Ch. 23 The 2000s

2000 Election  Al Gore (D) vs. George W. Bush (R)- very close  Gore won the popular vote but Bush won the electoral vote  Florida ballots were very controversial because of the hanging Chad's  Supreme Court stepped in and ruled Bush the winner

George W. Bush (R)

 Hillary Clinton- 1 st First Lady elected to Senate (D)NY  People called for election reform b/c of the 2000 election  Sept. 11 th attacks have changed our country forever  Dept. of Homeland Security was created after 9/11 and goal is to stop terrorism

U.S. Goes To War  Soon after the 9/11 attacks the U.S. attacks al-Qaeda forces in Afghanistan  War in Afghanistan is the longest military conflict in U.S. history  War in Iraq U.S. invades Iraq b/c they supposedly had weapons of mass destruction (WMD)  U.S. never found any weapons

Changes After 9/11  Security on airlines gets tighter  USA Patriot Act- federal law that gives the govt. the right to spy on anyone  Many people felt the Patriot Act violated our 1 st Amendment Rights

 U.S. quickly defeats the Iraqi Army but spends years trying to stop the guerrilla violence  Saddam Hussein was captured, tried and then executed.  War led to lots of protest in the U.S. and hurt Bush’s presidency  Iraq War is viewed as another Vietnam

2004 Election  Pres. George W. Bush (R) vs. Sen. John Kerry (D)  Very close election that went back and forth  More money was spent on the 2004 election than any prior election  The term “Swing States” refers to states that decided the election becomes popular.

 People have become more critical of the Electoral College  Bush cuts taxes to stimulate the economy  Hurricane Katrina- devastated the city of New Orleans and the govt. was criticized for such a slow response  Democrats won the House and Senate  Nancy Pelosi becomes the first female Speaker of the House

2008 Presidential Election  Barack Obama defeats John McCain for the presidency and becomes the first African American president  Sarah Palin was the 2 nd female in history to run for VP  Billions of dollars was spent on the campaign

Barack Obama (D) 2009-

Economic Collapse  Sub prime mortgages helps lead to the greatest economic collapse since the Depression  Stock market loses almost half its value and dips into the 6,000s  Unemployment reaches 10%  Trillions of dollars of wealth and retirement are lost

 Govt. offers huge bailouts to banks and automakers to prevent another depression  People criticized the govt. and Wall Street  Deflation- prices for goods drop significantly and people are able to buy more for their dollar.  Tea Party- 3 rd political party rises in 2010 and calls for a reduction in taxes  Republicans gain control of the House of Representatives in 2010

Current Issues  Many states are suffering economically  U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are winding down but concerns remain  U.S. oil prices are hurting the economy  Social media is have a significant impact on our society.  Obama has been heavily criticized for the economy