Chapter 31

1. Chapter 31 Towards a Transnational America, since 1988

2. Paul Conrad Cartoon [LA Times] His view of the Republican Party following Pat Buchanan’s “culture war” speech at the 1988 Republican National Convention.

3.   "Let them call me rebel and welcome, I feel no concern from it; but I should suffer the misery of devils, were I to make a whore of my soul. . ." Thomas Paine "In California you can do some surprising things legally. You can buy videos of people engaged in anal sex; decorate your shop window with the paraphernalia of sado-masochism; or buy a gun that will blast a hole in a steel door. Given a doctor's certificate, you can even buy marijuana. But, as from January 1st, you can't light up a cigarette in a bar without breaking the law." - The Economist January 10, 1998 "In the 1996 presidential election, only 18% of those 18-30 voted, by far the lowest turnout of any age group." Richard Benedetto   "If you cannot enter passionately into the life of your own times, you cannot enter compassionately into the life of the past. If the past is used to escape the present the past will escape you." Henry Glassie 1977

4. Part I: Introduction

5. This chapter covers the shift of the American economy from manufacturing and industry to a service and information based economy. Another shift was noted in the 1990 census. For the first time, the majority of Americans lived in a metropolitan area. A third shift was the end of the Cold War. Americans struggled to adjust to these changes looking first to the Reagan-Bush presidencies for answers. Reagan’s own personal shift from a New Deal Democrat to a Republican that rejected activist welfare but still admired FDR’s inspiring leadership perhaps paralleled a shift among many American voters. Democrats under Clinton recaptured the presidency by being more centrist themselves, but they were continually challenged by a resurgent Right. Economic competition with Europe and Pacific Rim nations would replace the Cold War ideological struggles but problems would still remain in various areas including the Middle East. Presidents Bush and Clinton would look for more collective actions through the UN than the US alone. Economic shifts to service industry and less need for the military industrial complex continued to reinforce the growing inequities among Americans. American communities struggled to respond to a more global, service oriented, high tech economy with the potential of various regional solutions as they faced the 21st century.

6. Concepts • Supply-side • PATCO strike [Prof. Air Traffic Control union] • $900 billion to $2.7 trillion – national debt increase under RR • Evil Empire [dehumanizing -- Saddam, FMLM terrorists] • Sandinistas, Somoza, Iran-Contra, Boland Amendment • Oliver North, William Casey, John Poindexter, Tower Report • Steve Jobs/Apple, Bill Gates • Mass. Gov. Dukakis, Willie Horton ad, Lee Atwater • Ambassador Glasspie, Kuwait, Desert Shield, Desert Storm, • Rodney King 1992, O.J. Trial • H. Ross Perot in 1992 election • NAFTA, GATT [today’s WTO], 1999 WTO in Seattle, WA

7. Sources Haynes Johnson, Sleepwalking through History [1991] Nicolaus Mills, Culture in an Age of Money [1990] Kevin Phillips, The Politics of Rich and Poor [1990] Lou Cannon, President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime [1991] David Stockman, The Triumph of Politics [1986] Raymond Bonner, Weakness and Deceit: U.S. Policy and El Salvador [1984] Theodore Draper, A Very Thin Line: The Iran Contra Affairs [1991] Randy Shilts, And the Band Played On [1986] William Julius Wilson, The Truly Disadvantaged: The Inner City, the Underclass, and Public Policy [1987] Michael Beschloss and Stobe Talbott, At the Highest Levels: The Inside Story of the End of the Cold War [1994] Mike Davis, City of Quartz: Excavating the Future in Los Angeles [1990] Juliet Shor, The Overworked American [1991] Bob Woodward, The Agenda: Inside the Clinton White House [1994]

8. Chronology 1980 Ronald Reagan is elected president 1981 Reagan administration initiates major cuts in taxes and domestic spending Military buildup accelerates AIDS is recognized and named MTV and CNN start broadcasting as cable channels 1982 Economic recession grips the nation Nuclear freeze rally attracts 750,000 in NYC 1983 Reagan announces the Strategic Defense Initiative, labeled "Star Wars" by critics 241 marines killed in Beirut terrorist bombing Marines land on Grenada and oust anti-American Marxist regime 1984 Reagan is reelected overwhelmingly 1985Mikhail Gorbachev initiates reforms--glasnost and perestroika-- in the Soviet Union

9. 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act Democrats regain control of the Senate 1987Iran-Contra hearings before Congress reveal arms-for- hostages deal and funds secretly, and illegally, diverted to Nicaraguan rebels Stock market crashes Reagan and Gorbachev sign INF Treaty 1988 George Bush is elected president 1989 Communist authority collapses in eastern Europe 1990August: Iraqi invasion of Kuwait leads to massive U.S. military presence in the Persian Gulf 1991January-February: Operation Desert Storm forces Iraq out of Kuwait USSR dissolves - Commonwealth of Independent States 1992Rodney King verdict sparks rioting in LA Bill Clinton is elected president 1993 Clinton administration introduces comprehensive health-care reform, but fails to win passage in Congress Congress approves the North American Free Trade Agreement [NAFTA - US, Mexico, Canada] 1994 Republicans control both houses, 1st time in forty years Congress approves the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1996 Clinton reelected president; Republicans retain control of both houses of Congress

10. Chapter Focus Questions • What was American Foreign policy after the Cold War? • What was the impact of the new Economy and the boom of the 1990s? • What revelations resulted from the 2000 Census? • What characterized the Clinton presidency and resurgent conservatism? • What was globalization? • How did international terrorism affect the United States?

11. Part II: American Communities

12. The World Trade Center as a Transnational Community • In August 2001, Telmo Alvear became a waiter at the Windows on the World restaurant located in the North Tower of the World Trade Center (WTC) in New York City. • The restaurant was part of the transnational community created by the over 50,000 people who work at the World Trade Center. • Many of the firms renting space in the Twin Towers were multinational operations from Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe. • The WTC symbolized American leadership and the belief that transnationalism would lay the foundation for a new world order based on democratic liberalism.

13. Part III: A New World Order

14. The Collapse of Communism • The Soviet Union’s political reforms: • enabled opposition to Communist rule to spread throughout Eastern Europe. • led to the collapse of the Soviet bloc. • led to the reunification of Germany. • Free elections in the Soviet Union led to the defeat of party regulars and the independence of the republics that had comprised the Soviet Union. • The end of the Soviet Union meant an end to the Cold War.

15. War in the Middle East • When Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, President Bush formed a coalition: • to prevent Iraqi aggression against Saudi Arabia. • to enforce economic sanctions against Iraq. • Bush shifted policies and prepared for an offensive war to drive out Iraq. • The U.S. relentlessly bombed Iraq, driving it from Kuwait. • The war left Iraq devastated and, although Saddam Hussein remained in power, wreaked ecological havoc in the region. • Mideast tensions worsened due to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. • A Saudi millionaire built the Al-Qaeda terrorist network.

16. Peacekeeping in the Balkans • Heightened ethnic nationalism and religious fundamentalism created unrest across the globe, especially in the Balkans. • The civil war in Kosovo between the Serbians and Albanians was the worst foreign crisis of Clinton’s presidency. • After negotiations failed, NATO bombed Serbian forces that eventually withdrew from Kosovo. Their president was indicted on war crimes.

17. Transnational Human Rights • Transnational human rights emerged as another issue. • Human rights became factors in trade and diplomatic relations. • International organizations were formed to work with the United Nations to aid victims of abuses. • Clinton connected human rights to the expansion of democracy.

18. Part IV: Changing American Communities

19. The Election of 1992 • A harsh recession and soaring national debt had eroded public confidence in the Bush administration. • Democrats turned to centrist governor Bill Clinton of Arkansas who stressed the need for fiscal responsibility, a middle class tax cut and new jobs. • Billionaire H. Ross Perot won support for his independent bid with his folksy style and criticism of Washington insiders. • Clinton focused on the “forgotten middle class” in an effort to return Reagan Democrats to the fold. • Clinton won 43 percent of the vote to Bush’s 38 percent and Perot’s 19 percent.

21. The Clinton Strategy • Clinton broke political gridlock by positioning himself between warring Democrats and Republicans. • Often backing ideas friendly to Republicans, he clashed with liberal democrats. • Clinton unsuccessfully promoted a plan for national health insurance: • Clinton pushed through a series of trade agreements (NAFTA and GATT) that raised fears that jobs were being sent abroad while environmental standards were being weakened at home.

22. The Boom Years • The greatest stimulus to the economy was the soaring stock market, led by "tech" stocks. • The resulting economic boom created huge profits. • Critics noted the ill effects of downsizing and the pay disparity between white and blue collar workers plus the continuing decline of blue-collar jobs.

23. Silicon Valley • Silicon Valley in northern California emerged as the capital of the American computer industry. • Although Silicon Valley resembled a suburb, it was a sprawl of two dozen cities that expanded rapidly as the computer industry grew. • Silicon Valley divided along class lines: • The white male managers and engineers lived in affluent communities. • non-unionized, Latino and Asian workers lived in poor communities. • By the early 1990s the Silicon Valley had lost its boomtown atmosphere as competition increased.

24. An Electronic Culture • New computer and telecommunications technologies transformed American cultural life. • VCRs and cable TV revolutionized the American entertainment industry. • Music videos on MTV transformed the music business. • The most revolutionary aspect of the electronic culture was the Internet. • The new information technologies gave rise to a media community that transcended national boundaries but the ownership of media corporations became increasingly concentrated.

26. The New Immigrants • The 2000 census showed that U. S, population had experienced greater growth than any other decade. • More than a third of the population increase came from foreign immigration, the Latino and Asian populations increasing by 70 percent. • Most Mexican immigrants struggled in low paying, often dangerous jobs. • Another trend was intermarriage and a growing number of multiracial Americans.

28. Immigrants and Their Communities • Hispanics were the largest minority group among those 17 and younger. • Immigrants formed their own communities and maintained their group identity.

29. Part V: A New Age of Anxiety

30. The Racial Divide • In the spring of 1992, rioting broke out when a jury acquitted four Los Angeles police officers who had been videotaped beating a black motorist. [Rodney King] • Rioters included Latino and African Americans. • The rioting revealed the animosity between Korean storeowners and African American customers who targeted the stores for destruction. • For many African Americans, the Los Angeles situation seemed more desperate than ever and whites seemed not to care at all. • The widening racial divide was also shown by the trial of O. J. Simpson and the percentage of racial minorities in prisons, especially African American males. • Former officer drove car into Long Beach and was slammed against his car hood by an officer on live TV!

31. Random Violence and Terrorism • During the 1990s and early twenty-first century, random violence and terrorism escalated culminating with the catastrophic September 11, 2001 suicide attacks. The 1988 bombing of a Pan Am plane was followed by the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center that brought terrorism home to the United States. • In 1998, Middle East terrorists car-bombed U. S. embassies in Africa. • The 1995 bombing in Oklahoma City was different in that domestic terrorists were responsible. • One of the most tragic incidents of violence the murders at Columbine High school in Littleton, Colorado.

32. Culture Wars • Culture wars erupted over a struggle to define American values that pit conservative Republicans and Clinton Democrats. • Conservatives supported what they called universal, traditional values. • Democrats supported multiculturalism. • Conflicts also arose over affirmative action, gays, and women. • A growing controversy arose over stem cell research.

37. The Contract With America • Throughout his political career, Bill Clinton faced questions of morality. • The culture wars heated up as the 1994 election approached. • Led by Newt Gingrich, a new breed of younger conservative Republicans swept the Congressional elections of 1994. • Republicans promoted a “Contract with America” to cut welfare and eliminate affirmative action. • Failure to compromise on a budget in 1995 shut the government down and proved a public relations disaster for the GOP.

38. High Crimes and Misdemeanors • Bill Clinton proved adept at co-opting Republican issues such as ending big government and balancing the budget. • In the 1996 presidential election, Clinton projected a reasonable, conservative image and portrayed Republicans as conservative radicals. • Clinton easily beat GOP candidate Bob Dole and independent Ross Perot. • In 1998, a sex scandal embroiled the White House, leading to impeachment inquiries. The midterm election resulted in Democratic gains, due in part to the economic prosperity. • The Republican House voted to impeach Clinton for perjury and obstruction of justice but failed to convict him.

39. Part VI: The New Millennium

40. The Election of 2000 • Following a dull campaign, the 2000 election ended with dramatic controversy. • Al Gore won the popular vote but George W. Bush won the electoral vote, because of a disputed decision in Florida that eventually involved a Supreme Court ruling. • Bush pushed through a tax cut that benefited the wealthy. • Bush also moved quickly to reverse environmental decisions made by Clinton.

42. Global Issues • Bush opposed the Kyoto Protocol on global warming that had been signed by 178 other nations. • Globalization was studied for its economic and political implications. • Globalization's role in the spread of free trade and democracy was debated.

43. Terrorist Attack on America • On September 11, 2001, hijackers crashed two jetliners into the World Trade Center towers and another crashed into the Pentagon. • A fourth plane was diverted from its mission by courageous passengers and crashed in Pennsylvania. • The devastation was horrendous and played continuously on TV. • President Bush declared the attacks an act of war and received congressional approval to take whatever action necessary to capture the responsible parties. • In the aftermath, major public events were cancelled or postponed, skyscrapers were evacuated, and airports were closed. • The following day, Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda were identified as the prime suspects.

44. The War on Terrorism • Osama Bin Laden was thought to be hiding in Afghanistan and supported by the Taliban government. • Bush dispatched aircraft carriers to the Persian Gulf and began air strikes on Afghanistan.