World War II to the Present

Steps Leading to WWII

rise of totalitarian gov'ts, Munich Agreement, & German invasion of Poland; US did not enter until it was attacked at Pearl Harbor

Neutrality Act of 1939

cash & carry policy; way to stay "neutral"--nations could buy US arms as long as they paid cash & picked them up in their own ships

Lend Lease Act

US became the "great arsenal of democracy"--US could sell or lend war materials to any nation whose defense was vital to the defense of democracy & the US

Rosie the Riveter

became the symbol of women's contributions to the war effort; helped spark sense of duty & patriotism

D-Day Invasion

turning point in War in Europe--allied forces landed in Normandy, France & were able to soon liberate France & Western Europe from German rule

Yalta Conference

Feb. 1945 - meeting between Churchill, Stalin & FDR to plan postwar Europe; Germany to be divided into 4 zones, free elections were to be guaranteed in Poland & E. Europe, & conference would take place to create UN

Manhattan Project

project to develop the atomic bomb; Truman decided to use it to bring about a speedier end to WWII--justification = save many lives; impact = world entered the "atomic age" & arms race erupted

Nuremberg Trials

trials of Nazi officers involved in Holocaust--Court set the precedent that individuals will be held accountable for their actions (cannot claim was following orders)

GI Bill

federal gov't provides $ for education of veterans returning from war & helps provide loan guarantees to those buying homes or starting new businesses

Cold War

state of hostility that developed between the US & USSR that dominated global affairs from 1945 to the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991

Causes of Cold War

after WWII, Soviets moved troops into E. Europe & set up satellite nations & did not allow for free elections; Truman wanted nations to have the right to self-determination & felt the US had a large economic stake in the spread of democracy & free trade across the world

Containment & Actions to Implement It

goal = prevent the spread of Communism; actions = Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, Berlin Airlift, NATO, Korean War, Vietnam War

Truman Doctrine

US gave $400 mil in aid to Turkey & Greece--if nations were economically stable then they would prefer democracy

Marshall Plan

US gave $17 billion in aid to war torn nations in W. Europe to help them rebuild--if economically stable then they would prefer democracy

Berlin Airlift

Soviets cut off W. Berlin's access to roads hoping to starve it into submitting to Soviet control; US, France & Great Britain airlifted supplies to W. Berlin until the Soviets gave up & ended the blockade

NATO

collective security agreement formed by the US & democratic nations in W. Europe; ended all hopes of ever going back to isolationism

Korean War

demonstrated the US's willingness to take military action to contain communism; ended in a stalemate but after the sacrifice of $67 billion, 3 years & 54,000 American lives

Domino Theory

belief that the nations of Asia were like a row of dominoes--if 1 fell to communism, the rest would follow; justification for entry into Vietnam War

Eisenhower Doctrine

US would defend the Middle East against an attack by any communist country

Sputnik

Soviet satellite that was launched into space on 10/4/1957; would provoke a "Space Race" between the US & USSR & US invested more $ in math & science education & NASA

Truman & Civil Rights

used an executive order to integrate the armed forces

Fair Deal

Truman's domestic policies--expansion of FDR's New Deal

Baby Boom

explosion in birthrate at the conclusion of WWII--contributed to growth of suburbs & construction of schools; today this generation is connected to the "Graying of America" & is beginning to collect SS & Medicare (puts a strain on federal budget)

Interstate Highway Act

Eisenhower pushed for creation of 44,000 mil network of interstate highways--would help transport military weapons & supplies & allow for evacuation (in light of Cold War); also encouraged suburbanization & automobile ownership

Actions at Home during Cold War

Loyalty Review Board, House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), trials of Alger Hiss & Rosenbergs (Rosenbergs were executed), McCarthyism (McCarthy accused many of infiltrating the gov't with Communist ideas)

Martin Luther King, Jr. & Civil Rights Movement

used nonviolent civil disobedience--led Montgomery Bus Boycott, encouraged sit-ins at lunch counters, Freedom Rides, March in Birmingham, March on Washington, Freedom Summer, & March from Selma to Montgomery

Brown v. Board of Education

1954 - Supreme Court ruled that segregation in public schools was inherently unequal & ordered the desegregation of public schools; overturned the "separate but equal" doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson

Little Rock Nine & Central HS

Eisenhower placed the AR National Guard under his control & sent in additional federal troops to enforce the Brown decision & ensure that the "Little Rock Nine" could attend Central HS

New Frontier

JFK's programs--deficit spending, Space Race, Alliance for Progress, Peace Corps, & the desire to address poverty & civil rights

Bay of Pigs Invasion

the US trained Cuban exiles & tried to overthrow Castro; was a failure & an embarrassment

Cuban Missile Crisis

Soviets set up missile bases in Cuba; JFK demanded their removal & the Soviets refused--JFK set up a naval blockade (quarantine line) & Soviets sent ships toward Cuba; the Soviets backed down & removed the missiles in exchange for the US removing missiles from Turkey

Warren Court

Chief Justice Earl Warren ushered in a liberal period on the Supreme Court--expanded civil liberties & civil rights (Brown, Engel, Mapp, Miranda, Tinker cases)

Great Society

LBJ's programs ("War on Poverty")--Medicare, Medicaid, Head Start, Elementary & Secondary Education Act, Dept. of Housing & Urban Development, eased immigration restrictions

Civil Rights Act of 1964

outlawed discrimination in public facilities & employment based on race, gender & religion--finally ended Jim Crow laws & used interstate commerce power to do so

Voting Rights Act of 1965

banned use of literacy tests & set up federal intervention in elections in areas with <50% turnout in 1964 election

Affirmative Action

taking steps to eliminate the effects of past discrimination in hiring & college admissions--as per Univ. of CA v. Bakke case, colleges cannot use quotas but can use race as 1 of many factors in admissions' decisions

Cesar Chavez

motivated by MLK, Jr., helped create United Farm Workers Union to end exploitation of migrant workers in CA; when grape growers refused to recognize the union & to collectively bargain, he went on a hunger strike & launched a boycott of the company's grapes--the company eventually backed down

Vietnam War

US feared S. Vietnam would fall to communism & entered its civil war when LBJ asked Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution giving him power to use force since US ships were being shot at

Challenges of Vietnam War & Impact

Vietcong used guerilla tactics; failure to win over the Vietnamese b/c of search & destroy missions; resistance at home b/c of "Living Room War" & rising credibility gap; violence at Democratic National Convention; release of the Pentagon Papers--led to increase in mistrust of gov't & passage of War Powers Act of 1973 limiting the President's ability to "declare war" & use troops

Betty Friedan

wrote The Feminine Mystique & founded the National Organization for Women (NOW) to push for full equality for women

Detente

to ease Cold War tensions; Nixon visited & recognized China & visited the USSR & signed the SALT Treaty limiting missiles

US v. Nixon

Supreme Court ruled that executive privilege is not absolute & that the president is also subject to criminal investigation; led to Nixon's resignation

Iran Hostage Crisis

Carter allowed ousted Shah to enter the US for cancer treatment & Islamic fundamentalists were angered & took the US Embassy hostage & demanded the return of the Shah; Carter refused & hostages were released after 444 days

Camp David Accords

Carter helped broker a peace agreement between Israel & Egypt--Israel would pull out of the Sinai Peninsula in exchange for Egypt officially recognizing Israel

Silent Spring

book written by Rachel Carson that increased the momentum of the environmental movement--pointed out dangers of pesticides & the impact humans & industry have on the environment

Reaganomics

tax cuts, shrink the size of the gov't, supply-side economics, & an increase in defense spending (increase in defense was greater than program cuts so the national debt increased)

Iran-Contra Affair

helped increase mistrust in gov't--top Reagan aides sold weapons to Iran in exchange for help in freeing American hostages in Lebanon & $ from arms sales was given to the Contras in Nicaragua in violation of the Boland Amendment banning aid to the Contras

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)

businesses & all levels of gov't must grant the handicapped equal access to facilities, public transportation, & employment opportunities

Persian Gulf War/Operation Desert Storm

concern over Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait led the US & allies to intervene & liberate Kuwait--if Hussein captured Kuwait & went into Saudi Arabia, he would have controlled 1/2 world's oil

Election of 1992

Clinton defeated G.H.W. Bush--Bush had to raise taxes in light of an economic recession & his desire to not add to the deficit & because of the presence of a 3rd party candidate, Ross Perot

Impeachment of Bill Clinton

the House of Representatives impeached Clinton for perjury & obstruction of justice but the Senate did not convict him; Clinton's legacy was somewhat protected because the US experienced economic growth & a budget surplus

NAFTA

North American Free Trade Agreement--agreement to lower &/or eliminate tariffs between the US, Canada, & Mexico so as to stimulate growth & create jobs & to carry out the desire for globalization

Bush v. Gore

Supreme Court halted the recounts of ballots in Florida b/c they were inconsistent with the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment--Bush was awarded the Presidency

Actions by G.W. Bush within the "War against Terror"

creation of Dept. of Homeland Security, USA Patriot Act, use of Guantanamo Bay to house enemy combatants, War in Afghanistan, Operation Iraqi Freedom

Highlights of Obama Administration

in light of economic collapse of 2008, gave $ to banks, automakers & states to put toward public works projects, unemployment benefits & schools; Affordable Care Acts/Obamacare, troop surge in Afghanistan, executive orders on immigration

Challenges with Campaign Finance

there is a concern that candidates will care more about their donors than the voters themselves--PACs donate $ to campaigns; in Citizens United v. FEC corporations & unions also got the right to spend $ on independent ads promoting certain candidates

Challenges in the 21st Century

shift to a service economy--need for higher education to get high paying jobs, trade deficit, cyberattacks, ISIS, outsourcing, the need for environmental protection, the "Graying of America" & stress on SS & Medicare programs

Highlights of Trump's Presidency

replaced NAFTA with USMCA, increased tariffs to promote American businesses; got Congress to pass a Tax Reform bill; launched airstrikes in Syria in response to chemical weapons used by Assad; enacted Travel Ban, tried to work with North Korean dictator to achieve nuclear disarmament; wants stricter policy on immigration & increased border security

Highlights of Biden's Presidency

worked on Pandemic Relief & Infrastructure bills with Congress, increased access to COVID vaccine, trying to address rising inflation & aiding Ukraine in Putin's War against Ukraine

Challenges in 21st Century

stress on SS & Medicare with rising costs due to Baby Boomer generation, increasing national debt, cybersecurity, outsourcing of jobs, climate change, trade deficit, immigration & securing the border, dealing with pandemic & preventing future ones