Reagan Flashcards
who was Reagan
-controversial polarising figure in politics
-liberals very critical of Reagan whilst conservatives revere him as a hero
-his presidentcy was significant and influential
-had careers in 3 forms of media-radio, movies and television
who did reagan appeal to
-voters who resented high taxes, affirmative action programmes, rising crime and challenges to traditional values
Reagan major dates
1980- elected as president
1981- inaugurated as president
March 1981- survived assassination attempt
Aug 1981- major economic reform bills passed and signed into law
Jan 1982- Social security reform act signed
dec 1985- congress mandated cuts to balance the budget by 1991
Nov 1986- iran contra contraversy uncovered
feb 1987-tower commission criticises reagans management
oct 1987- Bork rejected for Supreme Court
what happened under Reaganomics
-tax cuts
-deregulation
-limited gov spending
-increased defence spending
-huge trade defecit with cheap imports and expensive exports
-collapse of industry in america and move towards financial services (movement from secondary to teritary and quaternary industries with higher income
-reagan blamed Keynesian economics for the state of the US and wanted a more conservative approach
-wanted incentives for people to work harder
-under regan the federal reserve managed to control inflation by controlling the money supply
why was reagan reelected in 1984
because of the mid decade boom due to his Reaganomics
what was supply-side economics
-argues that if taxes are cut then people would have more money to invest in the economy
-called supply side economics because the gov cared less about the demand of the public and instead focused on caring about businesses
-believes that if tax for corporations was reduced they would have more money left from their profits to invest in their businesses meaning that companies would expand and employ more people (higher wages)
-with more employmentt and higher wages people can use money to spend in the economy by buying property and products
-this would then help companies have more money
what was the criticism of supply-side economics
-corporations and shareholders tend to keep more profits than its worth, they can reinvest into their business and wider economy
-creates wealth divide between the rich and poor
-less taxes= less gov spending on welfare programs for the poorest
what was the idea of the lafer curve
-at the sweet point in this laffer curve the cutting of taxes and getting rid of regulations/bureaucracy led to companies using extra income to invest, innovate and expand
-this would lead to more money and less taxes =increased sales and profits
-neo liberals believe cutting regulations on businesses and slashing corporate taxes would make companies more competitive and therefore able to make more profits
what was regans program for ecnomic growth
presented congress with 4 different aspects:
-cut the federal deficit (to reduce domestic spending)
-reduce taxes
-deregulation
-control the money supply
-deregulation of federal and state requirements would allow businesses to flourish, their increased profit would mean more tax revenue for the government- this would pay off the deficit
-increased the cold war military spending
what did reagan want to achieve
-tax cuts to revive the economy
-wanted to cut 40 billion from the proposed budget
-deregulation=increased profits=government would get more tax
-wanted his whole economic plan to be passed through as a singular peice of legislation alongside a new tax reform bill
what was the omnibus budget reconciliation act and when was it
-1981
-reagans budget plan: white house initially wanted 45 billion worth of cuts, following negotiations managed to get 35 billion (accross 212 federal programmes)
tax cuts successes impact on America
SUCCESSES
-the ERA bill in august 1981 ushered huge tax cuts for the american people, totalling cuts of around 23% over the next 3 years
-second major peice of legislation, the 1986 tax reform act: closed loopholes and made the federal tax system a lot easier for americans
-reduced the number of different tax brackets from fourteen to just three
-also further decreased the top rate of tax from 50 to 28 percent
-exempted 6 million of poorest americas from paying any federal tax at all
what did regan reduce the number of tax brackets to and how did he decrease the top rate of tax
-reduced the number of different tax brackets from fourteen to just three
also further decreased the top rate of tax from 50 to 28 percent
ERA BILL TAX CUTS
the ERA bill in august 1981 ushered huge tax cuts for the american people, totalling cuts of around 23% over the next 3 years (35 b worth of cuts)
how many poor americans did he exempt from paying taxes
-exempted 6 million of poorest americas from paying any federal tax at all
tax cuts failures impact on america
-after a brief recession in 1981/82 reagan had to make some money for the gov…. ended in him reversing some of the tax cuts for businesses and increased taxes on ciggarettes and airline tickets
less federal government spending successes
-1981 ERA bill saw 35 billion worth of cuts across 212 government departments
-under Reagan government spending on human resources dropped from 28 percent of the federal busdget in 1980 to 22 percent by 1987
ERA BILL GOVERNMENT SPENDING CUTS
-1981 ERA bill saw 35 billion worth of cuts across 212 government departments
less federal government spending failures
-federal expidenture increased from $699.1 bn in 1980 to $859.6bn in 1987
-defence spending almost doubled from $157.5bn in 1981 to $303.6bn in 1986
-national debt tripled under Reagan to 2.6 trillion
-paying interest on this debt was the govs third highest expidenture
-congress protected popular domestic programs such as Social Security and medicare/medicaid, and funding these programmes increased in 1980s
HOW MUCH DID FEDERAL EXPIDENTURE INCREASE
-federal expidenture increased from $699.1 bn in 1980 to $859.6bn in 1987
what happened to defence spending under Reagan
-defence spending almost doubled from $157.5bn in 1981 to $303.6bn in 1986
what happened to national debt under Reagan
-national debt tripled under Reagan to 2.6 trillion
–paying interest on this debt was the govs third highest expidenture
what domestic programs were protected
-congress protected popular domestic programs such as Social Security and medicare/medicaid, and funding these programmes increased in 1980s
what were the successes of deregulation
-average of 29% cuts in government regulatory agencies, with a huge 38% from the consumer product safety commission
-reagan used his powers of appointment to ensure that cabinet members of key agencies (e.g occupational health and safety administration) would make decisions in favour of businesses rather than workers
cuts in government regulatory agencies
-average of 29% cuts in government regulatory agencies, with a huge 38% from the consumer product safety commission
what were the failures of deregulation
-deregulation in the finance sector caused companies to make more risky decisions and investments
-this led to a fairly substantial crash in 1987, although this was soon dealt with and recovery was very quick (as the gov knew how much caution damaged the economy during 1929 wall street crash)
-due to deregulation there was a collapse of savings and loans companies in the 1980s
-reagan gov had to bail them out with 132 billion
what led to the crash in 1987
deregulation in the finance sector caused companies to make more risky decisions and investments
-this led to a fairly substantial crash in 1987, although this was soon dealt with and recovery was very quick (as the gov knew how much caution damaged the economy during 1929 wall street crash)
why was there a collapse in savings and loans companies
-due to deregulation there was a collapse of savings and loans companies in the 1980s
-reagan gov had to bail them out with 132 billion
improving the economy successes
-inflation fell from 13.5% in 1980 to 4,7% in 1988
-unemployment fell from 7% in 1980 to 5.2% in 1988
-18 million new jobs created in america by 1988
-after the brief recession of 1981-1982 the USA went through its longest period of economic growth during its peacetime
-GNP rose from 3.925 trillion in 1981 to 5.866 by 1989
what happened to inflation under Reagan
inflation fell from 13.5% in 1980 to 4,7% in 1988
what happened to unemployment under Reagan and how many new jobs were created
-unemployment fell from 7% in 1980 to 5.2% in 1988
-18 million new jobs created in america by 1988
what happened after the 1981-82 recession
-after the brief recession of 1981-1982 the USA went through its longest period of economic growth during its peacetime
what happened to GNP under Reagan
-GNP rose from 3.925 trillion in 1981 to 5.866 by 1989
improving the economy failures
-trade deficit rose under reagan from 38 billion per year in 1982 to around 150 billion per year by the end of the decade
-average family income fell during reagans administration down to 1973 levels
-only half of american families maintained their standard of living during the 1980s
-number of part time and temporary work increased (wages. not as high or secure as other jobs)- reason.
What happened to family income under regan
-average family income fell during reagans administration down to 1973 levels
-only half of american families maintained their standard of living during the 1980s
what happened to trade deficeit under regan
-trade deficit rose under reagan from 38 billion per year in 1982 to around 150 billion per year by the end of the decade BAD
what did reagan want to achieve in term of government
-Reagan famously said in his inaugral adress in 1981: government is not the solution to the problem, government is the problem
-Reagan wanted to shrink the sixe and the scope of the government (reduce ‘big government’)
-he believed the american dream was one where people got on and improved their own lives, and that people did not want an out of hand government he coined this NEW FEDERALISM
-reagan wanted to scale back the scale of the gov to bring back a nation that focused on individual liberty and entrepreneurship
-he hoped that cutting back the government would help balance the US’s finances alongside his massive tax cuts
-the gov would no longer be able to afford their big programs
why was reagan successful in cutting back big government
-reagan wasnt the first republican who wanted to cut back gov but he was successful because:
-he was a much better communicator than previous republicans before him and his charm made people trust his ideas
-the economic stagnation and the US governments inability to deal with it effectively had led to people losing fait in the governments ability to slove every problem
-the cost og gov departments and programmes were becoming increasingly higher and many americans thought their tax dollars were being wasted
what did reagan do to reduce big government
from 1981-89 the reagan administration continued to try and make cuts to government programmes, hoping to reduce the size scope and spending of the Us gov
3 examples that suggest reagan was successful in cutting big government
-reduced federal programmes (reduced the department of education staff by 25 percent)
-decreased the department of education grants by 63%
-cut benefits under the ADFC (aid for families with dependent children)
-
how much did he decrease the department of education by
-reduced federal programmes (reduced the department of education staff by 25 percent)
-decreased the department of education grants by 63%
who did he cut benefits to
-cut benefits under the ADFC (aid for families with dependent children)
what happened to civiliian employment
-rose overall by 3 percent
-11.5% swell in national defence employment
why was James G.Watt a controversial appointment by Reagan
-saw environmental regualations as extra costs to businesses
-opened federal land to exploitation by coal and timber companies and blocked any creation of new wildnerness areas
-resigned due to racial slurs in 1983
why was reagan unpopular with environmentalists
-he had tried to veto the clean water act and said that trees cause pollution
-didnt see protecting the environment as a big issue
-opened federal land to coal and timber exploitationiom
-blcoked the creation of new wilderness protection areas
-made 1 million acres of offshore land for oil companies
why did saving and loans companies become a huge issue
-authorised a wide range of risky investments then gambled and stole
-s and l industry leaders gambled and stole
-needed a $132 billion bailout from public funds
why did senator Ernest hollings say that Reagan had ‘dealt Uncle Sam a crippling blow’
-said that national debt was so big that no one would be able to start another major programme without raising taxes
why did mario cuomo criticise Reagan
because he didnt care about the people who were effected at the bottom of his policies and said the unemployed didnt want to work
how much was the federal reistar reduduced by
-the federal regestar (list. of federal drules and regulations) was cut by 23,000 pages
what impact did reagans reductions of big government and other reductions have on the usa
-the cutting of gov programmes and regulations did not have a lasting impact on the usa…..
-the federal regestar (list. of federal drules and regulations) was cut by 23,000 pages
-many big companies were very successful, normally at the expense of smaller ones. when small companies began to fail bigger companies starte dto buy them up. this saw a rise in CONGLOMERATES
-many utility and other service companies looked to save money and maximise profits. they began to reduce services to unprofitable areas and rural regions suffered
-environmental issues suffered
-USA shifted from being world banker to a borrowing nation as trade shifted against the USA and imports began to rise= created more competition and led to cheaper goods for consumers but also hurt american businesses who couldnt compete with cheaper foreign products
summary of why reagan suceeded
-popular and charismatic
-people upset at big gov spending
-people had lost faith in politics during 1970s stagflation
why did reagan rise to the top on the basis of the new religious right
-reagans surge to the top was on the back of the NEW RIGHT, he was incredibly popular with conservative christians (religious rights)
-he stated he was a ‘born again christain’ (somneone who has a new surge of religious devout faith)
-reagan sold himself as a champion on the nuclear family who had strict and traditional family values (despite the fact he was americas first preident to be divorced, was a hollywood playboy, and had bad relationship with 2 of his children)
what were the conservative social policies reagan promoted as role model for the Religiou Right
-banning abortion
-restoring prayer in schools
-allowing the teaching of ‘creationism’
what were the issues reagan wanted to tackle that were hurting ‘family values’
-rising divorce rates
-teenage pregnancies
-homosexuality
-working women
(conservatives believed that these issues were ruining the american idea of the traditional nuclear family)
what did reagan do to ‘tackle’ abortion
-persuaded congress to ban Medicaid-funded abortions
-discouraged the use of condoms
-created ‘chastity centres’ that discouraged sex all together
-BOWEN VS KENDRICK (1988) supreme court denied federal funding to pro choice clinics. this supported a government move to blovk federally funded pregnancy clinics from even discussing abortion with patients
-failed to overturn Roe Vs Wade or pass a constitutional agreement to ban abortion
what was BOWEN VS KENDRICK
-BOWEN VS KENDRICK (1988) supreme court denied federal funding to pro choice clinics. this supported a government move to blovk federally funded pregnancy clinics from even discussing abortion with patients
what did reagan do to ‘tackle’ homosexuality
-did very little during the AIDS outbreak as conservatives believed it was linked to immoral behaviour
-by 1990 100,000 people had died from aids (it managed to spread and infect blood banks)
-BOWERS VS HARDWICK (1986) the supreme court supported a george state law that criminalised ‘sodomy’
-another 24 states, plus washington dc had laws against deviant behaviour
-BUT some liberal states like Massachusetts passed laws that banned homophobic discrimination
HOW MANY PEOPLED DIED DURING AIDS OUTBREAK
-did very little during the AIDS outbreak as conservatives believed it was linked to immoral behaviour
-by 1990 100,000 people had died from aids (it managed to spread and infect blood banks)
WHAT WAS BOWERS VS HARDWICK
-BOWERS VS HARDWICK (1986) the supreme court supported a george state law that criminalised ‘sodomy’
what was the Family Protection act (1981) and what was its impact
-legislation was designed by conservative republicans and the New Right to try and fix american society
-it called for prohibition of abortion, restoration of school behaviour, tax breaks for wives who stayed at home, tax credits for privates school and single sex sports at school etc
-however reagan didnt endorse this bill through congress as unpopular
what was reagans impact on drugs
-drugs were a widespread problem during the 1980s- around 40m AMERICANS USED ILLEGAL SUBSTANCES annd half of the population under 45 had tried cannabis (drug use had grown due to the cheap new substance ‘crack’)
-there were around 12,000 annual drug related deaths in the 1980s
-Nancy Reagan started the ‘JUST SAY NO!’ campaign in 1982
-Reagan administration began a war on drugs which spent 15 billion a year to tackle the issue
-drug use was still an issue at the end of reagans presidency, his administration focused on catching and punisshing dealers instead of rehabilitating the addicted
-reagans administration found it hard to crack down on banks who were laundering drug money- this was due to reagans own deregualtion policies
-war on drugs had a large effect on the US prison population (750,000 were charged for drug related crimes each year) and over 60% of new prisoners were due to drug related crime
-half of these new inmates were black/hispanic- harsher sentances for cheap crack than middle class/expensive cocaine
EFFECT OF WAR ON DRUGS ON PRISON POPULATION
-war on drugs had a large effect on the US prison population (750,000 were charged for drug related crimes each year) and over 60% of new prisoners were due to drug related crime
-half of these new inmates were black/hispanic- harsher sentances for cheap crack than middle class/expensive cocaine
HOW MUCH DID REAGAN SPEND ON TACKLING DRUGS ISSUE
-Reagan administration began a war on drugs which spent 15 billion a year to tackle the issue
what was reagans impact of womens rights
-oppossed the equal rights ammendment- which was never passed through congress
-socially conservative womens groups grew drastically (beverly La Haye’s Concerned Women For America had 500,000 members, more than NOW)
-HOWEVER: appointed the first female supreme court justices (Sandra Day o’Connor who was pro choice)
-under regan more women entered the workforce than ever before and there was a slight shift in the gender pay gap
MEMEBERSHIP OF CONCERNED WOMEN FOR AMERICA VS NOW
Concerned Women For America had 500,000 members, more than NOW)
WHO WAS A WOMAN HE APPOINTED TO SUPREME COURT
appointed the first female supreme court justices (Sandra Day o’Connor who was pro choice)
how did reagan catagorise the poor
-scrougers (lazy benefit cheats)
-the deserving poor (those who are tryingband need help)
how many states ran work programmes by 1987
-42
why did workfare fail to help poor families
-much of the work provided paid below minimum wage and sometimes less than benefit making families struggle
-despite to gov promise of childcare, single parents found childcare hard ro find making working impossible
how many families were looking for a low income home in 1985? what did reagans administeation do that meant families could not find one?
-by 1970 there were almost 2.4 million low income homes available to families that applied for them
-by 1885 there were 3.7 million families who qualified for a low income home but there were no houses available
how did funding for homelessness change
-the federal government spent 32 billion on low cost housing products previously
-by 1988 it was spending just 9.2 billion
what was the McKinney act and what did it do to try tackles homelessness
-1987
-set up the federal emergency management agency
-FEMA matched state grants to local homelessness projects hall and half the state had to choose the project
what did reagan say abour the civil rights act in 1966
‘if an individual wants to discriminate against (slur) in selling or renting his house he has the right to do so’
why did reagan upset the NAACP in both 1981 and 82
-he said that federal aid had created a new kind of bondage for African americans (insinuating that the 19th century enslavement was replaced by excessive depndence upon welfare)
how many of reagans judical appointments were from ethnic minority groups
only 7 out of the 368 federal judges he appointed were black (15 were hispanic and 2 were asian)
four reasons why ethnic minorities had some cause for celebration during the 1980s
-reagan had a black cabinet member
-major cities like New York, chicago and philadelphia elected black mayors
-reagan failed to stop the establishment of Martin Luther king as a federal holiday
-in 1982 extenstions to the 1965 voting rights act required that congressional districts be drawn so that racial and ethnic minorities could elect a candidate of their choice
how did reagan ensure his legacy
-ensured legacy by appointing new judges to the american judicial system
-aside from 9 supreme court judges the president could elect69 circuit court judges and 6000 gederal district court judges
-Reagan appointed judges that agreed with his social views to make rulings in his favour 9longevity as judges would serve until they retire or die)
-whilst supreme court most important, the lower courts could play a huge role as much is left to circuit courts as supreme court only heard about 1% of cases a year
-reagan appointed 4 judges to the supreme courtand 168 court judges and 211 district court judges
-by the time reagan left office over 50% of dederal judiciary had been appointed by Reagan.
-by 1992 75% of judicary had been appointed by reagan and bush
how did confidence in presidency decline pre Reagan
-Johnson marred by vietnam was
-nixon ruined by watergate
-ford couldnt get away from pardoning nixon
-carter seenat too weak
-reagan managed to reverse this declining trust
how did reagans characteristics restore faith in the presidency
-great communicator and had natural charm
-was good at the media game: used charm to cover weakness (e.g when asked about his age in 1984 election debate he made a joke about apponent mondale)
-got on very well with congress (even democratic opponents), often invited members to the white house for meetings and evens, Tip O’Neill was willing to work with him
-had a clear vision of the ameican dream
what events helped reagan restore faith in the presidency
30TH MARCH 1981 ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
-John hinckley Jr shot reagan and his press secretary
-despite being injured his cheerful demeaner won him huge support
AUGUST 1982 ECONOMIC AND TAX REFORM
-within 9 moths of becoming president reagan seemed to be delivering on his promises
-managed to pass sweeping legislation through congress showed he meant business
-impressive as democrats had a large majority in ouse of representatives
1994 REELLECTION FOR SECOND TERM
-reagan recieved 58.8% of vote
-in the electoral college reagan recieved 525/538 votes
LATE 1980S- END OF COLD WAR
-towards end of 1980s USSR was declining as a result of MLKHAIL GORBACHEV’S modern and reformist policies
how did the reagan era change the Democratic Party
-after he left bush continued to opposse big government in office
-even clinton admitted that the era of big gov was over which was a big thing as he was a democrat
what hurt reagans image
THE IRAN CONTRA AFFAIR 1986
-Congress passed the ‘boland ammendment’ which meant thatvthere was money given to militias in central/touth america
-in 1986 is was rumoured that reagan administration had shipped arms to iran to get hostages held by pro Iranians released (happened after the trade emargo in iran and claimed he wouldnt negotiate with terrorists)
-reagan had to confess the profits from the arms sale had been diverted to contra rebels without consultation with congress
-considered highly significant as it lead to large scale hostile investigative journalism in the media and was a huge fall back on Reagans foreign policy
FAILURE TO HELP REPUBLICANS WITH CONGRESS
-his personal popularity never transferred to his rebublican alliest in congress
-throughout his time in office the democrats controlled the House of Representatives
-in 1986 middterm elections democrats won back the senate from republicans
NEGOTIATIONS AND CONCESSIONS UPSET THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT
-failure to endorse the family protection act and lack of action in school prayer and abortion began to upset conservative christian
-whilst reagan continued to support right wing ideas he failed to take action to put them to law knowing democratic congress would never pass them
IRAN CONTRA AFFAIR
-Congress passed the ‘boland ammendment’ which meant thatvthere was money given to militias in central/touth america
-in 1986 is was rumoured that reagan administration had shipped arms to iran to get hostages held by pro Iranians released (happened after the trade emargo in iran and claimed he wouldnt negotiate with terrorists)
-reagan had to confess the profits from the arms sale had been diverted to contra rebels without consultation with congress
-considered highly significant as it lead to large scale hostile investigative journalism in the media and was a huge fall back on Reagans foreign policy
did the reagan revolution last
-in 1988 presidential election the US voted for reagans vice president, GEORGE BUSH
-bush was defeated in the 1992 presidential election losing the bill to clinton (democrat)
how did newt Gingrich prove that reagans ideas were still popular in the 1990s
-republicans won both the house and the senate in 1994 on the back of gringrich’s contract with america which promised low taxes, less government and strong family values
what two economic reasons may explain why bush was only a one term president
-claimed there would be no more taxes but there were
-failed to tackle 2.3 trillion deficit and rose to 4
how did the gov’s position on abortion change during the 1990s
-bush had been a pro choice at first but in 1988 declared ‘abortion is murder’ and supported the anti abortion ammendment
did the position of minorities and women improve drasticaly in the 1990s
-no because clintons attempts to allow homosexual in military resulted in criticism and a dont ask dont tell formula
-whilst black congressmen increased from 45 in 1990 to 69 by 1992 racial discrimination continued
-WOMEN: reproductive rights under constant threats and economic position still inferior
-IMPROVED TO SMALL EXTENT POLITICALLY with the number of women increasing to 47 in the house and 7 in the senate
