d

Reaga
n
THE RISE OF THE
MODERN
CONSERVATIVE
MOVEMENT
Ronald Reagan
 Born in Illinois, 1911
 Lifeguard, Radio Announcer
 Launched an acting career
during the Great Depression
 Became conservative during
socialist and communist
threats in the movie industry
(HUAC)
 Switched from Democratic to
Republican Party in the late
50s/early 60s
The 1980 Election

 Between current
President Jimmy Carter
(Democrat) and
Republican Ronald
Reagan
The New Conservative Coalition
The NEW RIGHT
 Conservative evangelical
Christians
 To restore Christian Values in
America
 Southern Democrats
 Reduction of Social Programs
 Called for reduction in size and
power of government
 Favored return of US military
pride
 Patriotic focus
The 1980 “Revolution”
 Carter’s perceived
mishandling of major
challenges
 Reagan’s ability to
communicate - “The Great
Communicator”
 Few simple well-articulated
idea
MAP 30.4 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1980 (P. 903)
Assassination Attempt
 John Hickley Jr. – assassin
 Wanted to win Jodie
Foster’s heart
 Three people shot,
including Reagan
 Just 69 days into first
presidency
 Reagan recovered to shot
in lung
 James Brady, Press
Secretary suffered a head
shot and was disabled.
Supply-Side Economics a.k.a
“Reaganomics”
 Cut taxes to put more
money into the hands of
businesses
 Cut taxes on the wealthiest
Americans
 Lower taxes = more
investment in the “supply
side” of the economy
 Would:
 promote and create new jobs
 encourage capital
investment, and
 lead to stimulated industrial
growth
ECONOMIC THEORIES
 Supply Side Economics (generally favored by
conservatives):
 Tax breaks to the wealthy capital accumulation
higher productivity lower prices job creation
higher tax revenues collected by the government
money to reduce federal budget deficits.

 Demand Side or Keynesian Economics (generally

favored by liberals):
 tax breaks to working/middle classes higher
productivity job creation higher tax revenues
collected by the government money to reduce
federal budget deficits.
Cutting Government
Regulation - “deregulation”
 Continued Carter’s
programs to deregulate
key industries
 Energy, Transportation
and Banking Industries
 Challenged Air Traffic
Controllers in 1981 -
Fired those who refused
to go back to work
after a strike.
Slowed Federal Growth - New
Federalism (Reagan-style)
 Limiting government
 Eliminated public service
jobs
 reduced unemployment
compensation
 lowered welfare benefits
 raised fees for Medicare
patients
 Federal domestic
spending still grew for a
couple of years
Reagan and
Military Buildup
 Sharp increase in military
spending = buildup
 New weapons and new
technology
 Neoconservatives (Neo-
cons = Dick Cheney,
Don Rumsfeld, Paul
Wolfowitz, Condoleeza
Rice, Richard Armistead,
Colin Powell, etc.)
 Strategic Defense
Initiative (SDI) = better
known as Star Wars
Reagan and the Cold
War
 Called Soviet Union the “evil
empire”
 Reagan - Cold Warrior
 Lebanon
 Libya
 Grenada
 El Salvador
 Nicaragua (Contra rebels
supported by US)
Reagan: Economic
Recession, and Recovery
 1981-1982 Recession
 Inflation slowed, consumer spending increased
 Stock market grew
 Federal deficit grew even as domestic spending
decreased
 National debt = $909 billion in 1980 --- $3.2 trillion in
1990
Election of 1984
 Patriotic Renewal
 59% of popular vote
 Second largest electoral
victory in history
 1984 Olympics in Los
Angeles
 Communist-bloc
countries boycotted
 1986 - 100th anniversary
of Statue of Liberty
 1987 - 200th anniversary
of the Constitution
Other issues 1984-1988

 AIDS Awareness
 Women’s Movement stalled (ERA failed in 1982)
 Supreme Court conservatives
 Sandra Day O’Connor
 Anthony Kennedy
 Antonin Scalia
 Chief Justice William Rehnquist
More issues: 1984-1988
 Farm Crisis - foreclosures
 Manufacturing shift - from
metal and textiles (overseas
= outsourcing due to labor
costs)
 Service sectors continued
to grow
 Wealthiest Americans
flourished in the 1980s
 Jan 28, 1986 - Space Shuttle
Challenger exploded
shortly after take off
 Cold War Continued

 Afghanistan
 Soviet republic
 In 1970s Afghans tried to fight
Soviets for independence

• 1980s
 USA convinces Saudi Arabia to send
troops “mujahadeen” (holy warriors)
to fight against Soviets
 One of the mujahadeen is Bin Laden
IRAN-CONTRA
 What was it?
 Sale of weapons to Iran to ransom US hostages
held in Lebanon and to finance
anticommunist contra-revolucionarios
(contras) in Nicaragua in order to depose the
Sandanistas
 Illegal because Congress had limited amount of aid
US could provide (Boland Amendment)
 US sold arms to Iran
 Illegal because he could not sell arms to a “terrorist
state” without Congressional approval
 Administration response: lied to the press and
Congress, withheld crucial documents