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Reagan Elected
Ronald Reagan defeated Jimmy Carter in the 1980 election, starting his presidency. He ran against Jimmy Carter and his running mate, Walter Mondale. He received just over fifty precent of the popular vote, but won a strong victory in the electoral college with 489 votes. -
Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor was the first female justice in the US supreme court, and was appointed by Reagan -
PATCO
In 1981, a union of air traffic controllers went on strike during Reagan's presidency. Reagan fired them after not returning to work, establishing his union-busting attitude -
Iran Hostages Released
A diplomatic standoff between Iran and the United States in which Fifty-two American diplomats and citizens were held hostage for 444 days -
Assassination Attempt on Reagan
While leaving a speaking engagement at the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., President Reagan and three others were shot and wounded by John Hinckley, Jr. Reagan suffered a punctured lung but he recovered quickly. This gained him sympathy, respect, and support. -
Invasion of Grenada
Ronald Reagan dispatched a heavy- fire- power invasion force to the island of Grenada, where a military coup had brought Marxists to power ----Americans captured the island quickly demonstrating Reagan's determination to assert the dominance of the US in the Carribbean -
SDI Announced
Popularly known as "Star Wars," President Reagan's SDI proposed the construction of an elaborate computer-controlled, anti-missile defense system capable of destroying enemy missiles in outer spaced. Critics claimed that SDI could never be perfected -
Reagan Re-Elected
Reagan crushes democratic candidate Mondale 525 electoral votes to 13 -
Reagan Doctrine
President Reagan created this strategy in an attempt to end the Cold War. He provided aid to anti-communist nations in order to overwhelm the global influence of the Soviet Union. -
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Iran-Contra Affair
A scandal that erupted after the Reagan administration sold weapons to Iran in hopes of freeing American hostages in Lebanon; money from the arms sales was used to aid the Contras (anti-Communist insurgents) in Nicaragua, even though Congress had prohibited this assistance. Talk of Reagan's impeachment ended when presidential aides took the blame for the illegal activity. -
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
This treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union eliminated the use of short and medium range missiles and their launch pads. It marked an important step in the lessening of Cold War tensions. -
Economic Bill of Rights
The Economic Bill of Rights was an initiative proposed by Reagan, with 4 freedoms:
The freedom to work.
The freedom to enjoy the fruits of one's labor.
The freedom to own and control one's property.
The freedom to participate in a free market.
