
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It will become the symbol also for the fall of communism
in Europe in 1989.
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East Germany’s Communist Government falls, and the gate open
literally for the rest of Eastern Europe to follow.
East Germany and Berlin will eventually reunite the County that
has been divided since the End of WW II. The Berlin Wall will
come crashing down soon afterwards.
The Communists also lost power in Poland, Hungary,
Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania in 1989. Albania in
1900, and in 1991, Yugoslavia in 1991.
You have to give credit to the communist, they were a stabilizing
force in these countries, because they have become a mess since
they left.
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
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Soviet Union Breaks Apart
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August 1991, hard-liners in the Soviet Union attempt to stage a
coup in an attempt to maintain communist rule.
– Boris Yeltzin rallies millions of Russians in the streets in support
of Mikhail Gorbechev – the coup fell apart.
– Soon the Communist Party lost power and the Soviet Union
separated into 15 independent states, the largest being the
Russian Federation.
Some credit goes to Gorbachev’s policy of glasnost and perestroika,
which opened up the floodgates to the revolts in Eastern Europe and
fostered a challenge to the communist rule with in the Soviet Union.
Some credit can go to Ronald Reagan and his massive build-up of
weapons in the US. The Soviet economy collapsed under the
pressure of trying to keep up with the Americans.
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
Chapter 19: The Conservative Resurgence 1980-1993
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What does America do with its main enemy?
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What we did is let our guard down.
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We signed treaties with Gorbachev and Boris Yeltzin to cut back on our
nuclear weapons.
We will cut back our troop strength and close key strategic military bases.
We will ignore a sleeping enemy lurking just beneath the sand.
Middle East
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Lebanon – 800 troops sent to keep peace in a country torn up by civil
war. On October 23, 1983, a truck loaded with explosives plowed into a
military housing facility, killing 241.
Libya – Reagan will spend many years of his presidency dealing with
Libyan terrorist Muamar al-Qaddafi, openly criticized the United States,
and possibly responsible for bombing a Berlin dance club– Reagan
ordered the bombing of bombed the guy’s home, killing his daughter.
Qaddafi soon learned to keep his mouth shut.
52 American Hostages were released on January 20, 1980
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Iran-Contra affair will leave the lone black mark on Reagan’s
legacy.
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Deal with Iran to pressure the release of hostages in Lebanon.
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Next we are using those fund to supply Contra in Latin America to fight
Communists.
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Broke the rule of negotiating w/ known terrorist
Gave Arms for Money.
Sending Money went against the ban to continue to Fund the Contra,
because of their suspect drug connection.
Reagan will take the blame for their administrations action.
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Reagan’s popularity among his administrators, will cause many of them to
take the bullet for Reagan, deflecting all blame away from the “Gipper”.
Most famous was Col. Oliver North who did not cave under extreme
pressure from the democrats in Congress investigating the scandal.
Reagan will leave office with extremely high approval ratings.
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In the 1990s, we begin a new era under George H. W. Bush,
#41.
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We have to deal with the influx of drug coming to America from Central
America. (Blame the 80s lifestyle). He have to deal with cartel leaders
in Columbia in South America and dictators using drugs to finance their
regimes, like Manuel Noriega. (We invaded Panama to arrest this jerk.
He ended up being arrest and tried by jury in the US. Still in a US Jail.)
China violently puts down a student revolt in Tiananmen Square in
Beijing. Students tried to bring down communist government. China’s
stance on Human Rights is clear, kill hundreds of protester, with guns
or using a tank, arrest hundreds and put down the uprising.
Partied in South Africa – many interests groups in America force #41 to
take a stand on Apartheid, the oppressive system of rigid segregation in
South Africa. Many private firms divest money from South America,
forcing the release of imprisoned Nelson Mandella, which will lead to
his election as president of South Africa in 1994.
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Persian Gulf War
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Saddam Hussein, Iraq’s dictator, invades the tiny oil nation of Kuwait.
He controlled 20% of the world’s oil. He was looking to control oil reserves of
Saudi Arabia.
Bush, being the good oil man that he was, would not stand for the threat against
Saudi Arabia.
Operation Desert Storm
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All of those years of military build, and the introduction to the high tech world
of weaponry will be demonstrated in Operation Desert Storm, the American-led
attack on Iraqi forces.
Led by General Colin Powell, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and
General Norma Schwarzkopf, ODS last all of five weeks, most of it spent just
securing areas with little fighting and taking back Kuwait, which was the
overall objective.
The Iraqi republican guard lost 25,000 men, Americans lost 148. That is the
advantage of when you have a military that can attack and destroy form miles
from the battle front.
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With the freedom of Kuwait and its burning oil fields secure, the operation
is called a success.
US Forces w/draw from Iraq with Saddam still in place.
US withdraw was high influence by public opinion and the liberal media.
Bush came out of this with a high approval rating until the economy goes
south on him.
The feelings of success following the emotion defeat of Viet man, makes
America feel better about our place in the world. That ego will be stroked
even further when we claim victory in the cold war and the collapse of
communism.
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We will feel so good with our place, that we will elect a Moderate Democrat in
1992 with visions of changing America domestically, and limiting our new role
as “The Superpower” to deal with.