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The conservative timeline
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The American Liberty League is founded to defend conservative values of private property and individual enterprise.
Some of these critics joined to form the American Liberty League. Established in 1934, this organization included both industrialists and politicians. The Liberty League sought to teach respect for the rights of individuals and property and to underscore the importance of individual enterprise. All of these values, members claimed, were being undermined by FDR's large government programs. -
Dwight D. Eisenhower is elected as a moderate Republican
With a campaign slogan that couldn't miss, "I like Ike," Eisenhower and his vice president, Richard M. Nixon, posted landslide victories in both 1952 and 1956. His moderate Republican policies helped him secure many victories in Congress, where Democrats held the majority during six of the eight years that Eisenhower was in the White House. -
Barry Goldwater runs on a conservative platform and loses to LBJ in a landslide
The Republican candidate for President, Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona, ran on a staunchly conservative platform. Facing Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson, Goldwater opposed government activism, including social security, federal civil rights laws and antipoverty programs. He also demanded a military buildup against a possible Soviet attack. -
Roosevelt’s attempt to “pack” the Supreme Court causes conservative backlash in Congress.
The sexual revolution was another source of conservative concern. The use of the new birth control pill encouraged promiscuity, critics said. Also, after the 1973 Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade legalized abortion, anti-abortion forces launched a campaign to overturn that decision. The movement for gay and lesbian rights further angered many conservative Americans. -
Conservative Republicans sweep the historic 1980 election
The growing strength of conservatives in the Republican Party gave Ronald Reagan the GOP presidential nomination in 1980. During the campaign, Reagan seized on growing discontent. His attacks on incumbent Jimmy Carter's handling of the economy were particularly effective. Criticizing Carter's economic record, he poked fun at the President's use of technical language.