American history (Full all chapters) Summary
Chapter 30 : The Reagan Revolution and the End of the Cold War, 1980-2001
Download 0.9 Mb.
|
- Navigate this page:
- Sandra Day OConnor nominated to Supreme Court
- 1984 Geraldine Ferraro becomes first woman on major party ticket
- United States becomes a debtor nation
- Mikhail Gorbachev takes power in USSR
- Simpson-Mazzoli Immigration Act
- 1988 George Bush elected president
- Political revolutions in Eastern Europe
- 1990-1991 Persian Gulf crisis
- 1991 Dissolution of Soviet Union ends Cold War
- Earth Summit at Rio de Janeiro
- 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act
- 1994 Omnibus Violent Crime Control and Prevention Act
- Health care reform fails
- 1995 United States establishes diplomatic relations with Vietnam
- U.S. troops enforce peace in Bosnia
Chapter 30 : The Reagan Revolution and the End of the Cold War, 1980-20011981 Economic Recovery Tax ActArguably the most important legislation of the Reagan years, this act cut income tax rates 25 percent over three years and introduced indexing of tax brackets to protect taxpayers from automatic rate increases when inflation caused wages and salaries to rise. Sandra Day O'Connor nominated to Supreme CourtPresident Reagan nominated O'Connor associate justice of the Supreme Court, the first woman ever named to the high court. Beginning of AIDS epidemicThe acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) was first identified and its cause was soon determined to be the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which is transmitted through the exchange of infected bodily fluids such as semen or blood. 1981-1983 RecessionIn its successful effort to control inflation, the Federal Reserve tightened the money supply. The move did control the rate of inflation, but it also drove the economy into a recession that raised unemployment to 10.7 percent, the highest level since the Great Depression. 1983 Star Wars proposedFormally named the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), this program called for development of a system of land- and space-based lasers and other high-tech weapons to protect the United States from missile attacks. The derogatory nickname, from the popular science fiction movie of that title, was originally used by the program's critics. 1984 Geraldine Ferraro becomes first woman on major party ticketDemocratic nominee Walter Mondale chose Congresswoman Ferraro of New York as the vice-presidential candidate on the Democratic slate. 1985 Gramm-Rudman Balanced Budget ActThe full name of this legislation, the Gramm-Rudman Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Reduction Control Act, indicates its objectives. The bill called for specific funding cuts, to go into effect automatically, if a balanced budget were not achieved by 1991. The 1991 budget was not balanced, but the cuts did not go into effect. United States becomes a debtor nationAs a consequence of buying more goods abroad and the federal budget deficit, the United States, for the first time since 1915, owed more to overseas creditors than it was owed. The United States would soon accumulate the world's largest foreign debt. Mikhail Gorbachev takes power in USSRGorbachev initiated a relaxation of Soviet control over Eastern Europe, as well as substantial restructuring of the USSR's communist system. He and President Reagan collaborated to reduce tensions between the two superpowers, especially by agreements to destroy an existing category of nuclear weapons. 1986 Iran-Contra affairU.S. government arms sales to Iran in exchange for the release of hostages, and diversion of some of the profits from those sales to support the Contras, fighting in Nicaragua, were made public. These actions, illegal and unconstitutional, were investigated by a special prosecutor and grand jury, as well as by congressional committees. Although Reagan's presidency was weakened, there were few calls for his impeachment. Simpson-Mazzoli Immigration ActThis first major revision of immigration laws since 1965 attempted to establish a fair entry process. It was later amended to expand the number of immigrants admitted, give priority to skilled workers, and unify families. 1987 Montreal environmental protocolThirty-four nations agreed to phase out ozone-damaging chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) by 1999. 1988 George Bush elected presidentReagan's vice-president defeated Massachusetts' Democratic governor, Michael Dukakis, in a campaign notable for harsh, negative, sometimes deceptive campaign advertising. 1989 Savings and loan crisisThe collapse of commercial real-estate markets in the late 1980s led to the failure of many savings and loan banks. The government, which had insured S & L deposits, had to make good the losses, which eventually cost taxpayers $150 billion. Political revolutions in Eastern EuropeGermans demolished the Berlin Wall, as other countries in Eastern Europe broke or substantially loosened their ties with the Soviet Union and sought to reconstruct their political and economic systems. Webster v. Reproductive Health ServicesAlthough this Supreme Court decision did not overturn Roe v. Wade, it did permit states to restrict abortion and suggested to many the direction in which the increasingly conservative Court was moving on the abortion issue. 1990-1991 Persian Gulf crisisIn response to the invasion and occupation of Kuwait by Iraq in August 1990, President Bush organized a United Nations military mission and, after a spectacularly brief and successful forty-two-day war, forced Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait. The apparently easy victory led to a national euphoria that later faded, in part because economic difficulties persisted. 1990-1992 RecessionThis recession was caused by the deficit, the national debt, the savings and loan crisis, and the resulting loss of consumer confidence. Unemployment increased, which caused more Americans to fall below the poverty line. State and local governments were unable to continue to support previous levels of social welfare services and found themselves in difficult economic straits. 1991 Dissolution of Soviet Union ends Cold WarA failed military coup against Mikhail Gorbachev in the USSR led to the collapse of the Soviet system and the breakup of the Soviet Union into several separate republics. Clarence Thomas-Anita Hill hearingsIn hearings to confirm Clarence Thomas as associate justice of the Supreme Court, law professor Anita Hill accused Thomas of having made improper sexual advances while he was her boss. The Senate confirmed Thomas by a narrow margin. 1992 Los Angeles riotsThe acquittal of police officers videotaped beating a black motorist led to an outbreak of violence in Los Angeles that lasted for several days, causing many deaths and the destruction of millions of dollars' worth of property. Earth Summit at Rio de JaneiroThis meeting produced an international agreement on global warming. Bill Clinton elected presidentCalling for a revitalization of the economy and a new Democratic agenda, Arkansas governor Bill Clinton won the presidency in a three-way race against President George Bush and Texas software billionaire H. Ross Perot. Clinton, forty-six years old when he took office, was the first president of the baby-boom generation. 1993 Family and Medical Leave ActClinton signed this bill, after Bush had vetoed it twice, calling for unpaid leave for employees in case of births, adoptions, or medical emergencies in their families. NAFTA ratifiedThis agreement (the North American Free Trade Agreement) called for the establishment of a free trade zone covering all of North America. Supported by business, the agreement drew opposition from labor groups fearing low-wage foreign competition for jobs, and from environmentalists concerned with weaker pollution controls in Mexico. 1994 Omnibus Violent Crime Control and Prevention ActAs the economy improved, crime became one of voters' principal concerns. This bill provided for stepped-up law-enforcement funding, crime prevention, and prison construction, for control over the sale and possession of some assault weapons, and for the expansion of the death penalty. Health care reform failsResponding to increasing anxiety about rising health care costs, the Clinton administration proposed a complex reform plan. Opposed by pharmaceutical and insurance interests, the plan, developed under the leadership of Hillary Rodham Clinton, failed to pass the Senate. Republicans gain control of Congress
|