George H.W. Bush

Aim: How did President George H. W Aim: How did President George H. W. Bush confront the foreign and domestic issues of 1990s? Key Terms: Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 Tiananmen Square Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) Rodney King Gulf War, Operation Desert Shield & Desert Storm Americans with Disabilities Act Essential Questions: How did President George Bush Sr. tackle issues on the domestic front? Were his foreign policies similar or different to Reagan’s?

The Valdez Spill Exxon Valdez, an oil tanker owned by Exxon Shipping Company, bound for California, struck Prince William Sound's Bligh Reef and spilled 10.8 million US gallons of crude oil over the next few days.

Workers using high- pressure, hot-water washing to clean an oiled shoreline

Civil Rights March 3, 1991, Rodney King—an African-American taxi-driver was beaten by LAPD officers after King led police on a high-speed chase through Los Angeles County. The beating was videotaped and showed King being struck by police batons more than 50 times.

The spill exterminated much native wildlife, including salmon, herring, sea otters, bald eagles, and killer whales.

April 30, 1992 firefighters spray water on a burning building in south Los Angeles

More than 9,800 National Guard troops were called in to end the violence, which left 55 people dead and more than 2,000 injured.

A burned out apartment building that was destroyed in the violence A burned out apartment building that was destroyed in the violence. More than 1,100 buildings were destroyed or damaged during the riots.

A rioter breaks a glass door of the Criminal Courts building in downtown Los Angeles on April 29th.

Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 George Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act in July, 1990. This act prohibited discrimination by employers, covered public accommodations in the private sector, publicly funded programs or those providing federal financial assistance. Coverage for all disabilities did not take place until the passage of the ADA.

Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 Excerpt: The term “disability” means, with respect to an individual a physical or mental impairment that limits one or more major life activities… record of such impairment; being regarded as having such an impairment No covered individual shall discriminate against a qualified individual on the basis of disability in regard to job application procedures, the hiring, or discharge of employees, job training, and other terms and conditions of employment…

“No New Taxes” Bush pledged during the campaign not to raise taxes. However, he needed a way to balance the budget and reduce the trillion dollar debt. The President and Congress reached a compromise with the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 – which included measures of cutting government expenses and raising taxes.

Foreign Policy: Cold War is Over! The USSR had fallen. Bush met with President Gorbachev to attempt to maintain peaceful relations. They further de-armed their military and agreed to have friendly relations. In July 1991, Bush met Gorbachev in Moscow and signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, known as START.

Fall of Berlin Wall

Tiananmen Square Using tanks and armored cars, the Chinese military crushed the pro- democracy demonstrations and fired into the crowd, killing hundreds of protestors and arresting 10,000.

Kuwait Oil Fields

The Gulf War (Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm),1990