Ch 39: Stalemated 70s
Background: 1970s productivity slows
Sources of Stagnation
· Why?: Women and teenage workers had fewer skills than adult male workers - less likely to work full-time and develop skills.
· Vietnam War drained tax dollars from improvements – caused inflation.
· Rising oil prices caused inflation
· LBJ spent billions on war and programs, without raising taxes.
· Need to modernize manufacturing plants, find more efficient methods of production.
Tmwk 39
1. Pg 939 Picture: What is the cartoon topic? Geo loc, key ppl/country, time period. Add OI
2. Pg 941 Quote: Explain the Marine's thinking from the quote.
Nixon “Vietnamizes the War”
· “Vietnamization:” Nixon’s policy to withdraw 540,000 U.S. troops from S. Vietnam gradually to fight their own war. US would support with $$, weapons, training. S. Vietnamese gradually take over fight on their own. (Nixon Doctrine)
· War unpopular at home and with soldiers – drug abuse, mutiny, sabotage.
· 1968 My Lai Massacre: US Army unit murdered 350 unarmed citizens – men/women/children in S. Vietnam. Result: this increased opposition to the war.
Cambodianizing the Vietnam War
· Cambodia (borders Vietnam) used as staging ground for troops, weapons/supplies.
· April 1970: Nixon widened war, ordering attack on Cambodia. Why? To defeat 40,000 troops of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam (Viet Cong) who were on eastern border of Cambodia.
· Angry anti-war protests over Cambodia: College students threw rocks, smashed windows, committed arson. Kent State Univ - National Guard fired at crowd of students, killing 4, wounding others.
· June 1970 Nixon withdrew U.S. troops from Cambodia, but Cambodia caused bitterness between “doves” and “war hawks.”
· 1971 - 26th Amend.: lowered voting age to 18.
· Pentagon Papers: former Pentagon official leaked top secret study that showed mistakes and deceptions of the JFK and LBJ’s administration to NY Times newspaper.
Tmwk
3. Pg 947 Quote: What were the Pentagon Papers? Use the quote from Pg 947 as evidence of deception. (put in your own words)
Nixon's Détente with Beijing and Moscow
-Anti-war sentiments high
-Nixon believed road out of Vietnam War was thru China and Soviet Union. Tried to get both to pressure N. Vietnam into peace.
-July 1971: Nixon (strong anticommunist) announced plan to visit Communist China.
-Feb. 1972 China Visit Result - Shanghai Communiqué: both nations agreed to "normalize" their relationship. Acceptance of "one-China" policy which decreased support of an independent Taiwan.
-May 1972: Nixon visits USSR. USSR worried over an "American-backed China."
-Nixon's visit brought "Détente" -relaxed tension between the 2 communist powers.
-U.S. made 3 year agreement to sell USSR food.
-Agreed to anti-ballistic missile treaty (ABM) - limit on defense missiles.
-Arms reduction negotiations - SALT (Strategic Arms Limitations Talks) to freeze numbers of long-range nuclear missiles for 5 yrs
Tmwk
4. Pg 943 Cartoon: What is the cartoon topic? Time per, Geo loc, key ppl/country. Add OI
Important Supreme Crt Cases
· Roe v. Wade: landmark Supreme Crt decision - legalized abortion. Crt held woman's right to abortion is determined by trimester of pregnancy. Protected by constitutional "right of privacy."
· 1974 Milliken v. Bradley: ruled desegregation plans couldn’t require students to move across school district border lines. Suburban schools didn’t have to help urban schools desegregate.
· Engel v. Vitale and School District of Abington Township v. Schempp: Supreme Crt angered religious conservatives by using 1st Amendment (separation of church and state) to prohibit required prayers and Bible reading in schools.
· Miranda v. Arizona: Suspect right to remain silent; anything the person says will be used against that person in court; the person must be clearly informed that he or she has the right to consult with an attorney and to have that attorney present during questioning, and that, if he or she is indigent, an attorney will be provided at no cost to represent her or him.
Nixon on Home Front:
· Nixon had liberal domestic agenda and expanded welfare programs
· Expanded benefits under Social Security to include aged, blind, disabled.
· Established 1). Environmental Protection Agency to protect human health and environment (EPA), 2). Clean Air Act - reduce smog and air pollution 3). Endangered Species Act - protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of uncontrolled economic growth and development."
Tmwk
5. pg 946 Map: Who won the pres election in 1972? How many states did McGovern win?
1972 Election:
· Democratic candidate: George McGovern - promised to take U.S. troops out of Vietnam in 90 days.
· Nixon’s "Southern Strategy”: previous election Nixon didn’t receive majority vote, so he worked to get a majority in 1972 election – 1). Appoint conservative Supreme Crt justices 2). “soft pedal” civil rights, 3). Opposed school busing.
· Nixon emphasized how he scaled down war from 540,000 to 30,000.
· Landslide victory for Nixon
Secret bombing of Cambodia
· U.S. Air Force - 3,500 secret bombing raids against N. Vietnamese positions in Cambodia – but Pres. swore that Cambodian neutrality had been respected.
· 1973 Nixon agreed to cease-fire with N. Vietnam, but continued bombing communist forces, even though Congress tried to stop it.
· Congress opposed Nixon's war-making powers so they passed Nov 1973 War Powers Act: Required Pres to report to Congress w/in 48 hrs after committing troops to a foreign conflict OR “substantially” enlarging U.S. combat units in a foreign country. War Powers Act labeled “New Isolationism” – due to its mood of caution/restraint.
1973 Arab Oil Embargo Crisis
· 1973 attack on Israel by Syrians and Egyptians to gain lost territory. Nixon ordered airlift of $2 billion in war supplies to help Israelis.
· U.S. policy to help Israel caused oil-rich Arab nations to impose oil embargo on U.S. to punish them for helping Israel.
· This energy crisis caused Congress to approve Trans Alaska pipeline.
· By 1974 U.S. addicted to oil and Arab oil embargo put an end to era of cheap, abundant energy.
Watergate: Unmaking of a President
· Republican Committee for the Re-election of the President (CREEP): 5 men arrested at Watergate building for breaking in, trying to plant “bugs” in Democratic Party Headquarters.
· Nixon denied involvement, but taped evidence proved otherwise.
· Nixon resigned Aug 1974; Certain he would be impeached and removed from office.
· Gerald Ford: 1st non-elected president. Ford pardons Nixon for crimes he may have committed.
Tmwk
6. Pg 949 and 950 Top Picture: What was the fate of Pres Nixon? What caused his downfall?
1st Unelected President: Pres Ford
· 1973: Spiro Agnew - resigned as V.P. for taking bribes from contractors while governor and V.P.
· Congress used 25th amendment to replace Agnew with congressman Gerald Ford, so Ford selected, not elected as V.P.
· July 1975 Helsinki Accords: 35 countries - U.S, Canada, European countries signed declaration to improve relations between Communist bloc and the West
Ø Recognized Soviet boundaries of Poland and other Eastern European countries.
Ø USSR guaranteed greater exchanges of people and info between East and West, plus protection of certain "human rights."
· Critics of Detente: American food and technology went to USSR, but U.S. didn't benefit, plus Soviets continued human rights violations
Defeat in Vietnam
· Early 1975: N. Vietnamese made aggressive attack on S. Vietnam. Pres Ford urged Congress - send more weapons to Vietnam - Congress refused.
· Without increased help from U.S., S. Vietnam fell to North in 55 days after the attack.
· Remaining Americans & 140,000 S. Vietnamese evacuated.
· U.S. fought N. Vietnamese to a "standstill," but then withdrew troops, leaving S. Vietnamese to fight alone.
· U.S. continued to send S. Vietnam war equipment/ supplies.
7. Question: Did U.S. lose the Vietnam War? Or did the S. Vietnamese lose their own war? Explain Why.
· Cost of Vietnam War: 56,000 dead, 300,000 wounded, $118 billion spent.
Feminist Victories and Defeats
· 1972 Congress passed Education Amendment - Title IX : prohibited gender discrimination in federally assisted educational program; Created opportunities for female athletes.
· 1972 Equal Rights Amendment (ERA): "Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S or any state due to gender." (never passed)
· Phyllis Schlafly led campaign to stop the ERA; 35 states ratified ERA, but 3 states short, so never passed.
Tmwk
8. Pg 957 Picture: Why was Phyllis Schlafly against the Women's Equal Rights Amendment?
70's in Black and White
· Affirmative action programs controversial. Some cried "reverse discrimination." - Claimed rights were violated by employers putting more emphasis on race, rather than ability.
· Native Americans gained by using courts and civil disobedience. U.S. v. Wheeler - Supreme Crt declared Indian tribes had "unique and limited" sovereignty, subject to Congress, but not to individual states.
Carter Victory
· 1976 Election: Democrat Jimmy Carter beats Republican Gerald Ford.Carter promised to never lie to the public.
· New Dept of Energy created.
· Convinced Congress to pass $18 billion tax cut - Economy continued to drop.
Carter's Humanitarian Diplomacy
· Focused on human rights and black rights in Rhodesia and South Africa.
· Sept 1978: Egyptian Pres Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin signed Peace Accords - seen as success. Israel to withdraw from territory gained in 1967 war as long as Egypt respected Israel's borders.
· Africa: Communist revolutions; not all successful, but caused fear.
· Carter pledged: 1. Return control of Panama Canal to Panamanians (if they guaranteed permanent neutrality of the canal) 2. Resume diplomatic relations with China in 1979.
Tmwk
9. Pg 961 Top Picture: What historic event took place in Sept 1978? (include which president was involved.) Add OI
Carter Tackles Ailing Economy
· Inflation rising: by 1979 at 13%.
· Carter felt America's problems coming from dependence on foreign oil.Called for legislation to improve energy conservation, public didn't support.
Carter's Energy Woes
· 1979 Iran's shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi, installed by U.S. in 1953, was overthrown - Ayatollah Khomeini became leader who opposed Western customs.
· Iran stopped exporting oil; OPEC raised oil prices, causing oil crisis.
· Carter chastised Americans for obsession of material woes. Stunned the nation.
· He fired 4 cabinet secretaries.
Tmwk
10. Pg 963 Picture: What event is the cartoon topic? Why is this event significant? OI?
Foreign Affairs and Iranian Issues
· Carter met Soviet leader Brezhnev to sign SALT II agreements; senate refused to ratify it.
· Nov 1979: anti-American Muslim militants stormed U.S. embassy in Tehran, took hostages - Demanded U.S. return exiled Shah Pahlevi who was in U.S. for cancer treatments.
· Dec 1979: USSR invaded Afghanistan (USSR'S "Vietnam").
· USSR posed a threat to America's oil supplies so Carter placed embargo on USSR - boycotted Moscow Olympic Games.
· Called for "Rapid Deployment Force" to quickly respond to crises anywhere in world.
Iranian Hostage Humiliation
· Iranian Hostage Crisis: Carter tried economic sanctions to force release of hostages - failed.
· Commando rescue mission: aborted when military aircraft collided
· Hostages released Jan 1981-inauguration day of Ronald Reagan.