The 1980s Wells WHistory

1980 Reagan defeated Carter and was elected president. The leading voice of the conservative movement came from a former actor named Ronald Reagan.

Election of 1980

The Miracle on Ice The U.S. victory over Russia in the 1980 winter Olympics restored American pride.

Eruption of Mt. St. Helens Erupted May 18, 1980 230 square miles of forest was blown down by the eruption and 57 killed. Cities around Mt. St. Helens (Washington) were wiped out and filled with dust.

Assassination Attempt of Reagan March 30, 1981 He suffered a punctured lung John Hinckley, Jr. attempted the assassination.

Space Shuttle launched The United States launched the first space shuttle, Columbia, on April 12, 1981 The space shuttle Columbia was the first of over 100 shuttle missions flown

May 13 1981 The Pope was shot four times as he blessed the crowds in St Peter's Square in Rome. May 13 1981 Pope John Paul II was shot four times as he blessed the crowd in St Peter's Square in Rome.

Sandra Day O’ Connor First female supreme court justice. Appointed by the president Ronald Reagan. She was in office from September 25th 1981 to January 31st 2006. She showed a very conservative side.

America sold arms to Iran in hopes of gaining the release of hostages Iran-Contra Affair America sold arms to Iran in hopes of gaining the release of hostages held in Lebanon; took money and gave it to support the Contra Rebels fighting to overthrow the gov’t in Nicaragua. The Iran-Contra Affair was a clandestine action not approved of by the United States Congress. It began in 1985, when President Ronald Reagan's administration supplied weapons to Iran¹ — a sworn enemy — in hopes of securing the release of American hostages held in Lebanon by Hezbollah terrorists loyal to the Ayatollah Khomeini, Iran's leader. The U.S. took millions of dollars from the weapons sale and routed them and guns to the right-wing "Contra"² guerrillas in Nicaragua. The Contras were the armed opponents of Nicaragua's Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction, following the July 1979 overthrow of strongman Anastasio Somoza Debayle and the ending of the Somoza family's 43-year reign.

The transactions that took place in the Iran-Contra scandal were contrary to the legislation of the Democratic-dominated Congress and contrary to official Reagan administration policy. Major trials were held for former National Security Advisor Rear Admiral John M. Poindexter and National Security Counsel staff member Colonel Oliver L. North. It was finally found that National Security Advisor Poindexter had personally authorized the diversion of money to the Contra rebels; all the while withholding the information from President Reagan. The CIA's William J. Casey played a part in the conspiracy, but he died during the hearings. Both were convicted and their convictions reversed on appeal. Fourteen persons were charged with criminal violations in the affair.

Challenger On January 28, 1986 the shuttle exploded soon after takeoff, killing all seven crew members, including a teacher, Christa McAuliffe.

Mikhail Gorbachev becomes the new leader of the Soviet Union in 1985. Mikhail Gorbachev became the new leader of the Soviet Union in 1985 – He faced a major financial crisis – the USSR could no longer keep up the arms race with the United States. He must make cuts in the Soviet military – He had to stop financing Eastern European governments. Mikhail Gorbachev becomes the new leader of the Soviet Union in 1985.

Gorbachev’s basis of reform was perestroika, or restructuring, of the Soviet economy and government.

His willingness to rethink Soviet foreign policy led to a dramatic end to the Cold War.

In 1987 Gorbachev made an agreement with the United States by signing the INF treaty. The Intermediate range Nuclear Force (INF) Treaty sought to eliminate intermediate range nuclear missiles between the U.S. and Soviet Union.

Reagan and the Cold War In a speech at the Brandenburg Gate by the Berlin Wall on June 12, 1987, Reagan challenged Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall”.

Bush takes over In the Election of 1988, most people saw Reagan’s vice-president – George H.W. Bush – as a solid choice to continue the Reagan policies Democrats nominated Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis, who promised more programs to help minorities and the poor Bush made a pledge to the American people when he said “read my lips, no new taxes.” Most saw Dukakis as too liberal, leading to a landslide election victory by Bush

Exxon Valdez disaster In March of 1989, the Exxon Valdez ran aground at Prince William Sound in Alaska. The result was an oil spill of 10.8 million gallons, it was the nation’s worst environmental disaster at the time.

In 1989, the United States sent troops to Panama to arrest its military leader, Manuel Noriega, on charges of drug trafficking.

Tiananmen Square Massacre In 1989, Chinese students held protests for democracy in Tiananmen Square, the town center of Beijing. Hundreds were executed and thousands more were either jailed or exiled. The U.S. responded by placing trade sanctions on China.

Fall of the Berlin Wall In November of 1989, the Berlin Wall gates were opened. East Berliners came streaming through as free people for the first time in 40 years. Within days, the wall was leveled.

odNovember 9, 1989 On August 23, 1989, Hungary removed its border restrictions with Austria, and in September more than 13,000 East Germans escaped through Hungary. Mass demonstrations against the government in East Germany began in the autumn of 1989. Tens of thousands of East Berliners heard Schabowski's statement and flooded the checkpoints in the Wall demanding entry into West Berlin. The surprised and overwhelmed border guards made many hectic telephone calls with their superiors, but it became clear that there was no way to hold back the huge crowd of East German citizens short of dispatching the army with lethal force, as the vastly outnumbered border guards had only been equipped for regular duty. The guards and the East Berlin government were not willing to use lethal force, so in face of the escalating crowd safety issues the guards finally yielded, opening the checkpoints and allowing people through with little or no identity checks.