Allinson Ch 36 Vocab

Proposition 13

A successful California state ballot initiative that capped the state’s real estate tax at 1 percent of assessed value. The proposition radically reduced average property tax levels, decreasing revenue for the state government and signaling the political power of the “tax revolt,” increasingly aligned with conservative politics.

Boll Weevils

Term for conservative Southern Democrats who voted increasingly for Republican issues during the Carter and Reagan administrations.

Supply-Side Economics

Economic theory that underlay Ronald Reagan’s tax and spending cuts. Contrary to Keynesianism, supply-side theory declared that government policy should aim to increase the supply of goods and services, rather than the demand for them. It held that lower taxes and decreased regulation would increase productivity by providing increased incentives to work, thus increasing productivity and the tax base.

Strategic Defense Initiative

Reagan administration plan announced in 1983 to create a missile-defense system over American territory to block a nuclear attack. Derided as “Star Wars” by critics, the plan typified Reagan’s commitment to vigorous defense spending even as he sought to limit the size of government in domestic matters.

Sandinistas

Leftwing anti-American revolutionaries in Nicaragua who launched a civil war in 1979.

Contras

Anti-Sandinista fighters in the Nicaraguan civil war. The ______ were secretly supplied with American military aid, paid for with money the United States clandestinely made selling arms to Iran.

Glasnost

Meaning “openness,” a cornerstone along with perestroika of Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev’s reform movement in the USSR in the 1980s. These policies resulted in greater market liberalization, access to the West, and ultimately the end of communist rule.

Perestroika

Meaning “restructuring,” a cornerstone along with glasnost of Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev’s reform movement in the USSR in the 1980s. These policies resulted in greater market liberalization, access to the West, and ultimately the end of communist rule.

Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty

Arms limitation agreement settled by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev after several attempts. The treaty banned all intermediate-range nuclear missiles from Europe and marked a significant thaw in the Cold War.

Iran-Contra Affair

Major political scandal of Ronald Reagan’s second term that was revealed in 1986. An illicit arrangement of selling “arms for hostages” with Iran and using money to support the contras in Nicaragua, the scandal deeply damaged Reagan’s credibility.

Moral Majority

Political action committee founded by evangelical Reverend Jerry Falwell in 1979 to promote traditional Christian values and oppose feminism, abortion, and gay rights. The group was a major linchpin in the resurgent religious right of the 1980s.

Black Monday

October 19, 1987. Date of the largest single-day decline in the Dow Jones Industrial Average until September 2001. The downturn indicated instability in the booming business culture of the 1980s but did not lead to a serious economic recession.

Operation Desert Storm

U.S.-led multicountry military engagement in January and February of 1991 that drove Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi army out of neighboring Kuwait. In addition to presaging the longer and more protracted Iraq War of the 2000s, the 1991 war helped undo what some called the “Vietnam Syndrome,” a feeling of military uncertainty that plagued many Americans.

American with Disabilities Act

Landmark law signed by President George H. W. Bush that prohibited discrimination against people with physical or mental handicaps. It represented a legislative triumph for champions of equal protections to all.

Ronald Reagan/Reagan

The 40th President who championed supply-side economics (______), deregulation, and a massive military buildup. He shifted the judiciary to the right and took a hardline stance against the Soviet Union, famously labeling it the "Evil Empire" before pivoting to diplomacy with Gorbachev to end the Cold War.

Margaret Thatcher/Thatcher

The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and a staunch political ally of Ronald Reagan. Her commitment to privatization, free-market capitalism, and a strong anti-communist stance mirrored Reagan’s policies, forming a "Special Relationship" that strengthened the Western alliance during the final decade of the Cold War.

Mikhail Gorbachev/Gorbachev

The final leader of the Soviet Union who introduced the radical reforms of Glasnost (openness) and Perestroika (restructuring). His willingness to negotiate arms reduction treaties with Reagan and his refusal to intervene in the 1989 Eastern European revolutions directly led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Saddam Hussein/Hussein

The dictator of Iraq whose 1990 invasion of Kuwait triggered the Persian Gulf War (Operation Desert Storm). Though he remained in power after his defeat by a U.S.-led coalition, his actions led to long-term American military involvement in the Middle East and the imposition of strict economic sanctions.

Jerry Falwell/Falwell

A fundamentalist Christian minister and founder of the Moral Majority (1979). He was a central figure in the Religious Right, mobilizing evangelical Christians as a potent political force to advocate for conservative social values, including opposition to abortion, the ERA, and gay rights.

Sandra Day O’Connor/O’Connor

Appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1981, she was the first woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice. Often a "swing vote," she was known for her judicial moderation and pragmatism, notably upholding the core of Roe v. Wade while allowing for state-level restrictions in Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

George H.W. Bush/Bush

The 41st President who presided over the end of the Cold War and the reunification of Germany. He is best known for leading the international coalition in the Persian Gulf War, though his domestic popularity suffered due to an economic recession and his broken campaign promise of "No new taxes."

Boris Yeltsin/Yeltsin

The first President of the Russian Federation following the 1991 dissolution of the Soviet Union. He famously stood atop a tank to defy a hardline communist coup attempt, symbolizing the transition toward a market economy and a (brief) era of democratic reform in Russia.

Nelson Mandela/Mandela

The leader of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa who was imprisoned for 27 years. After his release, he worked with the government to end apartheid and became the first Black president of South Africa in 1994, serving as a global symbol of reconciliation and human rights.

Manuel Noriega/Noriega

The military dictator of Panama and former CIA asset who was ousted during the U.S. invasion of Panama (Operation Just Cause) in 1989. His arrest on drug-trafficking charges was a key moment in George H.W. Bush’s "War on Drugs" and signaled a continued U.S. willingness to intervene in Latin America.

Clarence Thomas/Thomas

An associate justice of the Supreme Court appointed by George H.W. Bush to replace Thurgood Marshall. His 1991 confirmation hearings were dominated by allegations of sexual harassment by Anita Hill, sparking a national conversation on workplace harassment and gender politics