Domestic policies under Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon Flashcards
1
Q
Who was the 1960 Election between?
A
- Kennedy and the Republican Candidate Richard Nixon
- Election was very close but JFK had majority
- JFK=Democrat
2
Q
Why did Kennedy win the election of 1960?
A
- Catholic: retained and won back Catholic support
- Image helped: appeared youthful (43), good looks, glamorous wife
- had desire for change: promised New Frontier: vague about what this meant
- Promised to defeat communism
- Took advantage of popularity of MLK; Oct 1960 King arrested for trying to desegregate restaurant in Atlanta
- JFK used influence to obtain his release; publicised and ensured him AA support
- TV played important role: 70 million viewers watched 4 televised debates + more impressed with JFK than Nixon; those who listened on radio believed N had won
3
Q
What was the New Frontier?
A
- A slogan JFK used to try and inspire and unite young Americans
- became programme of reform and change in which K hoped to make USA fairer society by giving equal rights to all AA
- essentially wanted to make US fairer and better place
- made major changes to central government
- E.g gathered a team of the brightest young experts from American universities-known as the Brains Trust
4
Q
What were JFK’s limitations with civil rights?
A
- Before 1963, he was somewhat hesitant because he did not wish to alienate conservative Southerners whose vote he needed
5
Q
What did JFK do for civil rights?
A
- Appointed 5 federal judges inc Thurgood Marshall: leading civil rights activist
- JFK also threatened legal action against the state of Louisiana for reusing to fund schools that were not segregated
- Oct 1962: sent 23,000 gov troops to ensure that 1 black student, James Meredith, could study at the University in Mississippi
- Introduced Civil Rights Bill in Feb 1963: aimed to give AA equality in housing and education, defeated in Congress
6
Q
What did JFK do for the economy?
A
- introduced a general tax cut as more spending = more goods sold
- public works costing $900 mill
- Federal Gov would began a series of projects, e.g new roads and public buildings
- Grants given to high-tech companies to invest equipment to train workers
- JFK increased spending on defence and space tech: created jobs and promised to put man on moon by end of decade
- limited prices and wages to ensure inflation did not spiral
7
Q
What were the limitations of JFK’s handling of the economy?
A
- still unemployment in traditional industries such as coal, iron and steel
- unemployment twice as high amongst AA
- boom was heavily dependent on gov spending
8
Q
What did JFK do to enact social reform?
A
- increased min wage from $1.00 to $1.25 an hour
- The Manpower and Training Act: provided retraining for long term unemployed
- The Area Redevelopment Act: allowed Federal Government to give loans and grants to states with long-term unemployment
- The Housing Act provided cheap loans for the redevelopment of inner cities
- The Social Security Act gave greater financial help to the elderly and unemployed
- Social security benefits were extended to each child whose father was unemployed
9
Q
What were the limitations of JFKs social reform?
A
- Kennedy planned to start medicare, again a cheap system of state health insurance, but was thrown out by congress
- Slum clearance created housing shortages in inner-city areas
- min wage only helped those who already had a job
- the poorest people could not afford to pay back the housing loans
10
Q
What opposition did Kennedy face to the New Frontier?
A
- little achieved during his 1000 days in office
- partly due to his own failings as politicians as well as opposition to New Frontier
- seemed preoccupied with FP and lacked clear and coherent programme
- Greatest opposition came from Southern Congressmen, even Democrats, who disliked his commitment to civil rights
- Some opposed the further extension of power of federal gov and greater central gov spending
- many still believed values of “rugged individualism”
11
Q
When was Johnson president?
What was his policy called?
A
- 1963-1968
- Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ)
- The Great Society: included important economic and social reforms as well as Civil Rights legislation
12
Q
What did Johnson do for civil rights
A
- LBJ achieved far more than JFK
- The Civil Rights Act of 1964: banned discrimination in public places, in federally assisted programmes and in employment
- 1965: the Voting Rights Act of 1965 appointed agents to ensure that voting procedures were carried out properly
- In 1967, the Supreme Court declared all laws banning mixed race marriages to be removed
13
Q
What did Johnson do for economic reform to help country overall?
A
- Johnson cut taxes to give consumers more money to spend, and, –> help businesses grow and create more jobs
- The Appalachian Recovery Programme provided federal funds for the development of the Appalachians
14
Q
What did Johnson do for economic reform to help the poor/ community?
A
- The Office of Economic Opportunity set up schemes to help poor people in inner cities
- funded new education and community projects and provided loans for local schemes
- schemes were basis of Johnson’s Programme for Poverty
15
Q
What did Johnson do for economic reform to help consumer protection?
A
- Manufacturers and shops had to label goods fairly and clearly
- Consumers had the right to return faulty goods and exchange them
16
Q
What did Johnson do for economic reform to help education?
A
- The Johnson administration spent $1.5 billion on the Head Start Programme, so that teachers could provide additional education for very young, poor children
17
Q
How did Johnson enact social reform: medicare act?
A
- The Medical Care Act provided Medicare and Medicaid for the old and poor
- attempt to try ensure that all Americans had equal access to health care
18
Q
How did Johnson enact social reform: education act?
A
- The Elementary and Secondary Education Act: provided the first major federal support for state education ever
- Federal money provided to try ensure that standards of education in all states were equal
19
Q
How did Johnson enact social reform: welfare reform and minimum wage?
A
- The Model Cities Act
- The Act provided federal funds for slum clearance and the provision of better services
- Min wage increased from $1.25 to $1.40 an hour
20
Q
What opposition did Johnson face?
A
- Republicans accused him of wasting money on welfare programmes and undermining “rugged individualism”
- accused of overspending on welfare programme with rapid increases in health spending in particular
21
Q
What was the main downside of Johnson’s presidency?
A
- greatest problem for Johnson was escalation of US involvement in Vietnam; costly but also led to increased criticism of Johnson himself
- people celebrated decision not to run for re-election in 1968
22
Q
How was the Great Society a failure?
A
- outbreak of violence in US cities in the late 1960s has often been regarded as evidence that the Great Society was failure
- programme had aroused expectations that it was unable to deliver
23
Q
How was the Great Society not a failure?
A
- Millions benefited from its education and health care programmes
- Johnson had done much for the poorest sections of American society
- 25 million given access to decent health care for first time
- N. of AA living below the poverty line fell by 50%
- he had greatly extended the role of federal government in intervening to make a difference especially in the reduction of poverty
24
Q
Nixon’s presidency overall?
positives
negatives
A
- overshadowed by Watergate scandal
- did have other social and economic achievements as well as FP successes
- 1968: Nixon promised to “bring Americans together again”
- faced major problems inc inflation caused by over-spending on Vietnam
- Congress both chambers controlled by opposition
- US society seemed very divided
25
When was Nixon in power?
- 1968-1972
- 1972-1974
26
Describe the 1968 election?
- Between Nixon and the Democratic candidate Herbert Humphrey
- defeated him by 500,000 votes
- Nixon appealed to "Middle America" - those people worried by the Great Society, as well as the black inner-city riots
- promised "peace with honour" in Vietnam
- Humphrey campaigned to con war in Vietnam + Great Society
- Democrat Convention in Chicago highlighted the divisions in the party with clashes between the police and left-wing protesters
27
What limited Nixon's domestic achievements?
- limited cuz more interested in FP
+ Democrats controlled Congress
- conservative by nature + wanted support of middle america; those opposed to feminism, the student movement and radical changes brought by great society
- Little interest in civil rights, although some progress
28
What were Nixon's domestic achievements?
- By 1971, there were 13 black congressmen and 81 black mayors
- Introduced Family Assistance Plan (FAP)
- attempted to replace the range of different benefits brought by the Great Society with a direct grant of $1600 to poorer families
- this rejected by Congress
29
What economic problems did Nixon face?
- Economic problems
- especially rise in prices
- tried to reduce this by strict control of borrowing
- This didn't work so in 1971:
- introduced the 90 day wages and prices freeze
- and reduction in income tax
- Hoped to encourage purchase of consumer goods
- followed by Pay Board:
- kept wage increases down to 5.5%
- Price Commission: limited price increases to 2.5% + devalued the dollar
- This led to temporary boom in the economy
30
Describe the 1972 election?
- Nixon won this election
- greatest electoral triumph achieved by a Republican candidate: 47 mill votes to 29 mill of opponent
- Democrat: George McGovern
31
What was the Watergate scandal?
- 1972: Nixon set up CREEP: Committee to Re-Elect the President
- To use whatever methods to ensure his re-election
- $350,000 set aside for 'dirty tricks'
- 1972: 5 members of CREEP were arrested for breaking into Watergate offices of the Democrat Party
- planting bugging devices
- 2 reporters from Washington Post found burglars were employed by CREEP who's funds controlled by white house
- Nixon denied involvement: victory in 1972
32
Watergate Scandal
What happened when the burglars were on trial?
- 1973 all convicted
- James McCord claimed that there had been a White House cover-up
- Nixon denied but did admit 2 of this top advisers Bob Haldeman and John Ehrlichman - involved
- they resigned
- A Senate Committee set up to investigate scandal
- obvious white house involved
33
Watergate scandal:
Describe the reveal of Nixon's involvement?
- One White House aid told the Senate Committee that 1971: Nixon installed tape-recording system in White House
- Nixon eventually handed 7/9 tapes and later all, unedited
- They showed he was involved in the dirty tricks campaign and repeatedly lied
- tapes shocked nation because of foul language used
34
What were the effects of the Watergate Scandal?
- 1974: Congress decided to impeach Nixon
- Aug 1974: he resigned
- Successor, Gerald Ford: pardoned Nixon for any criminal actions
- 31 of Nixon's advisers served prison terms for Watergate-related offences
- destroyed Nixon's rep
- seen as untrustworthy: given nickname "tricky dicky"
35
As a result of the scandal how were the powers of the executive reduced?
- The Election Campaign Act 1974: set limits on election contributions to prevent corruption
- The War Powers Act of 1973: required president to consult Congress before sending A troops into combat
- The Privacy Act of 1974: allowed citizens access to any filed the gov may have had on them
- The Congressional Budget Act 1974: president could not use gov money for own purposes
