Transcript The 1990s and the New Millennium

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Mr. White’s US History 2
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Main Idea: After the Clinton administration, American
conservatives took more power in the federal government.
After this section, we should be able to:
o Describe the events surrounding the election of 2000
o Explain the events of the Bush administration
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A close election led to a controversial decision in the 2000 election.
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In the 2000 presidential race, the Democrats chose Vice
President Al Gore to take over as President
The Republicans nominated Texas governor George W. Bush
The Green Party nominated Ralph Nader, a consumer
advocate and a champion of environmental causes
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On election night, Al Gore appeared to be taking the lead,
Television networks predicted that he would win the key
states of Florida, Pennsylvania, and Michigan
Later, television networks went back on their prediction
about Florida, and said it was “too close to call.”
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It soon became clear that whoever won in Florida would win
the election
About 2 A.M., the networks predicted Bush would win
Florida, but his victory margin shrank as the votes were
counted
While Bush did win Florida, and the presidency, and Gore
conceded defeat, the Florida vote went to an automatic
recount
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The recount showed Bush winning Florida by only 500 votes
Democrats demanded manual recounts in four mostly
Democratic counties
Republicans opposed this; said there could be an
opportunity for people to tamper with the votes
Eventually, this debate went to the Supreme Court, which
ruled that the recounts should be stopped
Bush wins the Presidency
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George W. Bush inherited many problems, and addressed them
immediately.
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Bush advanced his agenda as soon as he took office as
President
o Declared plans to reform the federal role in education
o Wanted to privatize Social Security
o Also proposed a $1.35 trillion tax cut, which passed in June, 2001
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After the September 11th attacks, the Bush administration
shifted its attention to fighting terrorism
October, 2001 – Bush signed an antiterrorism bill into law
– Allowed the government to detain foreigners suspected of terrorism for
seven days without charging them of a crime
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Bush also set up the Department of Homeland Security, which
would coordinate national efforts to fight terrorism
The federal government also increased its involvement in
aviation security
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Internationally, the Bush administration took measures to fight
terrorism
October, 2001 – coalition forces led by the U.S. began bombing
Afghanistan to hunt down Osama bin Laden
In 2002, the coalition disrupted Al Qaeda and the Taliban in
Afghanistan
Although Bin Laden would not be killed or captured until 2011,
the Bush administration won much support for its aggressive
approach
Bush also won support for the first elections held in Afghanistan,
in October 2004
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In 2002, during Bush’s State of the Union address, he
placed the nations of Iraq, Iran, and North Korea into an
“axis of evil” that threatened the peace and stability of the
world
Bush expanded his war on terror to include these nations,
and he and his administration began to call for increase
pressure on the nation of Iraq
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Iraq had agreed to UN demands to stop the production of
nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons (sometimes called
NBC)
During the 1990s and early 2000s, Saddam Hussein refused to
cooperate fully with the UN arms inspectors and eventually
kicked them out of Iraq
After the September 11th attacks, Bush called for the renewal of
inspections of Iraq’s program for the production of weapons of
mass destruction (WMDs)
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In November of 2002, the United Nations passed
Resolution 1441, giving Iraq a final chance to comply with
the terms of the ceasefire and allow inspections – Hussein
refused
U.S. and British forces then broke off diplomatic relations,
and demanded that Hussein leave Iraq – Hussein refused
U.S. and British forces invaded Iraq in March, 2003
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Within a month, Iraqi forces were defeated and Hussein went into
hiding
Upon an intensive search, no weapons of mass destruction were found
in Iraq
Hussein was captured in December of 2003
He was handed over to the Iraqi people for trial of crimes against
humanity
Hussein was later convicted of these crimes, and executed on
December 30th, 2006
U.S. forces would stay in Iraq to help the Iraqi government stabilize until
December, 2011
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At home, Bush concentrated on education and the economy
Bush signed into law the No Child Left Behind
o This plan provided federal funds in return for a states’ compliance
with accountability measures for schools’ success, as well as
mandatory achievement testing, and more school options for
parents
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In the economy, corporate scandals threatened the
economy, such as the Enron and WorldCom scandals
Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which provided
for a federal regulatory board to oversee the accounting
industry
Many American investors began to lose faith in the
corporations, which was bad for the economy
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In 2003, Congress passed and Bush signed into law a
$350 billion tax cut
o Bush believed that the tax cut would stimulate the economy and
create jobs
o Democrats opposed the tax cuts, saying that they would mostly
benefit the rich
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Nonetheless, the tax cut went into law
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With these successes, and growing support, Republicans
expanded their power throughout the country
California governor Gray Davis was recalled, and then
replaced by Arnold Schwarzenegger
Running against Democrat John Kerry, George W. Bush was
re-elected in 2004, winning both the popular vote and the
electoral college


Main Idea: After the Clinton administration, American
conservatives took more power in the federal government.
After this section, we should be able to:
o Describe the events surrounding the election of 2000
o Explain the events of the Bush administration

So…
o One of the ways that the Bush administration combatted terrorism
or hostile nations was…
o One of the measures that Bush took to improve life inside the United
States was…