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American History > Theme 1: Changing political relationships > Flashcards

Theme 1: Changing political relationships Flashcards

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1
Q

what was the American Dream

A

a search for a better way of life

life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness

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2
Q

what does a government have to do to be seen as successful

A
  • help the citizens of American reach the American Dream
  • stable economy
  • provide social welfare
  • good domestic and foreign affairs
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3
Q

what 6 things affect the ability to achieve the American Dream and government success

A

MORALE: government actions affect the mood of people in economic/social spheres
FALSE PROMISES: not all American citizens are able to achieve the American Dream e.g. Wilson went back on war promise
CONGRESS: relationship needs to be good with President
MEDIA: government success relies on relationship between President and the media e.g. 1950’s TV/radio
INTERNAL INFLUENCES; social policy
EXTERNAL INFLUENCES: wars/international crises

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4
Q

why did the President’s power increase and what factors influenced the political landscape

A
  • society and its problems and ideas about dealing with those problems changed. The expectation of the government within society grew when it moved away from Laissez-faire
  • there was more pressure put on governments by wars and the reaction of the public to government actions
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5
Q

what were the three government branches

A

LEGISLATIVE: congress split into house of representatives and the Senate
EXECUTIVE: the white house, president and vice president
JUDICIAL: the supreme court

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6
Q

who had access to the American Dream before 1945

A

wealthy white men

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7
Q

what factors caused a change in the American Dream

A
  • increase in technology
  • war
  • economic prosperity
  • global economy/of allies
  • civil rights, liberalism and equality
  • economic catastrophes
  • changing political ideologies
  • rise and cuts of taxes
  • immigration
  • creation and loss of jobs
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8
Q

why was woodrow wilson elected/re-elected

A
  • America’s population was growing and as a Democrat he wanted to share equally the economic boom which appealed the mass poor
  • he wanted social equality and to interfere in society
  • he was a pacifist
  • he initially kept the USA out of war by sending supplies to the allies instead of fighting so was re-elected with the slogan ‘he kept us out of war’
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9
Q

what was the domestic policy of woodrow wilson

A
  • 1920 19th amendment all women were given the vote putting them of the map with political power and aiding the female suffragette movement
  • 1920 21st amendment introduced prohibition which was religious, cleaned up the streets, improved lifestyle but increased the threat of the mafia through back alley sales
  • 14 points
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10
Q

what was the foreign policy of woodrow wilson

A
  • he initially kept America out of the war by sending supplies to the allies to gain money and not lose men but this angered the Germans
  • German U boats were sinking American ships including the Lusitania in 1916 killing 1400 innocent people so he negotiated with them to get them to limit their naval programme
  • Germans said sinking was justified as the ships were going to their enemy
  • February 1917 Zimmerman Telegraph Crisis
  • 2nd April 1917 USA joined the war
  • 8th January 1918 fourteen points
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11
Q

what was the zimmerman telegraph

A
  • February 1917 Woodrow Wilson intercepted the Zimmerman telegraph of Germany encouraging Mexico to invade USA
  • Germany has sent them good
  • essentially a declaration of war/threat to US national security
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12
Q

what were woodrows wilsons 14 points

A
  • an attempt to end all wars through international cooperation and disarmament
  • led to creation of League of Nations in 1920
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13
Q

what was the style/personality of woodrow wilson

A
  • TV and radio wasn’t really popular so style not needed
  • he suffered a stroke at the end of his presidency and didn’t do much leaving his wife to run the white house
  • presidency seen as a well educated and aristocratic role
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14
Q

what legacy did Woodrow Wilson leave behind and why did people lose faith in him

A
  • he tarnished the Democrats reputation because people lost trust in him and due to his stoke they didn’t have enough time to get another candidate ready
  • although the war had boosted the US economy many felt US involvement had been a mistake
  • more alarm when after the war wilson tried to involve USA more closely in foreign affairs
  • he kept people in the dark about the Zimmerman telegraph and wasn’t clear why they were going to the war so the public were confused and angry
  • he had a bad relationship with congress
  • he built his campaign around a promise he didn’t keep
  • changed the dynamic of presidency to be more concerned with domestic affairs
  • womens voting rights
  • LoN
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15
Q

when was the first red scare

A

1919-1920

this was during the presidential term of woodrow wilson which was 1913-1921

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16
Q

give some positives and negatives for the FWW for America

A
  • boosted economy in long term
  • america made money at start by selling to allies
  • showed america was power/ put on international stage
  • loss of life that people didn’t agree with because it was a European war
  • led to the first red scare
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17
Q

why were people so against woodrow wilson’s fourteen points

A
  • dictator like asserting power in places he didn’t have power
  • not focusing solely on America after the war damage he caused
  • 30 years to early
  • alarming after war
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18
Q

what were the main causes of the first red scare?

A
  • after the war working conditions didn’t improve and the economy was unstable so people went on strike
  • fueled by fear of Russian Bolshevism in 1917
  • anarchists were handing out pamphlets encouraging revolution
  • CPUSA and CLP formed
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19
Q

give some statistics about the first red scare

A
  • January 1919 35,000 dockyard workers went on strike in Seattle
  • 1919 they were 3600+ strikes and 1/4 (4 million) on strike
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20
Q

what was red hunting

A
  • police and strikers didn’t clash but rumors of a communist revolution still spread and it became national news along with the strikes
  • people began to accuse each other of being communist
  • people became red hunters to feel safe - guilty until prove innocent - if your a red hunter you can’t be red
  • it was a blame game and people looked for a scape goat
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21
Q

who were anarchists in relation to the first red scare

A
  • anarchists were extremist who wanted to overthrow an established government
  • Italian born American anarchists Niccolo Sacco and Bartolemeo Vanzetti were convicted of murdering a guard and play master in an armed robbery on April 15th 1920 in Massachusetts. They admitted to being anarchists but denied murder
  • seven years later they were executed by the electric chair and were eventually found innocent but were already dead showing the irrational fear and hysteria
  • prosecution trial and aftermath showed a blatant disregard for political and civil liberties
  • fueled anti-immigrant feelings in the USA
  • Catholics lied under the bible due to hysteria and paranoia
  • the men where near by no solid evidence
22
Q

discuss the bomb threats of the first red scare

A
  • 28th April 1919 - the US post office discovers 36 bombs addressed to various state officials
  • 2nd June 1919 - Bombs explode in 8 cities, public officials targeted including the new attorney general head of the judiciary A. Mitchell Palmer
  • 9th September 1919 - bombs exploded in various cities said to be planted by red groups
  • a bomb went off down Wall Street killing 38, no one was arrested creating more fear
23
Q

what were Palmer raids (first red scare)

A
  • find, arrest and deport the communist/anarchists
  • conducted by the department of justice 1919-20
  • this extreme government intervention fueled social unrest after FWW
  • 1st August 1919 new radical division by palmer set up to seek out communists conspiracies and collect names of dangerous people
24
Q

what part did the FBI play in the first red scare

A
  • with Palmer raids after American Legion tip offs they started to open people’s letters and phone calls
  • unconstitutional
  • border line dictator and communism
  • beak constitution if its for the greater good
25
Q

why did the first red scare dissipate

A
  • Warren G Harding fixed the financial crisis and there’s no more instability/economy improves
  • he brings in normalcy and isolationism
  • no immigrants under isolationism
  • no fear as people caught up in roaring twenties
26
Q

why was Warren G Harding elected

A
  • promises a return to normalcy
  • promises isolationism and to stay out of foreign affairs
  • promises to lower taxes, restore the economy, jobs for everyone, money for all
  • promises to look into the race issue and improving their lives so got African American votes
  • strays from Republican beliefs and helps poor promise
27
Q

what were the domestic policies of warren g harding

A
  • reduce tax and balance deficit
  • backs/upholds prohibition - volestead act 1919
  • high tax/ tariff on foreign goods - less trade and tariffs raised back at America but more people bought American good creating jobs and money
  • laissez faire - less government in business more business in government
  • emergency quota act, reduce immigration by 1/2 million a year to reduce overpopulation, they only want self-sustaining rich people don’t want immigrants taking jobs from Americans, stop communism rising by shutting America away, it is very popular (May 1921)
  • provides nationwide radio and gives them out for free to boost US industry and expand national communication
  • proposed a committee to study the race question and how best to solve it
  • proposed a department of public welfare to direct state efforts to helping the poor and underprivileged
  • his policies were unusual for a Republican but necessary under the circumstances
28
Q

what was the foreign policy of warren G Harding

A
  • not interested, focus on America - isolationism
  • declared he sought no part in directing the destines of the world
  • refused to join the League of Nations
29
Q

what was the style/ personality of warren G Harding

A
  • not important at this period in time

- gave out free radios

30
Q

what was normalcy under warren g harding

A
  • in election campaign of 1921 Harding promised return to normalcy
  • two years of economic depression and unrest followed the end of the war and unemployment rose from 950K to 5 million in 1921
  • much social discontent: riots, protests and strikes
  • Harding had to remove these problems to achieve normalcy and he did this by everything in his domestic policy box
31
Q

discuss warren G hardings approach of isolationism

A
  • America’s long-standing reluctance to become involved in European alliances and wars
  • isolationists held the view that America’s perspective on the world was different from that of other European societies and that America could advance the cause of freedom and democracy by other means than war
  • didn’t mean complete disengagement from the world stage
  • isolationists not averse to idea that the US should be a world player nor resisted idea that USA should expand its territorial and economic interests
  • yet isolationism did curb immigration with Harding’s emergency quote act of May 1921
  • if war not many allies
  • not as easy to trade
  • run out of people to sell things to i.e. you only buy a car once
  • global trade network is necessary
32
Q

why was Calvin Coolidge elected/re-elected

A
  • Harding died with one year left of his term and Coolidge was vice-president
  • by this time Republicanism had gripped the nation as Harding had done all the work and while Coolidge did very little in the white house, the nation was engaged in an orgy of speculation, spending and extravagance
  • 1924 election he had the slogan keep cool with coolidge which epitomized his intent to change nothing
  • “don’t expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong”
  • DEMOCRATS WERE UN-ELECTABLE
  • no capitalism
  • America prosperous
  • laissez faire
33
Q

Why were the Democrats un-electable in the period of 1921-33 (that period was Harding, Coolidge, Hoover)

A
  • Woodrow Wilson had tarnished the Democrats reputation
  • democrats had created a society that was disenchanted with foreign contact, xenophobia, cynicism, race riots, strikes and calls for immigration restrictions
  • the Democrats were also riddled with internal problems partly due to their 2/3rds rule dating back to the 1830s which required Presidential nominees to obtain 2/3rds of the delegate votes at a convention so choosing a candidate was always difficult
  • in the 1924 election 103 ballots took place before settling on John.W. Davis who heavily lost the election to Coolidge
  • Despite scandals like the Teapot Dome Affair of 1923 that shamed the Harding administration. The democrats were unable to compete not least because of their connections with the KKK
34
Q

what was the domestic policy of Calvin Coolidge

A
  • radio licensing act, regulates radio stations and stops communist channels Feb 23rd 1927
  • keeps taxes low
  • isolationism
  • lassez-faire
  • keeps Republican ideals
35
Q

how was Calvin Coolidge arguably responsible for the Wall Street Crash

A
  • everyone got in debt as he didn’t regulate the banks or stock markets
  • he just didn’t do anything
36
Q

why was Herbert Hoover elected

A
  • continued the lassez-faire attitude at the beginning
  • nation still gripped by Republicanism and engaged in an orgy of speculation, spending and extravagance #
  • 1928 election was an endorsement of Republicanism Conservatism. Coolidge claimed that the USA was in a state of contentment seldom never seen before
  • his rugged individualism theories epitomized the principles of Republicanism
37
Q

what was the domestic policy of herbet hoover

A
  • believed in American Individualism and so laissez-faire
  • 1929 Agricultural Marketing act forcibly buying their goods
  • 1930 committee for unemployment
  • 1930 renews Hawley-Smoot Tariff act, made tariffs high so people only bought American goods but it got rid of overseas income at a time when people had no money in America to buy things. He should have got Europe to buy things
38
Q

what was the foreign policy of Herbet Hoover

A
  • Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act
39
Q

what was the style/personality of Herbet Hoover

A

FILL THIS IN

40
Q

Why was Truman elected/re-elected

A
  • FDR died and he was the vice president
  • Re-elected 1949 because it was after Fair Deal and SWW success and civil rights step before shit hit the fan
  • Korea and McCarthyism isn’t till 1950
41
Q

what was the Domestic Policy of Harry Truman

A
  • fair deal to help out veterans and agricultural workers into jobs
  • executive order 9981, civil rights, desegregates army and government
  • loyalty boards, unpopular for the army and government to swear oath after SWW
  • handling of red scares was bad
  • Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan
42
Q

what was the foreign policy of Harry Truman

A
  • Korea, fires Mac Arthur

- Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan

43
Q

what was the style/personality of Harry Truman

A
  • not charismatic/ confident
  • not good speaker and so looks weak
  • saw importance of media
  • old-fashioned
  • didn’t explain Korea war enough but you can’t expose military secrets to the media
  • overwhelmed by the job
  • made mistakes
  • organised with white house
  • didn’t work well with congress
44
Q

why would succeeding FDR prove to be a difficult task for Truman

A
  • FDR had become a national treasure and was so loved by the nation he was hard to live up to because of what he’d achieved
  • the nature of the Presidency changed drastically between FDR and Truman because FDR changed the relationship with public to have a connection that wouldn’t be seen again - fireside chats
  • Truman was to face the Vietnam war
  • FDR created ‘Big Government’ and arguably modern America
  • FDR brought in New Deal/social security but is it sustainable
  • Democrats coming to a natural end as economic stability better maintained with Republicans
45
Q

what issues presented themselves to the USA and Truman after the death of FDR

A
  • USA were vulnerable to attack from the soviet union and later China, Vietnam and Korea, overseas threat
  • cold war
  • second red scare which he doesn’t deal with well
  • foreign influence
  • civil rights begin to appear and he was the first president to discuss it at length
  • ending SWW
46
Q

how did Truman end the second world war and why did he do it

A
  • he dropped atomic bombs on Japan
  • arguable he had to because Japan wouldn’t surrender meaning there would be war for another 3/4 years and subsequently more death than him dropping the bombs
  • America was the only country with nuclear capabilities and therefore it was safe as no retaliation or threat
47
Q

what was the Truman Doctrine

A
  • assistance to stop the spread of communism, containment
  • it was misconstrued
  • USA will assist any nation under threat from falling to communism - 1947 speech
  • financial help
  • the public loved it because they were scared of communism and the economy wasn’t a priority
  • Sweeping statement America can’t help everyone
48
Q

what caused the second red scare

A
  • USSR spies in the Manhattan Project
  • people began accusing government employees of being communist
  • climate of fear and suspicion
  • 1949 China fell to Communism
  • 1949 First atomic bomb explosion by Soviets
  • race to develop first hydrogen bomb
  • contempt, distrust and trepidation in the post war world with the fear manipulated to protect values of the American Dream
  • 1950 Korea War
49
Q

how did the second red scare differ from the first

A
  • threatened the president
  • more media coverage which raised profile and so fear
  • Manhattan spies/ Russian repercussions and threat was real and four years later Russia have a bomb
  • anyone could be communist not just Italians and Eastern Europeans like the first, invisible enemy
  • spread from workers to government
50
Q

what was Mc McCarthyism

A
  • it was people blaming each other, red hunting or a witch hunt
  • McCarthy named 200+ people
  • Made people aware of enemy and ruined people’s lives
  • changed the dynamic of America
  • It increased the productivity of workers to reduce accusations and people bought American goods, brought the nation together

American History (4 decks)

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