1. The 1980s: Politics
The Presidencies of Ronald Reagan and George
H.W. Bush

2. The Demographic of the 1980s
 Reagan ran for President in 1980
 In 1980, the average American was older than in the
60s and more likely to live in the South and West
 By now, Americans were suspicious of federal power
 Many New Right activists (Part of a movement in
response to countercultural protests of the 1960s.
Most were evangelical Christians.) weren’t really
worried about economic activities anymore. The group
was worried about the culture of the nation.
-Abortion, pornography, homosexuality, feminism
and affirmative action were frowned upon.
-New Right activists were also crusaders of
prayer in schools and greater penalties for crimes.

3. Reagan’s Stance
 President Reagan naturally sided with the New Right
on social issues
 He denounced the activist government and social
engineering of the 60s
 Reagan championed the common man against big
government

4. Reagan’s Stance Cont.
 Similar to the Brain Trust of FDR, Reagan drew on
the ideas of “neoconservatives”.
-This group, along with President
Reagan, advocated free market capitalism and took
anti-soviet positions in foreign policy
-They also questioned welfare programs and
policies that ensure equality *
-Reagan and the neoconservatives also wanted
traditional values of individualism and centrality
of family re-established

5. The Second Term
 Reagan was very confident with his chances at
winning a second term because the economy was doing
well and the people loved him.
 He won the nomination in 1984
 His opponent, Walter Mondale, made history by naming
his VP Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro, who was the
first woman to appear on a major presidential ticket
 On election day, Ronald Reagan swept the nation
winning everywhere but Minnesota and D.C.

6. Second Term Key Issues
 In President Reagan’s second term, the main topic
was foreign policy.
 The Soviet Union had just elected a new
leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, who proposed 2 policies:
-“openness” which was aimed to allow “air” into
the Soviet society by bringing about free speech
and some political freedom
-“restructuring” which was supposed to revive
the bad economy by adopting free-market practices
 Both policies required the Soviets to greatly
reduce military size and redirect attention to the
economy

7. Second Term Key Issues Cont.
 The Cold War had to end and Gorbachev extended a
hand to do so by announcing, in 1985, that the
Soviets wouldn’t fire any immediate range nuclear
forces (INF) toward Western Europe
 Reagan and Gorbachev met in four summit meetings
to discuss this plan
 At the third meeting, the two agreed on policy
and signed the INF treaty which didn’t allow any
immediate-range nuclear missiles from Europe

8. George H.W. Bush
 In 1986, the Republicans lost the majority in the
Senate, which was a hopeful sign to Democrats that
the Reagan administration might finally be turning
weaker
 For Presidency, the Democrats nominated Michael
Dukakis who was a former Massachusetts governor
-Front-runner on the Democratic ticket, Senator Gary Hart from
Colorado, was forced to drop out of the race because of
sexual misconduct charges
 The Republicans nominated George H.W. Bush who had
been President Reagan’s vice president
-George H.W. Bush ran on Reagan’s previous activities such as
tax cuts, strong defense policies, toughness on crime, anti-
abortion views, etc.

9. George H.W. Bush and the First
Months
 Bush won the race with about 6 million more votes
than his competitor
 At the beginning of his presidency it seemed that
the whole world was out to achieve democracy for
their governments, especially China (although
China’s government suppressed the prodemocracy
movement with vicious tactics)
-Communist governments everywhere collapsed,
which meant an end to the Cold War after 45 years

10. The First Months Cont.
 The collapse of the USSR was an astonishing event in
the short months after Bush’s election
-When the USSR broke up, the 40 plus years of
tension between the nuclear powers of the United
States and the USSR went away

11. Bush and the Persian Gulf
 In 1990, Saddam Hussein invaded the tiny country of
Kuwait because Iraq needed money to pay for the war
it had just ended with Iran
 The U.N. security council demanded that Saddam leave
Kuwait by January 15, 1991 or force would be used to
expel him from the nation
 The U.S. and 28 other countries sent about 800
thousand troops to the Persian Gulf
-Efforts to resolve the issue failed, and Congress voted to use
force to remove Hussein

12. Bush and the Persian Gulf Cont.
 Operation Desert Storm commenced in late February
-U.N. forces rapidly headed deep into
Iraq, which cut of the enemy’s capability of
retreating or getting reinforcements
-The Allies had few casualties, however Iraq
struggled with the loss of most of its troops
-On February 27, just four days after Desert
Storm began, Saddam Hussein waved the white flag and
Kuwait was set free

13. President Bush and the Home
Front
 He signed the Americans with Disabilities Act in
1990, which was a law prohibiting discrimination
against disabled Americans
 Bush also brought into law a water projects bill
that put environmental issues in front of
agricultural ones
 He angered Americans with his actions in education
(challenged legality of college scholarships that
were given to minorities) and civil rights (warned
that he would veto bills making it easier for people
to see if they were being discriminated against in
the workplace)

14. President Bush and the Home
Front Cont.
 President Bush ended his term with a poor economy
(even though it had struggled since day 1 of his
administration), over 7% unemployment and a huge
federal budget deficit that was $250 billion bigger
every year he was president
 Bush did not get re-elected, and William Clinton was
put into office next