The Reagan Years

Before National Politics Goldwater speech 1964

Realignment New Deal Coalition  Democratic South  African-Americans  Union members  Urban North  Immigrant/newer ethnic groups  Farmers Reagan Coalition  Midwest small towns  Wealthiest Americans  Hawks on foreign policy  Blue Collar in North and Midwest (union and non- union)  White Southerners  Evangelicals  Yuppies

Reagan Public Approval Ratings

Reagan Media Strategy  Bully Pulpit  Stage Events in Controlled Settings  Feed the Media  Consistency of Message  Selling the President  Popularity is Power

1980 Election  Republican Ronald Regan defeats Dem Jimmy Carter  Conservative Revolution  Polarizing figure  Great Orator

" The Afghan Mujaheddin are the moral equivalent of the Founding Fathers of America "

Economic Philosophy OLD  Keynesian Economics  “Demand Side” Economics  New Deal NEW  Chicago School  “Supply Side” Economics  Reaganomics (The Reagan Revolution)

Survives Assassination Attempt

Characteristics  “Trickle Down” Econ = supply-side  “Traditional American values” Hard work, Family, God & patriotism  Wanted “smaller government” Less taxes, less rules, less social programs (cuts to student loans, food stamps, mass transit)

Reaganomics  “Voodoo Economics?”  Cut Taxes (Especially for Wealthy)  Huge cuts to SOCIAL programs but increased DEFENSE budget spending = DEFICIT

Deregulation  Cut taxes & lessened rules for corporations Ex. – Automobile Safety Regulations  Businesses supported his policies  Labor Unions opposed his policies  Inflation down, wages down, markets up, exports down  “Yuppies” v Middle Class

Economic Outcomes  Tried to balance Federal Budget but failed  Trade Deficit = more imports than exports  Gap grows between rich & poor

Important Events  Air Traffic Controllers Strike  Appointment of Sandra Day O’Connor to Supreme Court  Recession of  SDI = “Star Wars”  Reelected in ’84 Mondale/Ferrara (1 st WVP)

Sandra Day O’Connor

Strategic Defense Initiative Reagan’s SDI speech, March 23, 1983SDI From:

Other Issues & Terms  Crack-Cocaine Crack babies Inner-city epidemic  “Thousands Points of Light”  AIDS  Black Monday Stock Market Crash – Oct 19, 1987

“War on Drugs” – Nancy Reagan, “Just Say No”

Civil Rights?  Vetoed sanctions on South Africa but overridden (Apartheid)  Opposed MLK Holiday but signed into law

Student Rights…or lack there of  New Jersey v. TLO

Student Rights…or lack there of  Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier

Challenger 1986

I want my MTV

The Mets Win!

Rising tide of terrorism (Pan- Am Flight 103)

Afghanistan Mujahadin

" The Afghan Mujaheddin are the moral equivalent of the Founding Fathers of America " Ronald Reagan

Reagan’s View of the USSR Speech to National Association of Evangelicals: “Evil Empire” speech, March 10, 1983 “Evil Empire”

The Ultimate Example  Berlin 1987 Berlin 1987 (from 50 seconds)

2. Viet Nam Syndrome  Fall of Saigon, April 29, 1975

Solution to Viet Nam Syndrome: Use Force  Libya 1981

Other foreign interventions  Grenada 83 – overthrow of communist regime by marines  Lebanon – Arab suicide bomber kills 63 Americans in Beirut, trucks bomber kills 200+ marines  Support for “friendly” right-wind dictators Nicaragua – support for Contras over Sandinistas – Dems cut funding in 85 (Boland Amendment)

Continued  El Salvador – 5 Billion Dollars to Salvadoran death squads – 40,000 civilians killed including American missionaries

Grenada 1983

Beirut 1983

Solution to Communism: Reagan Doctrine Nicaragua Contras

Case Study of Reagan Doctrine Nicaragua

Revolution in Nicaragua  Anastasio Somoza Pres. of Nicaragua  Daniel Ortega, leader of the Sandinistas

Contras

Iran-Contra Scandal  Iran-Iraq War  US sends weapons to “Contras” in Nicaragua  Used $ from sale of weapons to Iran  Colonel Oliver North  No proof of President's involvement ever found

Key Phrase of 2 nd Boland Amendment: ( )Boland Amendment  ''No funds available to the Central Intelligence Agency, the Department of Defense or any other agency or entity of the United States involved in intelligence activities may be obligated or expended for the purpose or which would have the effect of supporting, directly or indirectly, military or paramilitary operations in Nicaragua by any nation, group, organization, movement or individual.'‘ From: NY TIMES on line: text-of-key-amendment.html?pagewanted=1; For Excerpts and explanation, from US Government Accountability Office – GAO, text-of-key-amendment.html?pagewanted=1http://redbook.gao.gov/14/fl php

The Iran Contra Scandal Private US $ Foreign Gov’t $ $$$ Hostages weapons Swiss bank accounts; controlled by North Contras Israel Iran US

The Iran Contra Scandal Private US $ Foreign Gov’t $ $$$ Hostages weapons Swiss bank accounts; controlled by North Contras Israel Iran US

Iran Contra  Comparison to other scandals Comparison  When Congress tries to restrain presidential actions Ignore Congress Reinterpret the law

Showdown w/ USSR  Increased Military Spending  Forced Soviet Union into arms race  Soviets run out of $  Reagan & Gorbachev (Soviet Leader) sign Nuclear Arms Reduction Treaty (1987)  “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

Political/Cultural Effects

Berlin Wall 1989

August 1991 and the Fall of USSR Boris Yeltsin

Legacy  Decreased Taxes / Cut Social Programs. Economic Prosperity (Esp. For Wealthy) REAGONOMICS  Helped end communism in Russia / spent billions on military DEFICIT  Intervened in Latin America and Afghanistan to stop communism / aided brutal people  Iran Contra furthered Distrust of Government