Turbulant 60s Rejected Flashcards
Summarize the Election of 1960
The Election of 1960 was a presidential race between Democrat John F. Kennedy and Republican Richard Nixon. It was the first election campaign with nationwide presidential debates on television. Kennedy won the election by a narrow margin and became the youngest and the first Catholic President of the U.S.
President John. F. Kennedy’s domestic policy in the 1960s was known as the _____.
New Frontier
Kennedy’s New Frontier programs proposed educational aids, federal support of healthcare, civil rights and urban renewal. Most of the New Frontier propsals were not passed until Lyndon Johnson’s presidency.
Many of Kennedy’s New Frontier proposals were not passed by Congress until Johnson’s presidency. Why?
Unlike Lyndon Johnson who won a landslide election and had 2/3 majority of Democratic supporters in Congress, Kennedy did not receive full support from the public and from Congress because he won the Election of 1960 over Richard Nixon with a thin margin. Congress members who were democratic and conservative were equal in numbers. Therefore, Kennedy encountered challenges in launching his “great innovations” to American society.
What were the major foreign affairs events in the Kennedy’s presidency?
- Bay of Pigs Invasion (1961)
- Berlin Wall (1961)
- Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)
Describe
The Bay of Pigs Invasion (1961)
The Bay of Pigs Invasion was the CIA-trained force’s invasion at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba to overthrow Fidel Castro’s regime in April 1961. However, the invasion failed, resulting in anger amongst other Latin American countries and pushed Cuba toward the Soviets.
The invasion was Kennedy’s biggest foreign policy mistakecaused by his approval the CIA scheme planned under Eisenhower to use US-trained Cuban refugees to overthrow Cuba.
What was the Berlin Wall (1961) about?
In their meeting in Austria in 1961, Khrushchev used the failed Bay of Pigs invasion against Kennedy. Khrushchev demanded the U.S. to withdraw their troops from Berlin, but Kennedy refused to remove the U.S. forces.
In August 1961, with the Soviets’ support, East Germans built a wall around West Berlin to prevent East Germans’ migration to West Germany. The U.S. continued to support West Berlin.
The Berlin Wall was a symbol of the Cold War until it was torn down by rebellious East Germans in 1989.
Describe
The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)
In 1962,** **a U.S. U-2 (reconnaissance) plane discovered Russian underground missile sites in Cuba that could be launched to the United States. President Kennedy responded to this threat by setting up a naval blockade of Cuba until the weapons were removed. The Soviet premier Khrushchev agreed to remove the missiles from Cuba in exchange for Kennedy’s pledge not to invade Cuba.
What were the impacts of the foreign affairs events during Kenedy’s presidency?
The **Bay of Pigs Invasion (1961) **resulted in anger amongst other Latin American countries and strengthened the tie between Cuba and the Soviet Union.
The Berlin Wall (1961) resulted in a segregation between East and West Germany, as well as a growing tension between the U.S. and the communists (the Soviets and East Germans),
The Cuban Misile Crisis (1962) resulted in a more friendly U.S.-Soviet relations, a telephone hotline between Washington and Moscow, and the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty of 1993 to end the testing of nuclear weapons among the U.S., the Soviets, and 100 other nations
What were Kennedy’s notable foreign affairs achievements?
Peace Corps (1961): helped developing nations in Africa, Asia, and Latin America battle hunger, diseases, and illiteracy. Members of Peace Corps were young American volunteers with technical skills. Peace Corps symbolized American idealism and generosity.
The Alliance for Progress (1961): promoted land reform and economic development in Latin America. It was a fight against communism using economics.
The Trade Expansion Act (1962): authorized tariff reductions for the newly formed European Economic Community (European Common Market) in Western Europe.
What happened to Presideent Kennedy in 1963?
Kennedy was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas, Texas in November 1963.
____ ____ ____ is a commiittee set up by the American government to investigate the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963.
The Warren Commission
Chief Justice Earl Warren served as the head of the Commission.
What did the Warren Commission conclude about the assassination of President Kennedy?
The Warren Commission concluded that the shooter, Lee Harvey Oswald, was the only assassin. Three shots were fired, and two killed the President.
Regardless of the commision’s report, conspiracy theories still point to the possible involvement of organized crime, Castro, the CIA, and the FBI
The assassination and doubts in the Warren’s conclusion marked a loss in the government credibility.
_______ became President of the United States after the Assassination of Kennedy in 1963
Lyndon B. Johnson
Kennedy’s Vice President
What was Johnson’s domestic agenda during the rest of Kennedy’s term in office?
- Johnson convinced Congress to pass most of Kennedy’s domestic proposals, including an expanded version of Kennedy’s civil rights bill, and Kennedy’s proposed tax cut.
- Johnson declared **War on Poverty **in 1964.
What inspired Lyndon Johnson to declare the War on Poverty?
The Other America (1962) novel by Michael Harrington that focused national attention on the 40 million Americans living in poverty
What did Johnson do to combat the War on Poverty?
Johnson created the **Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) - **an anti-poverty agency which received a $1 billion budget from Congress to provide self-help programs for the poor.
What were Johnson’s Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) programs in combatting the War on Poverty?
The OEO programs include:
- Head Start for pre-schoolers
- Job Corp to providde vocational education
- Community Action Program allowed the poor to run anti-poverty programs in their own neighborhoods
- Literacy programs and legal services
What was the significance of The Election of 1964?
The Election of 1964 was a clear contrast between liberal and conservative candidates. Lyndon Johnson, as Democrat nominee, planned to increase government spending to combat the war on poverty and to solve social problems. Meanwhile, Republican nominee, Barry Goldwater, advocated an end of all social welfare programs.
Johnson won the election with a large landslide.
Democrats won a two-thirds majority control of Congress.
The _____ ____ was President Johnson’s domestic agenda after his 1964 election.
Great Society
It was a plan to help the underprivileged Americans in:
- Healthcare
- Education
- Urban Renewal
- Immigration
President Johnson was most famous for his healthcare programs known as _____ and _____.
Medicare and Medicaid
- Medicare provided medical insurance and medical coverage for American senior citizens.
- Medicaid offered government-aid healthcare for poor and diasabled Americans.
What were President Johnson’s educational reforms in the Great Society?
Educational reforms:
- Head Start program to help disadvantaged preschool students
- Elementary and Secondary Education Act 1965 to improve education for poor people and prepare disadvantaged children for elementary school
- Increase in federal funding for higher education
What was the Immigration Act of 1965?
The Immigration Act of 1965 is a component of Johnson’s the Great Society reforms.
- Abolished the 1920s law of immigration quotas based on country of origin
- Increased immigration opportunities for Asians and Latin Americans
