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LA Riots
LA burns for a few days. 51 people die, buildings burn to the ground, there is over a billion dollars in property damage, and the President has to call in the US Marines to end this. This occurred because of the assault of Rodney King by 4 police officers who pleaded not guilty, and the death of a young girl who was shot by a store clerk who thought she was stealing. (Class Notes) -
NAFTA
The North American Free Trade Agreement allowed for free trade without any tax or tariff attached to it. Goods being transferred between Canada, the US, and Mexico are free. Clinton played a huge role in drafting this piece of legislation and worked very closely with Congress. Democrats are very reluctant to sign this and there is a lot of criticism centered around the idea that if we pass this agreement, companies will start the leave the US. (Class Notes) -
Timothy McVeigh
A year prior was a large standoff where federal agents were trying to remove kids from this building of anti-government groups. They were able to remove them but the compound burned and an estimated 70 people died. McVeigh was there that day and it was a very confirmative moment for him. A year to the day of the Waco fire, he shows up at a federal building in Oklahoma City in a truck with a homemade bomb. It killed 168 people and was designed to hit as many agencies as possible. (Class Notes) -
Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996
Clinton wanted a new piece of legislation that pushed toward antiterrorism that would increase the power of the federal government. This act prohibited certain types of firearms and gave the military the power to help the spread of some chemicals. Some republicans were opposed to this bill because it granted the government too much power which some people were afraid of. It wasn't until April of 1996 that this piece of legislation was signed into law. (Kruse and Zelizer, 221) -
Lewinsky Scandal & Clinton's Impeachment
Clinton has an affair with an intern Monica Lewinsky who was 22 at the time. This is not his first affair and one of Lewinsky's co-workers records one of their phone calls and sells it to the media. Clinton ends up lying about this under oath which leads to his impeachment. This becomes one of the bigger news stories in the US and the impeachment is not popular among the American people. Clinton's popularity at the time was in the low 70s which is actually very high for the time. (Class Notes) -
9/11
19 members of the Islamic terrorist organization al-Qaeda killed the pilots of 4 commercial airplanes and took over. 2 of them flew into the Twin Towers and 1 went into the Pentagon. The fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. About 3,000 people died, many were left with injuries, and others suffered from long-term health effects. It's important to include this because it created TSA and how airport security developed. (Kruse and Zelizer, 250) -
Operation Enduring Freedom
The US coordinated airstrikes and special operations on Afghanistan where they debuted their new technology which proved to be vital during this attack. Bush didn't want soldiers on the ground for a long time so this new technology allowed for predator drones, computerized aircraft that didn't need a pilot, the firing of air tank missiles, and capturing precise radar images. I think it's important to include this because it shows how much technology has advanced. (Kruse and Zelizer, 254-5) -
Department of Homeland Security
Centralized and coordinated government operations in the war on terror but also encourage civilians to be ready for anything. The government told people to stock their homes with at least three days of water and food, radio, batteries, etc. just in case of an attack. They also tried to have color-coded codes so people would know what was going on, but it just seemed to confuse them more. It's important to include this because people need to be prepared. (Kruse and Zelizer, 262) -
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina was one of the deadliest hurricanes in American History. It had 1,833 deaths due to the storm and subsequent flooding as well as $108 billion in property damages. It was a category-5 storm that stretched along the coastline from Texas to Central Florida. New Orleans was hit very hard and in the direct path when the storm was at its fiercest. It's important to include this because Bush got criticized for the way he handled this. (Kruse and Zelizer 280) -
The Surge
Bush announced this change would be under the leadership of Robert Gates and General David Petraeus. This strategy increased the military by 21,500 troops and redirected their energy to try and win over the loyalty of local Iraqis. This succeeded and the number of deaths on the ground decreased. By early April, the US now had control as local Sunni recruits started to turn against al-Qaeda leaders. This event is important because it showed how Bush wanted to be mutual. (Kruse and Zelizar, 287)