U.S History - Bush Era Test

Y2K

The panic on New Years Eve of 1999 when people thought the world was going to end (it didn’t).

Who was the President + Vice President in 2000 (before the 2000 election)

Bill Clinton + Al Gore

State of the economy in 2000:

• Unemployment drops to 3.8% - lowest since 1969

• Longest period of uninterrupted economic growth in US History: 108 months in a row

• Surging stock market led by new tech and internet companies

• Shrinking budget deficits, eventually turning into surpluses

Elian Gonzalez:  

• a 6 year-old boy whose mother died at sea fleeing Cuba in November, 1999.  

• After months of legal wrangling, federal marshals seized him and reunited him with his father in June, 2000

USS Cole:

• attacked by two Al Qaeda suicide bombers in Yemen; 17 killed and 39 injured

2000 Election:

Al Gore + Joe Lieberman V. George W. Bush + Dick Cheney

The florida recount:

• Florida was decided on Gore but took it back and left the election undecided

• Florida has new ballots that were confusing - messing up the votes

• Kathrine Harris was tasked with recounting the votes in Florida

• Florida was in favor of the recount - supreme court eventually stops recount from continuing

What did Gore do at 2am?

• Gore decided to concede - he placed a phone call to Bush

• TV networks announce Bush as the president but its still too close to call so Gore retracts his consession 

James Baker and Warren Christopher

former US secretaries of state

• Baker went to the supreme court

• Warren was a traditional lawyer- went by the rule book

Advantages of the Bush Campaign:

• Jeb Bush was governor of Florida

• George Bush’s campaign chair in Florida, Katherine Harris

Advantages of the Gore Campaign:

• miscounts in votes

• recount in Florida

David Boies and Ted Olsen:

• they ruled that there should not be a recount 

Bush V. Gore Supreme Court Case:

• Bush argued against the Florida recount

• Gore argued for the recount

• Recount was set to go forward, eventually the recount was stopped

• Bush wins the election

Key figures in the Bush Administration:

George W. Bush - President

Dick Cheney - Vice president

Colin Powell - Secretary of State

Condoleezza Rice - National Security Advisor

Donald Rumsfeld - Secretary of Defense

John Ashcroft - Attorney General

Bush’s Inaugural Adress:

• Wants a peaceful country with justice and opportunity

• Said Immigrants made our country more, not less American

• Confront weapons of mass destruction

• Americans in need are not strangers, they are citizens

Early months of the Bush Administration:

• a new office that will work to ease regulations on religious charities and promote grass-roots efforts to tackle community issues such as aid to the poor and disadvantaged.

• Announces decision to abandon ratification of the Kyoto Protocol

• Navy Spy plane collided with a Chinese fighter jet in international airspace

• Economy shows signs of a recession

• Dick Cheney released the administrations energy policy report - recommending expanded oil drilling, increased reliance on fossil fuels, and deregulation of energy industries

• Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 - Bush signs $1.35 trillion tax cut into law

• Begins month long vacation at his ranch in crawford TX - August 4

• Bush announced federal funds could be used for research on existing embryonic stem cell lines but not for the creation of new lines.

Pre 9/11 Warning Signs: 

• Noticed flight training programs in U.S  - teaching immigrants 

• CIA and NSA intercepts are warned of a spectacular attack by BIN Laden

• World news carried word of Bin Laden planning to strike U.S

• Al Qaeda attacked world trade already by ramming a truck with explosives into the building  

• Overall Suspicious activity

The Events of 9/11

• 8:46 am North Tower Struck

• 9;03 am South Tower Struck

• 9:37 am Pentagon Struck

• 9:59 am South Tower Collapses

• 10:07 am Flight 93 crashes in PA

• 10:28 am North Tower Collapses 

Bush Administration on 9/11

• Bush in florida visiting an elementary school

• Cheney authorizes military to shoot unresponsive planes down

• Air force one was diverted to Louisiana

• Bush held the 1st national security meeting in Nebraska via videoconference

• Later Bush returned to Washington DC address the Nation

The AUMF (Authorization to use military

force)

• granted the President the authority to use all

"necessary and appropriate force" against those

whom he determined "planned, authorized,

committed or aided" the September 11 attacks, or

who harbored them.

• This legislation became the legal basis for the “War

on Terror.”

• Passed by Congress on September 14, 2001 (420-1

in the House, 98-0 in the Senate). Signed into law by

President Bush on September 18, 2001

The anthrax attacks:

Sep 18, 2001 – Oct 9, 2001

• Letters with anthrax spores sent to

media organizations and two

Senators, Daschle and Leahy.

• 5 died; 17 infected.

• Investigation went on until 2008: a

government scientist named Bruce

Ivins was found to be responsible

(died by suicide before arrest).

The Bush Doctrine:

• preventive and preemptive war; unilateral

action. The United States had the right to secure itself against

countries that harbor or give aid to terrorist groups.

The Taliban

Sunni Islamic fundamentalists controlled Afghanistan

since 1996, enforcing Sharia law. The Taliban-controlled government

refused to turn over Bin Laden and Al Qaeda fighters.

The war in Afghanistan begins (October 7, 2001)

U.S. military forces launched airstrikes in Afghanistan, beginning the

military campaign against the Taliban regime and al-Qaeda. This

marked the beginning of the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan.

Operation Enduring Freedom” led by General Tommy Franks

Connect the Special Forces with CIA teams to clear the way for

troops.

• Intense bombing campaign.

• Humanitarian air drops to deliver relief to Afghan people.

• Ground invasion: France, Germany, Australia and Canada and, later, the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance rebels.

• Stabilize the country and help the Afghan people build a free society

Important dates/events of the Afghanistan War 

By November 12, the Taliban was forced to retreat from Kabul.

• By December, Kandahar, the last Taliban stronghold, had fallen.

• Bin Laden escaped from Tora Bora in December, 2001.

• Interim government organized under Hamid Karzai; elected President

in December, 2004, with 10,000 American troops remaining.

USA PATRIOT ACT

• Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing

Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct

Terrorism Act, quickly passed on October 26, 2001

• expanded the search and surveillance powers of the FBI:

  “sneak and peek,” increased surveillance of phone, email,

  web browsing, ”roving wiretaps,” more power to combat

  money laundering, facilitated cooperation among different

  government agencies

Why was the USA PATRIOT ACT controversial?

Did it violate the privacy protections of the 4th

Amendment because it permitted warrantless searches

and did not require notification of the target, even after

the search had taken place?

The FBI was able to conduct surveillance of U.S. citizens

without showing probable cause of criminal activity.

Were “sneak-and-peek searches” “unreasonable?”

Did it violate the 1st Amendment by imposed gag

orders without requiring any form of judicial review?

The creation of the TSA:

• Established in the Aviation

and Transportation

Security Act, which was

passed by Congress and

signed into law on

November 19, 2001.

• 55,000 screeners hired in a

few months; government

takes over airport security

from private contractors

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba detention camp timeline:

November 13, 2001: military tribunals to try non-US citizens fighting for al Qaeda; hold accused

terrorists at Guantanamo Bay.

January, 2002: the prison camp opens.

Established to detain extraordinarily dangerous people, to interrogate detainees in an optimal

setting, and to prosecute detainees for war crimes.

779 detainees officially recognized in the first few years

Controversy of the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba detention camp:

Violations of the legal rights of detainees under the Geneva Conventions and accusations of torture or abusive treatment of detainees by U.S. authorities.

Eventually hundreds of prisoners from several countries were held at the camp without charge and without the legal means to challenge their detentions

The camp was repeatedly condemned by international human rights and humanitarian organizations

NSA surveillance program:

• Bush secretly authorized the NSA to monitor the international telephone calls and emails of American citizens and others in the United States without first obtaining an order from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.

• the administration insisted that it was justified by a

September 2001 joint Congressional resolution that authorized

the president to use “all necessary and appropriate force”

against those responsible for the September 11 attacks.

• Legislation granting immunity and expanding the NSA’s

surveillance powers was finally passed by Congress and signed

by Bush in July 2008

The Homeland Security Act

• The Homeland Security Act led to the creation of DHS, consolidating several agencies (e.g., FEMA, the TSA, the Coast Guard) to better coordinate efforts to prevent and respond to terrorism.

• Enhance preparedness and response efforts and to integrate these efforts with prevention work

Arguments for the Iraq War:

• The U.S believed Iraq had weapons of mass destruction

• Continuous threats the United States

• Did not want to appear as weak or “backing down” 

• US thought Saddam Hussein helped orchestrate the 9/11 attacks. - Also Saddam Hussein was abusing his power and treating his own citizens horribly

Arguments against the Iraq War

• The US will upset their allies which they need right now

• It is not confirmed that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction

• Going after Iraq would destroy the anti-terrorism act

• The war would do more damage than good

• Would take the focus away from Osama Bin Laden

The campaign to promote the war to the American public and Congress and the rationale provided for war (2001-03)

• Iraq had weapons of mass destruction

• Saddam Hussein’s brutality/the belief that he was part of 9/11

The Invasion Phase

• The invasion phase went very smoothly

• It was the calm before the storm

• Took Iraq by surprise

What was NSPD-24

• it gave control of Postwar Iraq to the Pentagon

Who was Ahmad Chalabi? 

• the president of the Iraqi National Congress - He promised Americans that post-war Iraq would be pro-american 

• The difficulty of the occupation

• poor planning

• lack of understanding for the Iraqi community

• flawed initial policies

ORHA

• was the organization for reconstruction and humanitarian assistance

• prepared 60 days before invasion

• no staff, no places to sit (terrible organization)

What happened after the fall of Baghdad? 

• looters broke out everywhere

• american troops were not doing anything

• looters had uncontrolled freedom

• violence + crime

• people were stealing parts of powerplants

What cultural site in Iraq was protected by ORHA

• the oil ministry

L. Jerry Bremer

• appointed as the presidential envoy

• was a former foreign services officer

The Three “fateful” decisions:

1. Stop formation of interim Iraq government 

2. De-baathification - meant permanent unemployment 

3. Disbanding Iraqi military + intelligent services 

Where did insurgents get their weapons and ammunition from?

• got their weapons and ammunition from the military

• There were not enough american troops to secure them

• Insurgents knew where the weapons were placed

Declining condition of Iraqi society

• Insurgents began planting improvised explosive devices all over Iraq - rise in casualty rates among american soldiers

• 1 in 8 humvees in iraq had adequate armor

• Remnants of the old iraqi regime

• high level of domestic violence

• Country increasingly dominated by militias, insurgents, criminals, and warlords

• Kidnappings and violent deaths have reached several hundreds per day

• Terrible security

Problems with American advisors and companies:

• low level of security

• they were not communicating to the Iraqis

• Not involved 

• Fresh out of college students sent to Iraq

What happened on August 19, 2003?

• a massive bomb destroyed the U.N headquarters in Baghdad.

• Killed 22 people - including U.N’s chief envoy to Iraq Sergio Vieira de Mello.

Relationship between Iraqis and the U.S Military

• became toxic

• U.S military was breaking into homes - making arrests

• Iraqis were angry and scared

• Attacks on american soldiers -

• americans trying to find insurgents

The surge:

20,000 new soldiers, and eventually 30,000 were sent into Iraq to help stabilize the country (most of them to Baghdad), and $1.8 billion for reconstruction and job programs was instituted.

Status of Forces agreement:

It established that U.S. combat forces would withdraw from Iraqi cities by June 30, 2009, and all U.S. combat forces will be completely out of Iraq by December 31, 2011.

Rise of ISIS:

Al Qaeda in Iraq rebranded itself and reemerged as ISIS.

• President Obama sent American troops back to Iraq to work on the side of the Iraqis against ISIS.

No Child Left Behind

• A federal law that was aimed to improve k-12 education

• Didn’t have funding

• Lots of testing with little accommodations

• Tried to close the achievement gap

Sarbanes-Oxley Act

Established new auditing and financial reporting requirements for companies to protect investors.

Held corporate executives personally responsible for mistakes, and created a new government agency to oversee the auditing profession.

Midterm elections

The Republican Party gains control of the Senate by picking up two seats.

The Republicans also pick up eight seats in the House of Representatives, strengthening their majority.

This is very rare; historically, the party that controls The White House usually loses seats in the midterms.

Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster

On Saturday, February 1, 2003, Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated as it re-entered the atmosphere over Texas and Louisiana, killing all seven astronauts on board.

It was the second and last Space Shuttle mission to end in disaster, after the loss of Challenger and crew in 1986.

President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)

It is a global health initiative launched by the United States government in 2003 to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic worldwide. It is the largest commitment by any nation to address a single disease.

• Bush gained a lot of respect from other nations especially Africa

Partial Birth Abortion Act

The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 is a federal law in the United States that prohibits a specific medical procedure used in late-term abortions.

Except cases where the procedure is necessary to save the life of the mother.

Imposes a fine and up to two years imprisonment for physicians who violate the law.

Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act

a 2003 law that created the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit, providing the first universally available prescription drug coverage for Medicare beneficiaries

Expanded choices and increased care access

Given when you turn 65

President Bush’s “Ownership Society” Agenda

President Bush pushed for policies to encourage more Americans to own homes, particularly low-income families.

He pushed for the privatization of the Social Security system, though it was ultimately unsuccessful. His plan would have allowed younger workers to move their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts invested in the stock market.

The debate over comprehensive immigration reform

President Bush’s immigration reform plan sought a “rational middle ground” between strict enforcement and compassionate treatment.

• called for stronger border security through more patrol agents and advanced technology: biometric ID cards and electronic verification systems.

• He proposed a temporary worker program to legally match foreign laborers with U.S. employers for jobs Americans were not filling.

• A pathway for undocumented immigrants to earn legal status, though not automatic citizenship, which could be later achieved by paying fines, maintaining clean records, and waiting their turn.

• this plan failed 

Hamdi v. Rumsfeld

The significance of Hamdi v. Rumsfeld is that the Supreme Court ruled that U.S. citizens designated as "enemy combatants" have the right to due process, including a meaningful opportunity to challenge the factual basis of their detention before a neutral decision-maker.

• The ruling established that the President cannot detain U.S. citizens indefinitely based solely on an executive designation of "enemy combatant" without some form of judicial review.

President Bush reelected

Bush beat Senator Kerry for president

Ran with Cheney platform built on national security

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that killed 1,392 people and caused damage estimated at $125 billion, particularly in and around the city of New Orleans, in late August 2005.

• took the Bush administration many days to respond

• he lost popularity after the hurricane

• citizens of New orleans thought they were not going to help after a few days

Energy Policy Act

• Encouraged the development of a wide range of energy sources to meet America’s growing need for energy, including oil, natural gas, coal, nuclear power, and biofuels, especially ethanol, which is made from corn.

Promoted energy efficiency in buildings and vehicles.

Hamdan v. Rumsfeld

The Supreme Court's ruling in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld was that the military commission created by the Bush administration to try Salim Hamdan was illegal.

The Court held that the commission violated both the Geneva Conventions and the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) because it lacked proper congressional authorization and had procedures that violated international and US law.

The Court ruled that the president did not have the inherent power to establish the military commission without explicit authorization from Congress.

Democrats Win Control of Congress

The Democratic Party gained control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate for the first time in 12 years.

House of Representatives, - gained 30 seats, taking control with a 233–202 majority.

• Nancy Pelosi became the first female Speaker of the House following the win.

Senate - gained six seats, achieving a 51–49 majority..

The housing “bubble” bursts

The inflated prices of homes collapse rapidly, driven by factors like decreasing demand, rising interest rates, and a glut of available homes.

This can lead to a wave of homeowners defaulting on their mortgages, losing their homes to foreclosure, and potentially contributing to a wider financial crisis, like the 2008 Great Recession

“The Great Recession”

Late 2007-mid 2009

Related to the 2008 financial crisis

Marked by skyrocketing unemployment rates.

Economic Stimulus Act

Designed to boost the economy.

Most taxpayers received a rebate of at least $300 per person ($600 for married couples filing jointly) plus $300 per dependent child under the age of 17.

Offered businesses tax breaks for purchasing equipment

Collapse of major financial Institutions and the global financial crisis

A major Wall Street investment bank, Bear Stearns, collapses. Facing imminent bankruptcy in March 2008, the Federal Reserve arranged for JPMorgan

• Chase to buy the company, which required a $29 billion government-backed loan. This intervention was seen as necessary to prevent a wider market collapse.

• On September 15, 2008, a second major Wall Street investment bank, Lehman Brothers, filed for bankruptcy. With over $600 billion in assets, it was the largest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history.

• Lehman's failure shocked the financial world. Stock markets plunged globally. This was the event that tipped the financial system into a full-blown global panic.

Emergency Economic Stabilization Act

A law designed to combat the financial crisis of 2007–2008 by creating the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). TARP enabled the Treasury Secretary to purchase troubled assets from financial institutions, stabilize the financial system, and mitigate foreclosures.

2008 Election

• Barack H. Obama V. John McCain

• Obama won the election with 365 electoral votes and 52.9% of the popular vote, defeating McCain.

• Obama received 365 electoral votes, and McCain 173.

• McCain won Nebraska but Obama earned an electoral vote by winning the popular vote in the 2nd Congressional District. This marked the first time that Nebraska has split its electoral vote since it moved away from the winner-take-all method in 1992.

• Obama received more votes than any candidate in history. The prior record, about 62 million, was set in 2004 by George W. Bush