The Great Society

“I felt from the first day in office that I had to carry on for President Kennedy. I considered myself a caretaker of both is people and his policies.” -John F. Kennedy Assassinated in 1963 and Johnson sworn in as President **Tried to maintain Kennedy’s legacy -Civil Rights Act of 1964 -Voting Rights Act of 1965 Lyndon B. Johnson 1963-1969

Why did LBJ focus on poverty? Limited freedom/lacked choices for opportunities Voting, education, employment…. (opportunities) Why did LBJ focus on poverty? Based on this clip, what types of programs would LBJ support?

American Experience Documentary: https://www. youtube. com/watch LBJ Documentary (this video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDeBd1j7sCM

Why did LBJ focus on poverty? Limited freedom/lacked choices for opportunities Voting, education, employment…. (opportunities) Why did LBJ focus on poverty? Based on this clip, what types of programs would LBJ support?

Major Great Society Programs 1963: Prevention & Abatement of Air Pollution (The Clean Air Act) 1963: Vocational Education Act 1964: Civil Rights Act 1964: Urban Mass Transportation 1964: Federal-Aid Highway Act 1964: Criminal Justice Act 1965: Medicare & Medicaid 1965: Social Security Amendments 1965: Voting Rights Act 1965: Elementary and Secondary Education Act 1965: Head Start 1965: Housing & Urban Development Act 1965: Public Works & Economic Development Act 1965: Dept. of Housing & Urban Development Act 1965: National Foundation on the Arts and Humanities Act 1965: High Education Act 1966: Child Nutrition Act 1966: Child Protection Act 1967: Water Quality and Water Pollution Act 1968: National School Lunch Act Q: Which of these programs have you heard of? Q: Which programs do you think have been successful? Q: How is the Great Society like the New Deal? How is it different? Q: HOW would you categorize these programs?

Great Society programs War on Poverty: 40 programs that were intended to eliminate poverty by improving living conditions and enabling people to lift themselves out of the cycle of poverty Education: 60 separate bills that provided for new and better- equipped classrooms, minority scholarships, and low-interest student loans Medicare & Medicaid: guaranteed health care to every American over 65 and to low-income families Medicare = elderly Medicaid = poor The Environment: introduced measures to protect clean air and water National Endowment for the Arts and the Humanities: government funding for artists, writers, and performers Immigration Reform: abolished national origins quota Ending Racial Injustice: legislation passed for the purpose of protecting civil rights

War on Poverty 1st State of the Union Address (Jan. 1964), Johnson declared “unconditional war on Poverty in America” Creation of the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) $1 billion budget for the coordination of new anti-poverty programs -Johnson learned of Kennedy’s anti-poverty initiative on 1st day in office. Advisers urged Johnson so implement the program slowly to test effectiveness in few cities before expanding but… **Johnson insisted the program be “Be big and bold and hit the nation with real impact” -In 1st state of the Union address on Jan 4th, 1964 he declared “unconditional war on Poverty in America” -Sent Congress bill for Creation of an Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) -$1 billion budget coordinated new anti-poverty programs

“Kennedy Inspired…Johnson Delivered” -Johnson had little trouble pushing legislation through congress (DEMOCRATIC MAJORITY) -He fulfilled the major legislative goals of his first term in 8 months -Texas Journalist Liz Carpenter Quote in title -**Popular and Won election in 1964 by a landslide -Johnson’s legislative success record was extraordinary: 89th Congress passed 181 of the 200 major bills that Johnson requested in 1965-1966

The Decline of the Great Society Domestic Decline: -1966 midterm elections, Republicans gained 47 seats in House and 3 in Senate -States did not like it because had no control of certain community spending -People believed focus should be in international affairs Foreign Policy: -Vietnam (1966 the government spent about 18times more on the Vietnam War than on the War on poverty: MLK jr = the Great society had been “shot down on the battlefields of Vietnam”

Read the Prompt Plan first! Then Respond ELABORATE! SAQ PRACTICE

Pros & Cons What is the author’s main argument? https://sheg.stanford.edu/great-society What is the author’s main argument? What evidence does the author use to support that claim/ argument? Which author do you find more convincing. Why? Pros & Cons