-
G.I. Bill
The G. I. Bill of Rights or Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 provided for college or vocational education for returning World War II veterans, commonly referred to as GIs or G. I.s, as well as one-year of unemployment compensation. It also provided loans for returning veterans to buy homes and start businesses. The G. I. Bill offers the WWII vets low interest rates on houses, college tuition payment, and business loans. This is still around toda. -
The Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain is a term coined by Winston Churchill, and he used this term because an iron curtain was literally what had happened to Europe. The iron curtain was a division of Europe by the Soviets, and they used concrete barricades and barbed wires. Churchill gave it the nickname in his speech, specifically saying "an iron curtain has descended across Europe". The iron curtain ended when Ronald Reagan says "tear down that wall", in context to the fall of the Berlin Wall. -
Period: to
Cold War
1945 - 1990 -
Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was another form of foreign policy to help Europe and preventing communism from spreading. Truman's policy provides economic and military aid to war-torn European countries to help them fight against the spread of Communism. The purpose of this policy was to counter Soviet geopolitical expansion during the Cold War. This policy was further developed when Truman promised to contain threats to Greece and Turkey -
The Second Red Scare
During the late 1940s, Americans thought that they were losing the Cold War. The House Un-American Activities Committee was created to catch Nazi spies and to investigate Americans for communist sympathy and many famous people were targeted. Joseph McCarthy claimed that he had a list of communists and he attacked everyone, making up charges and ignoring facts. Alger Hiss, along with Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, were convicted of communism. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was an American initiative in order to help Europe after being war-torn, developed by George Marshall. The USA provided money for European countries to help them rebuild. This will eventually lead to an increase in foreign trade and also a way to stop the spread of Communism. The Marshall Plan also restored faith in Capitalism in Europe. American labor, farming, and manufacturing practices were developed in Europe as well. -
Berlin Airlift
During the Cold War, Stalin was very upset that Capitalism was in Berlin, so he decided to make a border around Berlin, hoping for the West to give up on Berlin. However, the U.S. and Britain didn't give up, in fact they had 327-day operation to provide Berlin with supplies through air shipments. These shipments contained tons of foods and supplies, and they were given every day. Eventually Stalin gave up, and he reopened the Berlin border. -
Fair Deal
Harry S. Truman adds a New Deal, called the Fair Deal. In this Fair Deal, he wants to provide health care, public housing, education, public works, minimum wage, electricity, and telephones. This was scaled back however, due to Korea. The Fair Deal needed bi-partisan support, but Truman kept fighting to keep this. Its only successes however, was the raise of minimum wage, better public housing, extended old-age insurance to more people. -
Television
The TV overpowered newspapers, magazines, radios as source of news info and diversion. TV advertising = vast market for new products and televised athletic events making sports a major source of entertainment. TV programming created a popular image of american life: white, middle class, suburban, with traditional gender roles; sometimes portrayed less conventional lifestyles. Less fortunate people could see the way everyone else lived - contributed to sense of powerlessness and isolation. -
The Korean War
North and South Korea were split at the 38th parallel, and North Korea was backed by Kim Il-Sung while South Korea was backed by the U.S. However, the U.S. decided to back out but they promised the South financial and weapon aid to deter communism. Then in July 1950, North Korea, supported by Stalin, surprise attacks South Korea and forces the Allied to the edge of Korea. MacArthur was then sent to Korea to fight communism back but China was involved, and there was stalemate for 2 years. -
Bill Haley & the Comets/Ike Turner/Little Richard
Rock and Roll artists like Bill Haley and the Comets, Ike Turner, Little Richard, Buddy Holly, etc., were all people who electrified the era's music with energy and hard beats. However, these white artists completely ripped off African-American rhythm and blues artists, and turning them into their own style of music, which will appeal to the American public. They did make rock and roll popular, but they all stole from African-Americans. -
Beat Generation
The Beat Generation were a group of American writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they wrote about. Central elements of "Beat" culture include a rejection of mainstream American values, experimentation with drugs and alternate forms of sexuality, and an interest in Eastern spirituality in the 1950s. The beatniks were young people belonging to the culture of the beat generation. Most of the beatniks were baby boomers. -
Period: to
1950s
1950-1959 -
Rock and Roll
Rock and Roll was known as African-American Rhythm and Blues. Rock and Roll was also referred to as slang for sexual intercourse. Many teenagers (white) termed it as Rock and Roll after WWII. These teenagers allowed Rock and Roll to grow, as they rebelled against their parents. They would listen to this during leisure time, and use the money they got from after-school jobs to buy Rock and Roll music. Many people like Bill Haley & the Comets made Rock and Roll popular. -
Brown v. Board of Education
Topeka board of education denied Linda Brown admittance to an all white school close to her house. Thurgood Marshall, a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, argued that a separate but equal violated equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. He also provided psychological evidence. Warren decided separate educational facilities were inherently unequal, overturning Plessy v. Ferguson. Separate schools, waiting rooms, restrooms, etc., were now illegal. -
Domino Theory
The Domino Theory was a foreign policy during the 1950s to the 1980s. This was a policy that stated that if one land in a region came under the influence of communism, then the surrounding countries will follow their influence. The U.S. used the domino theory as a policy of containment of communism. This policy was focused on those countries who were in immediate danger of the communist threat, and Eisenhower adopted this policy because he feared for global communism. -
Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley was one of the most predominant people who was involved with Rock and Roll. He made Rock and Roll a phenomenon. Presley was born extremely poor, but he grows up adopting rhythm and blues, melding it with gospel and country. He also created his own style of dancing, which was very "sexual", giving him the nickname 'Elvis the Pelvis'. Presley had also taken music from African Americans, like many other white artists. His style offends many older Americans. -
Dr. Jonas Salk
Dr. Jonas Salk was an American biologist and physician best known for the research and development of a killed-virus polio vaccine. In 1954, Dr. Jonas Salk perfected the polio vaccine. The vaccine was then distributed freely in the nation's schools. He introduced this vaccine against the disease that had killed and crippled thousands of adults and children. However, the virus would only be injected by needle, not oral, which was later on. -
Period: to
Civil Rights
1954 - 1968 -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
In 1955, after Rosa Parks is arrested for refusing her seat to a white man, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. rallies the black community to do this. This was 4 months after Emmett Till's death. Jo Ann Robinson however, was the one to start word of the boycott. The boycott seriously hurt the bus companies and lasted more than a year, ending in 1956. After 11 months the Supreme Court ruled that segregation of public transportation was illegal and unconstitutional. -
Emmett Till Tragedy
In 1955 Emmett Till traveled to Mississippi and he was visiting from Chicago. His mother gave him a ring as he traveled South. While he was there, he supposedly whistled at Carolyn Bryant, and was kidnapped 4 days later by Roy Bryant and J. W. Milam, taken to a shed, beaten, then shot in the head. Till's body was found 3 days later, identified by his mothers ring and she held an open casket to show the problems of Jim Crow. Bryant and Milam were acquitted. -
Space Race
Nikita Khrushchev became the new leader of the Soviets in 1953, and he had overtures of peace and prosperity, but these were just lies. He secretly built military & space technology, surpassing the Americans. Sputnik was thus created, the first orbiting satellite, the size of a basketball and had a beeping radio signal. Many Americans became fearful of falling behind technologically. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was created to quickly develop satellite technology. -
Albert Sabin
Dr. Albert Sabin developed an even better, oral vaccine for polio and used it to allow for the eradication of polio. The oral vaccine was first tested outside the USA from 1957 to 1959. Ultimately, a successful Sabin vaccine was used to eradicate polio throughout the world. Before distributing the vaccine in the United States, Dr. Sabin and his research associates first ingested the live avirulent viruses themselves before experimenting on others. -
Little Rock Nine
After Brown v. Board of Education, many whites began resisting the integration of blacks. Little Rock Nine for example, where 9 Black high school kids moved to Central HS. However, Governor Orval Faubus denied entry to the 9 Black students, by the state troopers. Lots of violence lasts for days. Eisenhower intervenes however, using the National Guard. Faubus backs down, and the 9 students were admitted. 8 of the 9 students graduate, and Faubus closes all public high schools the next year. -
Politics
The television was a big factor before the Election of 1960. During the debates between John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Richard Nixon, Kennedy would use the television to his advantage. Nixon however, was clueless and didn't understand the use of it. Kennedy made himself look good and stand out, while Nixon looked boring and plain on television, and this caused appeal to the public towards Kennedy. This allows Kennedy to win the election. -
The New Frontier
The New Frontier was a term coined by President John Fitzgerald Kennedy in his acceptance speech in 1960. The campaign program was advocated by JFK in the Election of 1960. He promised to revitalize the stagnant economy and enact reform legislation in education, health care, and civil rights. He wanted to raise minimum wage, cut business taxes (90%), and land a man on the moon (even though the Soviets were still ahead in the Space Race) -
Earl Warren Supreme Court
Earl Warren was a controversial Chief Justice of the Supreme Court during the 1960s and he ran the most liberal SCOTUS in history. He led the Court in far-reaching racial, social, and political rulings, including school desegregation and protecting rights of persons accused of crimes. Conservative tenements were immediately shot down; Engel v Vitale, Brown v Board, Loving v Virginia, Gideon v Wainwright, Miranda v Arizona, Griswold v Connecticut. -
Sit-Ins
Sit-Ins began in February 1960. Non-violence resistance was a method to protest white people, and this spreads to public places. They wanted to see white people struggle. The first sit-in began in Greensboro, NC, and the movement started across the nation. These black people went to white lunch counters, and this hurt white businesses. Protesters were beaten, but they couldn't fight back. The Nashville police began arresting these protesters as well. This led to the creation of the SNCC. -
Period: to
1960s
1960-1969 -
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps was a federal agency created by President Kennedy in 1961 to promote voluntary service by Americans in foreign countries. It provides labor power to help developing countries improve their infrastructure, health care, educational systems, and other aspects of their societies. Part of Kennedy's New Frontier vision, the organization represented an effort by postwar liberals to promote American values and influence through productive exchanges across the world. -
Freedom Rides
Freedom rides started in 1961. Whites and blacks ride on buses together, and this goes to the Deep South, challenging white Southern resistance to Brown v Board. Black people wanted a violent clash to force the government's hand. However, these became very violent, like in Anniston, Alabama. Buses were pelted and tires were slashed, the riders were beaten and the bus was firebombed. Mississippi and Alabama would intimidate riders, beating them up, and police would arrest these activists. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
President Eisenhower wanted to overthrow Castro and was carried out in Kennedy's Administration believing the CIA will succeed, but were beaten back and was an ultimate failure, and was known as the Bay of Pigs. Castro then wanted protection, using troops and ICBMs and spy planes. Kennedy didn't like it, and he orders a naval quarantine of Cuba. These were the 13 Days, and WWIII was possible, but the Soviets respond. They call their ships back, and Kennedy and Khrushchev come to an agreement. -
Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald was the supposed assassin of President Kennedy. Before, he had defected to Russia and upon returning became a member of a pro-Castro group in America. He never got to stand trial or issue a formal statement before he was murdered. Oswald was an ex-marine with communist sympathies. Oswald killed an officer after 45 minutes of the assassination, and was arrested in the back of a movie theater where he fled after killing the cop. On his way to country jail, was murdered by Ruby. -
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson was Vice President to John F. Kennedy before the assassination. Afterwards, he became the new President. During the Election of 1964, he went against Barry Goldwater, but crushes him. He also signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He had a war on poverty in his agenda. In an attempt to win, he set a few goals, including the Great Society, and other programs that provided food stamps and welfare to needy families. -
Feminism
Women were split from the Civil Rights, and this brought forth feminism. Helen Gurley's "Sex and the Single Girl" brought women empowerment through sexuality and encouraged women to explore their sexuality, and to marry when their beauty starts to go away. In Betty Friedman's "The Feminine Mystique", she believed that women could do everything that men could. The feminist movement focused on equal treatment, like opportunities and pay. -
Anti-War Movement
The Anti-War Movement was a student protest that started as the Free Speech movement in California and spread around the world. All members of the Anti-War Movement shared an opposition to war in Vietnam and condemned U.S. presence there. They claimed this was violating Vietnam's rights. This movement resulted in growing activism on campuses aimed at social reform and etc. This was primarily a middle-class movement. -
Assassination of JFK
During November 1963, President John F. Kenned was riding in a motorcade in Dallas to drum up support for the Election of 1964. When the motorcade turns left onto Elm Street, Oswald, the assassin, was on the 6th floor of the book depository, and he shoots 5 times. Of the 5 bullets, 2 shot JFK, hitting the Texas Governor. JFK was shot fatally in the head and was rushed to Parkland Hospital, but was pronounced dead within an hour. -
Birmingham March
MLK moves the new center of protest to Birmingham. Unexpectedly, black residents of Birmingham fight back against police and defend the activists. The violence prompts RFK and the justice dept to negotiate w/ city officials and the SCLC. SCLC agrees to end the protests, but only if more blacks are hired and the city enforces desegregation. Segregationists protest the agreement violently, forcing JFK to send fed troops to restore order. MLK also writes the Letter from the Birmingham Jail. -
March on Washington
The March on Washington was a large political rally that took place in Washington, D.C. on August 28, 1963. Martin Luther King, Jr., the leader of the march, delivered his iconic "I Have a Dream" speech advocating racial harmony at the Lincoln Memorial during the march and arguing that equal rights were needed to win the Cold War. This speech was widely credited as helping lead to the Civil Rights Act (1964) and the National Voting Rights Act (1965). 80% of the marchers were black. -
The Great Society
President Johnson called his version of the Democratic reform program "the Great Society". The Great Society was essentially the New Deal, but Johnson went beyond it and continued the legacy of Kennedy. In 1965, Congress passed many Great Society measures, including Medicare, civil rights legislation, and federal aid to education. The Great Society also promised education, good standards of living, and beautification. -
Counterculture
The Counterculture generation seceded the Beat Generation, and was made up of white middle-class youths, called hippies. These people were heavily into rock'n'roll, colorful clothes, and the use of drugs. They rejected middle class values, renounced materialism, explored their inner selves, rejected cars, suburban homes, and jobs of their parents. They also lived in large groups, especially in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district because of the availability of drugs. -
Watts Riots
Watts Riots began in Watts, a poor area, LA California. A black man was arrested for "drunk driving", and residents began rioting. The area burned for 6 days, until the National Guard was called in. Whites began changing their views on Civil Rights due to Watts. They saw militant black protesters, and also supported the suppression of protesters. MLK tries to convince them to use nonviolence. MLK sees the extent of black poverty, and began to fight to end economic inequality. -
Selma March
The Selma March, also known as Bloody Sunday, occurred on March 7, 1965 in Selma, Alabama. 600 marchers were to talk 50 miles to Montgomery, fighting for their right to vote, and MLK was there. However, the country police waited at Edmond Pettus Bridge, and they ordered the marchers to go back, but the protesters knelt and prayed. Clubs and gas was then used on the marchers, and white spectators cheered them on. TV cameras captured the horrid violence, bringing support to Civil Rights. -
My Lai Massacre
In 1968, American troops had brutally massacred innocent women and children in the village of My Lai, which also led to more opposition to the war. Lieutenant William Calley directed the atrocity, and the company of American troops had killed about 350 South Vietnamese civilians. The Army had word that the Viet Cong had taken control of Son My, and was advised that anyone could be Viet Cong and was ordered to destroy the village. This created antiwar sentiment, and loss of trust for the gov. -
Environmental Protection Agency
The Environmental Protection Agency was a governmental organization signed into law by Richard Nixon in 1970 designed to regulate pollution, emissions, and other factors that negatively influence the natural environment. This sets air and water pollution standards. The creation of the EPA marked a newfound commitment by the federal government to actively combat environmental risks and was a significant triumph for the environmentalist movement. -
Silent Majority
Silent Majority was the Nixon Administration's term to describe generally content, law-abiding middle-class Americans who supported both the Vietnam War and America's institutions. As a political tool, the concept attempted to make a subtle distinction between believers in "traditional" values and the vocal minority of civil rights agitators, student protesters, counter-culturalists, and other seeming disruptors of the social fabric. -
Period: to
1970s
1970-1979 -
Watergate
Watergate is a name given to the scandal the Nixon administration committed during the 1972 presidential election where he hired "plumbers", to break into Democrat HQ at Watergate hotel for any dirt. The White House was paying for these "plumbers" to stay quiet. Nixon's use of taping systems was revealed. This scandal revealed several other dirty plays Nixon's administration did the years leading up to the election and forced him to resign and killed the faith the public had in the government. -
Roe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade was a Supreme Court Case about abortion. Norma McCorvey, used Jane Roe as a fake name, had sued Texas for the right to privacy. She had a baby before the case, but she gave it up for adoption. The Roe v. Wade case protests for legalized abortion for years. Most states outlaw it, and sometimes allowed for life of mother. The Supreme Court also rules that outlawing abortion was unconstitutional. -
The Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act was created to preserve wildlife. This act required Fish and Wildlife Service to list endangered species, including plants and animals, and then there would be steps to protect them following the identification. Many of wildlife was killed off by industrialization and poison in the environment, not just by people. This act also identifies threatened species, and both threatened and endangered species' protection is put ahead of economic considerations. -
Stagflation
Stagflation was a part of the Recession of 1974. Stagflation is defined as high unemployment and rising prices, which was unusual. Trying to solve unemployment pretty much made inflation worse. Deficits would rise, then taxes would decrease. Another way of interpreting stagflation is that it is a period of slow economic growth and high unemployment (stagnation) while prices rise (inflation). Presidents Nixon, Ford, and Carter had difficulty dealing with stagflation as well. -
Panama Canal
The United States built the Panama Canal to have a quicker passage to the Pacific from the Atlantic and vice versa. It cost $400,000,000 to build. Colombians would not let Americans build the canal, but then with the assistance of the United States a Panamanian Revolution occurred. The new ruling people allowed the United States to build the canal. Carter signs the treaty to give the Canal to Panama, and the handover was completed in 2000. -
Moral Majority
Moral Majority was a political group made up of fundamentalist Christians. The Moral Majority was founded by Jerry Falwell, an evangelical preacher, and he was pro-life, pro-family, pro-American and pro-morality.Although it did not accomplish much, it did show that Americans were starting to worry about the moral fabric of society. This was a new religious movement, including Falwell, Pat Robinson, and Oral Roberts. They form a conservative political bloc. -
Iran Hostage Crisis
The Iran Hostage Crisis was an event that occurred in November 1979. The U.S. backed the Shah of Iran, who was a brutal dictator, and Khomeini leads the Islamic Revolution. Revolutionaries stormed the American embassy in Tehran and held 52 Americans hostage. The Carter administration tried unsuccessfully to negotiate for the hostages release. On January 20, 1981, the day Carter left office, Iran released the Americans, ending their 444 days in captivity. -
Three-Mile Island
The Three-Mile Island leak occurred in Eastern Pennsylvania. The leak occurred due to a partial nuclear reactor meltdown in 1979. The nuclear radiation got leaked out into the nearby town, and many Americans were weary of nuclear power after this. This was a mechanical failure and a human error at this power plant in Pennsylvania combined to permit an escape of radiation over a 16 mile radius. This also happened during Carter's presidency. -
Election of 1980
The Election of 1980 included Ronald Reagan (R), who was a former governor of California and former actor in the '40s and '50s and Jimmy Carter (D), who had a bad economy during his presidency, and the Iran Hostage Crisis brings him down due to the failed rescue of hostages. The United Conservative Coalition was behind Reagan. Reagan defeats Carter, and Khomeini spits Carter, releasing American hostages after Reagan was sworn in. -
Period: to
1980s
1980-1989 -
Reaganomics
Reaganomics was Reagan's domestic policy. It was also the federal economic polices of the Reagan administration, elected in 1981. These policies combined a monetarist fiscal policy, supply-side tax cuts, and domestic budget cutting. Their goal was to reduce the size of the federal government and stimulate economic growth. They wanted to cut income and corporate taxes. They would do this by spurring economy and create better jobs, reduction in welfare spending, and increasing defense spending. -
Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor was the first female Supreme Court Justice. She was nominated and appointed by President Ronald Reagan. She was a moderate, and sided with conservatives of the court. However, later on she decides to side with liberals. She retires in 2007, after working as an Associate Justice from 1981, due to her husband's declining health from Alzheimer's. She judged in Arizona, serving as the first female Majority Leader as the Republican leader in the Arizona Senate. -
Space Shuttle Program
The Space Shuttle Program was a later NASA effort that focused on space shuttles. This would be capable of navigating in space and landing on the Earth in the manner of a conventional aircraft. Columbia was the first space shuttle launched in 1981. The Challenger was another example of a space shuttle, but it exploded in 1986, killing 7 astronauts, stalling the Space Shuttle Program for 2 years. Satellites were important because they were used for communication and TV entertainment. -
Music Television (MTV)
The Music Television, also known as MTV, was on Cable TV as a means of entertainment for people in the 1980s. MTV was a Music Television Station that became a cultural happening in the 1980s, which has since been utilized by political groups to reach the youth vote. MTV brought a revolution to the recording industry, and it would broadcast music video interpretations of popular songs. This began in 1981 with prophetic Buggles tune "Video Killed the Radio Star". -
AIDS Crisis
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) were a major problem in the 1980s. HIV is transferred when body fluids, such as blood or semen, which carry the virus, enter the body of an uninfected person. The virus appeared in America in the early 1980s. The Reagan administration was slow to respond to the "AIDS Epidemic," because effects of the virus were not fully understood and they deemed the spread of the disease as the result of immoral behavior. -
Strategic Defense Initiative
The SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative), also known as "Star Wars", was a missile shield defense against soviet missiles. These satellites were armed with laser. They intended to give Soviets the same technology, hoping they would go bankrupt. However, the SDI failed for U.S., and Soviets took the challenge, spending more resources developing it. SDI was Reagan's intent to pursue a high technology missile defense system. -
Iran Contra Affair
The Iran Contra Affair involved Sandinistas, who were pro-Communist, and they planned to overthrow pro-American dictator in Nicaragua in 1979. Reagan however, secretly arms the Contras (against Sandinistas), and Congress finds out. The Reagan Administration continues illegally supporting the Contras, selling weapons to Iran (fighting Iraq), in exchange for the release of American hostages. Oliver North was convicted, because of plane crashes revealing the weapons. -
Reagan Doctrine
The Reagan Doctrine was part of President Reagan's Foreign Policy. In it, the U.S. would support anywhere in the world to support anti-communist activity. For example, in Afghanistan we supplied missiles; Grenada ousted a pro-Marxist govt; gave money and military help to military governments in El Salvador; spent over 6 billion in aid to help kill over 40,000 dissidents, American missionaries and others. This wasn't to contain Communism, this was to get rid of it. -
Sam Walton's Just-in-Time Inventory
Sam Walton, created a chain of stores, with large varieties of products at low prices. Sam Walton also led to the creation of Walmart. The Just-in-Time inventory had products arrive at precise time needed. Computers would track inventory, and in the chain of stores, there would be no large in-house stock. Sam Walton created unique corporate culture, anti-union policies, price-slashing, extended trends that had long been underway; the rise of great corporations and embodied the American dream. -
Persian Gulf War
Iran fights Iran in the 80s, and it was a stalemate. The U.S. and Arab nations lend Iraq billions of dollars. Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi leader, blames Kuwait for cheap oil, and this hurts Iraq. So, they invaded Kuwait because they refused to forgive their debt, and so Iraq claimed Kuwait. After Iraq invaded Kuwait, the US invaded Iraq to liberate Kuwait; Iraq set Kuwait's oil fields on fire so the Americans couldn't gain the oil; this conflict caused the US to set military bases in Saudi Arabia. -
Period: to
1990s
1990 - 1999 -
Election of 1992
The Election of 1992 involved William "Bill" Jefferson Clinton (Democrat), George H.W. Bush (Republican), and Ross Perot (Independent). This presidential term would focus on the stagnancy of economy and the problems of the middle-class. Bill Clinton wins the election, winning 43% of the vote. Ross Perot was the main reason that Clinton won the election, since he took most of the votes away from George H.W. Bush. Bill Clinton was Governor of Arkansas before running for PotUS. -
George H.W. Bush
George H.W. Bush was the 41st President of the United States, previously being Ronald Reagan's vice-president. His policies and ideals derived heavily from his predecessor and were built on them. He was a well-to-do oil tycoon before devoting himself to the public. He served as a congressman, emissary to China, ambassador to the UN, director of the CIA, and vice president before becoming president. He loses the Election of 1992 to Bill Clinton. -
North American Free Trade Organization (NAFTA)
The North American Free Trade Agreement, also known as NAFTA, established a free trade zone between Canada, America, and Mexico. This also resulted in a net gain of jobs due to the opening of Mexican markets. NAFTA knocks down trade barriers, and rules were put in place for several industries, specifically agriculture and technology. Americans however, lose many jobs. NAFTA also stops Mexican knock off products. -
Bill Clinton
Entered off in January 1993, as the first Democratic president since Jimmy Carter and a self-proclaimed activist. He had a very domestic agenda. When in office he had a lot of controversial appointments. When a longtime friend, Vince Foster, committed suicide it sparked an escalating inquiry into some banking and real estate ventures involving the president and his wife in the early 1980s. This became known as the Whitewater affair. -
Healthcare Reform
During President Clinton's Administration, one of things he had on his agenda was to create a healthcare reform. Clinton wants a longtime liberal goal of nationalized healthcare, and this was almost a 100 year goal. He gives the task to his wife, Hillary Clinton. Hillary proposed a reform designed to guarantee coverage to every American and the costs of medical care.The Republicans put out a media blitz, and called it socialized medicine. This causes healthcare reforms to fail until 2009. -
World Trade Center Attack
The World Trade Center was a community where buying and selling goods is the main work. However, in 1993, terrorists drove a truck bomb underneath it and detonated it. The parking garage was gutted and damaged. The FBI searched for suspects and in a few days they found several Islamic fundamentalists. To the group of terrorists and conspirators, the trade center served as the ideal American landmark for the worst act of domestic terrorism in US history. -
Balkans Crisis
Bosnia, a new nation that quickly became embroiled in a bloody civil war between Muslims and Christians. Yugoslavia broke up after the fall of communism in 1991 resulting in the formation of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia. Civil war broke out between Croatia, Serbia, and Bosnia, over Christians and Muslims. Serbians (Christians) forces murder upon thousands of Muslim Bosnians. NATO brings in troops, and begins bombing sites to stop genocide. -
Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
The Defense of Marriage Act, also known as DOMA, was created in 1996, and it declares that states are not obligated to recognize any same sex marriages that might not be legally sanctioned in other states. It defined marriage as between only a man and women; however many states and companies extended benefits to same sex partners and many states legalized same sex marriages. This allowed states to refuse to recognize same sex married couples. -
Lewinsky Affair
In early 1998, inquiries led to charges that the president had had a sexual relationship with a young White House intern, Monica Lewinsky; that he had lied about in his deposition before Paula Jones's attorneys and that he had encouraged Lewinsky to do the same. After Clinton confessed before the jury, the prospect of impeachment became an issue. The House approved 2 counts of impeachment, lying to the grand jury and obstructing justice. It ended with the acquittal of the President. -
Bush v. Gore
Because of the closeness in the election of 2000, Gore ordered that ballots be recounted in Florida because of a potential mistake. The Florida Supreme Court authorized a recount in all counties. Result: Such a recount is unconstitutional because there is no standard set in the Constitution to do such nor does the state of Florida have the right to set up a new election law. The Florida Supreme Court may not create a new national election law. - 14th A. -
Election of 2000
The Election of 2000 was one of the closest elections in American history. The Candidates were Al Gore (Democrat), George W. Bush (Republican), and Ralph Nader (Independent/Green Party). Al Gore was Clinton's VP, and was an environmentalist. George W. Bush was the Governor of Texas, and a part of the Ownership Society. Ralph Nader was a former consumer rights advocate, and also an environmentalist. -
Period: to
Contemporary
2000 - 2018 -
9/11 Attack
9/11 was a term for the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, in which 19 militant Islamist men hijacked and crashed four commercial aircraft. Two planes hit the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, causing them to collapse. One plane crashed into the Pentagon in Washington, DC, and the fourth, overtaken by passengers, crashed into a field in rural Pennsylvania. Nearly 3000 people were killed in the worst case of domestic terrorism in American history. -
No Child Left Behind Education Act
This act was an education bill created and signed by the George W. Bush administration. Designed to increase accountability standards for primary and secondary schools, the law authorized several federal programs to monitor those standards and increased choices for parents in selecting schools for their children. The program was highly controversial, in large part because it linked results on standardized to federal funding for schools and school districts. -
Hurricane Katrina Disaster
The costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes in the history of the United States, killing nearly 2000 Americans. The storm ravaged the Gulf Coast, particularly the city of New Orleans, in late August of 2005. In New Orleans, high winds and rain caused the city's levees to break, leading to catastrophic flooding, particularly centered on the city's most impoverished wards. A late response by local and federal authorities exacerbated the damage and led to widespread criticism of FEMA. -
Barack Obama
Barack Obama was the forty-fourth President of the United States, and the first African American elected to that office. A lawyer and community organizer in Chicago, Obama served in the Illinois State Senate before being elected to the U.S. senate in 2004. After a protracted primary election campaign against Senator Hillary Clinton, Obama sealed the Democratic Party's nomination and defeated Senator John McCain on November 4, 2008. -
Election of 2008
The Election of 2008 was between Barack Obama (Democraft), and John McCain (Republican). Barack Obama was a first-term Senator of Illinois, and he was against the Iraq War. He beats our Hillary Clinton, who had a nasty campaign. John McCain was a former prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. He was also a former navy pilot. He selects Sarah Palin as his running mate, and runs as a moderate. Both candidates promised to get out of the Iraq War. -
The Great Recession
The Great Recession occurred of Fall 2008. The economy went bust in the middle of the campaign. Home prices were falling, poor lending habits by banks, risky investments; these all led to massive foreclosures. The Government bails out many industries, and this was the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression. Bush bails out financial institutions, giving $1 trillion to private banks, and credit was frozen. -
American Relief and Recovery Act
A reform the Obama Administration created to combat the Great Recession. It was based on the economic theories of John Keynes that called for increased government spending to offset decreased private spending in times of economic downturn. The Act was controversial, passing with no Republican votes in the House, and only three in the Senate. Critics on the Left argued that the Act's $787 billion appropriation was not enough to turn the economy around. -
Affordable Care Act
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, was President's reforms for health insurance. Obama gets passed reforms for private health care insurance, and everyone was required to have insurance or they would have to pay a fine (individual mandate). Many liberals were upset because it's not a single-payer system like Europe. Obamacare lasts for 8 years, starting in 2010, but in 2018, Republican Congress overturns the individual mandate.
