Ronald
Reagan
The Rise of the
Modern
Conservative
Movement
Ronald Reagan
• Born in Illinois, 1911
• Lifeguard, Radio
Announcer
• Launched an acting career
during the Great
Depression
• Became conservative
during socialist and
communist threats in the
movie industry (HUAC)
• Switched from Democratic
to Republican Party in the
late 50s/early 60s
The 1980 Election
• Between current
President Jimmy
Carter (Democrat)
and Republican
Ronald Reagan
The New Conservative Coalition
The NEW RIGHT
– Conservative
evangelical Christians
• To restore Christian
Values in America
– Southern Democrats
– Reduction of Social
Programs
– Called for reduction in
size and power of
government
– Favored return of US
military pride
– Patriotic focus
The 1980 “Revolution”
• Carter’s perceived
mishandling of
major challenges
• Reagan’s ability to
communicate “The Great
Communicator”
• Few simple wellarticulated idea
Map 30.4 Presidential Election of 1980 (p. 903)
Assassination Attempt
• John Hickley Jr. – assassin
– Wanted to win Jodie Foster’s
heart
• Three people shot,
including Reagan
• Just 69 days into first
presidency
• Reagan recovered to shot
in lung
• James Brady, Press
Secretary suffered a head
shot and was disabled.
Supply-Side Economics a.k.a
“Reaganomics”
• Cut taxes to put more money
into the hands of businesses
• Cut taxes on the wealthiest
Americans
• Lower taxes = more
investment in the “supply
side” of the economy
• Would:
– promote and create new jobs
– encourage capital investment,
and
– lead to stimulated industrial
growth
ECONOMIC THEORIES
• Supply Side Economics (generally favored by
conservatives):
– Tax breaks to the wealthy
capital accumulation
higher productivity
lower prices
job creation
higher tax revenues collected by the government
money to reduce federal budget deficits.
• Demand Side or Keynesian Economics (generally
favored by liberals):
– tax breaks to working/middle classes
higher productivity
job creation
higher tax revenues collected by the
government
money to reduce federal budget deficits.
Cutting Government
Regulation - “deregulation”
• Continued Carter’s
programs to deregulate
key industries
• Energy, Transportation
and Banking Industries
• Challenged Air Traffic
Controllers in 1981 Fired those who refused
to go back to work after
a strike.
Slowed Federal Growth - New
Federalism (Reagan-style)
• Limiting government
– Eliminated public service
jobs
– reduced unemployment
compensation
– lowered welfare benefits
– raised fees for Medicare
patients
• Federal domestic
spending still grew for a
couple of years
Reagan and
Military Buildup
• Sharp increase in military
spending = buildup
• New weapons and new
technology
• Neoconservatives (Neocons = Dick Cheney, Don
Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz,
Condoleeza Rice, Richard
Armistead, Colin Powell,
etc.)
• Strategic Defense Initiative
(SDI) = better known as
Star Wars
Reagan and the Cold War
• Called Soviet Union
the “evil empire”
• Reagan - Cold Warrior
– Lebanon
– Libya
– Grenada
– El Salvador
– Nicaragua (Contra
rebels supported by
US)
Reagan: Economic
Recession, and Recovery
• 1981-1982 Recession
• Inflation slowed, consumer spending
increased
• Stock market grew
• Federal deficit grew even as domestic
spending decreased
• National debt = $909 billion in 1980 --$3.2 trillion in 1990
Election of 1984
• Patriotic Renewal
• 59% of popular vote
• Second largest electoral
victory in history
• 1984 Olympics in Los
Angeles
• Communist-bloc
countries boycotted
• 1986 - 100th anniversary
of Statue of Liberty
• 1987 - 200th anniversary
of the Constitution
Other issues 1984-1988
• AIDS Awareness
• Women’s Movement stalled (ERA failed
in 1982)
• Supreme Court conservatives
– Sandra Day O’Connor
– Anthony Kennedy
– Antonin Scalia
– Chief Justice William Rehnquist
More issues: 1984-1988
• Farm Crisis - foreclosures
• Manufacturing shift - from
metal and textiles (overseas =
outsourcing due to labor
costs)
• Service sectors continued to
grow
• Wealthiest Americans
flourished in the 1980s
• Jan 28, 1986 - Space Shuttle
Challenger exploded shortly
after take off
Cold War Continued
• Afghanistan
– Soviet republic
– In 1970s Afghans tried
to fight Soviets for
independence
• 1980s
• USA convinces Saudi Arabia
to send troops “mujahadeen”
(holy warriors) to fight against
Soviets
• One of the mujahadeen is
Bin Laden
IRAN-CONTRA
 What was it?
 Sale of weapons to Iran to ransom US hostages
held in Lebanon and to finance anticommunist
contra-revolucionarios (contras) in Nicaragua in
order to depose the Sandanistas
 Illegal because Congress had limited amount of aid US
could provide (Boland Amendment)
 US sold arms to Iran
 Illegal because he could not sell arms to a “terrorist state”
without Congressional approval
 Administration response: lied to the press and
Congress, withheld crucial documents