Changing Leaders in Washington

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Changing Leaders in Washington

• The Ford and Carter Years 1974-1981

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Gerald Ford

• First President never elected to the Executive
  Branch.
• What to do about Richard Nixon?
• Election reforms.
• Oil
• The election of 1976

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What to do about Nixon?

• Originally Ford said he would do nothing until
  the courts acted.
• 2 weeks later Ford went on TV and granted Nixon a
  full pardon for any crimes he may have committed
  as President.
• Clemency for those who evaded the Draft

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Oil

• America became reliant on imported oil in 1960s
  and 1970s.
• 1971 Libya began to gouge foreign markets other
  OPEC nations followed suit.
• Oil prices increased 5 fold.

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Oil Supply Diminished

• 1973 the Middle East erupted in the Yom Kippur
  War.
• Arab nations angered at Americas favoritism of
  Israel led them to cut off Oil.
• Americans had to wait in lines for gas.

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The Election of 1976The Republican Nomination

• Ford announced he wanted to be President in his
  own right.
• California Governor Ronald Reagan challenged him
  as the representative of the Conservative wing of
  the party.

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Ford Won the Nomination

• Ford narrowly won the nomination.
• This picture was a symbolic show of solidarity
  among Republicans.
• Reagan would be back in 1980.

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The Election of 1976The Democratic Nomination

• Jimmy Carter was a peanut farmer from Georgia.
• He was elected Governor of Georgia and set his
  sights on the Presidency in 1976.
• Washington Outsider

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The Presidency of Jimmy Carter

• Carter loses the Congress
• Inflation
• Energy and the environment
• Changing Middle East

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The Changing Congress

• Watergate made new members suspicious of
  President.
• Party politics was giving way to special
  interests.
• Carter was not able to maintain even Democratic
  support.

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Special Interest Groups

• People became less interested in politics in
  general and more interested in specific issues.
• The financial influence of PACs took precedence
  over party politics

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American Involvement in the Middle East

• Carter tried to assist in bringing peace to
  Middle East.
• The U.S. counted on a friendly Iran for oil.
• Ayatollah Khomeini wanted nothing to do with the
  U.S..
• We allowed the overthrown Shah to enter America

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The Hostage Crisis

• 1979 Ayatollah Khomeini demanded the Shah be
  returned to Iran.
• When we refused Iranians seized our embassy and
  took diplomats hostage.
• April 1980 we failed in a rescue attempt 8
  servicemen died
• The Shah died in the U.S. the hostages were not
  freed.

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1980

• That was the situation going into 1980.
• Reagan was a former actor, in his element during
  televised debates.
• Conservative message

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The Reagan Revolution

• 1980-1988

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The Conservative Message of Reagan

• Downsize the Government
• Supply Side Economics
• Assassination Attempt
• Labor and Farmers
• Middle East and Central America
• Winning the Cold War

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Supply Side Economics

• Supply Siders believed that the higher the tax
  rate the more government revenue there would be.
• BUT, there was a breaking point. Beyond which
  people would not be motivated to work

The Laffer Curve
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The Assassination Attempt

• March 30, 1981 John Hinckley shot Reagan and 3
  others in Washington DC
• He was found Not Guilty by reason of insanity.

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The Presidential Connection by the Numbers

• 1840 - William Harrison (pneumonia)
• 1860 - Abraham Lincoln (assassinated)
• 1880 - James Garfield (assassinated)
• 1900 - William McKinley (assassinated)
• 1920 - Warren Harding (heart attack)
• 1940 - Franklin Roosevelt (cerebral hemorrhage)
• 1960 - John F. Kennedy (assassinated)
• 1980 Ronald Reagan (attempted assassination)
• Zachary Taylor is the only president not elected
  in a year ending in zero who did die in office.

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Labor and Farmers

• Reagan set the tone for labor when he fired the
  air traffic controllers.
• He broke the strike
• He positioned government on the side of big
  business
• The Green Revolution
• American farmers struggled

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Winning the Cold War

• Soviet Union and Eastern Europe
• Mikhail Gorbachev
• Glasnost- Allowed freedom of expression in the
  Soviet Union
• Perestroika-Gradual economic reforming of the
  USSR while avoiding internal revolutions

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Bush and Clinton Years

• The Bridge to the 21st Century

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The Dilemma of Conservatism

• 1988 Republican nominee George Bush vowed No New
  Taxes.
• He defeated Michael Dukakis by painting him as a
  radical liberal.
• THE PARDON

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Bushs Struggle to Maintain Conservatism
 
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The Fall of President Bush 1991-1992

• Clarence Thomas and Anita Hill.
• Rodney King race riots
• The taxes he promised not to pass
• Inability to relate to the people

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The Successes of the Bush Presidency

• The fall of the Soviet Union
• The crumbling of the Berlin Wall
• Liberation of Eastern Europe
• The liberation of Kuwait
• Victory in the Gulf War

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The rise of the Comeback Kid

• The Clinton Campaign just wouldnt quit.
• Challenged Bush when he seemed unbeatable
• Alleged indiscretion led to an honest interview
  that played well with the public
• Perot dropped out just before Clinton was
  nominated

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The Clinton Years

• Politics of the Center
• The Republican Congress
• Re-election
• Economic Growth
• The Scandals

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The Politics of the Center

• Americans feared strong stances and radicals.
• Clinton was a moderate who seemed to be
  Republican on some issues and Democratic on
  others.
• Demopublican or Republicrat

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The Politics of the Center

• Clintonian Programs
• Head Start (D)
• Anti-Crime (R)
• Welfare Reform (R)
• Air Quality Regs. (D)
• Moderate Gun Control (D)
• NAFTA (R)
• WTO (R)
• Deficit Reduction (D)
• Gays in military (D)

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The Republican Congress

• Scandals and Problems led to Republican
  majorities in 1994
• Whitewater Investigations
• Sexual Harassment
• ATF raids on Waco
• Health Care
• The Contract With America

Time Man of the Year 1995
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The Comeback Kid Does It Again!

• How did he do it?
• The Budget War
• Clinton wins
• Welfare Reform
• Clinton Signed it
• Republicans could not use it
• Bob Dole was 73
• Clinton wins
• Clinton Wins

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