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Key Qs
• What were Truman’s domestic policies as outlined in his Fair Deal?
• How was Truman able to win the election of 1948? Why is the election notable?
• What was the Republican approach to government during the Eisenhower presidency?
Setting the Scene
• The 1950’s were very conservative
- Both politically and culturally
- Explain….
• Truman struggled with moving to a peacetime economy
• Eisenhower used a low-key approach• Genial, reassuring manner made him one of the most
popular Presidents after WWII
Truman’s Domestic Policies
• Truman wanted to follow in FDR’s footsteps
• He often appeared ill-prepared for the presidency
• He offered a new patch of proposals in every speech
The Peacetime Economy
• Truman’s first priority was reconversion • The social and economic transition form wartime to
peacetime• Got most soldiers home by 1946
• Keeping wartime inflation in check was more difficult
• Similar problems to those after WWI
The Peacetime Economy Cont.
• Truman passed the Taft-Hartley Act:• Passed in 1947
• Allowed the President to declare a 80-day cooling off period in which strikers had to return to work
• This was only allowed in industries that affected national interest
• Also made union officials sign oaths saying that they were not Communists
Truman’s Fair Deal
• Truman supported Roosevelt’s New Deal
• He used the well-known name and called his program the Fair Deal
• This extended the policies in the New Deal
• Truman thought that the Government needs to play an active role in securing economic justice for all American citizens
• He created a 21 point program
Fair Deal Cont.
• Truman ran into tremendous political opposition
• One measure that was passed was the Employment Act of 1946
• Truman lost a lot of support during the 1946 mid-term elections
Truman on Civil Rights
• He recognized that he had to take action on Civil Rights
• He publicly supported civil rights
• Change came very slowly
• Met with African American leaders in 1946
• Created the biracial Committee on Civil Rights in December of 1946• They were in charge of looking into race relations
The Election of 1948
• Truman ran for another term
• His popularity diminished in his own party
• Southern democrats broke off and created the Dixiecrat Party and nominated J. Strom Thurmond
• Progressive Party was headed by Henry Wallace
• Republican was Thomas E. Dewey
1948 Election Results
• All experts and polls had Dewey winning the election
• Truman won in a big upset
• Democrats won control of Congress
• Truman finally was able to step out of FDR’s shadow
1952/Eisenhower becomes President
• Dwight Eisenhower was the commander in chief of the Allied forces
• Known as Ike
• During WWII, he forged agreements among Allied military commanders
• Easy going charm
• K1C2 strategy by the Republicans
The Checkers Speech• In response to allegations that Eisenhower’s running mate,
Richard Nixon, was using a special fund• Accused of receiving illegal gifts
• Nixon had done nothing wrong
• People wanted Ike to dump Nixon from his ticket
• He gave a speech denying these allegations
• He told Americans to contact the Eisenhower campaign to say if he should stay on the ticket or not
• He got overwhelming support to stay on the ticket
Eisenhower as President• He wanted to work behind the
scenes
• Critics thought this meant he lacked leadership
• The American people approved of his style
• In the 1956 election Dwight Eisenhower won and was reelected• Defeated IL Governor Adlai
Stevenson in both elections
Modern Republicanism
• “Conservative when it comes to money, liberal when it comes to human beings”
• Priorities included cutting spending, reducing taxes, and balancing the budget• Smaller government, opposite direction of FDR & Truman
• He was in favor of big business• Cabinet members were businessmen• “8 millionaires & a plumber”
• But…• In 1954 and 1956 Social Security was extended to make 10 million more
workers eligible • Minimum wage increased from 75 cents to $1
Eisenhower’s Presidency
• His attempts to cut gov’t spending backfired
• The economy slumped; growth slowed
• The deficit grew
• Economic recession in 53-54, 57, & 60-61
Meeting the Technology Challenge
• In response to Sputnik the US government created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
• Congress passed and Eisenhower signed into law the National Defense Education Act• Designed to improve science and
math instruction in the schools
• Low-cost loans to college students if they became teachers
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