70 likes | 320 Views
Nixon’s Domestic Policies. President Nixon sought to turn the US in a more conservative direction He had a plan, called New Federalism, in which the states would have more control over the money given to them by LBJ’s Great Society He tried to reform welfare with the Family Assistance Plan
E N D
President Nixon sought to turn the US in a more conservative direction • He had a plan, called New Federalism, in which the states would have more control over the money given to them by LBJ’s Great Society • He tried to reform welfare with the Family Assistance Plan • Families with no income would receive a basic federal payment and would have to take job training and any reasonable work offered them • Failed because it was opposed by both conservatives and liberals • Used impoundment to eliminate some social programs that he did not like • Impoundment: withholding necessary funds from programs so that they cannot be eliminated • Cracked down on the antiwar movement • Used the FBI to illegally wiretap left-wing individuals and groups and had the IRS audit antiwar and civil rights activists
26th Amendment In 1971, partly due to the Vietnam War, the 26th Amendment was ratified: The right of citizens of the United States, who are 18 years of age or older, to vote, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of age • How might this have been connected to the Vietnam War? • Why might people have opposed this?
Nixon tried to create a new conservative coalition with what was called his Southern Strategy • Tried to attract Southern conservative Democrats who were unhappy about desegregation • To do this, Nixon worked to slow desegregation and reverse civil rights laws • Tried to order the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare to delay desegregation in South Carolina and Mississippi • The Supreme Court ruled that he could not do this • Opposed extending the Voting Rights act of 1965, which helped African Americans register to vote • Opposed busing • Sending white students to majority African American schools and African American students to majority white schools to end de facto segregation
Busing Busing (Sending white students to majority African American schools and African American students to majority white schools to end de facto segregation) was an extremely controversial issue beginning in the 1970’s • Why might people have supported busing? • Why might people have opposed busing?
The economy faced problems during the Nixon administration • From 1967-1973 the US went through stagflation (stagnation + inflation) • Stagnation: a period of low economic growth and high unemployment • Inflation: a period where the dollar is losing its value • An oil crisis occurred in 1973 • Egypt and Syria went to war with Israel in 1973, and the US supported Israel • In response, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) refused to sell oil to the US • Within one year, the price of oil in the US had quadrupled