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The 80s: REAGAN 1981-1989

The 80s: REAGAN 1981-1989. Domestic Policy. The Rise of the American Right. THE NEW RIGHT. Conservative Resurgence. The Sunbelt and Its Politics. THE NEW RIGHT The Sunbelt and Its Politics. Demographic Change = Increased population in: Southeast Florida Southwest Texas

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The 80s: REAGAN 1981-1989

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  1. The 80s: REAGAN1981-1989 Domestic Policy

  2. The Rise of the American Right

  3. THE NEW RIGHT Conservative Resurgence

  4. The Sunbelt and Its Politics

  5. THE NEW RIGHT The Sunbelt and Its Politics • Demographic Change = Increased population in: • Southeast • Florida • Southwest • Texas • California • The “Sagebrush Rebellion” was a fiercely anti-Washington movement that had sprung up to protest federal control over rich mineral and timber resources in the western states

  6. THE NEW RIGHT The Sunbelt and Its Politics • The conservative populists of the Southeast and Southwest that rose to prominence in the late 1970s and early 1980s supported these political concepts • opposition to the growth of government • resentment of the proliferating environmental laws • support of the virtues of rugged individual

  7. Religious Revivalism

  8. THE NEW RIGHTReligious Revivalism • Many “new right” activists were most concerned about cultural or social issues including • pornography • homosexuality • abortion • affirmative action • Evangelical Christians • spearheaded the “new right” movement that helped to elect Ronald Reagan • Well-known evangelical Christians of the 1970s and 1980s included • Billy Graham • Oral Roberts • Jimmy Carter

  9. The Emergence of the New Right

  10. NEW RIGHT • In the 1980s, the New Left of the 1960s and 1970s did not disappear, but it did fade, because • its radical leaders became disillusioned • many of the students who had fought its battles grew up , left school and entered conventional careers • Marxist social criticism seemed dated and irrelevant, particularly as Marxist regimes collapsed in disrepute • Modern conservatism springs from a disapproval of priorities and strategies from the Great Society • the “New Right” of the 1980s imitated the tactics and approaches of the “New Left” of the 1960s by • “making the personal political” • practicing “identity politics” • using small group sessions to “raise consciousness” • engaging in tactics of street protest and civil disobedience

  11. NEW RIGHT • As the New Right developed in the 1970s and 1980s, it opposed the activities of men such as Gerald Ford • Ag. Ford’s support of Nixon-Kissinger policies of détente with the Soviet Union

  12. NEW RIGHTEmergence of Ronald Reagan • Early 50s = began to abandon his liberal New Deal political philosophy and to espouse a conservative, anti-government line when he became a spokesman for General Electric • 1964 Presidential Election = support Goldwater • 1966 = Governor of CA • 1976 Presidential Election = alternative to Ford (“old right”)

  13. The Tax Revolt

  14. THE NEW RIGHT • The conservative resurgence of the late 1970s was strongest in the state of California • In the battle over Proposition 13 during the late 1970s, California conservatives discovered the effective new political tactic of attacking taxes

  15. The Campaign of 1980

  16. 1980 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION • In the 1980 national elections, Edward Kennedy challenged incumbent President Carter for the nomination of the Democratic party • Liberal Democrats complained that Carter had removed regulatory controls from major industries • Edward Kennedy lost in the primaries and did not appear on the ballot in the fall election • His campaign was handicapped by lingering suspicions about his involvement in an automobile accident in which a young woman was killed

  17. The Reagan Revolution

  18. The Reagan Revolution The Reagan Coalition

  19. The Reagan Coalition • Ronald Reagan’s election to the presidency = change in American politics • also evident in Republican control of the Senate • The Reagan coalition of the early 1980s included • 1. wealthy Americans who opposed anti-business government regulation = free market capitalists = fewer government restraints on the economy • 2. neo-conservative intellectuals who opposed destructive radicalism = anti-communist • 3. populist right-wingers who opposed centralized government power = strengthening the white working class

  20. The 80s: REAGAN 1981-1989 DOMESTIC POLICY

  21. Ronald Reagan • was similar to FDR in that both men championed the “common man” against vast , impersonal menaces • differed from FDR in that Roosevelt branded big business as the enemy of the common man, while Reagan depicted big government as the foe

  22. The Reagan Revolution Reagan and the White House

  23. Reagan and the White House • President Reagan came to be labeled the “Teflon president” because he seemed always able to avoid blame for failed policies • During his years as president, Ronald Reagan exhibited these traits • a vigorous and resilient person who bounced back quickly from disease and injury • an excellent public speaker who was a master of television • an overall leader who decided general policy, but stayed out of the day-to day operations of government

  24. The Reagan Revolution “Supply-Side” Economics

  25. The Reagan Revolution “Supply-Side” Economics • Reaganomics • Reagan’s highest political objective was the containment of the welfare state • major goal = reduce size of the federal government by • shrinking the federal budget • lowering taxes • True to his campaign promises Reagan cut taxes • “boll weevils” = Conservative Democrats who helped Reagan to pass his budget and tax-cutting legislation

  26. The Reagan Revolution “Supply-Side” Economics • “Reaganomics,” or “supply-side” economics, operated from the assumption that the woes of the American economy were largely the result of excessive taxation • “supply side” economic advisors believed that the combination of budgetary discipline and tax reduction would • stimulate new investment • boost productivity • foster dramatic economic growth • balance the budget

  27. The Reagan Revolution “Supply-Side” Economics • Deregulation • Secretary of Interior James Watt • Opened public lands & water to development Reduced • Federal environmental laws & regulations (weakened the EPA) • Enforcement of Civil Rights laws (weakened the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department) • Auto emissions & safety standards (dept of transportation) • During the 1980s, Congress cooperated with the Reagan Administration by reducing regulatory controls over troubled savings and loan banks

  28. The Reagan Revolution “Supply-Side” Economics • 1982 = worst recession since the 1930s • = failure of Reagan Economic Program by critics • High Interest Rates (to reduce inflation) • = hard to borrow for • Investment • Consumer purchases • = stronger US dollar = Am. Products more expensive abroad • = decrease in exports • = increase in trade deficit • 1982 = 25 bill surplus • 1984 = 111bill deficit • The immediate consequence of President Regan’s new economic policies was a rise in the value of the dollar

  29. The Reagan Revolution “Supply-Side” Economics • 1982 = worst recession since the 1930s • Plant closures = increase unemployment • 1982 11% unemployment = highest in 40 years • 1983 = beginning of recovery • Inflation & unemployment decreased • Causes of 1983 Recovery • decrease in rate of inflation • Interest rates decreased in response to recession • Temporary energy glut & collapse of OPEC • a sharp drop in oil prices • Federal BUDGET DEFICITS = government spending (helping recession; hurting balanced budget) • Some economists believe that the economic upturn in the 1980s was the result of massive military expenditures • massive federal deficits , always over $100 billion

  30. The Reagan Revolution The Fiscal Crisis

  31. The Reagan RevolutionThe Fiscal Crisis • Economic Recovery • Downside = High Federal Deficits • Reagan had promised a balanced budget in 4 years • The greatest increase in the national debt occurred during Reagan’s eight year in office • = highest ever budget deficits • = increase in national debt

  32. The Reagan RevolutionThe Fiscal Crisis • Cause of high deficits • Cost of entitlement programs (Social Security & Medicare) • Aging population = A new demographic profile of the American population emerged during the 1970s and 1980s as the proportion of elderly citizens grew markedly • Increased health care costs • Tax cuts (1981) • Eroded revenue base • Increase in military spending • Added more military spending than domestic cuts

  33. The Reagan RevolutionThe Fiscal Crisis • Consequence of the deficit = not able to reduce interest on the massive (and growing) debt • Reagan Response • Would NOT • Raise taxes (except SS tax) • Cut military spending • Cut domestic programs • Reagan Response to high deficits • deficit reduction by lowering “discretionary” domestic spending • Aimed at the poorest & politically weakest • Food stamps • federal Subsidies for low income housing = Increase in HOMELESS • Student loans • School lunches • Educational spending • Results • Did NOT end the rising deficit

  34. The Reagan RevolutionThe Fiscal Crisis • Gramm-Rudman Bill • Mandated deficit reduction through AUTOMATIC cuts if deficit not reduced by a certain date • In 1986 Congress passed legislation mandating a balanced budget by 1991 • Deficit did DECLINE • But NOT due to Gramm-Rudman • due to tax increases on Social Security • Created a surplus • Fiscal Conservatives called for a constitutional amendment = mandatory balanced budget

  35. The Reagan Revolution “Supply-Side” Economics • the American economy faced • an energy crisis • foreign economic challenges • a declining rate of economic growth

  36. The Reagan RevolutionThe Fiscal Crisis • the American social structure faced • a climbing poverty rate • rapidly rising health costs • an increasingly unequal distribution of wealth • for the first time in the twentieth century, income gaps widened between the richest and the poorest Americans • The gap between rich and poor widened in the 1980s and 1990s because of • intensifying global economic competition • the decline of unions • the growth of part-time and temporary work • the greater economic rewards for education

  37. In the 1980s… • the use of illegal drugs helped to spread the new disease of AIDS

  38. AFRICAN AMERICANS In the 1980s… • socioeconomic conditions of black Americans changed • affirmative action programs frequently were not aggressively enforced • the black population of the U.S. • was nearly one-third middle class • much of the black middle class significantly improved its economic status • had more than one-third its number living in poverty • saw more than half its children born into single-parent homes • black households headed by single females increased greatly

  39. IMMIGRATION • In terms of immigration patterns, the 1980s and 1990s witnessed the heaviest influx of immigrants in America’s experience • The New Immigrants of the 1980s and 1990s came to America primarily in search of jobs and economic opportunity • The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 attempted to penalize employers for hiring illegal immigrants ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- • most striking change in immigration patterns was the increase in the numbers of Hispanics and Asians • The Hispanic immigrant population maintained their language and culture better than most previous immigrant groups because of their large numbers and geographic concentration

  40. ENVIRONMENTALISTS • Modern environmentalists base their ideas on the field of ecology and they view all components of the environment as being intimately linked together • Rachel Carson began her career as an environmentalist by attacking the menace of pesticides

  41. 1984 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

  42. 1984 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION • In 1984, the major contenders for the Democratic nomination for president included • Walter Mondale • Gary Hart • Jesse Jackson • The first woman to receive the vice-presidential nomination of a major political party was Geraldine Ferraro

  43. Sandra Day O’Connor • The first woman appointed to the United States Supreme Court • Appointed by Ronald Reagan

  44. 1988 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

  45. 1988 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION • Among the Democrats whom Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis defeated for the party’s nomination to run against George Bush in 1988 were Gary Hart and Jesse Jackson • The Democrats’ hopes for the 1988 election rose sharply because of major scandals in the Reagan administration involving the Iran-Contra affair and savings – and – loan banks

  46. 1988 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION • During the presidential campaign of 1988, George Bush was far behind at the start of the campaign, but came on strong at the end to achieve as substantial victory • George Bush defeated Michael Dukakis in the 1988 presidential election by identifying him with all of the unpopular social and cultural stances Americans identified with liberals

  47. THE 80’S

  48. What President appointed the first woman to the Supreme Court ? • REAGAN

  49. What was the reason for the budget cuts of federal domestic programs spending during the 1980’s ? • RECESSION

  50. Who decides when there should be cuts in national government spending and how much should be cut ? • CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT

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