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Chapter 20 Section 3 Notes LBJ and the Great Society

Chapter 20 Section 3 Notes LBJ and the Great Society. LBJ Background. from Texas career politician in House of Reps or Senate for 23 years was Vice Pres for JFK picked mainly to “balance the ticket” Old help getting Southern vote Protestant background Lots of experience.

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Chapter 20 Section 3 Notes LBJ and the Great Society

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  1. Chapter 20 Section 3 NotesLBJ and the Great Society

  2. LBJ Background • from Texas • career politician • in House of Reps or Senate for 23 years • was Vice Pres for JFK • picked mainly to “balance the ticket” • Old • help getting Southern vote • Protestant background • Lots of experience

  3. LBJ’s Goals Similar To JFK’s • Major Differences: • Country wants to honor JFK’s Legacy • Good at convincing Congress to do stuff JFK’s approval ratings slowly decreased while he was in office. After his death, his public approval ratings were over 85%. LBJ used this to convince Congress and the public to pass legislation he wasn’t able to accomplish while alive.

  4. 1st Step = Tax Cuts • Get bill proposed by JFK passed • $10 Billion worth • Impact = Economy improved

  5. 2nd Step = Civil Rights • Civil Rights Act of 1964 • Passes in Mid July • Originally proposed by JFK (mid 1963) • Stalled in Congress • When JFK dies, LBJ pushes it along • outlawed discrimination based on • race, religion, sex, or ethnicity • Fines or Jail if in violation • affected voting, employment, housing, education, transportation, etc… • much more in Chapter 21 Right: LBJ signing the Civil Rights Act into Law. MLK Jr. is behind him Left: LBJ in front of a TV Camera talking about Civil Rights

  6. 3rd Step = “War on Poverty” • LBJ gets Congress to act (Aug 1964) • Economic Opportunity Act • $1 billion for anti-poverty measures • Head Start = Preschool for the poor • Job Corps = Job and Life training for youth • VISTA = A domestic Peace Corps • All programs listed above still exist

  7. LBJ Campaigns in 1964 • Wants 4 more yrs to accomplish goals • Labels his program “The Great Society” • 1st used phrase at U of M • More help to all kinds of Americans • Says he wants less involvement in foreign affairs • Vietnam, Cuba, etc…

  8. LBJ’s opponent = Barry Goldwater • Believed Govt. was too involved with people’s lives • LBJ was spending too much $$$ • Wanted to use Nuclear Weapons in Cuba & Vietnam • LBJ used this to scare public with famous political TV ad.

  9. 1964 Election = LBJ Wins Big • So do most Democrats running in Congress • He has a clear mandate to do a bunch of stuff

  10. LBJ’s full term in office (1965-1969) • 2nd most comprehensive set of reforms ever (1st = New Deal) • Around 200 pieces of legislation in all • Shortly after elected, he escalates involvement in Vietnam • Many think JFK would have gotten out • Didn’t want to be “weak on Communism” • Critics claim he broke his campaign promise • Much more in Chapter 22

  11. Education Reform • Elementary & Secondary Education Act • Known as No Child Left Behind since 2001 • Goal = Provide Quality education to all kids • Lower gap between high and low performing kids • How to check? Standardized Tests! • $$$ for books, teacher training, research, etc… • States need to follow along with nat. gov. to get the $$$. • 1st major involvement by Nat. Gov. in Education Ever! LBJ at the ESEA signing ceremony, with his childhood schoolteacher Ms. Kate Deadrich Loney

  12. 2 Major Health Care Programs Created • Medicare • low cost medical insurance to citizens over 65 • Also helps people under 65 with disabilities • Still insures around 50 million people per year! • Pays around $200 billion in medical costs per year! • Where does $$$ come from? • all citizens (1.45% of gross income) • tax taken directly out of paycheck President Johnson signing the Medicare amendment. Former President Harry S. Truman (seated) and his wife, Bess, are on the far right

  13. Medicaid • Medical insurance to poor people • Insures around 60 million people per year! • Pays about $200 billion in medical costs per year! • Where does $$$ come from? • Paid for by all citizens • part of Fed. Income Tax

  14. Immigration Act of 1965 • Changed policy put in place throughout 1910s & 1920s • Easier to get into U.S. if • You have skills • You have an immediate family member that is a citizen • No more favoritism towards Western Europe Countries • Allowed Immigration from Central Am, Asia, and Africa • Still has an overall limit on # of new immigrants allowed per year • Much higher than before

  15. Changes in Immigration to the U.S. by Region 1960 -2010

  16. 2 books influence new laws • Rachael Carson’s Silent Spring • Ralph Nader’s Unsafe at Any Speed Both become popular by mid 1960s. Government starts to act.

  17. Environmental Laws • Water Quality Act • clean up rivers • Stop polluting waterways • Clean Air Act Amendment • Tougher federal auto emission standards • Beginning of unleaded gasoline • Why? Less Air Pollution Still a big issue in China where emission standards are very low

  18. Consumer Protection Laws • Truth in Packaging Act required all of the following on a label • The identity of the product • The name and place of business of the manufacturer • The net quantity of contents. • National Traffic & Motor Vehicle Safety Act • 1st federal auto and highway safety law • Needed because of increasing highway deaths • Led to a bunch of new safety standards • Mandatory Seat Belts • Head Rests • Shatter Resistant Windshields • More gentle curves on roads • Better Lighting on Roads • Guardrails Before this Act, seatbelts were not standard in cars. You could buy them “after market” and install them yourself. Not exactly what I’d call safe.

  19. 2 New Fed Govt. Cabinet Depts. • Housing & Urban Development (HUD) • Secretary = Robert Weaver • 1st Black Cabinet member • Transportation • Air, Water, Cars, Rail, Mass Transit

  20. Did the “Great Society” succeed? • Most people believe the nation was “better off” • 2 major problems with it • #1. Cost a bunch of $ and forces $ into certain programs • Govt. consistently had big deficits • Still does • #2. Vietnam cut some programs short • Attention mostly focused there by late 1967

  21. Supreme Court Decisions in the 1960s • Earl Warren – Chief Justice • Many Cases Increase Rights of People Accused in Crimes

  22. Baker v Carr and Reapportionment • Court case began the process of deciding how to fairly draw up boundaries for Congressional districts • Used to split a state up evenly by area • Unfairly gave more representation to rural communities • Now splits up a state based on population • State district lines redrawn every 10 years following the Census Tennessee is divided into nine U.S. Congressional districts, 33 state senate districts and 99 state house districts.

  23. U.S. House of Representative District Divisions

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