Eisenhower (1953-1961) Flashcards
When did Eisenhower become president?
1953
What was Eisenhower?
A republican
Where was Ike born and why was this significant?
Texas, small town in Kansas - there were few taxes to pay towards the federal government as they did very little for the American people
Why was Ike described as a ‘do nothing president’?
- Did nothing for the civil rights movement
- nothing for cold war
- didn’t stimulate economy or extend the American dream
- wasn’t as forceful as Truman, especially in foreign policy he preferred to maintain peace over war whereas
- Truman enjoyed asserting US power
What did the Eisenhower family believe in?
‘self sufficiency’ - (independence)
What was Eisenhower’s promise?
To restore normality and stability
What were the expectations of Eisenhower, being a republican?
- repeal of fair deal
- restore traditional US values involving minimal government intervention
Eisenhower’s reputation
American war hero - he was supreme commander of the Allies in Europe during ww2
Why did Ike do nothing for civil rights?
believed it wasnt the role of the president to intervene
Who did Ike defeat in the 1952 presidential election?
Robert Taft
Why did Eisenhower win the 1952 presidential election?
Policies for:
- cutting federal budget (finances for foreign+defence policies)
- cutting high taxes
- removal of ‘socialised’ medicine
- support for state rights
- war hero - supreme commander of allies in Europe in ww2 - he was TRUSTED and therefore extremely popular amongst the American people
- inspirational speaker
- clever campaign, rather that attacking his democratic opponent he attacked Truman with the slogan, KIC2 (Korea, communism, corruption)
What did K1C2 stand for and involve
Korea, communism, corruption
Slogan used as an attack against Truman :
- Ike promised to end the Korean war
- attacked policy of ‘containment’ as being ineffective and introduced a policy of ‘rollback’
- Attacked Truman for being ‘soft’ on communism for allowing Soviets to reach Berlin and for ‘losing’ China
-Blamed Truman for allowing soviets to reach Berlin, despite the fact that he controlled the US army at the time
What was Ike’s time as president remembered as?
A golden age
Americans didn’t have to worry bout problems associated with the economy or war and could enjoy an economic boom
Eisenhower - associated with economic prosperity
Eisenhower’s attitude towards domestics
‘moderate republicanism’ and ‘dynamic conservatism’
he did not share the extreme views of some ‘old guard’ republicans who believed in completely abolishing programmes such as the new deal and the fair deal. However, as president he believed he had the role to provide some additional benefits to the American people whilst favouring more limited spending than Truman. He wanted to intervene to stimulate the economy and favoured limited expansion of the new deal.
Domestic policy goals/ achievements
- Facilitating the economic boom in a moderate republican manner
- Surviving as president for 2 terms - he was extremely popular
- Ending McCarthyism, and taking control over the anti-communism hysteria
- Managed a difficult republican party
HOWEVER
Did little for civil rights
Eisenhower’s domestic policy successes
- expanded social security to cover 10 million Americans
- increased minimum wage by 25%
- established department of health, education and welfare
- made $500 million available to support the government supported construction of low-income housing
- 1956 interstate highway programme built a 41,000 mile road system
- introduced 2 civil rights acts in 1957 and 60
STIMULATED ECONOMY
When was the interstate highway act imposed and what did it involve?
1956
His most ambitious domestic project
Built 42,000 miles of road and made driving long distances faster and safer
Why did Eisenhower have less control over government spending during his final years as president?
Democratic control over congress
They spent more on domestic programmes than Eisenhower would’ve preferred, he used his veto to block expensive social reform programmes however, domestic spending still rose by a significant amount
From 31% of the budget in 1953 to 49% in 1961
How much did government spending on domestic programmes increase by?
1953 - 31% of the budget
1961 - 49% of the budget
How much did federal expenditure decrease during Ike’s presidency as a whole?
As a measure of GDP declined from 20.4% to 18.4% - during no presidency since Eisenhower’s has there been a decrease in federal spending s a percentage of GDP
Why might Eisenhower not be seen as responsible for economic successes?
Extremely lucky president, president at the ‘right time’
inherited economic prosperity and what was known as an ‘age of affluence’
Can be argued Ike didn’t need to intervene or take radical action as US was already heading towards stability through the ‘cycle of prosperity’ e.g. building of new, low-income homes provided employment
Roosevelts ‘new deal’ had kick started the economy, provided jobs and ended the economic depression, followed by Truman’s ‘21 point plan’ which expanded economic growth and promoted the American dream even further
The US had emerged from the war as the wealthiest most powerful nation in the world.
Other countries were in desperate need of raw materials and goods to rebuild their economy, the US was in a stable enough position to be able to aid these countries through the Marshall plan. As well as this, extremely powerful nations such as Great Britain and the USSR had been badly affected by the war - the US was at an economic advantage.
He built upon the work of T + R - would be crazy to abandon these ideas - all his work wasn’t his own ideas
Why was Eisenhower able to implement acts without being accused of what Truman had?
People were slightly less obsessed by communism - Eisenhower had put an end to the McCarthy hysteria
How many cars and telephones did Americans own?
By 1960 - half of the cars and telephones across the world
This made travel and communication far easier
How many families had televisions?
By 1960 - 90% of families
Led to the increasing popularity of sport and music. Explosion of advertisements led to a new found desire for glitz and glamour and led to the expansion of the consumer society
Improved lives for workers?
Wages rose and hours fell
Virtually all workers enjoyed at least 2 weeks of paid holiday a year
How much did the Average income of Americans increase?
Twice the amount of those in the 1920s
How much did GNP increase by?
$355 billion in 1950
$488 billion in 1960
How many homes built?
Between 1945 and 50 - five million
By 1960 60% of Americans owned their homes
Created a demand for furnishing, decorations etc and contributed to the development of a consumer society which generated social and cultural change
How many still lived in poverty?
1/4
Described as ‘the other America’ - was easily ignored by most Americans and Ike himself
wasn’t rediscovered until 1960s
When did the Eisenhower economy see recessions?
A minor recession in 1954 and a more serious one in 1958 which saw 5 million Americans unemployed and a production fall of 14%
Main problem with the economic boom
different groups, such as teenagers benefitted from the economic boom far more than others. For example, teens were gaining huge amounts of freedom and opportunities whereas the elderly were becoming increasingly isolated once families started to move out of towns and into nuclear family units such as Levittown
Problem with economic boom and employment
Industrialisation made manual jobs redundant and many lost their employment status - particularly evident in 1958 which saw 5 million Americans unemployed
Problems with the economic boom and impact on US society
Many intellectuals believed the consumer society led to the American people becoming increasingly materialistic and less considerate of the less fortunate
Many also feared the consumer society was becoming far too central and was undermining traditional American values such as hard and careful money management
How much did inflation remain at?
below 2%
Most difficult domestic issue for Eisenhower
Mccarthy crisis - he was able to gain support through the media and through manipulating the US fear of communism
Senator Joseph McCarthy had been making headlines since 1950 after his accusation that there was communist sympathisers working for the US government which eventually led to the launch of the witch hunting campaign against the Truman administration
Ike’s opinion towards McCarthy
Ike also worried about communist spies or agents but disliked McCarthy’s outrageous methods which included the tendency to consider someone guilty until proved innocent
Why did Ike never criticise McCarthy publicly?
Scared it could ruin his own career through being accused himself or work to McCarthy’s advantage, increasing his own power
Actions of McCarthy in 1954
Held televised hearings on communist influence in the US army
Why did McCarthy’s accusations against the army anger Ike so much?
He felt morally obliged to defend the army - he had spent most of his adult life serving in the army
How did Ike approach the situation to ensure McCarthy’s removal from power?
He worked quietly behind the scenes to diminish the senator’s power using the US media to present McCarthy in an extremely negative way to the US people.
EXTREMELY CLEVER AND SIGNIFICANT - By 1954 9/10 US homes had a television, they could have an extremely powerful political effect
