Chapter 31: Conservatism
1969-1988
Samantha Brown
Patty Stover
Jaci Vece
Chris Snyder
Richard Nixon
President Nixon supported each of the
following liberal programs
• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
• The Clean Air Act.
• Affirmative action.
• The Environmental Protection Agency.
Domestic Goals of the Nixon Administration
• A focus on making the federal bureaucracy more efficient
• Shifting responsibility for school desegregation to the courts
• Governmental utilization of minorities and women in the work force
• Increased revenue sharing between federal, state, county and city
governments
Ronald Reagan
Reagan and America’s Shift to the Right
• October 1964- The Republican National Committee sponsored a televised
address by Ronald Reagan on behalf of Barry Goldwater’s presidential
candidacy
•Reagan used relaxed, confident, and persuasive terms to put forth the case for
a return to individual freedom
•Reagan presented the options of going up or down; “up to the maximum of
human freedom consistent with law and order, or down to the ant heap of
totalitarianism”
•The speech did not save Goldwater’s candidacy, but marked the beginning of
Reagan’s remarkable political career
Reagan and America’s Shift to the Right
•Reagan was an attractive candidate because of his approachable manner
and his mastery of television
•Reagan displayed natural ability as a political leader; he proved to be
quite flexible on matters
•By the time he left the governor's office in 1974 (two terms) many signs
pointed to a growing conservative mood across the nation
•Proposition 13- slashed property taxes in half and resulted in a gradual
reduction in social services
•Moral Majority- a fundamentalist group dedicated to preserving the
“American way of life”
Reagan and America’s Shift to the Right
•Conservatism was given an added momentum after a rapid growth in
the Sunbelt region in the South and West during the 1970s
•Neo-conservatism- led by Norman Podhoretz’s magazine Commentary,
became fashionable among many intellectuals who were former liberal
stewarts
The Tempting of Richard Nixon
Pragmatic Liberalism
● Nixon began his first term promising nation peace and respite from the
chaos of the 1960s
○ He pledged to unite the country in his inaugural address
● Nixon focused on making the federal bureaucracy function more
efficiently
 He was the first president to adopt affirmative action as an explicit
policy
 He approved the creation of the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration
 He oversaw the production of the establishment of the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and the Clean Air Act
 Nixon’s attorney general was John Mitchell
Detente
• Foreign Policy was Nixon’s main focus
• Nixon appoints Henry Kissinger to National Security Advisor
• They approach foreign policy with realistic views
• Believe cold war was a rivalry and it was to be controlled rather than won
• Détente= relaxation of tension with soviets
• America planned to retreat from their eroding position of primacy in the world
• Russia= great military, weak economy
• Nixon planned to use American trade to get Russia to cooperate and at
the same time improve US relations with China
• In all, attempting relations with China would force better relations with Russia
Henry Kissinger
Détente cont.
• 1972- Nixon visits China and meets with communist leaders that ends SinoAmerican hostility
• Soviets view China as dangerous adversary- responded by agreeing to arms
control pact
• Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT)- US and Russia signed treaty limiting the
deployment of antiballistic missiles (ABM) and agreed to freeze the number of
offensive missiles for 5 years. (two agreements signed)
 SALT 1 involved reductions of ABM, limited to 200 each side
• SALT 1 agreements recognized Soviets lead in missiles but American deployment
of MIRVs (multiple independently targeted reentry vehicles) gave them an
advantage
• SALT 1 agreement were more important an symbols than concrete events
Ending the Vietnam War
• 3 part plan to end1.Gradual withdrawal of American troops
2.Renewed bombing
3.Hard line with negotiations with Hanoi
• 1969- went from 540,000 soldiers to less than 30,000 by 1972
• Renewed bombing= controversy
• We bombed Cambodia leading to antiwar protests at home and the incident
at Kent State University
• Rioters bombed their ROTC hall and national guard troops were sent in.
taunted, they started to fire at the crowd killing 4, wounding 11.
• Nixon had very little sympathy for this.
Ending the Vietnam War cont.
• Kissenger was secretly meeting up with North Vietnam’s foreign
minister, Le Duc Tho.
• 1972= near agreement to end war but south Vietnam had objections
• Nixon ordered raids on Hanoi that led to signing of truce on Jan 27,
1973
Watergate Scandal
• Nixon didn’t tolerate any “leaks” or spillage of any information about
his foreign policy getting out, that was unauthorized
• White House established “plumbers” which was covert surveillance
that investigated national security breaches
• 1972- during the new presidential campaign he used these plumbers
for engaging in dirty tricks against his opponent, George McGovern,
who was perceived as an anti-establishment candidate
• June 1972- 5 of Nixon's plumbers were arrested for breaking into
Democratic party headquarters at the Watergate Hotel
• Nixon won the reelection but all of his sly tricks started to unravel a
few months after being in office
Watergate Hotel
Watergate Scandal cont.
• Some plumbers that were promised money for silence, started to talk and, in
detail, about Nixon’s involvement
• Tension and curiosity was rising, while everyone was deciding who’s word to
believe, the plumbers or the president
• Committee discovered tape recording from in the oval office-- started the end
for Nixon
• Nixon refusing the tapes, Archibald Cox demanded them---Nixon fired Cox
• Leon Jaworski furthered Cox and continued to the press for the tapes
• House Judiciary Committee got a hold of all the tapes and even requested
impeachment
• Nixon resigned August 9, 1974.
• Close Nixon associates were John Ehrilichman and H.R. Haldeman
• Watergate Scandal showed the strength of America’s basic governmental
institutions
Nixon’s television address was one of his desperate gambles to get out of impeachment.
Nixon’s television address that
was on of his desperate gambles
to get out of impeachment.
War and Oil!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
• War in Midwest made oil in US likely to go up
• Oct. 1973- Egypt and Syria had surprise attack on Israel (Yom Kippur
War) yet Israel still won in ‘67
• Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)- 5% cut in oil
production and additional cut for each month until Israel surrendered
lands
• Nixon called for emergency aid package for Israel
• Saudi Arabia then cut off oil shipments to the US
• Boycott was precipitated by the Yom Kippur War
War and oil!!!!!!!!(cont.)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
• Effects on embargo and when Oil shock ended• US went under inflation
• Increase in oil prices—over double the amount before
• Nixon called for people to not use gas or thermostats for pleasure, told to use
sparingly
• Reality check after embargo ended- US had 6% of worlds population
yet used 40% of worlds oil
• It became clear the US was very dependent and the Arabs will keep that in
mind
The Great Inflation
• Oil prices quadrupled 1973-74
• Oil made almost everything go up since oil was a main source of energy
• Global food shortage and Vietnam war creating federal budget deficits
also made inflation rise
• President Gerald Ford proposed tax cuts however Jimmy Carter had
more success in reviving economy
• Another Oil shock put the oil per gallon over a dollar
• Carter and the Federal Reserve Board halted inflation by increasing bank
reserves
• Spring 1980- the prime interest rate reached 20%
Trouble Spots in the Middle East
The Shifting American Economy
• American industry began to lose primacy in world markets
• Other countries were making products, such as steel way more
efficiently than we were
• America was shutting down businesses, leaving tons of workers stranded
• Oil shock caused foreign, smaller, more efficient cars to be brought
over
• Public employee unions and computer companies prospered
• All in all, oil shock did cause major damage however Amer. Businesses
showed they’re capable of developing new technologies
New environmentalism
• Oil shock= any good effects???
• Injected life into environmental movement
• Stressed importance of American made fuel efficient cars
• Environmentalists looking for alternative sources of energy
•
•
•
•
Solar power= clean, always renewable, expensive
Hydropower=reliable but not convenient
Wind power= only works in certain areas
Coal= reliable and cheap but dirty
• Global warming was starting to be looked at
• Clean Air Act- 1980– federal “Superfund” was created for toxic
cleanups
The changing American family
• The traditional American family went through many changes in the 1970s and
onward
• The number of working women increased however their earnings where still not
remotely close to men.
• In most two-parent households, both parents worked
• The number of unmarried couples as well as the proportion of single parent
households doubled in the 1990s
• The divorce rate at this time doubles with half of first marriages ending in divorce
• Birthrate began to climb as baby boomers matured
• Many postpone marriage or never marry which is a significant change compared
to traditional American family structure in the last 3 decades
• Most mothers worked outside the home and were the sole support for their
children
• Women without partners headed 1/3 of impoverished families and children
comprised 40% of the poor
Gains and Setbacks for Women
• There was a rapid movement of women into the work force
• Breakthroughs for women:
• Women entered blue collar, professional, and small business fields traditionally
dominated by men
• Became leaders in industry, higher education
• Women appointed to Supreme Court
• Female business ownership increased substantially
• Beyond economic opportunity the women’s movement supported the
Equal Rights Amendment which was first ratified in 1972. The ERA basically
stated that “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or
abridged by the US or any state on account of sex”.
• Phyllis Schlafy led an organized effort to defeat the ERA saying that the
amendment would lead to unisex toilets, homosexual marriages, and
drafting of women. The National Women's party tried what they could to
fight back but however the ERA fell 3 states short of ratification
• The Roe v. Wade trial victory strengthens reproductive rights
Voting on the equal rights amendment
Phyllis Schlafy - The ERA would
lead to unisex toilets, homosexual
marriages, and drafting of women
The Gay Liberation Movement
• The Stonewall Inn Riot in 1969 is what sparked the gay rights movement. A riot broke
out at Stonewall village and in turn escalated to more than 4oo hundred police
officers battling 2000 gay demonstrators through the streets of Greenwich village
• The Gay Liberation Front and Gay Activist Alliance are some main groups that were
formed around the country
• In 1980 they succeeded in getting a gay rights plank in the Democratic national
platform
• However, in the 1980s the sudden AIDS epidemic puts gay rights movement on
defense; since the AIDS epidemic was first observed among gay men.
• In 1987 around 600,000 gays and lesbians took part in a march on Washington on
behalf of gay rights.
• 1993: “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”- policy that would permit homosexuals to continue
serving in the military as they had in the past as long as they did not reveal their
sexual preference and refrained from homosexual conduct
• Defense of Marriage Act signed in 1996 by Clinton stating that it prohibited state
recognition of same-sex unions
• In 2000 Vermont legalized same-sex “civil unions” enabling gays to receive all the legal
benefits available to married couples
The AIDS epidemic
• 1981: AIDS first detected
• It was first seen as a threat only to homosexual men. However, it began to appear
among drug users and recipients of blood transfusions which in turn began to cause
panic
• Reagan Administration’s response
• They begin to fund research
• Little funding for education and prevention
• In 1987 with the death toll rising Reagan appointed an AIDS commissioner to study
the epidemic
• Steady rise in infection until by 1996 with 500,000 infected
• 1996: AIDS death rate began dropping
• The most encouraging development was a fall off in the death rate due to health
officials creating new more efficient drugs combinations and more knowledge of
development and treatment
• There was a stress on safer sexual practices
The Ford Administration
• Ford was the first president who was not elected into office of either
president or vice president. A month in he shocked the nation by
announcing a pardon of all the crimes Nixon committed.
• Democratic Congress alienated
• Ford blurted out to the press that the CIA had been involved in plots to
assassinate foreign leaders. This lead to Senate and House selecting a
committee to investigate the CIA.
• To end criticism of the CIA, Gerald Ford appointed George H.W. Bush to head
the agency
• Ford vetoed 39 bills, proving himself to be more conservative than Nixon
Carter and the American Malaise
• Carter played on public distrust of professional politicians; he
portrayed himself as an outsider and said he would ‘never tell a lie’
• Carter had no discernible political philosophy or set or priorities, the
Carter administration had little chance to succeed
• In 1979 Carter gave a speech blaming the American people for
“national malaise”. He requested the resignation of Califano (who was
the secretary of health education and welfare who tried numerous
times to pass reforms in social services) as well as the secretary of the
treasury
Election of 1976
Troubles Abroad
• The point of détente was to diminish the need for American intervention
abroad; however, some groups of the third world didn’t get the message
• Latin America
• In 1979 the Sandanista Coalition succeeded on overthrowing the repressive Somoza
regime in Nicaragua. The US refused to aid the government of Nicaragua.
• Carter assisted El Salvador against Marxist rebels
• Camp David Accords was a treaty formed in 1978 bringing peace between
Israel and Egypt
• Mobs in Iran denounced the US and on November 4th 1979 militants seized
the US embassy in Tehran and held 53 hostages
• The prolonged Iranian hostage crisis revealed the extent to which American
power declined in the 1970s
Trouble Spots in Central
America and the Caribbean
Collapse of Detente
• The policy of détente was already in trouble when Carter took office in 1977
• Carter’s emphasis on human rights was seen as rejection of détente to the
Russians. Also, Carter’s National Security Advisor (Zbigniew Brzezinski) opposed
détente
• The Strategic Arms Limitations Talks (SALT treaties) involved reductions in the
number of ballistic missiles. The SALT 1 agreements were more important
symbols than concrete events. The chief provision was to try for a ceiling of 24
hundred nuclear launchers by each side (US & Soviets however this did not pass).
These events were significant for they foreshadowed the speeding up of the
nuclear arms race.
• In 1979 we had full diplomatic relations with China, the main reason for this was
the belief it would form better relations with the Soviet Union
• The Cold War was dormant until 1979 when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan
• We responded with the Carter Doctrine which aimed to arm opposition if Soviets moved
closer to the Persian Gulf
• The president banned the sale of high technology to Russia, embargoed the export of grain
and boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics
The Election of 1980
• Turmoil of the 1960s and economic problems of 1970s made a
conservative turn inevitable
• Carter’s had numerous troubles during presidency. For example, high
inflation, high unemployment, the hostage crisis and the Soviet
invasion of Afghanistan which made Carter look naïve and helpless
• The independent candidacy of John Anderson hurt Jimmy Carter’s
reelection chances
• Reagan won in a landslide
• Won all Southern states but Georgia
• Made inroads into traditional New Deal groups
• Republicans retook the Senate
Cutting Taxes and Spending
• Reagan blamed country’s economic problems on high government
spending. He embraced the concept supply-side economics to cure
the nations economic ills. The concept was to cut taxes to encourage
productive private investment leading to an economic boom that
would provide enough new income to offset the lost revenue.
• Reagan cut over three years:
• Federal spending by more than $40 billion
• Social services
• Taxes cut by 25%
• Reagan demonstrated without a doubt his ability to exercise
presidential power
Unleashing the Private Sector
• To reach his goal of deregulation Reagan appointed those who shared his
belief in relying on the market to direct the nations economy. As a result
many environmental regulations were reduced
• Japan agreed to voluntary export limits on automobiles, this enabled the
Regan administration to help Detroit carmakers without openly violating its
free market position
• In 1981, the Reagan administration crushed a strike by the air traffic
controllers
• Social Security changes cut costs
• Reagan was able to please feminists with his appointment of Sandra Day
O'Connor to the Supreme Court.
Reagan and the World
Challenging the “Evil Empire”
● The President’s first foreign policy victory happened the day he took office
thanks to the diplomatic efforts begun under Carter
○ January 20, 1981- Iran released fifty-three Americans held hostage
● Following this victory, the Reagan administration embarked on a major military
expansion which followed many of the efforts began by Carter
○ However, its efforts went far beyond Carter’s
● Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger proposed a plan for more than double
defense spending
○ The plan focused on the creation of new weapons from the B-1 bomber to
the MX nuclear missile to the expansion of the navy from 456 ships to 600
F-117 Bomber
B-2 Bomber
MX Nuclear Missile
Reagan and the World
Challenging the “Evil Empire”
● Congress had some opposition to Reagan and Weinberger’s plans, but most of
what they wanted was passed
○ Because of this the 1985 defense budget grew to more than $300 billion
● Reagan justified his foreign policy plan and the need for all the new weapons
by stating the Soviet Union was a deadly enemy that threatened the well-being
and security of the United States
○ He saw Russia as bent on world revolution, ready “to commit any crime, to
lie, to cheat…” to advance their cause
● 1982- Reagan denounces Russia in front of the UN
Reagan and the World
Challenging the “Evil Empire”
● Regan followed the hard line that Carter had adopted after the invasion of
Afghanistan
○ He abandoned détente and proceeded to implement a 1979 decision to
place 572 Pershing II and cruise missiles in western Europe within range of
Moscow and other Russian population centers
■ The goal was to match Soviet deployment of medium-range missiles
aimed at NATO countries
● November 1983- America begins placing weapons in bases in Great Britain and
Germany
Reagan and the World
Challenging the “Evil Empire”
● The nuclear arms race was now at its highest
○ The United States increased its research and development of the Strategic Defense
Initiative (SDI), an antimissile system based on the use of lasers and particle beams to
destroy incoming missiles from outer space
■ Dubbed “star wars” by the media
● Critics doubted that SDI would work, but claimed by increasing development, the United
States would force the Russians to build more offensive missiles in order to overcome the
American defense system
○ The Reagan administration defended SDI as a reliance on the threat of nuclear retaliation
to keep the peace
● While this was happening, the Soviets continued to deploy larger and more accurate landbased ICBMs
○ By this time, both countries nearly had fifty thousand warheads in their nuclear arsenals
Reagan and the World
Confrontation in Central America
● Central America was an area marked by great extremes of rich and poor,
because of this the United States had traditionally looked for moderate middleclass regimes to support
○ However, these were usually hard to find, so Washington often ended up
backing right-wing dictatorships instead of leftist groups that raised the
radical issues of land reform and redistribution of wealth
■ Oddly enough, it was usually United States supported regimes that
drove those seeking political change to embrace revolutionary tactics
● An example is Nicaragua
Reagan and the World
Confrontation in Central America
● Nicaragua 1979- the leftist Sandinista coalition finally succeeded in
overthrowing the authoritarian Somoza regime
○ Because of this, and because he wanted to strengthen middle-class
elements in the original Sandinista government to avoid Nicaragua joining
the Cubans and Soviets, Carter provided American aid
■ The Reagan administration wanted to stop this aid
● Spring 1981- Secretary of State Alexander Haig cut off financial aid to Nicaragua
○ He accused them, the Sandinistas, of driving out the moderates, welcoming
Cuban advisers and Soviet military assistance, and serving as a supply base
for leftist guerrillas in nearby El Salvador
Reagan and the World
Confrontation in Central America
● Because of the financial cut off, Nicaragua became more dependent on Cuba
and the Soviet Union
● April 1983- Reagan asks Congress for money and authority to oust the
Sandinistas
○ Congress refuses in fear of another Vietnam incident
● Reagan opted for covert action instead
○ The CIA began supplying the Contras, exiles fighting against the Sandinistas
from bases in Honduras and Costa Rica
■ U.S. backed rebels backed tried to disrupt the Nicaraguan economy,
raided villages, blew up oil tanks, and even mined harbors
● 1984- Congress passed the Boland Amendment which prohibited any U.S.
agency from spending money in Central America
Middle Eastern Hostility Areas
Reagan and the World
More Trouble in the Middle East
● April 1982- Israelis honored Camp David pledge by making their final
withdrawal from Sinai
○ Reagan hoped to achieve the Camp David objective of providing a
homeland for the Palestinian Arabs on the West Bank, but Israel instead
continued to extend Jewish settlements into the dispute area
■ The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was a major obstacle to
further progress
● June 6, 1982- Israel invaded southern Lebanon
○ The goal was to secure the northern border and destroy the PLO
● Reagan administration joined in with France and Italy in sending a multinational
force to permit the PLO to evacuate Tunisia
○ Subsequently, the United States became involved in the Lebanese civil war
Reagan and the World
More Trouble in the Middle East
● Marines became entangled in the renewed hostilities between Muslim and Christian militias
○ The Muslims believed the Marines were aiding the Christian dominated government of
Lebanon
■ Because of this, they began to fire at American troops
● In face of growing congressional demands for the withdrawal of the marines, Reagan
declared they were to protect Lebanon from the designs of Soviet-backed Syria
● After 239 Marines were killed by after a terrorist attack involving a truck loaded with
explosives, Reagan saw no option other than pulling out the troops
● Late February 1984- The last American unit left Beirut
● Reagan’s humiliation in Lebanon is strikingly similar to Carter’s in Iran
Reagan and the World
Trading Arms for Hostages
● Reagan’s problems in the Middle East had little effect in preventing his reelection in 1984
○ Voters gave him credit for his curbing of inflation, revival of the economy, and
challenging of communism
● Democratic candidate Walter Mondale chose Representative Geraldine Ferraro as his
running mate
○ Ferraro was the first woman ever nominated for the vice presidency by a major party
● Reagan carried the popular vote in every state except Minnesota where Mondale was from
Reagan and the World
Trading Arms for Hostages
 After Reagan’s second inauguration, his administration’s policies in the Middle East and
Central America converged into the Iran-Contra affair
● Mid 1985- Robert McFarlane, as national security adviser, began a new initiative designed to
restore American influence in the Middle East
● Six Americans held hostage in Lebanon by groups thought to be loyal to Iran’s Ayatollah
Khomeini made McFarlane propose trading American antitank missiles to Iran in return for
the hostages’ release
○ The Iranians seemed willing to comply
● McFarlane relied heavily on Oliver North, a young marine lieutenant colonel assigned to the
National Security Council
○ North relied heavily on CIA director William Casey
Reagan and the World
Trading Arms for Hostages
● Casey saw the Iran initiative as an opportunity to use the NSC to mount the a
covert operation denied to the CIA by the post-1975 congressional oversight
policy
● Early 1986- John Poindexter replaced McFarlane as national security advisor
and allowed for Casey to persuade the president to start shipments of TOW
antitank missiles and HAWK anti-aircraft missiles to Iran
Reagan and the World
Reagan the Peacemaker
● Americans’ tolerance of Regan’s mistakes in the Iran-Contra affair resulted in
part from the progress he was making between U.S. and Soviet relations
○ In his second term, he became an advocate for cooperation with Moscow
● 1985- Mikhail Gorbachev assumes power of the Soviet Union
● Gorbachev was intent on improving relations with the United States
○ He created a policy focusing on perestroika (restructuring of the Soviet
economy and glasnost (political openness)
○ In order to carry out his new policies, he needed to take a break in the arms
race and a reduction in Cold War tensions
Gorbachev
Reagan and the World
Reagan the Peacemaker
● December 1987- After a series of summit meetings between Reagan and
Gorbachev, the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty was enacted
○ The treaty agreed to the removal and destruction of all intermediate-range
missiles in Europe
■ It was the most important arms-control agreement since SALT I of 1972
and raised hopes that the Cold War may soon be over
● During the president’s last year in office the Soviets cooperated with the United
States in pressuring Iran and Iraq to end their war
○ Most importantly, Gorbachev moved to end the war in Afghanistan
■ April 1988- the first Soviets pulled out and where on the path to be
completely pulled out by early 1989
Feature Essay
The Christian Right
● 1979- Reverend Jerry Falwell feels God calling him
● He believes God tells him to “enlist the good people
of America” in a crusade to battle permissiveness and
moral decay
● He invited Roman Catholics, Jews, Protestants,
Mormons, and even non-religious conservatives to
join his “Moral Majority”