Albright Chapter 39

Vietnamization

Nixon's policy involving the gradual withdrawal of American troops from Vietnam while the South Vietnamese army took over the full military effort.

nixon doctrine

It stated that the United States would honor its exisiting defense commitments, but in the future other countries would have to fight their own wars without support of American troops.

Silent Majority

People who secretly supported the war. A phrase used to describe people, whatever their economic status, who uphold traditional values, especially against the counterculture of the 1960s

my lai massacre

American troops had brutally massacred innocent women and children in the village of My Lai, also led to more opposition to the war.

kent state univerity

massive student protest led to the burning of the ROTC building

Pentagon Papers

A 7,000-page top-secret United States government report on the history of the internal planning and policy-making process within the government itself concerning the Vietnam War.

dentente

The flexible policy, involving a willingness to negotiate and an easing of tensions, that was adopted by President Richard Nixon and his adviser Henry Kissinger in their dealings with communist nations

miranda warning

A series of statements informing criminal suspects, on their arrest, of their constitutional rights, such as the right to remain silent and the right to counsel: required by Supreme Court's 1966 decision in Miranda v. Arizona

philadelphia plan

Program established by Richard Nixon to require construction trade unions to work toward hiring more black apprentices. The plan altered Lyndon Johnson's concept of "affirmative action" to focus on groups rather than individuals.

Environmental Protection Agency

an independent federal agency established to coordinate programs aimed at reducing pollution and protecting the environment

Earth Day

A holiday conceived of by environmental activist and Senator Gaylord Nelson to encourage support for and increase awareness of environmental concerns; first celebrated on March 22, 1970

Southern Strategy

Nixon's plan to persuade conservative southern white voters away from the Democratic party by slowing down civil rights

war powers act

Act that grants emergency executive powers to president to run war effort

watergate

The events and scandal surrounding a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in 1972 and the subsequent cover-up of White House involvement, leading to the eventual resignation of President Nixon under the threat of impeachment.

"smoking gun" tape

Recording made in the Oval Office in June 1972 that proved conclusively that Nixon knew about the Watergate break-in and endeavored to cover it up. Led to a complete breakdown in congressional support for Nixon after the Supreme Court ordered he hand the tape to investigators.

Equal Rights Amendment

constitutional amendment passed by Congress but never ratified that would have banned discrimination on the basis of gender

Roe v Wade

(1973) legalized abortion on the basis of a woman's right to privacy

malaise speech

National address by Jimmy Carter in July 1979 in which the President chided American materialism and urged a communal spirit in the face of economic hardships. Although Carter intended the speech to improve both public morale and his standings as a leader, it had the opposite effect and was widely perceived as a political disaster for the embattled president.

SALT II

Additional arms limitations signings in 1979 which places limits on long-range missiles, bombers and nuclear warheads.

Iranian Hostage Crisis

Iranian fundamentalists seized the American embassy in Tehran and held fifty-three American diplomats hostage for over a year. weakened the Carter presidency; the hostages were finally released on January 20, 1981, the day Ronald Reagan became president.

henry kissinger

The main negotiator of the peace treaty with the North Vietnamese; secretary of state during Nixon's presidency (1970s).

warren burger

the Supreme Court justice durning the Nixon admistration. He was chosen by Nixon because of his strict interpretation of the Constitution. He presided over the extremly controversal case of abortion in Roe vs. Wade.

rachel carson

United States biologist remembered for her opposition to the use of pesticides that were hazardous to wildlife (1907-1964)

george mcgovern

A Senator from South Dakota who ran for President in 1972 on the Democrat ticket. His promise was to pull the remaining American troops out of Vietnam in ninety days which earned him the support of the Anti-war party, and the working-class supported him, also. He lost however to Nixon.

gerald ford

1974-1977, Republican, first non elected president and VP, he pardoned Nixon

john dean III

He was a former white house lawyer that testified about the involvement of the top levels of the White House. He talked of the president, the Watergate cover-up and accused the president of violating justice. His claims were later supported by Nixon's tape recordings.

Jimmy Carter

Created the Department of Energy and the Depatment of Education. He was criticized for his return of the Panama Canal Zone, and because of the Soviet war in Afghanistan, he enacted an embargo on grain shipments to USSR and boycotted the 1980 Olympics in Moscow and his last year in office was marked by the takeover of the American embassy in Iran, fuel shortages, and the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan, which caused him to lose to Ronald Regan in the next election.

Leonid Brezhnev

Seized power from Nikita Khrushchev and became leader of the Soviet Communist party in 1964. Ordered forces in to Afghanistan and Czechoslovakia.