Introducton to American History
Donbonano
1104_AmericanHistoryComb_9e_321.pptxChapter 32: America at the Turn of the Millennium
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Learning Objectives
Explain the platform of Bill Clinton as a “New Democrat.”
Discuss the setbacks for the Clinton Agenda in his first term.
Evaluate the Gingrich Revolution and the Contract with America.
Discuss Bill Clinton’s policies in Iraq. How were they different from his successor, George W. Bush?
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Learning Objectives (Continued)
Discuss the Monica Lewinsky scandal and the impeachment of President Clinton. Was the President guilty of any crime that merited impeachment and removal from office? Is the President’s sex life the business of the Congress and the American people?
Discuss the improprieties in the election of 2000. Did the Supreme Court make the right decision?
Explain the domestic agenda of George W. Bush.
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Learning Objectives (Continued)
Discuss President Bush’s reaction to 9/11 and the erosion of liberties that accompanied his reaction. Were the erosions of liberties constitutional and justified?
Discuss the response of the Bush administration to Hurricane Katrina.
Discuss the election of 2008, including the reasons for the victory of America’s first African American President, Barack Obama.
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32.1a The Clinton Years
The Election of 1992
George H.W. Bush’s approval ratings fell with recession.
Bill Clinton emerged as a “New Democrat” (pro-business and conservative social policies).
Bush was challenged by Pat Buchanan in the primaries.
Ross Perot entered the race as a Third Party candidate.
Clinton won election plurality; Ross Perot supporters were divided in polls over whom they might have supported if Perot were not in the race.
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32.1b Clinton Takes Charge
President Clinton brought youthful vigor to the presidency.
Clinton stressed diversity.
Janet Reno was appointed as the first female attorney general.
Clinton’s policies were limited by the lack of a mandate.
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32.1c Setbacks for the Clinton Agenda
Became controversial almost immediately
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy on homosexuality in the military was unpopular.
Clinton’s attempt to reform health care, headed by First Lady Hillary Clinton, failed.
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32.1d The “Gingrich Revolution” and Clinton’s Comeback
Republicans won both Houses in 1994 elections.
Rush Limbaugh’s popular radio show lambasted President Clinton and the Democrats.
A majority of Americans disagreed with the majority of Gingrich’s Contract with America.
Clinton moved to the right with “The Era of Big Government Is Over” campaign.
Clinton signed welfare reform and Defense of Marriage Act.
Clinton attacked the budget deficit.
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32.1e Election of 1996
Eight Republicans announced their candidacy for the presidency.
Republicans nominated Bob Dole of Kansas.
Bob Dole campaigned on tax cut cuts
Dole named supply-side economics advocate Jack Kemp as his running mate.
Ross Perot again ran as Third Party candidate.
Democrats painted Dole as mean spirited.
Clinton won with largest gender gap in history.
Economy was booming.
Republicans harmed themselves with their attempted shutdown of government in the budget battle.
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32.1f Clinton and the World
For the most part, Clinton continued Bush’s foreign policy.
President Clinton pushed NAFTA.
Dayton Accords brought peace to Bosnia.
Clinton promoted peace in Palestine with Oslo Accords.
Clinton pushed, with sanctions and bombings, for a regime change in Iraq.
Clinton aided rebel groups in Iraq with little success.
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32.1f Clinton and the World (Continued)
Clinton’s town hall meetings on Iraq engendered little support for an invasion.
The Somalia operation went bad with death and capture of Americans by Somali warlords.
The US negotiated the release of captives and pulled out of Somalia.
Clinton did nothing to stop genocide in Rwanda.
Clinton sent troops to Haiti to support the winner of an election.
Clinton bombed Serbia to end ethnic cleansing in Kosovo.
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32.1g Clinton’s Iraq Policy
Clinton announced policy of “dual containment,” which meant containing not only Iran but also Iraq.
The policy called for a “regime change” in Iraq.
Missile attacks were launched on Baghdad in June 1993.
Sanctions were continued against Iraq, and there were additional attacks in 1996.
In 2003, George W. Bush announced an invasion of Iraq to destroy its WMDs (weapons of mass destruction).
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32.1h Somalia
Clinton inherited an obligation to support humanitarian efforts in Somalia.
Thousands of Somalis were saved, but the efforts left many Americans reluctant to engage in other foreign conflicts, such as the violence in Rwanda.
Ethnic cleansing in Kosovo prompted American air strikes.
In 1999, the US and NATO launched bombing campaign against Serbia.
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32.1i Terrorism: At Home and Abroad
Numerous acts of domestic terrorism
Right-wing Christian fundamentalist Timothy McVeigh blew up federal building in Oklahoma City, killing 168.
Branch Davidians in Waco shot federal agents, who served warrants, and eventually commit mass suicide by fire.
Muslim extremists, led by Sheikh Omar Abdul Rahman, blew up World Trade Center.
Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden involved with the US-aided Mujahadeen in Afghanistan.
Nairobi and Dar es Salaam bombings in 1998 were backed by Al Qaeda.
Clinton responded with cruise missile attacks, but did not get Bin Laden.
Republicans criticized Clinton’s attack on Al Shifa plant in Sudan.
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32.1j Computers and the Internet
Computer industry and the Internet boomed.
Internet became the source of information and entertainment for millions of Americans.
Online businesses emerged.
Investors flocked to fund Internet start-ups.
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32.1k The “Trial of the Century”
The Trial of the Century involved ex-football star O.J. Simpson.
O.J. Simpson was accused of murdering his wife.
In the televised, highly public trial evidence seems overwhelming against Simpson.
Evidence that Los Angeles policeman Mark Furman used racial slurs was admitted.
Simpson was acquitted.
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32.1l A White House Besieged
Republican Congress launched investigation of Whitewater investment deal involving the Clintons prior to Clinton’s presidency
Clinton’s business partner James McDougal was indicted in a check fraud case, but no wrongdoing was attributed to the Clintons.
Kenneth Starr headed the investigation.
Questions surrounding the suicide of Vince Foster, a long-time friend of the Clintons, arose.
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32.1l A White House Besieged (Continued)
Paula Jones filed a sexual harassment lawsuit with dubious evidence.
Supreme Court allowed Jones’ case to proceed.
Kenneth Starr was allowed to investigate Jones case as part of Whitewater.
Starr was allowed to investigate the Monica Lewinsky scandal as part of Jones’ case.
Clinton committed perjury concerning his illicit sexual encounters with Lewinsky.
President Clinton was impeached for perjury and obstruction of justice, but the Senate failed to convict.
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32.1m Hillary Rodham Clinton as First Lady
President’s infidelities earned sympathy for her.
A polarizing figure, she was admired by some for her accomplishments and seen by others as a power-hungry feminist.
Hillary Clinton was elected as senator from New York following her husband’s presidency.
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32.2a A Second Bush Presidency
Election of 2000
Republicans nominated George W. Bush with Dick Cheney as his running mate.
Democrats nominated Vice President Al Gore with Joseph Lieberman as his running mate.
Election night brought no clear winner.
Florida election was in dispute.
Gore’s name was involved in 46,000 over-votes while Bush’s name was involved in 17,000.
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32.2a The Election of 2000 (Continued)
Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris paid Database Technologies to drop “suspected felons” from voter roles despite warnings that qualified voters would also be deleted.
Bush sent list of suspected felons from Texas to Florida.
Bush sued to stop recounts.
Supreme Court intervened to stop recounts and gave election to Bush.
Ralph Nader received 90,000 votes that might have gone to Gore.
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32.2b The Bush Domestic Agenda
Conservative agenda
Tax cuts that fall disproportionately on the wealthy
No Child Left Behind Act
Proposed drilling in ANWR
Faith-based Initiatives based on “compassionate conservatism”
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32.2c 9/11 and the American Response
Worst terrorist attacks in US history
3,000 died in terrorist attacks.
Al Qaeda was responsible.
Bush vowed to hunt down terrorists.
No distinction was made between terrorists and nations that harbor them.
Congress eroded civil liberties with United States PATRIOT Act.
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32.2d The War in Iraq
Bush also had his eyes on Iraq.
Bush turned attention to Iraq’s WMDs.
International opinion generally opposed Iraq invasion.
Rumsfeld ignored troop strength advise of US generals.
Bush administration failed to anticipate an insurgency.
Saddam was ousted and executed.
Iraq devolved into chaos.
American prisoner abuse was exposed at Abu Ghraib.
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32.2e The Election of 2004
Election revolved around 9/11 and its consequences.
Bush withstood challenge of John McCain for Republican nomination.
Bush used disreputable “push polling” in South Carolina.
Democrats nominated John Kerry.
Republicans ran Swift Boat Veterans for Truth ads, slandering Kerry’s war record.
Bush followed Matthew Dowd’s polarizing strategy.
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32.2f Second-Term Blues
Bush’s popularity declined dramatically in his second term.
War in Iraq diminished Bush’s popularity.
Republican House Speaker Tom DeLay was ousted in scandals.
Inadequate response to Hurricane Katrina diminished Bush’s popularity.
Both wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continued with no end in sight.
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32.2g The Election of 2008
Barack Obama became first African American president.
Recession that began in 2008 was a major factor in the campaign.
Bush’s missteps had tainted the Republican party.
His opponent, John McCain, chose Sarah Palin as his running mate.
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32.2h Obama in the White House
Obama stabilized the economy in his first year in office.
The Affordable Care Act provided health care for millions of Americans who otherwise would not have had it.
President Obama’s approval ratings declined in 2010, following the explosion of BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.
Republicans won stunning midterm victories in 2010.
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32.2i Obama’s War on Terror and the Death of Bin Laden
Obama inherited the War on Terror.
In May 2011, Osama bin Laden was killed by US Navy Seals.
Obama also stepped up attacks on other terrorist leaders, often using drones.
In September 2012, the US embassy in Libya was attacked, and the US ambassador was killed.
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32.2j The Election of 2012
Obama swept ten of eleven “battleground” states in the election.
Mitt Romney was hindered by a long primary struggle.
The rise of the Tea Party drove middle voters, women, and minorities to vote Democratic.
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32.2k Budget Wars
Obama was reelected in the midst of a severe recession.
Budget battle erupted between Obama and Republicans in Congress over the “fiscal cliff.”
Crisis was averted when Congress signed the American Taxpayer Relief Act.
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