The Ford Presidency “My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over.” Gerald Ford swearing in speech – August 9, 1974

The Ford Presidency Ford was an affable man First unelected president

The Ford Presidency A former football player at the University of Michigan Former member of the House

The Ford Presidency Ford served on the Warren Commission that investigated the Kennedy Assassination

The Nixon Pardon September 8, 1974 One of Ford’s first actions, and his most controversial, was to issue a full pardon to Richard Nixon for any crimes he might have committed.

The Nixon Pardon September 8, 1974 I, Gerald R. Ford, President of the United States, pursuant to the pardon power conferred upon me by Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution…do grant a full, free, and absolute pardon unto Richard Nixon for all offenses against the United States which he, Richard Nixon, has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from July (January) 20, 1969 through August 9, 1974.

The Ford Presidency 1975 Final U.S. evacuation of South Vietnam – April 30, 1975 Saturday Night Live debuts with parodies of President Ford

The Ford Presidency 1975 President Ford falling down the steps of Air Force One

The Ford Presidency 1975 President Ford standing over a women hit by one of his golf shots

The Ford Presidency Congress investigated the CIA (The Church Committee) In the 1950’s it administered the drug LSD on unsuspecting Americans to test its effects Assassination plots against Fidel Castro and other foreign leaders Introduction of African swine fever virus to Cuba in 1971 through anti-Castro rebels

The Ford Presidency Congress also investigated the FBI Illegal surveillance of several hundred thousand American citizens Tapped Martin Luther King’s private phone conversations, sent him fake letters and threatened him

The Ford Presidency These investigations were a product of the climate of mistrust created by Vietnam and Watergate (LBJ and Nixon) They led to restraints put on the FBI and CIA that some have argued made us vulnerable to terrorist attack in years to come

The Ford Presidency U.S. economy experiencing high levels of inflation Energy crisis - OPEC Whip Inflation Now (WIN)

The Bicentennial July 4, 1976

The Election of 1976 Ford held off conservative Ronald Reagan for the Republican nomination The Democrats selected a “Washington outsider”, James Earl Carter; the former Governor of Georgia; “Call me Jimmy” Carter was a born-again Christian who vowed that he would never lie to the American people

The Election of 1976

The Carter Presidency Stagflation High levels of Unemployment AND Inflation Energy Crisis Rising gas prices Three-Mile Island Near nuclear meltdown

The Energy Crisis of the 70’s

The Carter Presidency The Panama Canal Treaty U.S. vow to turn the Canal over to Panama in 2000 Camp David Accords Carter brokers a peace agreement between Egypt and Israel

Camp David Accords

The Carter Presidency Soviets invade Afghanistan – Dec. 24, 1979 Détente ends U.S. boycotts 1980 summer Olympics Osama Bin Laden Soviet Union’s Vietnam

The Iranian Hostage Crisis November 4, 1979 – January 20, 1981 After a coup in 1953, the CIA reinstalled the government of Reza Mohammed Pahlevi – The Shah of Iran The Shah was a U.S. ally that bordered the Soviet Union

The Iranian Hostage Crisis November 4, 1979 – January 20, 1981 Iran’s petrodollars ended up in the hands of the Shah and his allies and NOT the mass of Iranian people He brutalized political opposition (secret police)

The Iranian Hostage Crisis The Shah sought to modernize/westernize Iran and this met with opposition from Islamic fundamentalists One of his leading opponents was the Ayatollah Khomeini

The Iranian Hostage Crisis Khomeini represented Islamic fundamentalists who rejected the westernization of Iran They viewed the U.S. as the embodiment of evil (The Great Satan)

The Iranian Hostage Crisis In 1978, the Iranian people revolted against the Shah (The Iranian Revolution) President Carter and the U.S. continued to support its long time ally The Shah is forced to leave Iran

The Iranian Hostage Crisis November 4, 1979 Iranian students in Tehran storm the U.S. embassy and take Americans hostage

The Iranian Hostage Crisis They hold these hostages for the next 444 days Massive anti- U.S. protests are held in the streets of Tehran

The Iranian Hostage Crisis The protests and President Carter’s inability to do anything about it frustrated the American people A botched rescue mission added to the frustration

The Reagan Presidency Election of 1980 (November 4, 1980) 1 year anniversary of the hostage crisis

The Reagan Presidency Reagan called for an America with greater military power Vowed we would not be humiliated as a superpower Criticized budget deficits and the progressivism of the 60’s and 70’s

Election of 1980

The Reagan Presidency Reagan became the oldest man ever to be elected president at age 69 On the day of his inauguration the hostages were released from Iran In his inaugural speech he outlined his political philosophy

1 st Inaugural Address January 20, 1981 “In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” “It is my intention to curb the size and influence of the Federal establishment and to demand recognition of the distinction between the powers granted to the Federal Government and those reserved to the States or to the people.”

1 st Inaugural Address January 20, 1981 “We are a nation under God, and I believe God intended for us to be free. It would be fitting and good, I think, if on each Inauguration Day in future years it should be declared a day of prayer.” “Can we solve the problems confronting us? Well, the answer is an unequivocal and emphatic "yes."

The Reagan Presidency The Reagan appeal The Great Communicator Upbeat, positive, patriotic in the traditional sense Survived and recovered from an assassination attempt, two months in office, with great speed and great humor

The Reagan Presidency Reaganomics Tax cuts Cut federal spending/programs Deregulation Worst economic downturn since the Depression (1982) followed by the longest period of economic prosperity (to that time), (low UE and low inflation)

Reagan Foreign Policy Staunchly ant-Communist Referred to the Soviet Union as the Evil Empire Lebanon and Grenada ( ) 220 U.S. Marines in Lebanon killed by two trucks lined with explosives Within days, the Reagan administration launched a successful invasion of the island nation of Grenada (in Caribbean)

Grenada The invasion was condemned by the United Nations but very popular in the U.S. The U.S. was successfully exerting its military might again, in the name of freedom and democracy

Election of 1984 Reagan runs for re- election claiming it is morning again in America Economy back on track America flexing military might Tax cuts The Democrats nominate Carter’s VP, Senator Walter Mondale

Election of 1984

The Reagan Presidency Second Term The Challenger Disaster (January 28, 1986)

The Reagan Presidency Second Term Reagan and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev Negotiate historic arms reduction agreements

Iran-Contra Scandal (1987) Despite a congressional law (Boland Amendment) forbidding it, the Reagan administration was funneling money to anti- Communist rebels in Nicaragua (The Contras) The money came from the sale of weapons to Iran (at war with Iraq) in exchange for Iran’s help in the release of American hostages in Lebanon

Iran-Contra Scandal Oliver North worked for the NSC and was an ex- Marine coordinating this activity He became a hero to some Americans for proudly proclaiming the illegal act, “a neat idea”

Iran-Contra Scandal Throughout the process President Reagan claimed he had no memory of the events A number of Reagan administration officials were convicted of crimes in relation to Iran-Contra President Reagan was never officially implicated

The Reagan Legacy The Reagan Revolution Conservative, anti-government The Religious Right Budget Deficits Widening gap between rich and poor Contributed to the fall of communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe