-
Period: to
Presidency of Jimmy Carter
-
Jimmy Carter Elected President
Jimmy Carter beat opponent Gerald Ford by a slim margin of 297 to 241. Carter carried much of the south and was supported by labor union members. Also, many wanted to punish the party of Nixon for their actions. -
Union Leaders Lose Control
Starting as early as the 1950s, union membership continued to slip under Carter. In 1978, only one in four nonagricutural workers belonged to unions, and unions lost three-fourths of the campaigns they ran against workers. -
Camp David Accords
The president of Egypt, Anwar Sadat, and Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel came to the U.S. seeking a peace treaty. The treaty was mediated Carter at Camp David for two weeks. The treaty was successful, withdrawing Israel troops from captured Egypt territory and Egypt recognized Israel as a nation as a result. -
Stagflation
Unemployment and inflation soared under Carter. Inflation reached 13% and unemployment ranged from 6-10% in 1979. Carter wanted to reduce dependance of the U.S. on OPEC oil. Salaries and wages rose because of inflation, but taxes also rose rapidly because of incomes. Interest rares increased because of the need to cover government deficit. Instability in the Middle Easr tripled the price of oil, made worse by Carter wanting to lessen American dependence. -
"Constant Decency"
The foreign policy of Carter contrasted that of Nixon and Kissinger. Carter believed that defending basic human rights came before other concerns, which resulted in the cut of aids to Chile and Argentina because of human rights violations. Also, he communicated with Panama and stated that the Panama Canal would be kept neutral, but did not mention much about other countries that were being repressed. -
Creation of SALT II
Carter hoped to continue with the Nixon-Kissinger policy of detente, and therefore created another Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty with the Soviet Union. However the next winter, when the USSR invaded Afghanistan, Carter repealed the treaty before it was even ratified and threatened to go to war if the troops hit the Persian Gulf. Carter also pulled athletes from the Olympic Games in Moscow. -
Beginning of the Iran Crisis
On November 4, 1979, approximatly 400 Muslim militants broke into the American Embassy in Tehran, Iran, taking everyone within capture. Stemming from years of unrest dating all the way back to after WWII, revolutionaries finally took over the shah, whose western ideology and technology introduction struck a cord with people in Iran. The revolutionary government, headed by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, denounced the U.S. as a "Great Satan". -
Stalemate of the Iran Crisis
The militant government in Iran demanded that the former shah be returned to Iran from the United States, where he was receiving treatment for cancer. Militants wanted him tried as a traitor, and desired his wealth be confiscated and distributed to the Iranian government. Carter rejected the demands and forbade trade with Iran until the hostages at the Embassy were freed. -
Election of 1980
Carter managed to win the Democratic nomination for president even after his failures in Iran. Running against Ronald Reagan, Carter defended his record without much belief behind it. Reagan was loved by the people, and in the end, Reagan won the election with 8 million more votes than Carter. -
"Resolution" of the Iran Crisis
Carter ordered marine commandos to be flown into Iran, attempting to raid and free the hostages. The mission tragically failed, and eight commandos were killed. Iranian people made a spectacle out of the ordeal, broadcasting American equipment and crashed helicopters. -
Shah of Iran Dies
The hated shah of Iran, after travelling from Iran to the United States, to Panama, finally died in exile in Egypt in 1980. Even though the man they wanted was dead, the Iranian government did not release the hostages. -
Carter's Last Week
Jimmy Carter devoted his last week as president to resolving the Iran hostage crisis. War had broken out between Iran and Iraq in September. The Iraqi president wanted Iran for oil, and, after early Iraqi victories, the Iranians were persuaded to release the hostages after 444 days on January 20, the day Reagan was elected president. -
Reagan Takes Over as President
Ronald Reagan gave his presidential election on the same day the 52 hostages were released from Iran.
