Chapter 30 –Chapter 30 –New DirectionsNew Directions

1980 – 19971980 – 1997

Section 1 –Section 1 –

A Conservative TideA Conservative Tide

Conservative GoalsConservative Goals• What is the primary goal of conservatives when it comes to

government?Hint: Ronald Reagan: “Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem.”

• .– History review: Since FDR (?) and the New Deal, the size of the

federal government grew. JFK (?) and LBJ (?) believed that the federal gov’t should actively manage the economy and provide for the welfare of its citizens. This position became known as . JFK and LBJ pushed for programs to get rid of poverty, build low-income housing, and provide medical care to those who could not afford it. JFK and LBJ were Democrats. However, Republicans also grew gov’t. Pres. Nixon created agencies to set safety standards for workers and to protect the environment.Father of the conservative movement – Barry Goldwater (ran for president against LBJ in 1964). By the 1980s, these conservatives were a majority in the Republican Party.

– Federal social programs cost too much, raising taxes– Gov’t regulations kept businesses from growing– State and local gov’ts should regulate

Conservative Goals, continuedConservative Goals, continued• Religion and Values

– The Goldwater conservatives stayed away from involving religion in politics but many of the conservatives beginning in the 1980s praised family life, religion, and patriotism, as they defined them.

– Although not all conservatives were evangelical Christians (personal relationship with Jesus and attempt to convince others to become evangelical Christians) and not all evangelical Christians were conservatives, there was a strong overlap.

– 1979 – Rev. Jerry Falwell founded the Moral Majority – aided political candidates who favored their religious goals in gov’t – such as a constitutional amendment to allow gov’t-led prayer in public schools. Moral Majority and other conservative religious organizations supported Reagan for president in 1980.

The Reagan YearsThe Reagan Years• RR (?) was a popular movie star who became

Governor of California.• He had a way of saying things in ways that

ordinary people could identify with – nicknamed The Great .

• RR beat Carter in the 1980 Presidential election and was reelected in 1984 by an even greater margin.

• Economic policies– Nicknamed “ “U– Cut taxes in an effort to stimulate the

economy (why?)– Tried to cut spending on social programs

(welfare, aid to education)– Deregulation – reducing restrictions on

business. Carter had deregulated airlines, railroads, and truckers. Reagan increased deregulation – opposing laws that forced businesses to limit pollution and allowing banks greater freedom in their investments (?)

The Reagan Years, continuedThe Reagan Years, continued

• Mixed results– At first, Reaganomics slowed the economy and many

lost their jobs. By late 1982, however, the economy was soaring. Many businesses opened or grew. By the time Reagan left office, there were 16 million more jobs while inflation had been kept down.

– RR also wanted a balanced budget (?). This did not happen because he sharply increased military spending. By 1986, the deficit (?) was $240 billion – about 10 times higher than under any other President.

The Economy under Bush (1)The Economy under Bush (1)• George Bush was RR’s VP (?)• Bush won a landslide victory in 1988

and said he would carry on RR’s policies. “Read my lips” (?)

• 1990 Bush agreed to raise taxes• Because of deregulation, banks had

made risky loans that were not repaid and hundreds of banks failed causing a bad economy (?)

• As banks became more careful about lending money (i.e. not lending it as freely) the economy slowed down (why?).

• Businesses began downsizing (using people to do the

work). Unemployment went up causing a recession (economic slump that is

than a depression).

A More Conservative A More Conservative Supreme CourtSupreme Court

• Between RR and Bush1, they appointed 5 conservative justices to the Supreme Court (?) – including the first woman, Sandra Day O’Connor

• New court limited the rights of criminal defendants and also limited the right to appeal from convictions. Limited busing of students to achieve integration. Made it harder for workers to win discrimination cases.

Clinton Takes OfficeClinton Takes Office

• Election of 1992– Recession continued. Unemployment up to

7.8 percent (highest in 8 years).– Democratic ticket of Bill Clinton (46 years old)

and Al Gore (44 years old) was the youngest combined ticket in American history.

– Clinton-Gore said the gov’t should get more involved in areas ignored by RR and Bush.

– Clinton got 43%, Bush got 38%, Independent billionaire Ross Perot got 19%.

Clinton Takes Office, continuedClinton Takes Office, continued• A moderate course

– Clinton followed a middle-of-the-road course (?)

– Got Congress to increase some taxes and decrease spending. 1st time in over 40 years, the federal deficit began to go down.

– Added programs to stimulate the economy and rebuild

– Americorps – more than 20,000 young Americans worked in communities in return for college tuition

– National Health Insurance – plan that would set up a national system guaranteeing health insurance for almost all Americans was defeated by Congress (cost, too much gov’t). Who headed the team that came up with the plan?

Conservatives at High TideConservatives at High Tide

• 1994 Congressional election – for the first time since the 1950s, Republicans took control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

• Newt Gingrich (Republican) became Speaker of the House (?).• Republicans passed a budget that reduced spending on food

stamps and other social welfare programs and on environmental regulations. It also included a large tax cut.

• President Clinton vetoed the Republican budget.• Republicans in Congress shut down the government (?).• As time went on with the gov’t shut down, public opinion turned

against the Congress. • Compromise (?) reached – Spending plan to balance the budget by

2002. Laws to fight crime and drugs and to support education. Limited welfare benefits.

Clinton’s Second TermClinton’s Second Term• Clinton was easily reelected in 1996.• Economy was soaring. People were happy with Clinton’s middle-of-

the-road approach.• By May of 1998, unemployment was down to 4.3 percent, the lowest

in 28 years.• Stock market was at record highs.• 1998, 4 years ahead of schedule, the government balanced its

budget and was running a surplus by the time Clinton left office.• Scandal and impeachment

– Special prosecutor investigated whether the Clinton’s received special treatment in real estate deals in the 1980s (Whitewater). Prosecutor found nothing.

– President Clinton was sued for sexual harassment of a former employee when he was governor of Arkansas.

– At a deposition for that lawsuit, he was asked whether he was having sex with a White House intern and he denied it.

– It turns out he was having a sexual relationship with her.– December 1998, Bill Clinton became the 2nd president in the

history of the United States to be impeached. In February of 1999, he was found not guilty. (?)