Apush key terms unit 1

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

1990 civil rights law prohibiting discrimination against individuals with disabilities in public life.

Barry Goldwater

Unsuccessful 1964 presidential candidate; considered the grandfather of the modern conservative movement.

Bill Clinton

U.S. President (1993-2001); centrist Democrat, passed NAFTA, welfare reform, and was impeached.

Camp David Accords (1979)

Peace agreement between Israel and Egypt brokered by President Jimmy Carter.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Desegregated public accommodations and prohibited job discrimination based on race or sex.

Contract with America

1994 GOP document led by Newt Gingrich promising ten conservative policy reforms if they won Congress.

Crisis of Confidence (Malaise) Speech

1979 televised address by President Carter criticizing a weak national spirit.

Deregulation

The cutting back of federal regulation of industry, prominent under President Reagan in the 1980s.

Earl Warren

Chief Justice (1953-1969) leading landmark racial, social, and political rulings like school desegregation.

George H.W. Bush

U.S. President (1989-1993); promised 'no new taxes,' won the Persian Gulf War, lost reelection due to recession.

George McGovern

Unsuccessful 1972 Democratic presidential candidate advocating immediate withdrawal from Vietnam.

George W. Bush

U.S. President (2001-2009); 'compassionate conservatism,' defined by the War on Terror following 9/11.

George Wallace

Alabama governor and segregationist third-party presidential candidate in 1968 and 1972.

Gerald Ford

U.S. President (1974-1977) who served without being elected, taking office after Nixon's resignation.

Geraldine Ferraro

First woman on a major party's presidential ticket as Walter Mondale's 1984 running mate.

Great Society

Lyndon Johnson's social and economic program including Medicare, Medicaid, and civil rights legislation.

Henry Kissinger

Advisor to Nixon and Ford; architect of the Vietnam settlement and diplomatic opening to China.

Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1965

Ended nationality-based immigration quotas, opening the U.S. to non-European immigrants.

Iran Hostage Crisis (1979-1981)

52 Americans held for 444 days by Iranian radicals at the U.S. embassy.

Iran-Contra Affair (1986-1987)

Reagan administration scandal involving secret arms sales to Iran to fund Nicaraguan Contras.

Jimmy Carter

U.S. President (1977-1981); achieved Camp David Accords but faced the Iran Hostage Crisis.

Lyndon Johnson

U.S. President (1963-1969); enacted the Great Society but heavily escalated the Vietnam War.

New Left

1960s political radicals supporting civil rights and opposing American foreign policy in Vietnam.

No Child Left Behind

2000s education reform calling for state accountability, mandatory testing, and school options.

Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)

1990 law providing for the protection and return of Native American human remains and cultural objects.

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

Free trade agreement between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada championed by Bill Clinton.

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

Cartel of oil-exporting nations that used oil embargoes to impact the U.S. economy in the 1970s.

Persian Gulf War (Operation Desert Storm)

Successful 1991 international coalition military campaign to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi control.

Richard Nixon

U.S. President (1969-1974); opened relations with China, exited Vietnam, and resigned due to Watergate.

Roe v. Wade (1973)

Supreme Court ruling protecting first-trimester abortions under the right to privacy.

Ronald Reagan

U.S. President (1981-1989); conservative leader focused on supply-side economics and anti-communism.

Sandra Day O'Connor

Appointed by Reagan, she became the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

September 11, 2001

Coordinated al Qaeda terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Silent Majority

Nixon's term for middle-class Americans who supported him and opposed 1960s counterculture protests.

Stagflation

1970s economic condition characterized by rapid inflation and stagnant economic growth/unemployment.

Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)

Proposed missile defense system popularly known as 'Star Wars' during the Reagan administration.

Sunbelt

The warm climate region of the South and Southwest experiencing a population boom since the late 1970s.

Supply-side economics (Reaganomics)

Reagan's policy of budget and large tax cuts to stimulate private investment, savings, and jobs.

Thurgood Marshall

NAACP lead attorney in Brown v. Board and the first Black Supreme Court Justice.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

Outlawed literacy tests and expanded federal protection of voters and voter registration.

War on Terror

Global antiterrorism campaign launched after 9/11, including the Patriot Act and Afghanistan war.

Warren Burger

Chief Justice (1969-1986); conservative court that still upheld abortion rights and ordered Watergate tapes surrendered.

Watergate scandal

Nixon administration political scandal involving a break-in and cover-up, leading to his resignation.

agenda

An underlying (often ideological) plan or program.

bureaucracy

A body of non-elected government officials involved in the administration of policy.

coalition

Groups allied for a common purpose.

constituency

Those being represented by an elected official or group.

deficit

A shortage; an excess of spending over revenue.

demographic

Characteristics relating to population.

discrimination

To show partiality or prejudice in treatment.

entitlement

The belief that one is deserving of certain privileges or benefits.

fiscal

Relating to public revenue or public debt.

ideology

A set of beliefs or principles.

inflation

A general increase in prices and fall in purchasing value of money.

marginalized

Relegated to a lower social standing; lacking power.

polarization

A division into two sharply contrasting groups or sets of opinions.

proliferation

A rapid increase in the number or amount of something.

radical

One who wants immediate, extreme political or social change.

reactionary

One who wants to return to an idealized past political or social state.

socioeconomic

Relating to a combination of social and economic factors like class and wealth.

surplus

The amount that remains when use or need is satisfied; excess.