The US-Soviet alliance out of convenience not trust, Stalin bore the brunt of fighting the Nazis since the US and its allies joined later
1945 United Nations established permanent seats for the US, GB, France, China, and the Soviet Union
Soviets did not join the World Bank created at the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944 (do not support capitalism)
Soviet forces remained after the war, and elections were held as promised in the Yalta Conference
- But elections manipulated = satellite states in Poland, Romania, etc

Germany

The eastern zone became a new Communist state
Soviets wanted weak Germany for security and large war reparations
US + GB believed the economic recovery of Germany important to Central Europe's stability

Response

Iron Curtain “has descended across the continent of Europe” → iron curtain speech by former British Prime minster Winston Churchill
Containment policy made by George F Kennan: take actions to contain
CCOT: appeasement does not work, 1938 Munich + Hitler
Truman doctrine: implemented containment to help communist uprising in Greece and Soviet demands for water route in Turkey

Marshall Plan

Europe Recovery Program was offered to Western Europe AND Eastern Europe (Soviet Union) but the Soviets rejected
- Helped US prosperity and Western Europe

Berlin Airlift

June 1948: Soviets cut off all access by land to Berlin
Supplies are flown in
- Stalin finally agreed to open the blockade after 11 months

NATO + National security

Unlike Washington’s farewell address advised, Truman joined NATO
The Soviet Union countered with Warsaw Pact
1947 National Security Act: modernized military capability and created the CIA
Soviet Union + US were in an intense arms race regarding the atomic bomb
NSC-68: quadrupled US government spending, form non-communist countries, and costly arms buildup IMPORTANT

Asia

Japan under the control of General Douglas MacArthur
Retained emperor as ceremonial head of state aka figurehead
Only allowed limited military capability & success of the US
In China, corruption and inflation led the Nationalist vs Mao Zedong Communists to conflict to resume after the war
- Truman decided to give $400 mil to the Nationalist gov - failed
- China fell to the communists
Korean War → divided along the 38th parallel, leaving North with a communist leader
- Invaded South Korea and UN forces were sent, but the war had not been declared yet
- General MacArthur counterattacked until the Chinese border, but then the Chinese joined the fight
- MacArthur wanted to continue the war, but Truman disagreed → and recalled him for insubordination and a stalemate occurred at the 38th parallel
Truman administration used the Korean War to justify expanding military

Eisenhower

Secretary of State John Foster Dulles: brinkmanship, taking initiative and encouraging taking over communist governments
- Pushing to BRINK of war, but the war prevented by American nuclear superiority
Massive retaliation: Dulles advocated for spending more on nuclear weapons than conventional military forces
Korean Armistice 1953: with the death of Stalin, an armistice was agreed on

Soviet Relations

Geneva conference 1954: a meeting between the “big four” of France, the US, GB, and Soviet Union’s new premier Nikolai Bulganin
- Thaw in Cold War
1956 → Nikita Kruschev became the new Soviet leader and hoped for peaceful coexistence
Hungarian Revolt: thaw in Cold War encouraged uprisings against Communist leaders, in Hungry, it succeeded
- Khrushchev sent troops to crush them → Us took no action, scared of starting a war
The space race began with Soviet Union’s satellites Sputnik
- Congress passed National Defense and Education Act (more money in schools for STEM) & created NASA

Problems Arising

2nd Berlin Crisis: Stalin threatened West to pull out troops from West Berlin
Eisenhower and Stalin meet, and the problem is diffused → Second summit conference in Paris for 1960
U-2 incident: Russians shot down a U-2 spy plane flying over the Soviet Union even after the open-skies proposal was rejected by them
- Kruschev walked out of the Paris summit, ended the thaw
Military-industrial complex: the relationship between government, military, and industry
- Eisenhower warned against it in his farewell speech

Cuba

Fidel Castro overthrew Cuban dictator Batista
- Nationalized American-owned businesses in Cuba, so Eisenhower cut off trade with Cuba
- Castro set up a Communist totalitarian state
CUBA IS VERY CLOSE TO US
Kennedy became president: and approved Eisenhower’s plan to have the CIA train anti-Communist exiles to invade & overthrow Castro
- Known as the Bay of Pigs, Kennedy did not send US forces to help, a FAIL

Continued Crises

Berlin Wall: purpose to stop East Germans from fleeing to West German
The US took no real action against it
1962 Cuban Missile Crisis: Castro invited the Soviets to build missile sites that could reach the US in minutes
- Kennedy responded by announcing a naval blockade of Cuba until weapons removed
- After 13 days of tension: Krushchev agreed to remove missiles in exchange for Kennedy’s promise to not invade Cuba and to remove US missiles from Turkey
Aftereffect: Nuclear Test Ban Treaty: signed by the Soviet Union, the US, and 100 other nations
Flexible response treaty: devised by Kennedy and his defense secretary Robert S. McNamara → wanted to increase spending on conventional weapons to prevent global destruction with nuclear weapons

Lyndon Johnson

After President Kennedy was assassinated, Johnson (VP) took over
Continued containment policy regarding Vietnam War
Non-proliferation treaty: US, Britain, and Soviet Union promised to not help other countries develop nuclear weapons

Nixon 1969-1974

Secretary of State/national security adviser: Henry Kissinger
Nixon visited China and recognized them in 1979
Used relationship with China to pressure Soviets with Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT I) to limit anti-ballistic missiles aka ABMS

Ford 1974-1977

After Nixon’s Watergate scandal, many people lost their trust in the gov
CIA practices were investigated

Jimmy Carter 1977-1981

Plans to ratify SALT II until Soviet troops invaded Afghanistan
Back to the period of confrontation

8.3 Red Scare

Rooting out Communists

Under Truman (1974): Loyalty Review Board investigated over 3 mil federal employees
Smith Act: made it illegal to advocate for the overthrow of gov by force
In the House of reps, the House Un-American Activities Committee/HUAC was reactivated (by Nazis)
Loyalty oaths became more common
- The Lottery & The Crucible!!

Espionage

Alger Hiss: a prominent official, convicted of perjury and suspected Communist spy
Rosenbergs: found guilty of treason for giving Russia information and executed
- Civil rights groups unhappy

Joseph McCarthy

Used accusations about Communists to keep the media focused on himself & to discredit Truman's administration
Loved by working-class Americans at first
Army-McCarthy Hearings: McCarthy’s cruelty through televised hearings exposed
McCarthyism died down

8.4 Economy After 1945

Postwar Economy

Truman became president after Franklin Roosevelt’s death and tried to continue the New Deal economic policies of his predecessor
GI Bill of Rights: helped many GIS attend college and supported the veterans’ transition back to a normal economy
- Did help the overall economy but increased the racial wealth gap (didn’t apply to blacks)
Baby Boom & Suburban Growth
- Levittown: mass produced low priced family homes in NY, only for white families
Rise of Sunbelt: warmer climate, lower taxes, and economic opportunities in defense-related industries

Truman VS Republican Congress

Unhappy with inflation and strikes, the Republican majority dominated Congress
22nd amendment: limited president to 2 terms in office
Tart-hartley Act: the goal was to keep unions in check
- Outlawed closed shop (required workers to join a union BEFORE being hired) & secondary boycotts
- Gave the president the power to invoke a cooling-off period before a possible strike

Truman’s Reflection 1948

The liberal Progressive Party & conservative Dixiecrafts in Dem Party abandoned Truman→ Reps believed they would win
- Nominated Thomas E Dewey
Truman still won
Launched the Fair Deal reform program
- Most reforms were blocked by Congress except an increase in the minimum wage and more workers included in Social Security
- A reason it failed was pressing foreign policy of the Cold War took more attention

Eisenhower Election of 1952

“Modern Republican”
Fiscal conservative: wanted to balance the budget
Even expanded Social Security
Highway Act of 1956: authorized many interstate highways
- The goal was to improve national defense by facilitating movement but also creating jobs & accelerated suburbanization
- Hurt railroads and the environment

Kennedy & Johnson

Kennedy promised to lead the nation into the “New Frontier”
- Brought glamour to the white house, the youngest candidate
Johnson aggressively passed a domestic program that Kennedy failed to get through Congress
Promoted his Great Society & war on poverty

Stagflation Time Baby!

Starting with the recession in 1970, there was an economic slowdown and high inflation (aka stagflation)
Nixon adopted Keynesian economics and deficit spending
- Imposed a 90-day wage + price freeze
- Took dollar off the gold standard
The recession was over by 1972

More inflation

Ford urged voluntary measures to fight inflation with WIN (whip inflation now)
- The economy sank deeper into a recession
Carter: interest rates on loans were pushed higher, which helped to control inflation from 13% to 4% in 1982
The postwar economy in the 1940s and 50s boomed, but the economic recovery of other nations resulted in less-expensive consumer products by 19702

8.5 Culture

Television & media resulted in advertising → fast food & credit cards
- Rise of CONSUMERISM
The popularity of teenagers’ rock and roll
Rise of conglomerates and corporates: conformity
AFL and the Congress of Industrial Organizations merge

Critics

The Affluent Society was the idea that wealthy Americans should increase social spending for the greater good (CCOT gospel of Wealth by Carnegie)
The Catcher in the Rye
Beatniks: a model for youth rebellion and advocated drugs and spontaneity

Kennedy’s assassination

Warren Commission headed by Chief Justice Warren concluded that there was just one assassin
Conspiracy theories arose
Loss of credibility in government

8.6 Civil Rights

Origins of the Movement

Truman est Committee on Civil Rights and ordered the end of racial discrimination in fed gov like the armed forces
Cold War caused racial segregation to stand out as wrong in America’s reputation of freedom (CCOT WW1 and women’s voting rights)
NAACP lawyers led by Thurgood Marshall
- Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
- Chief Justice Earl Warren ruled that separate facilities are UNEQUAL unlike Plessy v. Ferguson
Resistance in South: Southern Manifesto & Rise of KKK
In Arkansas, Governor used National Guard to stop the Little Rock 9 → Eisenhower sent federal troops to protect them

Nonviolent Protests

Rosa Parks arrested for not giving up a seat, sparked the Montgomery Bus boycott led by Martin Luther King
He also formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference/SCLC
College students started a sit-in movement and John Lewis made Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

8.7 America as a World Power

Unrest from decolonization

Third World: developing nations compared to Western and Communist bloc
Eisenhower used covert action because it was less subject to public controversy
CIA helped overthrow Iran gov that tried to nationalize oil → West got favorable oil prices
Suez Crisis: led by Nasser, Egypt asked the US for funds to build a dam project and turned to the Soviet Union for help
- British, France, and Israel surprise attacked Egypt and retook the canal
- Eisenhower (kept in the dark) caused them to withdraw

Oil

Eisenhower Doctrine: pledged economic and military aid to Middle Eastern countries threatened by communism
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries/OPEC
Yom Kippur War: Syrians and Egyptians attacked Isreal to recover lands lost in a six-day war in 1967
- Nixon helped Isreal win
- Arab members of OPEC placed an embargo, causing worldwide oil shortage and even more US runaway in inflation

Peace

Camp David Accords arranged by President Carter
Egypt recognized Israel and Israel withdrew troops in land taken from Egypt during the six-day war
- Opposed by Palestine LIberation Org /PLO
Hostage Crisis: Islamic fundamentalists overthrew Iran's Shah
- Shah escaped to the US (but Iranians wanted his return to stand trial for his crimes), so Iranian militants held US embassy staff members as hostages
- The unsuccessful rescue marked as a failure with Carter

Latin America

Kennedy est Peace Corps → Young American volunteers would help developing countries
Alliance for Progress: promoted land reform and economic development in Latin America
- But anti-American feelings due to the Bay of Pigs and CIA ops
Johnson returned the “Big stick” policy (CCOT TR)
Carter (humanitarian) negotiated a new Panama Canal treaty to give back to Panamanians

8.8 Vietnam War

Eisenhower

Geneva Conference divided Vietnam at the 17th parallel
- In the North, Ho Chi Minh and Communist, and in the South, Ngo Dinh Diem
- A general election meant to reunite Vietnam never took place, afraid Communists would win
Domino theory: if Vietnam fell to communism other Asian Countries would too
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization/SEATO est by John Foster Dulles

Escalation of war

Kennedy adopted the domino theory, continued aid to South Vietnam, and increased military “advisers” that trained the army there
However, Diem was not popular and assassinated
During the presidential campaign against Johnson, Rep candidate Barry Goldwater attacked Johnson’s administration for its weak support
- South Vietnam was fighting against the Vietcong
Tonkin Gulf Resolution: caused by an alleged incident of North Vietnamese gunboats firing on US warships
- A blank check for the president to take necessary measures in Vietnam
Operation rolling thunder: prolonged air attack against N. Vietnam
Hawks vs Doves

Vietcong Response

Tet Offensive was an attack on S. Vietnam, and militarily it failed
- However, it demoralized the American public
- Credibility gap: victory was NOT imminent
Johnson decides to end escalation and announces that he will not be rerunning for president

Election of 1968

Robert F Kennedy won a major victory in CA’s primary but was assassinated by Arab nationalist
This led to a three-way between George Wallace, Richard Nixon, and VP Hubert Humphrey
Democratic Convention selected Humphrey
George Wallace ran from the American Independent Party and was a result to the white backlash to desegregation
Nixon won, with VP Spiro Agnew
- Was a hawk and ran on “peace with honor” + “law and order,” it was a backlash against protest, violence, and counterculture

Nixon and Vietnam

“Vietnamization”: gradually reducing US troops from Vietnam but giving them money and support
Nixon Doctrine: Asian allies in the future would not have extensive use of US ground forces
He then invaded Cambodia to destroy Vietnamese Communist bases
- Led to Kent State Protest
Antiwar sentiment fueled by the My Lai massacre and the publication of The Pentagon Papers

End of the War

Paris Accords of 1973: promised cease-fire and free elections, but did not end the war between the two
War powers act: required presidents to report to Congress after military actions, and Congress would have to approve if it is over 60 days
Fall of Saigon → Communist Vietnam reunified
Cambodia also fell to Communism, but the domino theory did not necessarily prove true

8.9 The Great Society

The War on Poverty

Dem: LBJ -→ Liberal agenda
Rep: Barry Goldwater → Ending welfare + encouraging young conservatives
Results: LBJ won
Dems controlled both houses

The Great Society Reforms

Food Stamp Act (1964): an expanded fed program to help the poor buy food
National Foundation on the Art and Humanities (1965): Provided fed funding for arts & creative & scholarly projects
Medicare (1965): Provide health insurance for people 65+
Medicaid (1965): Provided funds to states to pay for medical care for poor/disabled
Elementary & Secondary Education Act (1965): Fed funds to poor schools + Special-ed programs+ Expand Head Start (Early childhood education program)
Higher Education Act (1965): Fed scholarships for post-secondary edu
Immigration Act (1965): Abolished quotas based on origin
Child Nutrition Act (1966): Added breakfast to the school lunch program
Funding for: Mass transit, housing, Rent subsidies for low-income houses, and crime prevention
Cabinet departments
- Department of Transportation
- Department of Housing and Urban Development
Regulations on the auto industry
Clean air/water laws
Fed parks & wilderness areas expanded

Evaluating the Great Society

Unrealistic promises to eliminate poverty
centralized welfare being → costly
Jeopardized achievements with Vietnam

Changes in Immigration

Undocumented immigrants → Control Act of 1986
Great Society included legislation to end discrimination based on race

8.10 The African American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s

The Leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“Letter from Birmingham Jail”
Martin Luther King Jr.: Leader of the civil rights movement
March on Washinton: 200,000 people + “I have a dream” speech

Federal Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965

Segregation illegal in all public facilities
School desegregation
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Abolished poll tax + literacy tests

Black Muslims and Malcolm X

Advocated self-defense + fighting with violence
Malcolm X: assassinated in 1965

Race Riots and Black Power

Malcolm X was very influential
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)
Riots
- In neighborhoods + worst in LA
- Kerner Commission investigated violence
- De jure → De facto segregation
Murder in Memphis
- MLK won the Nobel peace prize in 1974
- MLK shot on the balcony in April
- Riots spread like wildfire

8.11 The Civil Right Movement Expands

The Womens Movement

Betty Freidans Femine Mystique
Increased Education + Employment
Equal Pay Act + Civil Rights Act of 1964 poorly enforced

Campaign for Equal Rights Amendment

Legislative victory
Equality of rights will not be denied by the US on account of sex
Missed acceptance by 38 states

Latino Americans

Cesar Chavez → United Farm Workers Association
Hispanics elected into office

American Indian Movement

AIM→ Self-determination + revival of tribes
Indian Self-Determination Act of 1875: gave reservations and tribal lands greater control over programs
Red Power movement

Asian American

The largest group was Chinese + well represented but still earned below the national average

Gay Rights Movement

Urged homosexuals to open up about identity
Don’t ask, don’t tell

The Warren Court and Individual Rights

Brown v. Board of Edu → desegregation of schools
The emphasis on individual rights
Criminal Justice
- Mapp v. Ohio: illegally seized evidence can’t be used in court
- Gideon v. Wainwright: required states to prove counsel for defendants
- Escobedo v. Illinois: required police to inform people of the right to remain silent
- Miranda v. Arizona: right to Lawyer during police questioning
Reapportionment
- States had at least one house of legislature that favored districts that rural> cities
- Baker v. Carr: unconstitutional + redraw election districts
Freedom of Expression and Privacy
- Greater latitude under 1st Amendment
- Yates v. US: 1st amendment protected
- Engel v. Vitale: required bible prayers violated 1st
- Griswold v. Connecticut: citizens’ right to privacy + state could not prohibit the use of contraceptives
- Controversy + impeachment+ defense of rights of unpopular individuals

8.12 Youth Culture of the 1960s

Baby Boom Generation

Influenced by the civil rights of Africans and other groups

Student Movement and the New Left

Student for Democratic Society: called for university decisions to be made through democracy so students have a voice
Free Speech Movement: demanded an end to university restrictions on student politics
Students against the Vietnam War
- Campuses disrupted due to anti-war protests
- Violence, vandalism, extremists
- Chicago Convention + Weather Underground

The Counterculture

Rebellious styles become popular
Hippies + Folk music + Rock Music + Woodstock music
Impatience led to violence, destruction, and discredited cause by elders
Sexual revolution
- Traditional beliefs are challenged through premarital sex + more
- Overly sexual themes blamed on loss of moral codes

8.13 The Environment and Natural Resources From 1968-1980

Origins of Environmental Movement

Rachel Carson → Silent Spring
Barry Commoner + Paul Ehrlich

Public Awareness

3-mile island incident
Iil + chemicals + radioactivity a big problem
Earth Day on April 20

Government Environmental Protection

Environmental Protection Agency → regulating water and air pollution
Clean Air and Water → regulated emissions + clean up
Wildlife protection → Endangered species act
Oil Embargo and Feul Economy → BIGGEST GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
Antinuclear Movement → delayed construction of nuclear war plants
The backlash from conservative groups

8.14 Society in Transition

American Society in Transition

Racial + ethnic diversity
Youth revolt

The Nixon Presidency

Received a popular vote in the election of 1968
Nixon’s Southern Strategy → appease the South for votes from the South + sun belt
Election of 1972
- Dem: George McGovern → liberal hero
- Rep: Nixon → foreign policy + George Wallace removal

Watergate Scandal

Involvement in the 1972 break-in at the Democratic national committee headquarters in the Watergate apartment complex
Impeachment on the basis of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of Congress
Trust lost in the government --- leads to the conservative era

Gerald Ford in the White House

Assumed presidency after scandal
The pardoning of Nixon instead of prolongation
Investigating the CIA: Dem Congress searched for abuses in CIA
Bicentennial Celebration→ 2000 birthday

Election of 1976

Dem: James Earl Carter
Rep: Ford
Results: Carter won

An Outside in the White House

End to the imperial presidency
Loss of popularity → National malaise speech
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The Burger Court

More conservative the Warren Court
Roe v. Wade: struck down state laws prohibiting abortions as a violation of a women’s right to privacy

Conservative Resurgence

Conservative Religious revival → moral majority + religious fundamentalists
Deregulation of Businesses + Elimination of Racial Preferences (reverse discrimination through affirmative action
Regents of Uni of CA v. Bakke: race could be considered but not racial quotas
Taxpayers revolt: proposition 13 + Arthur Laffer

New Era in Ameican Politics