27
Consolidating the Revolution George Bush 1988 - 1993

Consolidating the Revolution

  • Upload
    kacia

  • View
    39

  • Download
    0

Embed Size (px)

DESCRIPTION

Consolidating the Revolution. George Bush 1988 - 1993. 1988 Campaign. 54% of the vote Bush: called for a “kinder, gentler America” and pledged “Read my lips: no new taxes” Continued to play on racism Stressed Reagan’s “achievements” Better soviet relations Low inflation - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Citation preview

Page 1: Consolidating the Revolution

Consolidating the Revolution

George Bush

1988 - 1993

Page 2: Consolidating the Revolution

1988 Campaign

• 54% of the vote• Bush: called for a “kinder, gentler America” and

pledged “Read my lips: no new taxes”– Continued to play on racism– Stressed Reagan’s “achievements”

• Better soviet relations• Low inflation• 14 million new jobs

• Jesse Jackson: war on poverty and drugs• Michael Dukakis: stressed managerial skills

– “this election is not about ideology, its about competence”

Page 3: Consolidating the Revolution

Collision of values

• 1988 presidential nomination. – (R) Pat Robertson

• tapped discontent of changes that had taken place since the 60s. • He used the mailing list from his “700 Club” program to mobilize

conservative Christians• Push the Republican party further to the rights on family and social

issues• Social ills due to over indulgence

– (D) Jesse Jackson, a civil rights leader and minister from Chicago

• grass roots campaign to move the Democratic party to the left.• “rainbow coalition” (labor unionists, feminists, and others)• Social ills due to racism and economic inequality

Page 4: Consolidating the Revolution

Pro-Bush Advertisements

• Themes– Fear of crime– Fear or concern with racial tension– Fear of perceived erosion of social values

• Rhetorical war on crime and drugs was his major domestic policy

Page 5: Consolidating the Revolution

War on Drugs

• Federal drug control budget tripled

• 1980s ¼ of federal inmates were drug offenders– Longer sentences– Mandatory jail time– Tougher parole terms for drug crimes pushed

the proportion over 50% by 1990

Page 6: Consolidating the Revolution

Debtor Nation

• Previous to Reagan foreigners owed the US and its citizens about 2500.00/family

• By Bush each family owed about 7000.00– After pledging not to raise taxes– Bush raised taxes in 1990

Page 7: Consolidating the Revolution

Foreign policy• South Africa

– 1986 over a Reagan Veto congress imposed economic sanctions against white government

• including a ban on corporate investment– Movement led by Anglican Bishop Desmond Tutu

• Pressure to release ANC leader Nelson Mandela • Negotiations, elections

– 1992 first president, Mandela• Berlin

– 1991Dismantling of the Soviet Union• Many soviets states broke away and established Republics• 1991 Bush & Gorbachev signed a treaty in Moscow to

reduce strategic nuclear arsenals by 25% over 5 years– Gorbachev Resigned and replaced with Boris Yeltsin

Page 8: Consolidating the Revolution

Foreign policy

• Nicaragua– Bush abandoned U.S. funded contra war

against the socialist democratic Sandanista government

• Continued to interfere politically and economically

• Panama– 1989 Bush ordered invasion to capture

General Manuel Noriega, formerly on the CIA payroll

• Fall guy for “war on drugs”

Page 9: Consolidating the Revolution

Persian Gulf War

• August 2, 1990 President Saddam Hussein of Iraq seized the oil rich country of Iraq

• Quick Conquest gave Iraq 20% of the worlds oil production and reserves

• Anti-Iraq coalition– Bush demanded unconditional withdraw– Enlisted European & Arab allies– Convinced Saudi Arabia to accept substantial U.S.

Forces

Page 10: Consolidating the Revolution

Justifications of Invasion

• Desire to punish armed aggression • Presumed need to protect Iraq’s other neighbors

– No evidence of Iraqi preparations against Saudi Arabia. – The build up of American air power plus effective economic

sanctions would have accomplished both protection and punishment.

– Sanctions and diplomatic pressure might also have brought withdrawal from most or all of Kuwait.

• Additional American objectives• Destroy Iraq’s capacity to create nuclear weapons • to topple Saddam’s regime

Page 11: Consolidating the Revolution

Resolution 678

• Troops in Saudi Arabia increased to 580,000

• Security Council Resolution 678– “all necessary means to liberate Kuwait”

• United Nations Umbrella

• Ignored compromise and concessions

Page 12: Consolidating the Revolution

Operation Desert Storm

• January 16, 1991

• Massive air attacks

• Bombed transportation facilities, utilities, food supplies

• 40 day bombing, prelude to ground assault– After 100 hours a ceasefire was called

• 148 dead (35 friendly fire) 467 wounded U.S.• 15,000 dead and 65,000 wounded Iraqi’s

Page 13: Consolidating the Revolution

Persian Gulf War

• Proved Americans were again ready to use military might to pursue national interests– “By God, we’ve kicked the Vietnam Syndrome

once and for All”• H.W. Bush

Page 14: Consolidating the Revolution

1990s impact of Reagan era tax cuts and deregulation

• Collapse of the Savings and Loan industry• Provider of home loans and secure return to

investors• Due to policies 1988-1990 600 S&L’s failed

– Wiped out savings for depositors– Government bailouts $400 billion

• The bailout, the war & the medicare/medicaid payments increased national deficit

• Recession increased jobless rate to above 7% and American’s living in poverty increased to 34 million from 2.1 million

Page 15: Consolidating the Revolution

Domestic PolicyRodney King Riot

• April 1992, Los Angeles, California– Reminder of the nations inattention to the

problems of racism and poverty– Confirmation of biased behavior of police

towards minorities– Televised trial of not guilty verdict for those

officers who savagely beat king• 4 days of rioting

– African Americans, Central and South Americans, Mexicans (1/3 of 12,000 arrests)

– Attacked Korean and Vietnamese owned shops as symbols of economic discrimination

Page 16: Consolidating the Revolution

Growth in the Sunbelt

• Rise in military and defense spending – Growth in the sun belt

• Southern and western regions of the united states: anchored in Florida, Texas and California.

• Outsourcing to the South and foreign countries

Page 17: Consolidating the Revolution

Defense Spending

• Military bases and defense contractors remolded the economic landscape – south and western regions attracted 75% of

military payrolls

• Large universities – (MIT, UM, Cali Institute for Tech, Stanford

• leading defense contractors– 1/3 of all engineers worked in defense.

Page 18: Consolidating the Revolution

Immigration & Nationality Act 1965

• Transformed the ethnic mix of the U.S. and helped to stimulate the Sunbelt boom

• abolished the National Quota System– 1924-1965 Western Europeans

• Negative: added to number of non union workers

• Positive: abundance of opportunities for talent and ambition for expanding economy

Page 19: Consolidating the Revolution

Cross-Border Economy• 1960a Mexican Government encouraged a platform economy

– allowing companies on the Mexican side of the border to import components and inputs duty-free

– 80% of the items were re-exported and 90% of the workers were Mexican.

• Encouraged American companies to locate assembly plants south of the border

• Maquila industries – lower wage workers– avoid strict antipollution laws

• (leading to serious threats to public health on both sides)

• 1800 plants employed ½ million workers

Page 20: Consolidating the Revolution

Women’s Rights & Public Policy

• 1960s gains

• Title IX of the Educational Amendments (1972) & the Civil Rights Act – Prohibited discrimination by sex in any

educational program receiving federal aid– Expanded athletic opportunities for women – Slowly equalized the balance of women and

men in faculty positions

Page 21: Consolidating the Revolution

Equal Rights Amendment

• 1972 Congress sent the ERA to the states for ratification– “Equal rights under the law shall not be

denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex”

• 20 states ratified the ERA within the first few months

– Conservatives rallied strong opposition• Time limit for ratification expired in 1982 three

states short

Page 22: Consolidating the Revolution

Abortion Rights

• January 1973 The U.S. Supreme Court expanded the debate about women’s rights with the case of Roe v. Wade– Struck down state laws forbidding abortion

and set guidelines for abortion during remaining months

• 14th amendment includes a right to privacy that blocks states from interfering with a woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy

Page 23: Consolidating the Revolution

Opposition to Women’s Rights

• Fueled by rhetoric – Male fears of increased job competition

during a time with fewer employment opportunities

– Male fears about traditional family roles– Female demands that women are equal

individuals– Female conservative belief that women had a

special role as anchor’s of families

Page 24: Consolidating the Revolution

Women in the Work force

• Eroding wages and ability to live on one income increased women’s need to participate in the paid labor force– 2000 61% married women looking for work– 69% single women looking for work

• Jobs continued to be segregated by sex through 2000

• Women continued to be hired in “female” jobs• Some changes due to pressure of women’s

movement increased number of women in traditionally male jobs

Page 25: Consolidating the Revolution

Supreme Court Nominations

• Clarence Thomas– Anita Hill Trial for sexual harassment by Thomas

• Appointments blunted liberalism of previous decades– Narrowed rights of arrested persons– Barred physicians in federally funded clinics from

discussing abortion with patients

• Planned Parenthood v Casey– court affirmed Roe v Wade but upheld a Penn. law

restricting abortion rights

Page 26: Consolidating the Revolution

Environmental policies• 1989 Exxon Valdez oil tanker ran aground in Prince William Sound,

Alaska, 10 million gallons of oil– Fouled coastal habitats, killed 1000s of animals, – Jeopordized the herring and salmon industries

• Air pollution – in more than 100 cities exceeded federal standards

• 1991 the Environmental Protection Agency – study found that pollutants were seriously depleting the atmospheres

ozone layer

• Scuttled treaties on global warming• Backed oil exploration in Alaskan wilderness preserves• Proposed to open protected wetlands to developers

Page 27: Consolidating the Revolution

Ideological Shift/Conservative Backlash

• 1950-60s American’s argued over – foreign policy– racial justice – economy

• Since the 1980s they have quarreled over– beliefs and values– patterns of family life

• Religious belief has heavily influenced politics as groups and individuals try to shape America around their own ideas of a godly society