George W. Bush

1. George W. Bush

2. The Election of 2000 • The American economy prospered under Clinton (government had a budget surplus) • VP Al Gore wanted to be associated with that part of the Clinton administration, but not his scandalous image • He picks Joe Liberman as his running mate (first Jewish man to run for the office) • Republicans choose George W. Bush, son of former President Bush and governor of Texas

3. A Troubled Election • Polls indicated that the race would be close; both popular vote and electoral college votes were very close on election night • Election returns in Florida were so close that that the entire race hinged on the outcome there • News organizations declared Gore the winner, then retracted and declared Bush the winner • Finally they admitted it was too close to call over a month before a winner was announced

4. The Election of 2000 • Because returns were so close, Florida conducted a recount (Bush had a lead of only 300 out of 6 million ballots) • Democrats were concerned about ballots that were not counted because they were not punched correctly…they wanted those ballots counted by hand • One type of ballot, the butterfly ballot, was confusing for voters, causing concern that some voters voted incorrectly • Lawsuits were filed by both Republicans and Democrats over the recount

5. December- Florida Supreme Court declared there should be a manual (by hand) recount…this favored Gore • Bush appeals to Supreme Court • In Bush v. Gore the Supreme Court stops the manual recount (can’t change counting methods in the middle of an election); therefore Bush won Florida and the 2000 Election • Bush was the 4th president in US history to win even though he lost the popular vote

6. Bush’s Domestic Policy Tax Cuts Even though the economy was in recession, Bush still believed that tax cuts would help the nation Tax cuts did not help the economy improve The administration cut taxes again in 2003, but it did not help the economy then either • Economic prosperity of the 90s was waning • Dot-com stocks began to fall and several major business had financial problems, leading to a stock market drop and recession

7. Bush’s Domestic Policy Education, health care, and more Bush’s Second Term 2004: Bush runs against John Kerry, who is critical of Bush’s handling of the economy and foreign policy…Bush wins Bush focuses on Social Security reform Bush proposes moving social security funds into private retirement accounts  rejected by Congress Bush able to put two new conservative justices on the Supreme Court: John Roberts and Samuel Alito • 2001: No Child Left Behind- used annual testing to ensure students met academic standards • Bush also encouraged federal funding to faith-based organizations • 2003- Medicare updated to include prescription drug coverage

8. Bush’s Foreign Policy • Bush asks Gulf War General Colin Powell to be his Secretary of State and Condeleezza Rice to be National Security Advisor • After 2004 Election, Powell resigned and Rice took his place • Donald Rumsfeld served as Secretary of Defense • Bush refused to use troops for ‘nation building’ as Clinton had done • Bush cancelled the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty but also reduced US nuclear arms • The cancellation of the ABM Treaty caused friction with Russia and China • He also tried to work on peace in the Middle East but was unsuccessful

9. September 11, 2001 • Twocommercial planes crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center; a 3rd plane crashed into the Pentagon, and a 4th crashed in a field in Pennsylvania • Millions of Americans watched live as the twin towers collapsed • Over 3,000 people were killed in the attacks • The nation was overwhelmed with grief and anger and admired first responders like the NY Fire Department • Millions donated blood and money to help the victims of the attacks • Patriotism soared and America began a new war: the War on Terror

11. Background to the Attacks • Federal investigators focused their attention on Osama bin Laden, a wealthy Saudi Arabian who had gone to Afghanistan in the 1980s to fight Soviet invaders • He embraced radical Islam and wanted to destroy the US; he was also angry about US presence in the Middle East

12. Bin Laden created a terrorist network called al Qaeda to carry out attacks around the world– they were responsible for an attack on the WTC in 1993 and embassies around the world • The US tried to attack a training base in Afghanistan under Clinton, but bin Laden escaped and later attacked the USS Cole, killing 17 • al Qaeda operatives began moving into the US and enrolling in flight school to prepare to take over planes for the attacks

13. War in Afghanistan The United States Responds • The Taliban controlled Afghanistan and implements strict Islamic law • bin Laden supported the Taliban and the Taliban aided bin Laden • Bush put pressure on the Taliban to turn over bin Laden, but they refused • Oct, 2001- US and Great Britain attack Afghanistan • They were able to quickly overthrow the Taliban, but did not find bin Laden • Afghanistan still faces instability as American troops prepare to withdraw completely

14. Fighting Terrorism at Home Congress passes the USA Patriot Act that made it easier for law enforcement to secretly collect information about suspected terrorists Some critics believe that it violates individual freedoms • To coordinate anti-terrorism efforts, Bush and Congress created the Department of Homeland Security • The US also faces the possibility of biological terrorism (anthrax is mailed to several government officials)

15. War in Iraq • After a successful war in Afghanistan, Bush vowed to fight terrorism in Iraq, claiming that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction • UN weapons inspectors in 2003 found no evidence of weapons, but Bush believed they had been hidden • US invades Iraq March 2003 • By April Saddam Hussein’s government fell and the country descended into civil war • No evidence of weapons of mass destruction were ever found

16. At home Rebuilding After Hurricane Katrina and Sandy • Storm devastated Gulf states in August 2005; • over 1,800 die • $160 billion in damage

17. Housing bubble bursts • Large deregulated banks bundled mortgages into supposedly low-risk collateralized debt obligations then sold them to investors. • They were extremely profitable because of inflated real estate prices and lax regulation. • When lower-income borrowers began defaulting on their loans, the housing bubble finally burst; the number of repossessed houses doubled in a year’s time.

18. The U.S. government places federal mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under control of the U.S. Treasury to prevent the institutions from going under and endangering more than half of the country’s mortgages.

19. Financial Crisis • At the onset of financial crisis, President Bush signs a $700 billion bailout plan for failing bank assets, the largest in U.S. history. • U.S. gross domestic product drops by 0.3 percent, the first time GDP has shrunk in 17 years. • Federal Reserve cuts interest rates to an all-time low of zero percent to stimulate the economy. • President Bush issues a $17.4-billion auto bailout to General Motors and Chrysler to keep the two American automotive giants from going bankrupt.

20. The Great Recession • Was a global economic downturn that devastated world financial markets as well as the banking and real estate industries. • Officially lasted from December 2007 to June 2009 • U.S. labor market lost 8.4 million jobs • GDP declined by 6.4%