PART 1: key presidents (active recall)

George Washington (1789–1797)

• Key Actions:

  • Judiciary Act (1789)

  • Proclamation of Neutrality (1793)

  • Two-term precedent

Thomas Jefferson (1801–1809)

• Key Actions:

  • Louisiana Purchase (1803)

  • Embargo Act (1807)

• Significance:

  • LAP doubled U.S. territory

  • LAP tested the implied powers of the Constitution (Federalist: Loose // Anti-Federalists: Strict)

  • Trade restrictions hurt the U.S. economy

Andrew Jackson (1829–1837)

• Key Actions:

  • Indian Removal Act (1830)

  • Bank War (vetoed recharter of National Bank)

  • Spoils System

• Significance:

  • Expanded white male democracy

  • Forcibly relocated Native Americans (Trail of Tears)

  • Weakened centralized banking

Abraham Lincoln (1861–1865)

• Key Actions:

  • Emancipation Proclamation (1863)

  • Led the Union in the Civil War

• Significance:

  • Preserving the Union → War to end slavery

  • Strengthened the federal government

Theodore Roosevelt (1901–1909)

• Key Actions:

  • Square Deal: Trust-busting (e.g., Northern Securities)

  • Conservation movement (established National Parks)

• Significance:

  • Regulated corporations

  • Expanded the federal government’s role in the economy and environment

  • Elevated U.S. global power

Woodrow Wilson (1913–1921)

• Key Actions:

  • Federal Reserve Act (1913)

  • Clayton Antitrust Act (1914)

  • Led the U.S. during WWI

• Significance:

  • Reformed banking & business

  • Increased presidential power during wartime

  • Advocated League of Nations (though U.S. didn’t join)

Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933–1945)

• Key Actions:

  • New Deal programs (CCC, WPA, Social Security)

  • WWII mobilization

• Significance:

  • Expanded federal government to fight the Depression

  • Redefined liberalism (limited gov’t → active gov’t)

  • Led the U.S. through WWII

Harry S. Truman (1945–1953)

• Key Actions:

  • Truman Doctrine & Marshall Plan (1947)

  • Desegregated the military (1948)

  • Korean War

• Significance:

  • Began Cold War containment policy

  • Advanced civil rights

  • Committed U.S. to global intervention

Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953–1961)

• Key Actions:

  • Interstate Highway Act (1956)

  • “Modern Republicanism”

  • Early U.S. role in Vietnam

• Significance:

  • Built infrastructure

  • Balanced federal moderation with Cold War pressures

  • Strengthened Cold War alliances (e.g., NATO)

Ronald Reagan (1981–1989)

• Key Actions:

  • “Reaganomics” (tax cuts, deregulation)

  • Military buildup (Strategic Defense Initiative)

  • Pushed end of Cold War

• Significance:

  • Revived conservative movement

  • Accelerated fall of the Soviet Union

  • Increased federal deficit