1. The New Frontier & The Great Society
Chapter 28:
The New Frontier & The Great Society
President John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address - YouTube

2. Section 1: Kennedy & The Cold War
-The Kennedy administration faced some of the most dangerous Soviet confrontations in American history.
-The economy was in a recession.
-The Space race was on

3. A New Military Policy
-JFK thought that Ike’s administration had not done enough about the Soviet threat & blasted the Republicans for allowing communism to develop in Cuba.
-Flexible Response: strengthening & modernizing the military’s ability to fight a nuclear war.

4. Crises Over Cuba
-JFK’s 1st day of foreign policy became his first test.
-About 2 weeks before JFK took office, Ike had cut off diplomatic relations with Cuba b/c of revolutionary leader named Fidel Castro.
: Castro overthrew the Cuban gov’t and declared himself a communist & welcomed aid from the Soviets.
-The U.S. was suspicious, but nevertheless recognized the new gov’t.

5. Cuban Missile Crisis
- Nikita Khrushchev promised to defend Cuba with Soviet arms.
-Summer 1962: flow of Soviet weapons, including nuclear missiles, to Cuba increased greatly.
-Photos taken in October by American planes revealed Soviet missile bases in Cuba.
-JFK informed the nation of the existence of the Soviet missile sites & his plan to remove them.

7. Cuban Missile Crisis
-Soviet ships carry more missiles headed toward Cuba, while the U.S. navy prepared to prevent the ships from coming within 500 miles of Cuba.
-Soviet ships stopped suddenly to avoid a confrontation at sea.
-Khrushchev offered to remove missiles in return for U.S. pledge not to invade Cuba.
-Secretly, the U.S. also agreed to remove missiles from Turkey.
Cuban Missile Crisis - YouTube

8. Section 2: The New Frontier
-While JFK had trouble getting his ideas for a New Frontier passed, several goals were achieved.
-New Frontier: legislative program which included proposals to provide medical care for the elderly, rebuild blighted urban areas, aid education, bolster national defense, increase international aid, & expand the space program.

9. -Peace Corps: program of volunteer assistance to the developing nations of Asia, Africa, & Latin America.
-Alliance for Progress: offered economic & technical assistance to Latin American countries.
-April 1961: Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the 1st human in space.
-JFK wanted to surpass space & land on the moon.
The Great Space Race - YouTube
-In 1963, JFK began to focus more closely on the issues at home.

10. Tragedy in Dallas
-22 Nov. 1963: as JFK was in TX, he was shot in the head.
-VP Lyndon Johnson took oath of office on flight back to Washington, DC.
-24 yr. old Lee Harvey Oswald, a Marine, was charged.
Vice President Lyndon Johnson becomes president.

11. Section 3: The Great Society
-The demand for reform helped create a new awareness of social problems, especially on matters of Civil Rights and the effects of poverty.
LBJ was great at persuading people on issues (AKA: “The Master of the Senate”.)

12. LBJ Great Society Reforms
-July 1964: LBJ pushed through the Civil Rights Act of 1964: prohibited discrimination & gave federal gov’t new powers to enforce it.
-Aug 1964: Congress enacted the Economic Opportunity Act (EOA): approved nearly $1 billion for youth programs, antipoverty measures, small business loans, & job training.

13. Building the Great Society
The 1964 Election
-Barry Goldwater (Rep) of AZ believed that the federal gov’t had no business trying to right social & economic wrong.
-suggested he might use nuclear weapons on Cuba & North Vietnam.
(High Quality) Famous "Daisy" Attack Ad from 1964 Presidential Election – YouTube
Building the Great Society
-Great Society: LBJ’s program to reduce poverty & racial injustice & to promote a better quality of life in the U.S.
-By the time LBJ left the White House in 1969, Congress passed 206 of his measures.

14. The Great Society Reforms
-Medicare: provided hospital insurance & low-cost medical insurance for almost everyone age 65+.
-Medicaid: extended health insurance to welfare recipients.
-Immigration Act of 1965: opened the door for many non-EU immigrants to settle in the U.S. by ending quotas based on nationality.
-Water Quality Act of 1965: required states to clean up rivers.
-Truth-in-Packaging Law: set the standards for labeling consumer foods.
-Wholesome Meat Act of 1967: set new safety standards for meat.

15. Impact of the Great Society
-Massive extension of the power & reach of the federal gov’t.
-The “war on poverty” did help.
-Many of LBJ’s proposals, though well intended, were
hastily conceived & proved difficult to accomplish.
-LBJ’s massive tax cut spurred the economy, but funding the Great Society contributed to a growing budget deficit.
-The increase of Communist Forces in Vietnam soon began to overshadow the goals of the Great Society.